How To Refresh Dull Paint?

[NMC_EXP]

I have an '89 Toyota pickup, all original and red in color.

The truck spent most of its life in east Oregon. The paint is not crusty oxidized, it is just dull and not very red anymore.

I've hand waxed it a few times with Meguiars cleaner/polish and the applicator pads and polishing rags end up red, so it seems there is no clear coat. But after waxing the paint still looks dead.

Any recommendations on what products might make this paint look better?

I do not own a buffer. If I were to buy one for polishing cars should it be a random orbital type or conventional? I do not see myself getting into painting cars if that matters.

Thanks

Jim

 

[JCruse]

Red paint is a high solids paint and polishes out nice. You need an abrasive polish like meguiars #105 and a random orbital polisher of reasonable quality to get down to fresh paint. 105 works VERY fast so don't work it in one section for more than a minute or so (stop when it gets dry). When finished this might be good enough for you, or you could go on to #205 to bring out a deep shine. As I said single stage red is a nice paint to restore because it gets very reflective, almost mirror like if you do both steps.

 

[Fast Eddy]

I'd do it by hand. I like Carnuba Wax, like Blitz. You have to keep after it with old paint though, maybe twice a year.

 

[NMC_EXP]

Thanks guys.

 

[AussieHJCruza]

X2 on red paint polishing out nice.

I would recommend learning to use a rotary polisher. I do car detailing and, seriously, hand polishing gets old after about 10-15 minutes. An orbital is better but is slow and vibrates too much. A rotary is ideal for polishing because it's fast and smooooth! I do recommend getting an old panel to practice on though because it's not that hard to cut through the clear (if applicable) and/or burn the paint from too much heat.

What I would recommend is this: With the car in the shade

1. A thorough wash and chamois

2. Clay treatment. This involves using 'detailing clay' and a quick detailer. It's pretty easy, all you have to do is spray the quick detailer onto the paint and move the clay back and forth over a surface no more than a metre (~3.3 feet) in size in straight lines. Knead the clay regularly to keep the surface on the car clean and don't drop it on the ground. Once the surface feels smooth and the clay glides over smoothly, wipe off the spray with a soft cloth. Doing this pulls contaminants such as tree sap and industrial fallout off the paint so that when you start polishing, there's nothing between the polisher and the paint.

3. With a foam cutting pad on the rotary, set the speed to around 1500-1600 rpm and put a X of mediumly (Is that even a word??) coarse abrasive polish across the pad. Using light to moderate pressure (the pad should squish a little bit) move in straight lines up and down and then sideways across a section about 1 foot in size. Keep up this crosshatch pattern until the polish has just about disappeared or the surface is starting to look rejuvenated. Wipe it off before it dries and move onto a new section, adding more polish as necessary to keep the pad damp but not wet with polish. You may have to repeat this a couple of times.

4. With a foam light cut or polishing pad, move to a fairly fine polish and use the same steps until, when it's wiped off, an image in the paint looks pretty clear and all the haze/dullness is gone.

5. With all the polish wiped off, using a microfibre or foam applicator pad or a finishing pad on an orbital polisher, apply a light coat of wax to the surface using the same crosshatch pattern and passing over each area several times. I am a fan of Meguiars Ultimate Synthetic becuse it's tough and looks just as good IMHO as a carnauba, but if you're doing up a show cruiser, use a natural carnauba wax. It looks slightly 'wetter.' When the wax goes hazy and if you swipe your finger across the paint and the wax comes off with no smears, wipe it off with a microfibre or cotton towel. If it looks streaky, wait 10-15 minutes and try again.

Also X2 on the Meguiars products. Griot's Garage also make some good stuff.

Sorry about the massive rave. I hope some of it makes sense. If you brought your truck to me, this is what I'd do to it and I think you'll be glad you did. It'll cost a few hundred dollars to get set up but you won;t be sorry you did.

But, once again, you must practice on a spare panel or on the vehicle with a fine polish and polishing pad before starting high speed cutting. A rotary takes way more getting used to than a random orbital polisher, but it is well worth it. This comes from someone who has both - the rotary is my machine of choice for polishing and paint correction; The RO for waxing.

PS: This link might be of interest...
http://www.carwash.com/articles/in-depth-polishing-and-waxing-2

 

[hellname]

It really depends on the condition of the paint. But I were you I would sand it down and machine polish the whole vehicle.

 

[sggoat]

Dupont No. 7 polishing compound

 

[MScruiser]

Wash with high soap concentration to remove all grime and old wax.
Then:
1.) Clay Bar
2.) Mild polishing compound like Chemical Guys V34 with a DA Polisher. Buff off with microfiber towel.
3.) Fine polishing compound like Chemical Guys V36 or V38 with a DA Polisher. Buff off with microfiber towel.
4.) Protectant/Sealer. I like JetBlack 109. Apply by hand or DA. Buff off with microfiber towel.
5.) Wax. I like Chemical Guys Butter Wax. Apply by hand with a Microfiber applicator. Buff off with microfiber towel.

You can get a good DA buffer from Harbor Freight for about $60 right now with a coupon.

Buy a 5" hook and loop backing pad from Amazon for $10

Get your polishing/finishing pads from Amazon. Rupes and Chemical Guys make great pads with good reviews.

Reapply the JetSeal 109 and Wax every 6 months to a year for the life of the car.