How long to wait

[01AUDI]

I have a couple big chips that have gone down to the metal so I bought a touch up pen direct from the manufacturer. It comes with the paint and a top coat sealer.

How long do i need to wait until i can use my d/a for a paint correction ? I was trying to make time to use my AIO now that the weather looks promising soon.

[itsgn]

If it's a solvent-based paint, you can probably wash it as soon as 24 hours after application - but mostly only with water and no soap, because the agents in the soap might interfere with the bonding/curing process, which usually takes a lot longer. However, in that regard, you should primarily adhere to the manufacturer's instructions, which I'm pretty sure talk about that.

As for polishing it, for the same reason as washing, I'd wait at least two weeks or a month. Not so much because of the risk of stripping the fresh paint, but because if it's not fully cured and hardened yet, you won't be able to polish it as effectively, and the polished surface will become dull as it dries/cures even more. Of course cure time is - as always - highly dependent on temperatures and humidity.

Also, be prepared that after you have applied the touch up paint and have let it cure fully, you'll have to wet sand the surface, in order to level it and get a smooth finish. If you're not prepared or comfortable doing that (which is admittedly not recommended for beginners), better think twice before applying the paint, because without leveling, you might end up with worse, more obvious flaw in/on your paint, than what you have now.

One other thing is, that if the paint you're touching up is older than a few years, the car has been standing a lot in the Sun, and your touch-up paint is not adjusted to that, it will not perfectly match your original paint, but will be darker. Which again, might make any touched up spots - especially if they're large and on a flat surface - appear afterwards worse than they are right now.

[inDetail]

I would just leave it until the warm weather. Use some a little Iron X to stomp any corrosion if your that concerned. Clean it up and put a sealant or wax on it. Then when you get time and good weather wax or seal it again. I would use some Collinite 845 or 476 tuff stuff for this weather.