Black Paint, meet Bird Bomb

[Tom P.]

I bought a black '99 Sport last summer and I want to bring the paint back to life. It's a little dull, has a few stone chips, some with minor rust, but the worst thing is a couple of big bird stains on the hood. I get the feeling other cars are laughing at it in traffic.

There seem to be many products and procedures. Can someone break it down for the best approach to fix blemishes and make the paint look beautiful?

Get a orbital buffer (Porter Cable)
Wash
Clay Bar...

What are the next steps and best products?

Thanks, and my Runner thanks you, too.

 

[2StepsAhead]

Combine the clay bar and washing, put extra soap in the bucket and use that as lubricant (make sure youre using a good car wash) and definitely stay out of the sun especially on a black vehicle/being in texas.

To level the paint you would use a compound, depending on the brand pads you buy theres a cutting, light cut, polishing, waxing pad that are different colors to differentiate them.

After the compounding you would use the lighter pad and polish to smooth out the marring that the compound did...

Its like sanding coarse wood...first you use the heavy sand grit to get the major imperfections out and then use a lighter grit so smooth it all out.

After the polishing I like to use a soap that specifically strips the oils that the polishes have to make sure I actually leveled the paint and the oils/lubricants in the polish hide some blemishes.

Afterwards seal up the paint with wax or sealant and youre good to go, just keep up a good wax regiment as it makes dirt easier to release and reduces the chance of marring during washing.

As for products I swear by meguiars 105/205 combo but theyre very sensitive to heat/sun, optimum polish/compound however can be used in the sun although its not recommended but it definitely doesnt dry out as fast...

As for wax/sealant I have a closet full...usually I go for collinite insulator wax since its easy to apply and its pretty bullet proof, I touch up the paint after every other wash with duragloss aquawax. Theres literally a million different answers depends how much you want to spend, if you want to buy something over the counter or order, durability vs look etc.

 

[Tom P.]

To level the paint you would use a compound, depending on the brand pads you buy theres a cutting, light cut, polishing, waxing pad that are different colors to differentiate them.

After the compounding you would use the lighter pad and polish to smooth out the marring that the compound did...

Its like sanding coarse wood...first you use the heavy sand grit to get the major imperfections out and then use a lighter grit so smooth it all out.

After the polishing I like to use a soap that specifically strips the oils that the polishes have to make sure I actually leveled the paint and the oils/lubricants in the polish hide some blemishes.

Afterwards seal up the paint with wax or sealant and youre good to go, just keep up a good wax regiment as it makes dirt easier to release and reduces the chance of marring during washing.

As for products I swear by meguiars 105/205 combo but theyre very sensitive to heat/sun, optimum polish/compound however can be used in the sun although its not recommended but it definitely doesnt dry out as fast...

As for wax/sealant I have a closet full...usually I go for collinite insulator wax since its easy to apply and its pretty bullet proof, I touch up the paint after every other wash with duragloss aquawax. Theres literally a million different answers depends how much you want to spend, if you want to buy something over the counter or order, durability vs look etc.

So, to make sure I get this right...

I have to compound with an orbital buffer, with a series of pads, until the bird bomb craters are removed. Will this scratch up the surface pretty bad?

Then I need to polish to remove marring from compound.

Then I either seal or wax, or both. What's the diff between seal or wax?

 

[2StepsAhead]

I assume by orbital you mean a random orbit something like a porter cable, Im not a big fan of rotary personally...but yeah you would get a cutting pad and polishing pad, there are in betweens like a light cut polishing pad etc but thats up to you. I usually use lake country pads, orange for cut and white for polishing.

Use the compound of your choice and the orange pad and you well level the paint until the bird bomb is less noticeable (sometimes if it has sat too long it can bubble the paint or etch it so deep you need wet sanding and worse case a repaint) when you wipe away the compound you will probably notice the paint looks really good but if you look really closely it will most likely have REALLY small imperfections from the compound and cutting pad (think sanding marks, an aggressive grit will leave big marks and you would use a lighter grit to smooth those out).

So now you take your white pad and polish and go through the same process and the paint will 'smooth' out so to speak, the light marks left the compound will be gone and it should be swirl free.

Wax is usually considered something natural like carnuba, it usually doesnt last as long as a sealant which is made from synthetics, but it is usually more optically clear...for daily drivers and cars that sit outside I would go with a sealant personally. They all have different strengths, whether its look, durability, ability to release dirt, darkening the paint, ease to wipe on and wipe off, etc.

 

[Tom P.]

Thanks for the explanation, 2Steps. A while back, I clayed then waxed the truck. The bird spot caught the wax and now looks worse with white highlights. It doesn't feel deep, though, so I tried compounding the bird spots by hand, but it looked like I was scratching it up too much. That's why I stopped and asked the best approach. Looks like I'll get a Porter, or similar random orbital buffer, some pads, compound, polish, sealant, and wax. It will sit outside in the Texas sun so I'll take your advice and use sealant.

One thing I wondered is if it's possible to touch up with paint then compound/polish that down to blend in with the paint. Ever try that?

 

[2StepsAhead]

Ive never played with touch up honestly but I know it is possible.

I would check around now because I know most detail sites are running specials on polishers, check autogeek.net or detailersdomain.com.

 

[Tom P.]

Thanks. Maybe this year Santa will pack a Porter.

 

[dawudih]

I bought a black 2000 4runner last year with bad paint on the hood & bumper. I tried everything to bring the paint back since I'm fairly experienced with this stuff. Anyway, I ended up having the hood & bumper repainted for $450. It made a HUGE difference in the appearance.

 

[Tom P.]

Dawudih, the black paint on mine is in fairly good shape, just some bird etchings, rock dings, and paint that needs wax. Were you attempting to get out bird markings or was it another concern? I hope I don't have to paint.

 

[dadigab]

Using compounds is liquid sand paper, you will cut through paint easily on edges and ridges if not cafeful stay clear of these areas as much as possible and do these areas by hand. Black is toughest color to buff and polish with great results especially for inexperinced. Use patiance

 

[Tom P.]

Compound really is liquid sand paper. I tried a bit on the bird bomb spots and stood back to admire my work... in horror. I did nothing but dull and scratch it, and the white wax residue is still there. That's when I stopped and came here to consult my T4R friends.

 

[jsketoe]

adam's polishes how to videos and products are awesome...see youtube.

 

[talonjade]

me thinks its gonna be a slow war of attrition to get the bombs flattened out.

I have a Black runner too and have the "white bombs" that seem to have burned into my paint.

I do a monthly wash/wax and it seems to be getting a little better over time.