Truck is one big scratch!

[silverado_lover]

so my truck is covered in scratches...the guy before me mustve used a stiff scrub brush to wash it and ive used a scratch out over the entire truck but it didnt do anything...what else can i do? take a look at the links

http://i978.photobucket.com/albums/a...k/PC160056.jpg

http://s978.photobucket.com/albums/a...t=PC160053.jpg

[Stratosman]

rubbing compound and elbow grease

[silverado_lover]

alright thats what i was thinking...should i use polishing compound after the rubbing?

[Stratosman]

alright thats what i was thinking...should i use polishing compound after the rubbing?

yes, and wax

[bighead38]

wow that looks like he just took sandpaper over the whole truck

nice boots

[silverado_lover]

dayum! i know what i'm doin friday...any recommended brands

[silverado_lover]

hahaha thanks justin george strait editions

[uncchevy]

I recommend Meguiars ultimate compound, for $10 it gives good results.

[1CLNY2K]

1. Heavy cut compound (3M)
2. Fine cut compound (3M)
3. Followed by any normal three stage wax system. Mothers works very well.
You will need a buffer to burn those scrathces out. You will not get the speed in your hand motion to make those go away or hide them. Is your truck silver?

[Tweaks]

1. Heavy cut compound (3M)
2. Fine cut compound (3M)
3. Followed by any normal three stage wax system. Mothers works very well.
You will need a buffer to burn those scrathces out. You will not get the speed in your hand motion to make those go away or hide them. Is your truck silver?

I second that ^^^

You my friend are about to learn the ins and outs of properly buffing out moderate to heavy swirl marks. Lesson #1 is that it cannot be accomplished by hand and if it is, you're going to be at it for a LONG time so opt to use a buffer to speed the process up and ensure that it comes out right.

The 20 dollar huge plastic buffer things at Wal-Mart or similar store aren't going to turn the rpms you need either. If you don't have one, maybe a friend or a friend of a friend is a detail enthusiast and will have a serious buffer like a Porter Cable 7424 or something like it.

1CLNY2K is right that you are going to need to start out with an aggressive cutting compound from a respected brand and follow that up with a medium cutting compound. After that you can work down the cutting gradient by using a polish or that three-step Mother's stuff you can get at most auto parts stores does a great job and it's what I used up until recently.

If you study up on this stuff (youtube) and use the right equipment and compounds, you will be amazed at how nice it turns out. Friends and family will take notice and start begging you to correct the paint on their rides, which of course you can charge for and use the proceeds to mod you truck.

[xZoomerZx]

That looks like the special order "Faux Brushed Stainless Steel Finish"

Tweaks has it covered but I would recommend buying your own PC 7424, by the time you get that mess corrected, you will be the 'Friends & Family' expert and instantly have a half dozen cars to buff at discount prices.

[94SSwanabe]

i really dont think polishing is going to get any of that out. my 94 looked the same way. im pretty sure that your truck's clear coat breaking down. its a factory defect im sure. i sanded all of it off when i painted my truck.

[silverado_lover]

yep my truck is silver but all those scratches make it look white when the light hits it a certain way...one of my tickets actually says its white. hahahahahaha but yes it does look pretty much like stainless...all my friends kinda like the look but it is a scratch so its not really good. and as for my clear coat breaking down...haha its clearly not a defect, it used to have a bug guard and when i took that off i uncovered a strip of GORGEOUS paint! i was so pissed when i saw what my paint used to look like...it was the sexiest silver paint ive ever seen

[94SSwanabe]

yep my truck is silver but all those scratches make it look white when the light hits it a certain way...one of my tickets actually says its white. hahahahahaha but yes it does look pretty much like stainless...all my friends kinda like the look but it is a scratch so its not really good. and as for my clear coat breaking down...haha its clearly not a defect, it used to have a bug guard and when i took that off i uncovered a strip of GORGEOUS paint! i was so pissed when i saw what my paint used to look like...it was the sexiest silver paint ive ever seen

that paint underneath looks good because it was protected from UV rays. im tellin you, that clear coat is breakin down. my truck did the same exact thing. it looks like a bunch of scratches, but its really a bunch of cracks. GM has messed up some paint jobs, and these were some of them. i put a high speed makita and some 3m heavy cut compound on my truck before i reapainted it. those scratches were a little less noticeable, but they were definately still there. good luck though.

[gone carby]

i would recommend finding a good detailer and having them wetsand and buff the whole thing. Make sure you get someone good though, cheapest is not always best (although the highest bid may do worse work than the low bid,hard to say. You could spend a week on that thing by hand and your gonna get nowhere fast. 2000 then 3000 grit, rotary with wool and megs 105, megs yellow foam with 205, then megs tan (pad) with 205. If that doesnt bring it back nothing will.

[silverado_lover]

that paint underneath looks good because it was protected from UV rays. im tellin you, that clear coat is breakin down. my truck did the same exact thing. it looks like a bunch of scratches, but its really a bunch of cracks. GM has messed up some paint jobs, and these were some of them. i put a high speed makita and some 3m heavy cut compound on my truck before i reapainted it. those scratches were a little less noticeable, but they were definately still there. good luck though.

the scratches probably wouldnt have so match of a pattern if they were really cracks, if they were cracks they'd probably more inconsistent where as all this marks curve with the mark next to it. i can almost promise it was the person who had it before i...it came with low miles but they took really bad care of it. most of my money has gone towards fixing all the small stuff that they busted up.

i was just about to ask about megs 105! but hell seein all the kind of detailing stuff i need to buy it might be cheaper to go to a reputable detailer

[Tweaks]

I was going to mention the Meguires 105 and 205 cutting compounds in my previous reply. I have just recently sampled what they can do and like someone already mentioned, if those compounds don't take that stuff out, nothing will. That stuff is phenomenal.

If you take price in the finish of your truck and see yourself using the stuff often, the I recommend investing in a Porter Cable 7424xp rotary buffer kit from chemicalguys.com or similar detailing websites that offer those things with additional polishes and compounds designed to tackle a finish like yours.

If you don't think you will get into this sort of stuff and use it often or even make some money back on the investment, then track down a pro and let them work their magic.

[silverado_lover]

ummmmmm well what should be the quote i'm gonna be hearing?

[Tweaks]

I've got a couple hundred bucks invested into my Porter Cable kit so if someone is willing to correct your paint for 300 bucks or less, I'd say go for it. Just be sure to never use whatever method of washing that the previous owner used or you will be shelling out for a paint correction often enough to make investing in a kit the better way to go. Nice thing is that your truck is a bright silver and that color does a great job of hiding little imperfections. Unfortunately you have major inperfections and you're doing the right thing by having them removed.

[silverado_lover]

haha yeah i'm very particular how i wash my truck...i use a relatively high dollar sponge of somesort and love to use that turtlewax ice carwash...its given me the best results outta all the other carwashes ive tried and it smells good...haha i love my truck lookin and smellin good. buttttt ive found the best smelling carwash to me is armoral wash and wax, the orange stuff...it really smells like oranges! but anyways back to tryin to fix my paint i'm gonna go see what kind of car polisher my cousin has or if he even does a polisher, he likes doin it by hand but ive helped him detail his boxster a couple of times and that speed yellow looked deep! but then again he wasnt in the paint predicament im in now