I'm pretty versed in fixing/filling paint chips on single stage paint. Since the XF is 2-stage (paint/clear) I'm wondering how deep the paint is. Especially on large chips I try to mix the paint so that it will level out after drying. However, when color sanding it smooth, if the paint is thin, you're down to primer.

My 'new' XF just arrived and has numerous chips in the black paint. Possibly at some point I'll need to repaint the hood, but for now I just want to make the chips less noticeable.

I have some black single stage, but not sure if I have any hardener for it. Or is there a specific black/color you use?

And does anyone know if the base coat is water based or mineral?

 

painter told me base coat is water based

 

bluecoupe, it is my understanding that the Europeans were the first to start using water based base coat. It will be interesting how the touching up works out.

 

I just got around to touching up the myriad chips on mostly the hood. Some of which were pretty major. So now my black hood looks like it has black pimples rather than white ones. The urethane quart of NOS black paint and hardener didn't seem to react badly to the base/clear. But with fluorescent lights above and on the sides, it looks dreadful.

I have a sort of hail mary plan which is to wet sand down the bumps with 2500 sand paper, then polish the entire hood. Most likely it, along with the silver windshield surround, will be repainted - black.

Anyone here an automotive painter? I've thought about painting it myself and not worried about the base coat, but since on the second and third clear coats, I like to spray it quite wet. What concerns me are the grooves in the hood and that the clear will sag in those areas.

If anyone has done one, I'd like to hear from you. I'm sure the factory sprayed each of the stages with one coat. I want to have have enough clear on it so that it can be wet sanded at least a couple of times without going through to base.

Biba