Check out the before and after.
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NOTHING looks as good as black (when you put that much elbow-grease into it!). Nice job! angela
Hey Ben!
I'm not a 'flared fender' fan, but your black Speedy looks "awesome".
You'll have a hard time concentrating on the road when you're driving it with all the honking horns and thumbs-up attention it will surely draw!
MUSBJIM
I'm not a 'flared fender' fan, but your black Speedy looks "awesome".
You'll have a hard time concentrating on the road when you're driving it with all the honking horns and thumbs-up attention it will surely draw!
MUSBJIM
Wow - that's quite a shine! Is that to the original gel coat? What grade W/D paper did you use - 1200/1500 grit? What was next step then - Maguires products (rubbing/polishing compound) with a 2 speed buffer. Inquiring minds want to know. How long did it take?
Thanks!
It is the orig. gel coat. If you notice in the first pic the door does not shine at all. (Tire looks funny cause it is turned.) It is because it was almost flat in shine and rough as sandpaper. The cowl in front of the windshield was worse than the door. The nose had been painted with flat black rattle can. Looks like it bumped a curb somewhere down the line and caused some fine spider webbing near the hood. The sanding took care of all the rough spots and reduce the fine cracks by 50% or so. (The cracks were in the gel coat only) Also took care of the rattle can paint.
All in all it makes a big difference. For the most part i used 1000 grit then 1500. In some areas where I wanted a even finer shine with less effort (like the tops of the fenders and engine lid area) I used 2000. Then I used professional grade no. 7 rubbing compound followed by a pad swap to a fine compound and then a machine glaze. Then I used Zymiol wax (good stuff). I used a variable speed buffer from Makita. Slower for the no. 7 then med for the finer compounds. Oh yea I went through two right arms..
Trick is not to work an area very long with th buffer. If you are in an area more than a few minutes move to another area and wipe down/come back to the area. The gel is pretty soft and will get too hot and discolor. keep the pad moving over wide areas.
Sounds like a long process but the car is so small that it goes fast. Took better part of a Saturday and a couple nights after work.
It is the orig. gel coat. If you notice in the first pic the door does not shine at all. (Tire looks funny cause it is turned.) It is because it was almost flat in shine and rough as sandpaper. The cowl in front of the windshield was worse than the door. The nose had been painted with flat black rattle can. Looks like it bumped a curb somewhere down the line and caused some fine spider webbing near the hood. The sanding took care of all the rough spots and reduce the fine cracks by 50% or so. (The cracks were in the gel coat only) Also took care of the rattle can paint.
All in all it makes a big difference. For the most part i used 1000 grit then 1500. In some areas where I wanted a even finer shine with less effort (like the tops of the fenders and engine lid area) I used 2000. Then I used professional grade no. 7 rubbing compound followed by a pad swap to a fine compound and then a machine glaze. Then I used Zymiol wax (good stuff). I used a variable speed buffer from Makita. Slower for the no. 7 then med for the finer compounds. Oh yea I went through two right arms..
Trick is not to work an area very long with th buffer. If you are in an area more than a few minutes move to another area and wipe down/come back to the area. The gel is pretty soft and will get too hot and discolor. keep the pad moving over wide areas.
Sounds like a long process but the car is so small that it goes fast. Took better part of a Saturday and a couple nights after work.
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Considering the pictures are compressed on the site, that is pretty amazing. Must be really nice in person. Great job.
-=theron
-=theron
My God - how I do admire your patience! I have a hard time working up interest in a wax job after washing. I've read many articles on paint and body finishing and seen a bunch of those fabricating shows on the TV. I really admire people who can do that kind of work . . . and over - and over - and over. You should feel very proud of YOUR result.
Thanks! Actually, I have only done this to a couple of cars of the past ten years. I also admire those that can do over and over.