Clear coat repair

**Dadillac** · 05-09-2013, 06:32 PM

Oh and water will only cover up scratches that are in the clear. If the scratch is through the clear and into the color the water test will not make the scratch disappear

Don

**supra90** · 05-10-2013, 10:35 AM

When you say "shoot some clear" you mean spray. I do have clear touch up, but I don't think that will work. It will look......well touched up. Would clear coat spray from a Pep boys work? I am afraid if I sprayed the clear and let it dry, then it would not blend. We are talking a few defects here that are both about a dime in diameter.

**supra90** · 05-10-2013, 10:49 AM

It's a small area and will take a pic. I don't know how to transfers pics from camera to my computer, but will learn. It scratch does not look like it is thru the clear, but I used 2000 grit sand did about 5 passes, and buffer with Megs compound and then polish. I knew it was not good when I wet sanded and the defect remained. I was told to leave it alone. The engine coolant was very hot, when I opened my hood to see what as going on it spurted onto the headlight. I should have gotten a wet rag right away but didn't do anything until I drove home. It was too late. You don't see it from 10 feet. You have to be on top of it, and looking at it from the right angle because it is a clear defect. But I know about it, and there are a few tiny black spots from the engine coolant that look beneath the clear. I think it needs a whole repaint. Body shop guy told me he does not sand down the clear and re-clear. He said they would have to put down some base coat and then re clear. Really don't know what to do? Should I try to spray it myself? It is a few tiny spots, so a good candidate for a spot repair, but I am afraid if I spray it......I could make a mess...

**Dadillac** · 05-10-2013, 07:15 PM

I will assume the whole headlight cover is smaller than 12" x 12". I would get a can of "real" clearcoat. Since this is a small area spray the entire piece. Buy it online from a place like Automotivetouchup.com Touch Up Paint, Aerosol Spray Paint and Touchup Paint Accessories | AutomotiveTouchup | 888-710-5192. The stuff in auto parts stores isn't bad but I feel it doesn't hold up well. Again if you wet the area and the defect disappears then clearcoat will give the same effect. Two light coats and a medium wet coat should do it. After it dries for a week or so you can wet sand (very lightly) to even out some of the orange peel. If you take your time and reference the surrounding panels you can get a fairly even amount of orange peel on the new clear as what is on the rest of the car.

Don

**supra90** · 05-10-2013, 08:08 PM

Originally Posted by Dadillac

I will assume the whole headlight cover is smaller than 12" x 12". I would get a can of "real" clearcoat. Since this is a small area spray the entire piece. Buy it online from a place like Automotivetouchup.com Touch Up Paint, Aerosol Spray Paint and Touchup Paint Accessories | AutomotiveTouchup | 888-710-5192. The stuff in auto parts stores isn't bad but I feel it doesn't hold up well. Again if you wet the area and the defect disappears then clearcoat will give the same effect. Two light coats and a medium wet coat should do it. After it dries for a week or so you can wet sand (very lightly) to even out some of the orange peel. If you take your time and reference the surrounding panels you can get a fairly even amount of orange peel on the new clear as what is on the rest of the car.

Don

Thanks Dadlillac. Yeh....the headlight is about 7"x7". When you say two light coats and a medium coat, how long should I wait between coats? I'll try the water test. So your saying if you put a drop of water on it, and you can still see the scratch then it is thru the clear. I drive with the headlight up, so the very back doesn't have to be perfect because it is actually under the hood. The only damage you see is closer to the front. I am concerned about spraying around my fender and could probably take the cover off. I just have NEVER cleared anything before with a can. How far should the can be from the panel? Also there is virtually NO orange peel around the rest of the car. And there is a lot of wax on the thing I would have to take off. Do you know the best way to do that other than soap?
p.s. I will put a pic up. Basically it is some etching resembling bird poop that is triangular in shape. About the size of a half a dime in two spots. So we are talking about something that you really can't see unless you know about it. It just bothers me because the car especially the front nose looks like a mirror with no defects. Also a few tiny black spots went down thru the clear. I don't think spraying would help that. I just don't want to do a repaint because it is going to be hard to match the blue pearl color of the 90. 8G5. The headlight could come out looking great but just won't match. Blue is a tough color to match, especially on an old car. Trying to avoid a basecoat repaint if possible. Also with the light up there is blue on the side....not just the top. We are talking about a half inch of light blue that goes around the perimeter. Should that be cleared also? Or just the top? I think I will take the headlight off, tape off the sides and try it. Might be a good idea to practice on a panel first. Just never sprayed clear before, and concerned it could become a cloudy mess. Thanks

**supra90** · 05-10-2013, 08:24 PM

Actually I used that company before to get touchup paint. There pretty good. They have two types of clear one that you have to wear a mask. I think the one on the top for $7.95 is the one you are talking about. I would have to soap, and then use a solvent to get off the wax. Than do a few light sprays waiting about 10 minutes in between. This is really an operation for someone with some experience. Maybe I will practice on a junkyard panel.

