paint problems

[1989c4]

I tried to remove some overspray picked up at a repair shop with rubbing compound, Needless to say one side of my clamshell is scratched. Any suggestions on how best to fix it. Paint is bright red and was in excellent condition. year is 1989. thanks, 1989c4

 

[Justin_cv87]

Welcome to the Im not sure about your problem, but i know Zaino sells some paint restoring and protecting stuff, and word on the street says they the best.

 

[BlackNBlue95]

Can you post a Pic of the Scratch so we can see it.. some scratches can be buffed out some can't you can use touch up paint but it never really looks new and you can always tell it has been touched up.. repaint is the best way to go.. unless it's real minor.. In that case just clean it up the best you can and leave it.. cars get scratched.. wait till the paint starts too look bad all over and have the car repainted.. one advantage we have over metal cars is that it won't rust.. a few weeks after I bought my car I accidently rubbed the bottom of the door on a curb and put a scratch on it.. I almost threw up no joke.. was very ****ed now it's cool.. I will touch it up when i get the chance to get some touch up paint and then one day when there are too many scratches in the paint I will have it repainted..

 

[Grzldvt]

For overspray, you should use a clay bar. The overspray is above the clearcoat and the claybar will remove it with damaging the clear coat.
What rubbing compund did you use? If it is a heavy cut and you have relatively deep scratches I would use Meguiars Fine Cut Cleaner, if they are not too bad, but noticeable then Meguiars Swirl Mark Remover or 3M Swirl Mark Remover(this being the preferred product).
You need something with a very, very mild abrasive to clean them up
Zaino's Swirl Mark Remover will fill in swirl marks, but if they deep, it will not do what you are looking for. It is great to use after you have most of the deep ones removed.
Always clean up the factory paint by hand and be a bit careful about rubbing hard. You have already cut into the clear with the rubbing compound so a hard rub with even a milder abrasive could put you through the clearcoat.
Steve
SF Bay Area Zaino Distributor

 

[1989c4]

paint

thanks so much for the help. I will let you know how it turns out. 1989c4

 

[sothpaw]

...minor scratches

Grzldvt,

...To be clear: if I have a minor scratch or swirl mark I should
go over it with the 3M swirl mark remover, then the Zaino Z5?
or is this "Zaino swirl mark remover" another product I don't
know about?

--I assume doing the above by hand, with no mechanical buffer,
won't rub too much into the clear coat if one is gentle and doesn't
work so hard as to heat the surface up a lot.

Am I straight?

 

[LOUVETTE]

PAINT SHOP

IF IT WERE ME ...ID TAKE IT BACK TO THE BODY SHOP AND HAVE THEM HAND RUB OUT THE CAR AND WAX IT FOR FREE SINCE THAY DID IT AND DID NOT USE PROPER CAR WHEN HANDLING YOUR CAR IN THEIR POSSESSION.....LIKE COVERING IT UP WHEN THEY PAINTED...

 

[JohnnyC]

Re: PAINT SHOP

IF IT WERE ME ...ID TAKE IT BACK TO THE BODY SHOP AND HAVE THEM HAND RUB OUT THE CAR AND WAX IT FOR FREE SINCE THAY DID IT AND DID NOT USE PROPER CAR WHEN HANDLING YOUR CAR IN THEIR POSSESSION.....LIKE COVERING IT UP WHEN THEY PAINTED...

I have to agree. I also suffer from some over spray. If you dont like that place, try a auto detailing shop. If it is a well know place, they probably done 1000's of fancy cars and know what they are doing, and can work wonders, you be surprised. I was! John

 

[Lani's 93]

overspray

First definitely look at Zaino. The clay bar process is part of the Zaino system. It removes contaminants, brake dust, rail dust, etc from the surface. It prepares the surface whether your going to use Zaino or another product. It's a must for brand new or used Corvettes. New one's have rail dust from being transported. The brake and rail dust are micro fine metal particals that embed in the paint and destroy it over time. Zaino has very good details about each product what they do and how they work (www.zainobros.com).

