Rough paint

[thompsonjoshua]

Bought a new (to me) car a few weeks ago. Have no idea how long its been since its been since it had a good wax and some care taken on the paint. Its a Florida car, and the paint is good and dark, and for the most part the clear coat looks to be in good shape. Its just dirty and rough. The hood especially is rough. When I went to wax it the wax would barely come off and it left lots of streaks. The paint is still very rough feeling even after waxing and you can see the watermarks and rough spots from stones, etc and there are some minor scratches. I know I need to do something to the paint to remedy the roughness and get it ready for a good wax job but am up in the air on what do buy. I would be doing it by hand. Looking for advice on the best mild (polish, cleaner, compound, etc) to use to smooth out those rough spots and then the best wax to bring out the shine. The color is a dark metallic blue which looks awesome in the sun and I want it to look rich and dark and as shiny as possible. But there again I'd be doing this all by hand so the products need to be "hand" friendly. Thanks in advance for all help.

[stealth]

Re: Rough paint

Wash w/Meg's gold class or nxt wash. Get Meg's clay bar, use quick detailer as a lube & clay the entire car. Yes it is labor intensive but for good results good prep work is a minimum requirement. IMHO w/o seeing the surface I would try Meg's colorx using 2 thin coats then evaluate the finish. This can be accomplished by hand but not w/o a lot of time & passion. Good luck!

[thompsonjoshua]

Re: Rough paint

Thanks I'll look into that. The clay bar did cross my mind, atleast for the hood.

[bernard78]

Re: Rough paint

Well you can use clay bar to clean the rough surface, then use a cleaner wax Deep Crystal 1 - slightly need more effort to wipe off, then you can try the meguiars Nxt tech wax - its easy to apply and remove by hand. It should do the job. And gives you a deep shinning silkly surface...Hehehe. Quite easy huh...

[Murr1525]

Re: Rough paint

I agree, definately needs clayed, and I would vote for some ScratchX on the scratches and bad water spots, to at least try and improve them.

Stealth's process is also pretty solid, though if you work in the ColorX well, you may not need 2 applications. Or a well worked in coat now, and a second well worked in coat in a few weeks.

I very often do a similar process as my car is a daily driver, so investing too much time isnt worth it:

1. Wash - Remember to use two-bucket system, and good towels, sponges.
2. Clay - Dont just worry about the hood. Clay everything, including glass.
3. ScratchX any problem areas.
4. ColorX
5. Top ColorX with Nxt Wax or #21 Synthetic Wax. I love #21.

[thompsonjoshua]

Re: Rough paint

Thanks for the ideas. I've been reading elsewhere in the forums and have learned much in a short time. Thanks again. Time for some good cleaning.