Mike Phillips
12-13-2013, 11:39 AM
Clearcoats are Scratch-Sensitive (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/ask-expert-featuring-mike-phillips/74234-clearcoats-scratch-sensitive.html)
My long-time friend and icon in the car world Barry Meguiar
http://www.marine31online.com/gallery/data/611/Barry_Karen_Meguiar_Mike_Phillips_002.jpg
Barry Meguiar visits Mike Phillips and his antique wax collection (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/ask-mike-phillips-your-detailing-questions/99874-barry-meguiar-visits-mike-phillips-his-antique-wax-collection.html)
The above picture was taken when Barry and his wife Karen were visiting Autogeek and checking out my antique wax collection in my office.
Now onto the article....
Barry Meguiar coined a term back in the 1980s to describe the unique characteristic about clearcoat paints. I always give due credit where credit is due. I never steal other people's work and present it as my own.
Here's the term Barry Meguiar coined,
Scratch-Sensitive
This means even though the paints are very hard they still scratch very easily and because there's a colored layer of paint under the clear, the colored layer works to amplify and magnify the surface or topical scratches making them easy for the human eye to see.
This drives car enthusiasts up the wall.
It also confuses people to no end because it's hard for people to wrap their brains around the concept of how a car's paint can be very hard but then scratch so easily.
The hardness factor smacks you upside the head when you're first learning how to either hand or machine polish because you find out real fast removing the swirls out of a clear coat finish is not as easy at it sound like it should be.
Again, this is for people brand new to working on clearcoats, seasoned pros acquire the skills that make removing swirls and scratches for them very easy via experience.
Once a person completely understands and fully grasps how the hardness factor affects the time, energy and resources required to remove swirls and scratches out of a modern clearcoat finish the light bulb in their head turns >on< and then they understand why it's so important to make sure that ANYTHING that TOUCHES the paint needs to be of the highest quality you can obtain and there needs to be some thinking going on as to the way or manner in which you touch the paint.
In other words, once you figure all of the above out and then buff your car's paint out to the point that you're happy with it, now you have to be mindful of,
How "you" wash and dry it.
How "you" wipe it with any type of spray-on product.
How you let "someone else" wash it.
How you let "someone else" wipe it with any spray-on product or even touch it at all.
The above 4 things are how a car is "touched" the most for most people and most cars. (think about it).
Make sense?
Clearcoat paints are scratch-sensitive. They are harder than traditional single stage paints but even though they are harder they still scratch very easily and because they are hard it's difficult to get the scratches out.
Abrasive Technology
This leads into the next topic people discover and that is the most important factor that determines if swirls and scratches are removed WITHOUT the product, pad and process simply replacing one type of defect and replacing it with its own type of defects, (holograms or micro-marring), and that factor is the abrasive technology. The stuff inside the bottle.
So be careful how you work on your own car and if you let someone else work on your car make sure they are qualified.
This includes taking your beautiful brand new car to ANY type of car wash, (things touch your car's paint at a car wash).
Or if you take your car to the dealership to have the oil changed because dealerships love you so much they will have your car washed, (touched), by their car wash guys...
See these articles...
How to maintain a freshly waxed car (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/hot-topics-frequently-asked-questions/40056-how-maintain-freshly-waxed-car.html)
DON'T WASH CAR !!!!!!!!!!! (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/ask-expert-featuring-mike-phillips/66855-don-t-wash-car.html)
Scratch your car for $5.00 (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/off-topic/40142-scratch-your-car-5-00-a.html)
The reality of the 100% Hand Car Wash (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/hot-topics-frequently-asked-questions/40122-reality-100-hand-car-wash.html)
And the really BIG reason all of this is important?
Because clearcoats are THIN. The factory sprayed clear layer of paint on most new cars averages around 2 mils. That's thinner than the average post-it note.
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/715/Clearcoat_Paints_Are_Thin_01.jpg
The next time you see a post-it note... feel it between your fingers... this is usually all it takes to drive home the point as to how thin the paint is on your beautiful, shiny car.
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/715/Clearcoat_Paints_Are_Thin_02.jpg
There you go...
