DIY Scratch repair

PeteW

Hi all. My wife has scraped the side of my car against the rear quarter of her car. The damage isn't too bad, but pretty annoying as this is an otherwise mint 18 year old car I have looked after meticulously.

You can see the damage here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/aw7ARJgPV5BCQB7z7

Am I right in thinking that the black bits are paint transfer (her car is black), but the white bits are scratches down to the primer?

And if so, is my best bet to use a Dual Action polisher to remove the paint transfer, and then multiple thin coats of touch up paint, sanded back and polished on the scratch itself?

Was looking at getting a DAS 6 polisher, but are there any specific products that would be useful for this scenario, or just normal compound and polish be fine?

Thanks

Pete

motorguy

I'd probably use a good compound and buff what i could out of it.

Pencil it in then with a good touch up paint and a fine brush.

That low on the car it shouldnt be noticable. Its really about ensuring there is nothing to attract your eye to it.

neilmcl

You don't need to buy a DA to get rid of the paint transfer, you can easily do it by hand with a polishing pad and some decent cutting compound. Have a look at the paint repair products at Chipex, I've had some reasonably decent results in the past but it's never going to be perfect unless you get someone in to to a proper smart repair.

motorguy

neilmcl wrote: »

You don't need to buy a DA to get rid of the paint transfer, you can easily do it by hand with a polishing pad and some decent cutting compound. Have a look at the paint repair products at Chipex, I've had some reasonably decent results in the past but it's never going to be perfect unless you get someone in to to a proper smart repair.

I hadnt heard of Chipex.

Had a quick look at their site there and some videos on youtube and it looks good. I've an Insignia thats been keyed on the wing. Going to order the kit and try it on it.

Thanks!

PeteW

neilmcl wrote: »

You don't need to buy a DA to get rid of the paint transfer, you can easily do it by hand with a polishing pad and some decent cutting compound. Have a look at the paint repair products at Chipex, I've had some reasonably decent results in the past but it's never going to be perfect unless you get someone in to to a proper smart repair.

Thanks. I've been planning on getting a DA for a while, and this seemed like a good excuse! Will order a Chipex kit and see how I get on. Cheers

neilmcl

motorguy wrote: »

I hadnt heard of Chipex.

Had a quick look at their site there and some videos on youtube and it looks good. I've an Insignia thats been keyed on the wing. Going to order the kit and try it on it.

Thanks!

I've only ever tried it on solid colours before and it's been pretty good, especially if you take your time. The big advantage is that the paint dries relatively quickly so no need to wait 24hrs between coats as you usually have to do with standard touch up paint.

tgon

+1 Chipex for minor scratches and stone chips on my metallic silver BMW

Arklight

Chipex is great. It's guaranteed to have a shelf life of a year from the date it arrives too. Which is plenty of time for it to get lost in the back of the garage while you slowly forget you ever cared about the scratch you bought it for and never use it.