Paint chips

[dickschaak]

I have some paint chips that I would like to touch up. I ordered a touch up kit from Precision Painting so I will have the right colors. I am sure there is a proper method for doing the touch up. Has anybody come up with a good procedure.

[rag_ftw]

Hopefully your coach is new enough that the paint has not faded. I recently ordered some of the very expensive paint from Precision per the original paint code and it isn't even close to matching the colors on my 2004 coach. Next time I think I will go to a local paint vendor with a panel or door that is painted with the color I need to match and have them do a spectral analysis.

As for application I have been told a wooden toothpick works pretty well for applying paint to chip divots.

Good luck and let us know you results.

[GaryM2]

Getting a perfect match is almost impossible. Paint fades a little early on and only gets worse. After your get some paint that comes as close as you can, the process begins.

First, be sure to clean the chipped area, paint won’t adhere to dirt and won’t adhere well to oxidized paint. If there’s rust it will need to be removed completely.

Once the crater has been prepared you can use a toothpick to put the paint in. If the crater is real deep, you may want to use two thin coats. After that last coat of paint, before it dries, gently scrape the area with a playing card to remove most of the excess paint. If you get it just right, you’ll be left with a slight dome of paint protruding just a little above the surface. While you’re holding the card, put your thumb in the middle pressing slightly against two fingers so the card forms a little arc. That dome of paint should cover the edges of the crater and extend slightly around those edges.

After the paint dries, wet sand the surface using 400 paper on a rubber block. Be very gentle, you only want to remove the crest of the dome. Then, wet sand using 600 paper with that same rubber block. The idea is to level the dome of paint yet remove very little of the original paint. When you’re done sanding the scuffed area should be no bigger than a half dollar.

Now, you’ll need to buff the area. Use a medium grade polish (no silica, synthetic only) with a medium foam pad, buffer set to 1,800 RPM. Keep the pad flat and do not heat the paint excessively. Lots of passes is better than a few hard passes. Once the shine has been mostly restored, use a fine polish with a fine foam pad to enhance the gloss.

Now that you’ve got it looking good, use a paint sealer to protect it. Paint sealer is really nothing more than synthetic wax, but will last through the heat much better.

Good luck, let us know how it turns out.

[dickschaak]

Originally Posted by GaryM2

Getting a perfect match is almost impossible. Paint fades a little early on and only gets worse. After your get some paint that comes as close as you can, the process begins.

First, be sure to clean the chipped area, paint won’t adhere to dirt and won’t adhere well to oxidized paint. If there’s rust it will need to be removed completely.

Once the crater has been prepared you can use a toothpick to put the paint in. If the crater is real deep, you may want to use two thin coats. After that last coat of paint, before it dries, gently scrape the area with a playing card to remove most of the excess paint. If you get it just right, you’ll be left with a slight dome of paint protruding just a little above the surface. While you’re holding the card, put your thumb in the middle pressing slightly against two fingers so the card forms a little arc. That dome of paint should cover the edges of the crater and extend slightly around those edges.

After the paint dries, wet sand the surface using 400 paper on a rubber block. Be very gentle, you only want to remove the crest of the dome. Then, wet sand using 600 paper with that same rubber block. The idea is to level the dome of paint yet remove very little of the original paint. When you’re done sanding the scuffed area should be no bigger than a half dollar.

Now, you’ll need to buff the area. Use a medium grade polish (no silica, synthetic only) with a medium foam pad, buffer set to 1,800 RPM. Keep the pad flat and do not heat the paint excessively. Lots of passes is better than a few hard passes. Once the shine has been mostly restored, use a fine polish with a fine foam pad to enhance the gloss.

Now that you’ve got it looking good, use a paint sealer to protect it. Paint sealer is really nothing more than synthetic wax, but will last through the heat much better.

Good luck, let us know how it turns out.

Gary,
That was fantastic. Thanks a million. Can't wait to get my paint.

[TonyDi]

Dick Schaak
That was a great presentation on fixing chips. I'll have to save that for future reference.

[dickschaak]

Originally Posted by TonyDi

Dick Schaak
That was a great presentation on fixing chips. I'll have to save that for future reference.

Thanks Tony, I would really like to take credit for it. However, Gary was the author. It really hurt for me to tell you that.

[slabman]

Dick, that sounds like you have a real workout in store. Better get it done before it gets any warmer here!