Hi guys, I've read a few posts here about how to take care of scratches but I was hoping for some more guidance from some of you familiar with body work.

When I got my hood and new bumper painted, I asked the body shop guys to go around the whole car and buff it out. The only place they couldn't do anything about was some scratches on the rear bumper (which I don't remember seeing when I bought the car). I was told that they were too deep and the only thing they could do would be repaint the bumper. That shop has given me great prices (at least I think) so far, so I am not oppose to having it all repainted whenever I get around to having the trim pieces painted, though I can honestly think of 10 other car parts I'd rather spend money on.

That being said, are there any products out there that will do a decent job with these scratches that could not be professionally buffed out? I've seen Meguires Scratch X2.0 being recommended, and have seen a lot of commercials for Dr. Color Chip... would either product be worth it?

Let me know your thoughts on how to get my black limited looking just a little bit better...

 

Can you feel the scratches at all with your fingernail? If so, odds are they are indeed too deep to safely remove as doing so would involve removal of too musc surrounding clear coat. If you can just barely feel them you might be able to correct them with some light wet sanding and compounding to remove the resulting sanding marks. But be warned - this is a very advanced process; if you've never done this then this is NOT the time to learn!

At this point I'm actually much more concerned with what the body shop might have done to the finish when you had them buff out the whole car. Body shops and detail shops have vastly different mindsets and disciplines when it comes to this sort of thing. Just as I would never let a detailed paint my car, I'd never let a body shop detail my car. My big fear is holograms left by speedy use of a rotary buffer. No prmeanent damage, and certainly nothing that couldn't be fixed, and I hope I'm wrong. But I'm also the most nit pichy SOB you'll likely ever meet on the subject, given what I do for a living.

 

Some of them are deep enough to feel which I take it is bad. Would any of the touch up paint stuff do a decent job of hiding the scratches?

 

Touch up paint can either be really awesome or a total pain in the ****. Kinda depends on your skill with it, but it's really best for little rock chips rather than scratches. It's extremely difficult to blend it into scratches, even when you really know what you're doing.

 

No idea what I'm doing Lol

 

I just used a GERMAN PRODUCT CALLED Quixx. They have a scratch repair kit.It consists of rubbing compound with 3000 grit wet sandpaper and instructions. It worked. All it takes is a delicate touch. Walmart supplied.. gary

 

So for any real results I'll need to do some actual sanding and blending? So the easy scratch remover products or Dr. Color chip aren't worth the time/money?

 

If you can see the primer or whatever is underneath the paint then it's gone to deep and would have to be repainted. Did the shop try to get the scratches out or did they just decide they couldn't? You may still be able to make them less noticeable but it depends if they have already tried, otherwise you may be wasting your hard earned money.

 

As some of the scratched don't seem that deep I assume the shop didn't try anything.. unfortunately its a bit of a large area with varying severity..

 

If that's the case you can get a number of products that should help, try applying with a damp terry cloth in a circular motion then wipe with a micro fiber. May help.

 

Just wondering if anyone has heard of Touchup 123? I used it several years ago and had great luck with it. But I can't seem to find it anywhere anymore. They color matched a special polymer paint to your color code so you could work it into a scratch and then wipe the extra off with a special solution they had. Anyone know if it's still out there anymore and where to get it before I buy the Lagtka kit and try factory paint?

 

Either route I'd be interested to know your results as I can't get rid of my scratches on the rear

 

I've never heard of "pretty" scratches. The Meguiars Ultimate Compound and Scratch-X will make them less visible, but if they are deep there is no way to make them disappear without professional help.

 

haha valid... the Scratch X didn't really do much

 

You want scratches removed? You're going to need a rotary polisher, an abrasive cutting compound to "mend the paint", and a polish to bring back the luster. I can go on and on, and it's a lot of work...but so worth it!

 

A bit above my skill level.. should I try and find a detailer shop? Or am I better off having a body shop pull it and respray it?

 

Hard to see without a picture. If it's too deep, no detailer can fix it an it'll need to be painted. But if it's barely surface deep, it should be repairable.

 

I'll try and snap a shot in the AM... its definitely noticeable and can be felt pretty clearly so I imagine its deep enough to require a repaint.. however, I'm just hoping there's something that can be done in the meantime to make them not stand out as much... those Dr. Color Chip commercials keep calling my name

 

Try this:

Scratch and stone chip removal.... - Detailing World