Looking for your input on fixing the rock chip pictured below on a Viper. It is definitely deep and is about 2-3mm in diameter but does not appear to be completely through the paint.
Should this be filled before applying touch-up paint? Any and all help welcome. Thanks guys.
"The greater danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it." - Michelangelo
"Like" us Facebook.com/AlchemyAutoDetail
I have seen that before; thanks for linking it though. We've done some pretty decent rock chip repairs but never anything as deep as what this is. We're just concerned about applying touch-up paint only in such a deep chip.
We've done some pretty decent rock chip repairs but never anything as deep as what this is.
We're just concerned about applying touch-up paint only in such a deep chip.
As long as you clean the chipped out surface really well I don't think it would be a problem to fill it with only touch-up paint. That's how I would approach it. I don't think I would go to the extent of adding filler/bondo and then applying paint over the filler.
I think the key to a good repair besides getting the chipped area really clean would be to add a little touch up paint at a time and let it fully dry before adding more.
Fill till a little over level with the surface. Sand the top of the touch-up paint lightly and then rub any sanding marks out carefully by hand. Machine polish afterwards to create a uniform appearance over the entire area and then seal with a wax, sealant or coating.
As long as you clean the chipped out surface really well I don't think it would be a problem to fill it with only touch-up paint. That's how I would approach it. I don't think I would go to the extent of adding filler/bondo and then applying paint over the filler.
I think the key to a good repair besides getting the chipped area really clean would be to add a little touch up paint at a time and let it fully dry before adding more.
Fill till a little over level with the surface. Sand the top of the touch-up paint lightly and then rub any sanding marks out carefully by hand. Machine polish afterwards to create a uniform appearance over the entire area and then seal with a wax, sealant or coating.
Thanks for confirming our course of action Mike. The chip was given 2-3 coats of touch-up last night and each one continued to recess itself into the chip so I think we've got a couple more to go. I'll be sure to throw some pictures up here of the before and afters and some progress pics if I can. Just one thing we've always been unsure of; youre saying to wax or seal over it immediately after we finish correcting the area. Touch-up doesnt need drying/off-gasing time like a normal spray?
Also, I dont care how much money I had, I would not pay for a repsray on an entire panel for one rock-chip. Not to mention that this rock-chip is down to the primer through what has to be two full "coats" of paint as the front bumper has been repsrayed once. I'ts the thickest I've ever seen a vehicle's factory paint if not. We've done touch-ups before and they were great. This one will prove a challenge being so deep but we've got the car for 5 days and dont have to rush application, drying, leveling, or sanding.
Good to see you've got a start on it. Although being that deep, I'd either try Dr. Colorchip on it, letting it do it's thing, using the leveler, and slowly building it up.
OR
Get a tube of the fast setting Bondo, (not the one you mix). Putting that into the chip and leveling it out with a scraper/card/plastic razor blade. Once it hardens you could then use both the sides, and especially the corner of a Megs Unigrit block.
First working with the corner to get around the edges, making it a bit of a recess. Actually once it dries overnight (the quick set Bondo) it'll shrink a tad.
Then you can use regular touch up paint, or of course Dr. Colorchip. Starting heavier in the center, working towards the outer edges, building up a film inside the crater. As it gets closer to level then you can start going a bit heavier on the outer edges. Finally going beyond the edges and build up 2~3 (or more) coats.
The biggest problem with a huge hole like that, (as you've already noticed) is paint itself doesn't want to fill it. Then once you do get it there it'll be really soft. Especially when compared to the paint around the area.
Doing the fill, sanding, then painting will end up giving you a better end product. That Viper red is fairly hard, (we did one last fall) and with filling / sanding it'll not be that hard to blend. But will take a decent amount of hours of work to achieve however. It's not an easy decision which way to go there, just depends on the owners expectations. I agree somewhat though that if he can afford the car, (and the insurance that goes with it) he can surely afford a quality chip repair.
just has to be something that the owner
The reality is the owner is going to either have to pay for a proper chip repair, or pay the deductible on his policy and end up with the (earlier mentioned) panel spray.
Thanks for confirming our course of action Mike. The chip was given 2-3 coats of touch-up last night and each one continued to recess itself into the chip so I think we've got a couple more to go.
Sounds about right.
As paint dries it shrinks. The mistake most people make when trying to use touch-up paint to fix a rock chip, especially a deep rock chip is they get into a hurry and try to add too much paint too soon.
The take a divot, (a chipped out area), and turn it into a blog. This then creates a new, opposite problem.
Originally Posted by mac11wildcat
Just one thing we've always been unsure of; you're saying to wax or seal over it immediately after we finish correcting the area.
Touch-up doesn't need drying/off-gassing time like a normal spray?
I should have said let the paint dry real good first before doing all of the finishing steps.
Paint does need to outgas and fully harden before sealing but when working on small stuff like this it's not the same big picture issue it would be than if say you just re-sprayed a 1971 Chevelle that is a factory 454 car. Like this brand new paint job...
Also, I don't care how much money I had, I would not pay for a respray on an entire panel for one rock-chip.
I agree. Especially knowing that if you did do that, the next day according to Murphy's Law you would probably get a new rock chip on the same panel making all that time, money and energy for naught.
Originally Posted by mac11wildcat
This one will prove a challenge being so deep but we've got the car for 5 days and don't have to rush application, drying, leveling, or sanding.
And on the topic of drying, leveling and sanding, not so much for you but for anyone reading this into the future, here's my comments based upon experience on this topic.
1. When possible, let the paint dry longer. You want the touch up paint as dry and hard as possible before you start sanding and buffing on it.
The problem you can run into when you start buffing on touch-up paint is when you warm it up, especially when using a rotary buffer, you can actually pull the touch-up paint right out of the scratch or rock chip if you're attempting to do this to a rock chip. Then you're back to where you started only now you've got sanding marks in the surrounding paint.
2. Touch-up paint will always be softer than the factory paint surrounding the repair, here's how this affects the buffing process. When you go to buff out your sanding marks, they will buff out quickly and easily out of the touch-up paint because this paint is softer, especially if it's only dried a short time. The surrounding paint will be harder and thus it will be harder or more difficult to remove your sanding marks out 100%
It's easy to sand paint as at it's core that's putting scratches into the paint... the tricky part is getting the ALL out...
When doing touch-up repair work on clear coat paints, what I've seen and experienced is the sanding marks come out of the touch-up paint quickly and easily but not so with the factory clear.
So what a person does is continue buffing the sanding marks in the surrounding clear paint and what happens is you heat the panel up and your buffing pad will literally pull the touch-up paint out of the scratch or chip.
3. You really need a rotary buffer to remove sanding marks 100%
Can you do it with a DA or Flex or even Cyclo? Sure but it will take longer. Again the sanding marks will come out of the touch-up paint quickly and easily, it's the surrounding factory baked-on clear coat that you'll need to be concerned with.
Try to finish sand with #3000 or higher before buffing.
Bookmarks