Win/Win
Please feel encouraged to share the link to this article with anyone you think needs to be brought up to speed about the paint on their car.
:)
My long-time friend and icon in the car world Barry Meguiar
http://www.marine31online.com/gallery/data/611/Barry_Karen_Meguiar_Mike_Phillips_002.jpg
Barry Meguiar visits Mike Phillips and his antique wax collection (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/ask-mike-phillips-your-detailing-questions/99874-barry-meguiar-visits-mike-phillips-his-antique-wax-collection.html)
The above picture was taken when Barry and his wife Karen were visiting Autogeek and checking out my antique wax collection in my office.
Now onto the article....
Barry Meguiar coined a term back in the 1980s to describe the unique characteristic about clearcoat paints. I always give due credit where credit is due. I never steal other people's work and present it as my own.
Here's the term Barry Meguiar coined,
Scratch-Sensitive
This means even though the paints are very hard they still scratch very easily and because there's a colored layer of paint under the clear, the colored layer works to amplify and magnify the surface or topical scratches making them easy for the human eye to see.
This drives car enthusiasts up the wall.
It also confuses people to no end because it's hard for people to wrap their brains around the concept of how a car's paint can be very hard but then scratch so easily.
The hardness factor smacks you upside the head when you're first learning how to either hand or machine polish because you find out real fast removing the swirls out of a clear coat finish is not as easy at it sound like it should be.
Again, this is for people brand new to working on clearcoats, seasoned pros acquire the skills that make removing swirls and scratches for them very easy via experience.
Once a person completely understands and fully grasps how the hardness factor affects the time, energy and resources required to remove swirls and scratches out of a modern clearcoat finish the light bulb in their head turns >on< and then they understand why it's so important to make sure that ANYTHING that TOUCHES the paint needs to be of the highest quality you can obtain and there needs to be some thinking going on as to the way or manner in which you touch the paint.
In other words, once you figure all of the above out and then buff your car's paint out to the point that you're happy with it, now you have to be mindful of,
How "you" wash and dry it.
How "you" wipe it with any type of spray-on product.
How you let "someone else" wash it.
How you let "someone else" wipe it with any spray-on product or even touch it at all.
The above 4 things are how a car is "touched" the most for most people and most cars. (think about it).
Make sense?
Clearcoat paints are scratch-sensitive. They are harder than traditional single stage paints but even though they are harder they still scratch very easily and because they are hard it's difficult to get the scratches out.
Abrasive Technology
This leads into the next topic people discover and that is the most important factor that determines if swirls and scratches are removed WITHOUT the product, pad and process simply replacing one type of defect and replacing it with its own type of defects, (holograms or micro-marring), and that factor is the abrasive technology. The stuff inside the bottle.
So be careful how you work on your own car and if you let someone else work on your car make sure they are qualified.
This includes taking your beautiful brand new car to ANY type of car wash, (things touch your car's paint at a car wash).
Or if you take your car to the dealership to have the oil changed because dealerships love you so much they will have your car washed, (touched), by their car wash guys...
See these articles...
How to maintain a freshly waxed car (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/hot-topics-frequently-asked-questions/40056-how-maintain-freshly-waxed-car.html)
DON'T WASH CAR !!!!!!!!!!! (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/ask-expert-featuring-mike-phillips/66855-don-t-wash-car.html)
Scratch your car for $5.00 (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/off-topic/40142-scratch-your-car-5-00-a.html)
The reality of the 100% Hand Car Wash (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/hot-topics-frequently-asked-questions/40122-reality-100-hand-car-wash.html)
And the really BIG reason all of this is important?
Because clearcoats are THIN. The factory sprayed clear layer of paint on most new cars averages around 2 mils. That's thinner than the average post-it note.
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/715/Clearcoat_Paints_Are_Thin_01.jpg
The next time you see a post-it note... feel it between your fingers... this is usually all it takes to drive home the point as to how thin the paint is on your beautiful, shiny car.
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/715/Clearcoat_Paints_Are_Thin_02.jpg
There you go...
Win/Win
Please feel encouraged to share the link to this article with anyone you think needs to be brought up to speed about the paint on their car.
:)