Guest bastaad525 Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 the guy at earl shceibb said I definately COULD buff this paint...and that it was single stage eurethane paint... even all their posted info says they use eurethane paint. Come on guys, NO good news at all here? I really wish someone had warned me about this stuff before I even picked the car up yeah I know I get what I pay for... in the end I keep kicking myself in the head, telling myself that I really can't take this paint too seriously and not to get all worked up about it... hell the body is so dinged up the scratches would probably be the last thing anyone would notice... I knew it wasn't going to stay looking like new very long (Tim: just like I said when you offered to take pics of it for me... I quote myself "I would DEFINATELY like to get some pics for posterity before it gets all screwed up, which I'm sure wont be long"... sometimes it sux being right)... but two weeks? I hate to imagine what it will look like in a year (which incidentally is how long it is warrantied against fading, bubbling and peeling... maybe I should arrange to have one or more of these things happen and get it repainted for free). Ah well it was nice while it lasted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike kZ Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 Dude, don't go off the deep end! It's not that bad, and can be fixed. If it's urathane 1 stage it can be fixed easily. First let the car sit in the sun for another week, don't worry about water spots they will come out. Then get some good compound like Tim said. Now you can do this by hand, but it would be easier if you bought a cheap buffer. Use the compound in a small hidden area first, in the shade, to see how it goes. Put some compound on the buffer pad and work it in letting the machine do all the work. Do Not push down to make it faster. Once you see that most of the scratches are gone, do the rest of the car. Then find a good glazing polish, change your buffing pad, and do the whole car the same way you did it with the compound. Then wax, either by hand or change the pad again, and use the buffer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bastaad525 Posted December 5, 2003 Share Posted December 5, 2003 RacerX - lots of good info thanks dude Nah I was very calm and polite with the guy at the paint shop, just explained to him what I had done and what the results were. He kindly offered to have me bring the car down for him to have a look, though he did not seem to have any solution in mind, at least not that he mentioned. They did paint the car very soon before I picked it up... from what I understand they paint it then bake it in UV light or something like that for about 30 minutes to 'dry' it, and this is something they do for all paint jobs. By the time I picked the car up it was 5pm, cold out... looked like it was going to rain as a matter of fact, and the paint stayed soft all night and I believe most of the next day. About the water spots... the car really never sits in the sun. At home I park in a covered garage, and I work at night... the only time it sees sun is during my 45 minute drive home every day and it's morning sun, around 7-9am depending on what day. For anything I do in the daytime I usually take my g/f's car. Does that mean then that the water spots are not baked on and that I should attempt using the vinegar solution to get them out? Or should I wait longer for the paint to dry before attempting it. I didn't use a terry cloth for anything, just the chenille sponge, which feels VERY soft to me, and the Absorber thing to dry. ahhhh but then today... the straw that broke the camels back... after washing the car again yesterday, rather a rinse I gave it, didn't use the sponge, just went to the self wash car wash, washed it with soapy water and rinsed, then used the absorber again to dry it... and of course I go out to my car today and find it just covered in dust... damn leafblower guys!!! And I mean COVERED, to the point where my friend saw it and commented "did you just get the car out of storage or something??" It would seem fate is conspiring against me ever having a nice, shiny, clean looking Z.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavyZ Posted December 9, 2003 Share Posted December 9, 2003 The Absorber is a great tool and I love mine--I have two: one for me and one for the wife. Yes, it leaves behind a very small contingent of droplets, but you'd have that with a regular chamois as well, not mention a bad smell after a few days (on the chamois). If you have water spots that look white on the paint and they won't come off with regular washing, try vinegar--it has a small amount of acetic acid that can dissolve those stubborn spots--works for window water spots as well. You can try waxing the paint after it is clayed, but it needs to be done after your paint has cured. It has cured, yes? Keep at it and don't blame the absorber. It does need to be rinsed out before using it. Davy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moridin Posted December 9, 2003 Share Posted December 9, 2003 Aren't those Absorbers just micro fiber towells? