Chip repair gone wrong?

[Joshua Oakes]

I was sanding down a chip repair, you can see this on top part of damage, after finishing sanding with 2000 and 3000 wet and dry paper I noticed the lower bit, what is this and how can I fix it?

Josh.

Black Leon FR 2.0TDI 184 DSG

 

[BigJase88]

Machine polish get some cutting compound on it and see what you can salvage

 

[Joshua Oakes]

Machine polish get some cutting compound on it and see what you can salvage

Any idea what it is? My fear is I’ve gone through the clear coat? Surely that would make it worse?


Josh.

Black Leon FR 2.0TDI 184 DSG

 

[SRGTD]

Any idea what it is? My fear is I’ve gone through the clear coat? Surely that would make it worse?


Josh.

Black Leon FR 2.0TDI 184 DSG

Yes, it does look as if you’ve gone through the clear coat. If you have, then polishing won’t rectify - you’d be likely to remove more clear coat from around the edges of the area where the clear coat’s been rubbed away, or the base coat colour where there’s no clear coat. The only way to rectify clear coat ‘strike-through’ is to get the area of damage repainted.

However, if you’ve not gone through the clear coat, you could try very gently polishing the area with some mildly abrasive polish in case the area is just wet sanding marks. If it doesn’t remove the marks, then that’ll confirm clear coat strike-through.

I‘ve never attempted to wet sand stone chip repairs, as IMO wet sanding isn’t for the faint hearted (like me!). I use a Chipex paint repair kit and ’fill’ the stone chip area with paint to just above the level of the surrounding paintwork. I level the new paint in the stone chip to the same level as the surrounding paint using the blending solution supplied with the kit. Stone chip repairs using a kit like Chipex or Dr Colourchip aren’t 100% invisible, but with a little practise it is possible to get pretty good results and the repairs won’t be noticeable to others and I don’t notice them after a while either.

 

[Marko70]

yes gone through clear coat, the repair section is still proud too but looks like it could take a drop of clear in the middle too. did you use primer by any chance as I wouldn't have bothered as what happens is as you sanding/polishing you end up seeing a coastline of primer as it doesn't fully sit below the surface.

as a future tip when repairing localised chips you can use some masking take around the chip whist sanding, this way it stops damaging the surrounding area (the smiley bit you now have!), that part now need building back up with clear coat but I think you may very well make it worse if you're not careful

 

[Joshua Oakes]

yes gone through clear coat, the repair section is still proud too but looks like it could take a drop of clear in the middle too. did you use primer by any chance as I wouldn't have bothered as what happens is as you sanding/polishing you end up seeing a coastline of primer as it doesn't fully sit below the surface.

as a future tip when repairing localised chips you can use some masking take around the chip whist sanding, this way it stops damaging the surrounding area (the smiley bit you now have!), that part now need building back up with clear coat but I think you may very well make it worse if you're not careful

So the top bit was a repair by the previous owner, it seems he used primer but I haven’t been on my other repairs and I’m happy with the results of others, you can still see them but as I cover a lot of miles I figured it’s not worth getting properly repaired so I’ll do em myself, what would be the best thing to do with the damage caused? I’ve got some clear lacquer off the neighbour she used it on her blue Audi, would I be able to paint this on then wet sand and polish and be a half decent repair or not? Thanks for the sandpaper tip!


Josh.

Black Leon FR 2.0TDI 184 DSG

 

[Marko70]

So the top boy was a repair by the previous owner, it seems he used primer but I haven’t been on my other repairs and I’m happy with the results of others, you can still see them but as I cover a lot of miles I figured it’s not worth getting properly repaired so I’ll do em myself, what would be the best thing to do with the damage caused? I’ve got some clear lacquer off the neighbour she used it on her blue Audi, would I be able to paint this on then wet sand and polish and be a half decent repair or not? Thanks for the sandpaper tip!


Josh.

Black Leon FR 2.0TDI 184 DSG

well you could add more clear but I fear it could be made worse.. it's an art to do chips properly especially metallic finishes.

 

[Joshua Oakes]

well you could add more clear but I fear it could be made worse.. it's an art to do chips properly especially metallic finishes.

Make it worse how? So might be best to get it re-sprayed? Any idea how much this would cost, would it be a spot repair or full bonnet?


Josh.

Black Leon FR 2.0TDI 184 DSG

 

[Marko70]

Make it worse how? So might be best to get it re-sprayed? Any idea how much this would cost, would it be a spot repair or full bonnet?


Josh.

Black Leon FR 2.0TDI 184 DSG

make it worse by getting a similar result to what has happened so far.. how big is the area? a profesional may be able to do a local repair but bonnets are the worst panel to repair as everything shows up..

 

[Joshua Oakes]

make it worse by getting a similar result to what has happened so far.. how big is the area? a profesional may be able to do a local repair but bonnets are the worst panel to repair as everything shows up..

I’d say it’s roughly size of 10pence coin, im not fussed about it being perfect just don’t want it to be that noticeable


Josh.

Black Leon FR 2.0TDI 184 DSG

 

[Joshua Oakes]

So I’m pretty impatient and pretty pi55ed off at myself and I’ve thought I’ll just have a go, might have to sand it back, not devastated with the results, it’s by no means good but I feel it’s a step in the right direction, let me know if you disagree.

Basically I used that lacquer on it let it dry a little bit and had a little wet sand, tcut and then polish and I feel like if I were to give it another go the same way another day I could maybe get good results? I know it stands out loads still at the minute but could get a half decent finish doing it this way?

Photo isn’t great but in person because it’s got some shine to it I can’t help but feel if it covered properly and was flush it would be okay!?

Any other recommendations are much appreciated!!!

Josh.

Black Leon FR 2.0TDI 184 DSG

 

[SRGTD]

@Joshua Oakes; looking at your forum signature, your car’s black so it should be quite an easy colour to get a good colour match between the repair and the surrounding existing paint if you have a localised / SMART repair. If your car was a light metallic colour, then IMO it would be more difficult to get a good colour match.

I had a smart repair to the front bumper on my previous car. Chips Away said the repair area would still noticeable if they repaired it. I used a local independent company that did most of the minor repairs for the local car dealerships in my area and they did an excellent job - it wasn’t possible to spot where the damage was after they‘d repaired (plastic welding to the bumper, filling and repainting), and the colour match (dark metallic grey) was spot on.

Bear in mind that with some of the national SMART repair companies such as Chips Away that operate using a franchise business model, the quality of repair can vary significantly from one franchisee to another. In terms of cost? I have no idea but would suggest you do an internet search on SMART car repairers in your area; check out any customer reviews of their work and get some quotes, and select one who you feel confident will do a first rate job.