**Dadillac** · 05-11-2013, 08:50 PM

The idea is to wet the area. While water is on the defect look closely. What you see is what you will see if you cover it with some clearcoat. If it is still visible it will be visible after clearing. Use dish soap (it is made to cut through grease) and wash the light cover. Then mask off around the panel so you do not get clear where you don't want it. Wipe the area with alcohol and a non linting towel like a real good quality microfiber. Spray a light coat of clear. You aren't trying to finish in one coat so don't go overboard. Wait about 10-15 minutes and give it a second light coat. Wait another 10-15 minutes and spray a medium wet coat. This is where you can go wrong. Too light and you will need more clear. Too wet and you will get runs. Runs aren't the worst thing as you can wet sand them out. Just makes the job harder.

It may be a good idea to get a cheapo can of paint (any color) and practice a little to get a good technique. It seems harder than it really is.

When you wet sand out the orange peel, there will be some, take your time and use light pressure and a slow pace. Many issues happen in this stage. If you do even a half decent job you will be pleased with the outcome

Don

**supra90** · 05-12-2013, 12:49 PM

Thanks Dadillac. Will try the water test. However, some engine coolant did go thru the clear. How do I know? I do see a few tiny black spots that look like it is "underneath" the clear. The engine coolant was very hot, so must have burned thru on contact. But again thanks for your help. But first things first. And I will most certainly keep you posted.
Just wondering....after that last coat how long should I wait to wet sand out orange peel? I think you mentioned a week. Just wanted to confirm that. Also I have heard there are some solvents that help you spot blend the clear. I really only have to fix the back third of the cover. The damage is a about three etched spots, each the size of a half a dime. The whole area it is spread around is the back two inches of the headlight. I can live with most of the damage because I drive with the headlights up. So the whole problem is in the back part.
So I would rather try a spot clear repair and blend. I just saw that there are some solvents to help blend old and new clear. But I guess you are saying just do the whole headlight. Do I have to do anything to the front part other sand soap and alcohol? I guess you are saying I have to spray the whole 7x7.

**Dadillac** · 05-12-2013, 09:35 PM

I would spray the whole thing. It is too small to try a spot repair. You will end up with runs guaranteed. It will be easier and have a better end result to just do the entire panel.

Usually I would wet sand after 24 hours of cure time. But since you aren't wet sanding the surface before clearing give it a full week to cure. That will ensure good adhesion and the clear will be more difficult to burn through while sanding.

Don

**supra90** · 05-15-2013, 02:57 AM

Had one more question. Had nose of Supra repainted. Shop did an excellent job. However, when he sanded down the clear the whole things came out like a mirror, except one small spot down at the tip. I think he wetsanded a little to deeply, so you see a little light blue spot. It is long and thin about 6 inches across nose, by half inch wide. Could that be repaired in the same way you described above? I know spot repairs are not easy to blend.
You have to understand I am a total novice. I don't even know what grit to wet sand down with before or after? This is similar to above story, in that if it is cleaned with solvent/alcohol it should not be a problem. I guess it would be the same process. Two light passes and one heavier one. I am just concerned that after it cures, I could wet sand and it won't look like a mirror like it does now. I am afraid of ripples, or little spots of new clear on old clear, or general cloudiness. Is it possible to spray new clear from a can over OLD clear and blend it? I would NOT wet sand before hand. It does not need it. Surface is smooth as glass. Just a little rubbed down along that thin line at the very tip. What is the best grit for wet sanding this down. I have 600 and 2000. And of course a good buffing wheel with Meg's cut compound and polish.
Also you mentioned "many issues" when wet sanding out orange peel. Curious what are you talking about? What grit would you use? How many rubs would you give? How do you know when to stop wetsanding? I guess you can see thru the wetsand when the orange peel is gone. We are talking about microns here. You really need the soft hands of a dentist lol.