The repair shop is most likely going to use a product called 3-M Finesse-It II (spelling?). Its basically a liquid 1000 grit sand paper. It will remove most scratches and paint errors, but its least effective by hand and takes skill with a buffer.

Before I would take the more drastic approach with Finesse-It, I would highly recommend you try the clay bars. You will be truly blown away at the results it produces. And if your planning on applying Zaino, it will make the finish look so deep like it has several extra coats of clearcoat on it. The best way I can describe a finish that has Zaino, it looks like its optically perfect. And plan the day for it, it takes a while to cover every square inch of a C4.

On dark finishes I would higly recommend using the Zaino Z5 product to remove any swirl and scratches. These are the little fine scratches that appear in the surface, you can see them by varying your view of the painted surface under a good light so you can see the reflection in the surface. Lots of times they occur from just washing it and drying it. The Z5 will remove them all. The more times you put the Z5 on you will see fewer and fewer scratches until they are gone. It took about 3 times on mine to remove every fine scratch. It appears afterwards like its a perfect sheet of plastic glass.

As for rubbing compound, I would stay away from that at all cost. I realize you've already used it. The 3-M product is much milder to the surface but neither compare to clar bar which is harmless yet good for the surface. I do mine about once a year, just to remove any new contaiments that have since occurred. And it doesn't affect the existing application of Zaino.

For myself when I got my 93, it had these very fine chip-like marks in the upper rear quarter panel similar to chips from gravel but way to high for that. I tried the Finesse-It on them and on an area on my hood to try to remove some overspray and those chips. It didn't work that well by the hand method. Then I got the clay bars and it completely cleaned my hood so that now it is optically perfect and those chips on the side were virtually gone. I have spotted less than 4 or so, from what was hundreds of them. I was totally amazed and would not have believed the results if I hadn't done the work and seen the results myself.

Trust me on the Zaino. You can spot a Corvette at a show that has Zaino on it. It is so obvious. Oh Ecklers carry's the Zaino products too. But the Zaino website has tons of details on it. Also if you email Sal Zaino he will respond very quickly to answer any questions you may have.

I wouldn't be so enthusiastic about the products if I hadn't seen the results and believe in them. A co-worker has a 95 polo green. Ours both have about the same milage and looked similar side by side before I put the Zaino on (I use to use Liquid Glass) but now when the are parked together its like night and day difference. My 93 has such a deep deep shine, not a scratch in the reflected light and it has so much more brilliance to the color.

Good luck, Lani

 

[sothpaw]

Zaino

Lani,

Do you Dawn wash it each year before the clay bar?

I Zaino'd this year, but didn't spring for the clay. I picked some up
at Carslile, but it is Meguire's. Hope that's good enough.

So, next year, I'll clay first and try 3 coats of Z5 like you used(
got to top that off with Z2 though for best optics).

I have the 3M finisse it and swirl mark removers, they helped,
I only tried them in a few very small areas by hand.

Would it be alright to try the 3M stuff after I clay it and before
I put the wax on, do ya think?

 

[Lani's 93]

Only the very first time to remove all contaminants and existing waxes. After that noooo, only Zaino's car wash.

I'm not familiar with what Meguire's is selling, I'm assuming here your speaking of the clay bars.

In my opinion I too would limit the use of Finesse-It. Once you have it all in shape from the clay bars and Zaino that should pretty much take care of it. Perhaps if some how you picked up a new scratch or something that would warrant Finesse-It.