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavyZ Posted December 9, 2003 Share Posted December 9, 2003 Aren't those Absorbers just micro fiber towells? Not like the microfiber drying towels. They are thick, almost rubbery synthetic chamois. I like them! Davy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moridin Posted December 9, 2003 Share Posted December 9, 2003 I use the micro fibers for everything. No swirl marks, or anything. They're also great for washing windows, because they pick up so much crap that they leave it spotless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bastaad525 Posted December 19, 2003 Share Posted December 19, 2003 well.. been over a month... maybe I didn't wait long enough, I dunno. Anyways, washed the car again today, and decided it might be a good time to try to wax it. Went and bought some Meguiar's wax and some 100% cotton "diaper" towels and followed the directions to the word. Applied the wax with one towel, allowed it to sit until it got cloudy looking, and wiped it off. Yet another mistake... the car is now COVERED with swirl marks. I dont understand this... soft cotton towel... clean car with no dirt or dust on it to get picked up in the towel and get dragged accrossed the paint... and a brand of wax that I thought was supposed to be one of the best... the car looks really bad when the light reflects off of it. I WISH I knew someone with a nice high $$$ car so I could ask them just what they do to keep their cars looking like new because I'm obviously not doing it right.... Of course, anyone with a high $$$ car probably pays someone else to do it for them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ON3GO Posted December 19, 2003 Share Posted December 19, 2003 i always use liquid glass wax and juist follow the directions, but apply around 4 coats on it.. i also stripped it before of all wax that might have been on there.. but i dunno if you should do that.. i had some swirl marks but after applying more more coats on they just went away.. i also used a few different tops of wax's and all worked pretty good. thanks after 2 coats... i know you have been having trouble with your paint but maybe you should bring it to a car detailer and let them look at it.. mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim240z Posted December 19, 2003 Share Posted December 19, 2003 well.. been over a month... maybe I didn't wait long enough, I dunno. Anyways, washed the car again today, and decided it might be a good time to try to wax it. Went and bought some Meguiar's wax and some 100% cotton "diaper" towels and followed the directions to the word. Applied the wax with one towel, allowed it to sit until it got cloudy looking, and wiped it off. Yet another mistake... the car is now COVERED with swirl marks. I dont understand this... soft cotton towel... clean car with no dirt or dust on it to get picked up in the towel and get dragged accrossed the paint... and a brand of wax that I thought was supposed to be one of the best... the car looks really bad when the light reflects off of it. I WISH I knew someone with a nice high $$$ car so I could ask them just what they do to keep their cars looking like new because I'm obviously not doing it right.... Of course, anyone with a high $$$ car probably pays someone else to do it for them High end car would have a high end paint job....therein lies the rub (no pun intended). Those cotton towels are not that soft. I always use cheese cloth. Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bastaad525 Posted December 19, 2003 Share Posted December 19, 2003 i know you have been having trouble with your paint but maybe you should bring it to a car detailer and let them look at it.. mike yep... that's on my list of to-do's when I have some extra $$$. obviously keeping paint looking nice is NOT something I can do well... just not in my genes I guess! Tempted now to try that liquid glass stuff... I thought the meguiars was good stuff though?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bastaad525 Posted December 19, 2003 Share Posted December 19, 2003 Tim - what is cheese cloth and where can I get it? Never heard of it before... what about these 'micro fiber' cloths? There are some made by the same company that makes "The Absorber" that come with some kind of wash/wax stuff already on it... like baby wipes for your car not meant to be used on a dirty car really but supposed to be a good in-between thing to use between washing/waxing just to keep it looking nice. Anyone tried these or anyone else recommend just using the regular micro fiber cloths in general? By the way, I take those pics as an indicator that the car is up and running?? I always seem to miss your update posts... I'd love to see your car fully finished and doing a burnout well okay just to see it running would be sweet as well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gtmattz Posted December 20, 2003 Share Posted December 20, 2003 cheesecloth is essentially a really big piece of cotton gauze, the name come from the fact that it was originally use for, you guessed it, making CHEESE! ;D It is super soft tho, and shouldnt scratch paint. From http://www.cookingvillage.com Cheesecloth is a lightweight natural cotton cloth that won’t fall apart when wet or flavor the food it touches. It comes in both fine and coarse weaves, the latter commonly available in supermarkets; Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPMS Posted December 20, 2003 Share Posted December 20, 2003 STOP washing your car! I know you're excited to have a fresh looking car, but you're not doing yourself any favors by gouging holes in the paint! Wait at least three more months in this cold weather before trying again. It's the winter, for the love of Pete. Cars are SUPPOSED to be dirty this time of year! One thing I did years ago was to throw away all my sponges. I've got three black cars and a black bike, and they all show swirl marks REAL well. Sponges hold dirt in them, and are next to impossible to get clean. I now use a very soft car-washing brush that I can rinse clean every few seconds. Rinse - shake out - dip into car wash bucket - soap up 3-4 square feet of the car - repeat. The soapy water in the bucket looks fresh when I'm finished washing my car. Using sponges, the water in the bottom of the bucket looked like filthy. Also, I second