How-To: Touch-Up exterior paint

APN · Post by **APN** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 1:10 am

Buy the following items:

600-2000 grit sand paper
A clean cloth &#40;lint free&#41;
Paint primer
Paint that matches the color of your car
Newspaper
painters tape &#40;blue&#41;

Start by sanding each touch-up spot with a lower-grit sandpaper (less than 1000 probably is best)
Remove all chips and excess paint that is coming off
It is a good rule that whatever you plan on painting, sand.
Do not sand so much that you take the primer off
When finished sanding, clean off with water and dry with a lint-free cloth
Place newspaper around the spots you are painting and tape off with the blue painters tape
make sure there is no oil on the place you are painting from your hands.. If you touch it, clean it.
Now, use a paint that is meant for cars.. I used a spray can.. you may use something else.
Spray 4-6 inches away from the spot spraying left to right, right to left never stopping in the middle of your spraying 'line'
apply one light coat at a time and wait ten minutes between each coat
Between each coat, lightly sand the area
when the current coat is dry (or tacky), apply another coat
Once finished, wait twenty minutes for the paint to dry (or until dry)
Remove the painters tape and newspaper from your car
Get your 2000 grit sand paper and sand down the edges of where you touched up to prevent peeling in the future
Your touch-up paint will probably be slightly off from the color of your car
Stand back and take a look

Paint (Note the spray nozel):

First coat:

Second coat:

Third coat:

This is good on almost any part of your car.. Just a note that anything you can remove and put back on that you are planning to paint, make sure you remove it.. It is much easier to paint that way and there is no taping required then.. just put down a tarp

jrumann59 · Post by **jrumann59** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 4:08 pm

A side note most 1st gen colors are available thru Duplicolor just look for the color name not the code.

try here: http://duplicolor.anthonythomas.com/mat ... _maker.cgi

as for clear coats I use rust-o-leums crystal clear enamel, it is much easier to work with since it goes on thick. Duplicolor's clear coats are rather thin and you will be there awhile sanding.

APN · Post by **APN** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 4:10 pm

Thanks man!

BDigital · Post by **BDigital** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 1:23 pm

could you show a picture of how it matches the paint around it now that it's dry?

thanks

APN · Post by **APN** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 4:07 pm

Per request I used Dupicolor acrylic enamel..

My paint chipped off again because I used a pressure washer to wash it, but you will get the idea on the differences between my paint and the paint in the can.

Lackof · Post by **Lackof** » Wed Mar 28, 2007 4:11 pm

you need to include after you get done with your last coat of paint .. get your cleat coat and add it in lightly a few coats at a time. After that take a high gritt paper 2000-3000 and get a bucket of water and wet sand the area in between clear coats to give it a nice and smooth finish. On your last coat let it dry then wet sand it one more time and then you can stop.

BDigital · Post by **BDigital** » Thu Mar 29, 2007 10:02 am

so add a few layers of clear coat, let it dry, sand it, then add your last coat, then let it dry completly and then sand it one last time, then wax it i assume, or buff it?

also, how many layers did the neon get painted with?

APN · Post by **APN** » Thu Mar 29, 2007 10:13 am

BDigital wrote:so add a few layers of clear coat, let it dry, sand it, then add your last coat, then let it dry completly and then sand it one last time, then wax it i assume, or buff it?

also, how many layers did the neon get painted with?

The above was three layers with no clear.

Lackof · Post by **Lackof** » Thu Mar 29, 2007 10:56 am

BDigital wrote:so add a few layers of clear coat, let it dry, sand it, then add your last coat, then let it dry completly and then sand it one last time, then wax it i assume, or buff it?

also, how many layers did the neon get painted with?

Don't wax it for a week let it settle in. Or powerwash it too.

BDigital · Post by **BDigital** » Thu Mar 29, 2007 7:53 pm

out of the factory,how many coats of paint were on a neon?

APN · Post by **APN** » Sat May 05, 2007 3:02 am

BDigital wrote:out of the factory,how many coats of paint were on a neon?

I'm betting three or four... most likely four...

NinjaneonTurtle · Post by **NinjaneonTurtle** » Sat May 05, 2007 10:05 am

Skill wrote:
BDigital wrote:so add a few layers of clear coat, let it dry, sand it, then add your last coat, then let it dry completly and then sand it one last time, then wax it i assume, or buff it?

also, how many layers did the neon get painted with?
Don't wax it for a week let it settle in. Or powerwash it too.

Waxing/buffing is the worst thing you can do to a fresh paint job. its still porus for at least 90 days until it finally settles. But I don't know about acrylics, it could be within a shorter amount of time. Everytime it sits out in the sun, it opens up again so if you're gonna wash your car do it in the morning or the evening when its cool. You can always let it sit in the shade all day then go into the shade and wash it. Otherwise you're gonna get those little watery ring looking things and they're gonna stay.

You can powerwash, just wait a couple days after sitting it out in the sun to bake. Also with your own powerwasher and from a reasonable distance, not 6 to 10 inches fromt the thing.. If it starts chipping/peeling even at a distance then its either too fresh or the sanding wasn't good.

Oh and 2000 is okay to sand your clear but only on flat surfaces, like the hood, roof and decklid for that extra glassy finish. It settles in easier cause its flat. For the rest of the curves and gravity challenged panels I'd say 1000-1500 gets the job done. Just don't break through.