No I would say not to use Finesse-It after you have clay bar'd and applied the Zaino. Understand that the clay bar process if preparing the surface removing all contaminants. Putting something else on before Zaino just puts more contaminants on there. You can really tell after clay bar application that the surface is pure and sterile and requires the next step before its exposed to the elements. I'd say that the clay bar process took me, the first time, about 3 hrs, then I re-washed it with Zaino car wash and put her back in the garage. Dried it off and applied the Lok. After that dried I applied one coat of Z5, let it dry for a couple of hrs and then late in the nite put one more coat on. Figured while it was all tidy might as well. I wasn't going anywhere. The second time I did the clay bar, it took less time probably about 2 hrs. I checked with Sal to be sure what I was doing was ok, and he gave me more tips and such.

BTW, I have a word document that I created from all his correspondence that details the procedures if any one is interested.

If your doing this for the first time, i.e., clay bar then Zaino, I would make sure you use the Lok first then the Z5. The Lok doesn't get removed, its kind of like applying RainX to the surface except you leave it on and after it hazes then apply the Zaino. The Spray Enhancer also should be used just before additional coast of Zaino are applied. I'm on my 2nd bottle of Lok so I think I've used it three times now before I apply additional coats.

Also read the info on Zaino's site, he's very specific about the types of white cotton towels you use. I followed his instructions to the tee, and can assure you of the results.

I believe your looking around $69. for the clay bars, Lok, wash, enhancer, and Z5 plus two applicators. It is probably a few dollars cheaper from Zaino directly but I paid the extra to Ecklers just for the conveniences. And about $25. for towels at Target.

Oh I also have his glass cleaner. It works very well to remove old rainx and crap that gets into the pores of the glass. It makes the wipers perform better. But I also apply the Zaino to the glass top and hatch as well (I clay bar'd those two parts too). I asked him and he said it was definitely ok to use on it. It performs the same on the glass surface as it does on the painted surface.

Good luck. Plan the day for it and you'll enjoy the results. Lani

 

[The Car Whisperer]

Go with ZAINO, i've been using it for a few years now Their stuff is excellent, and they will personally talk to you over the phone if you have any questions. Definitely look to their products first if you have paint issues.

 

[compyelc4]

"Claying" a finish IS the way to go. I am not familiar with the Zaino product but it sounds similar to a product I used a few months back on my wife's weathered '92 Honda. It is called "Clay Magic". It retails for about $9 here in Ohio, USA. The kit consists of a palm-size gob of blue clay and a bottle of some type of wetting agent. Sray a small area with the agent, then palm the clay around on the surface you would like to restore. It cuts overspay, birdcrap stain, and what have you in an instant. You can use the clay over and over again, but I would imagine that after a few applications the clay would pick up some unsavory surface contaminants that one would want to avoid. I've done backyard bodywork for years and never used clay. Claying really is everything these previous posts say it is. You will be amazed!

Ted Valley

 

[WhalePirot]

Just discovered clay. I echo the remarks.

Just got other polishes; wished I'd know of Zaino, first, but it's never too late, is it?

Thanks, pals.

 

[Grzldvt]

Ok gang, I appreciate the kudos for Zaino, however, a clay bar will do nothing for scratches, just the overspray.
As stated, if the scratches can be felt with your fingernail, use 3M swirl mark remover, if they cannot then the Z-5 Swirl mark remover will do the trick. It may take several coats to clean them up.
The towel situation goes for any wax/polish system. Use 100% cotton towels made in the USA. When towels are made in the USA you are sure they will be all cotton. Anything else will recreate your swirl marks.

I just did 3 cars with Z-2 and Z-5 using a Microfibre applicator and towels. The results were fantastic, no swirls at all.
I have a few more tips on my website, based on my experience with customers, especially Clay Bar usage.
http://grzldvt.50megs.com/Zaino/zaino.htm
You can slso send me questions via Email
zainosj@pacbell.net

 

[compyelc4]

GRZ- Right you are! I forgot what the problem was.

Ted

 

[Yoda]

Hey Steve,
Nice seeing you here at CAC

Bud & Nanc Dougherty
Modesto

 

[Grzldvt]

Bud, it is fun to be here!! MIssed you at the infamous stop in Lee Vining this year.