the vote for diapers, especially well-used ones. They work great for removing wax without damaging paint. One thing to keep in mind when using anything made of cloth is that you don't want to use any sort of fabric softener on them. The silicones in the softeners will keep them from absorbing as much water, and I think they might add to the streaking problem. Inexpensive buffers are okay to use, but you can't do the job with the bonnet they include with the kit. Go to an auto paint store, bite the bullet and buy a good wool bonnet with a good quality backing pad. Good backing pads will conform to the surface of the car MUCH better than the cheap, crappy pad that came with the buffer and will be ten times easier to use. For waxing I use an inexpensive random orbital wax applicator. It's called a Waxmaster, or something corny like that. Even though it's cheap, it still does a better, faster job of applying wax than I can by hand. Buy one at a pawn shop for ten bucks, and go buy some cotton waxing bonnets that you can throw into the washing machine after you're done. I can wax my car in 15 minutes with one of these babies. If you're having problems streaking on dark paints, try wiping it off just before it's fully dry. There have been some spots on my cars that come out streaky unless I do this. Apply the wax, let it sit for a minute, rub the heck out of it (lots of rubbing with light pressure), removing all but traces of wax, then come back later and rub over it with a fresh dry diaper cloth. I don't know why it works, but it seems to. One last thing I might suggest. Friends on the BMW list have had good results with Zymol (not the $18 "made by Turtle Wax" variety you get at Pep Boys, but the $80 a jar variety you buy over the net). It goes on clear, and never really dries. It doesn't leave visible residue in body seams, and the jar supposedly lasts for years. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bastaad525 Posted December 20, 2003 Share Posted December 20, 2003 I've only washed it 3 times... only because the idiot leaf blower guys come blowing dust all over my car and then it rains and turns it to mud, and I was warned that if I let that stuff sit too long on the car it can leave permanent marks. I've only washed it using one of those chenille sponge things, which seems to do a good job of retaining and pulling the dirt away from the paint, and when I'm done washing the car the water in the bucket does still look fresh, no dirt on the bottom. Then again... I really have no idea how well it works for keeping dirt away and not scratching the paint. Anyways... hairline scratches aren't bothering me as much any more... I"ve kinda accepted that they're always gonna be there. The wax stuff I used was some of the cleaner/spray wax... not full on wax only. I used it mostly because someone advised me that it did a good job of pulling out the waterspots, which I will say it definately did, but left behind tons of streaks instead... Ah well... I do give up for the time being. I'll do my best to keep it clean... I bought one of those special duster things that you use to dust the car that has some special kind of wax coating that is SUPPOSED to keep it from scratching... I'll use that and wash the car if it get's really bad, and in another month or two I'll take it to a detail place and have them wax it for real and buff it out and see how it looks then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim240z Posted December 20, 2003 Share Posted December 20, 2003 By the way' date=' I take those pics as an indicator that the car is up and running?? I always seem to miss your update posts... I'd love to see your car fully finished and doing a burnout well okay just to see it running would be sweet as well![/quote'] I'm just waiting for Speedway Engineering to finishing making my axles. last I spoke to them, the shafts were being heat treated. Should have them by early next week. Hope they are done before Xmas!! Then I'll post a pic of a good burn out!! I should have all the little odds and ends finished up this weekend. Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bastaad525 Posted December 20, 2003 Share Posted December 20, 2003 aw dude... all useful tips that I could have used BEFORE doign what I did today!! Ah well live and learn I guess. So, if i do have marks left just get some more towels and keep wiping it? Or is that stuff gonna be too hard to wipe off now? By the way... that little clip about the cheesecloth said there is coarse and fine types, I'm assuming I need the fine weave? It did say the coarse weave is common in supermarkets... where can I get the fine weave?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bastaad525 Posted December 20, 2003 Share Posted December 20, 2003 anyone in SoCal/Valley area with a buffer and some good wax product want to make some extra $$$? I'd be willing to pay a fellow Z owner to do it if it would be less expensive than having a detail place do it... Just thought I'd ask Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim240z Posted December 20, 2003 Share Posted December 20, 2003 Bryan, I have a buffer. I am not going to do a thing to your car, but you are welcome to borrow it. Tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ON3GO Posted December 20, 2003 Share Posted December 20, 2003 i wouldnt buff your paint dude.. not sense its pretty new and because of how many paint layers you have... just get some good wax, real wax not the spray stuff and go at it for a hour or 2.. take your time... trust me, doing a few coats and a few other things will bring the paint out to be looking fine.. just take your time and do it correctly.. mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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