A Bit of Paint Correction: Ever since I got the van back from the paint shop, the blue part of the van has not sat well with me. There is some kind if "fluffy" orange peal going on. The off white part is perfect. I went back to the shop and expressed my concerns. The painter guys explanation as to why the off white was so good compared to the blue was that there are more pigments needed to make up the blue so it will have this funny orange peal. Yea right! so I thought there is no need to argue. Here have a look at what I am on about:
Look at the edges of the white square piece of Styrofoam. No, the camera is not out of focus. It is focusing on the Styrofoam which is about a meter from the van so the tape gets out of focus.
The area I will be working on has been taped off to prevent accidental damage to adjacent area. Again here look at the Styrofoam
Here I have to say that I have zero experience in paint correction. I turned to that wonderful teacher, U-tube. Basically what was needed was to sand down the paint and re-cut it. Having zero experience, I decided to try out an area not so visible in case I destroy the paint. Hence the lower part of the door where the eyes don't usually go.
Materials used:
2000 and 2500 grit wet paper, a sanding block, generic rubbing paste bought from the paint shop and a lamb's wool buffing wheel.
Procedure is quite simple, wash the panel with soapy water to remove any road grit. Tape off the area being worked upon. Sand down with 2000 grit, follow with 2500 grit. Between each step dry off the panel and examine the sanding process. We are looking for an even matt surface with a faint spattering shinny specs. Those shiny specs are the dips of the orange peal. If we want zero orange peal, we sand out the shiny specs. After that is done wash the panel and follow with the cutting compound. Here I learnt that this is a tricky process. If not done evenly, the paint reflections are uneven. Means as the eyes go over the reflected object in the paint, its reflection is not constant. There are sharp and dull points. I had to re-cut the paint in a few places to get an even look. Following the generic cutting paste, I followed with Maguire's Ultimate Compound and that was followed with Maguire's swirl remover. I have yet to follow with some carnuba wax.
The Styrofoam has much better edge definition but the top end along the tap is a bit fuzzy.
Not happy with the depth of shine. I need to figure out what is happening. on the plus side, the edge definition of objects reflected has improved.
So that is where we stand. I need to work out why the shine is not deep.
Here is the fender of the Jaguar painted by Vebra Motors in I-9. Sadly Vebra has closed its doors to business.
Now that is a fine paint job. Look at the hair on my finger being reflected. That's a deep shine!
Anyhow, I need to get more experience and learn more before I attempt the rest of the van.