How To Fix Scratches in Car Paint at Home

Few people realize it, but minor paint scratches and imperfections can be fairly quickly repaired by car owners who are willing to take the time to learn how to do the job right using the standard steps for professional car paint repair.

If your car has scratches in the paint or paint flaws that you’d like to remove without going through the expense and hassle of dealing with a body paint shop, listen up!

No doubt the scratches became more and more annoying to you ever since you first noticed them. Yet repairing the imperfections in car paint is not rocket science nor is it time consuming once you get ahold of the right information and become determined to follow a few easy-to- understand directions.

You have a few options…

1: You can repaint. We show you the steps to fill scratches and or rock chips in the video above.
2: You can buff out scratches which is what we show you in the video and article here.

Car owners everywhere have stumbled on this huge money-saving truth. No, today savvy people all over have produced professional looking paint jobs they’ve completed with great results all by themselves.
This may come as a surprise to many car owners, but the touch up paint available at car dealerships is perhaps the single worst solution to getting rid of the problem, and particularly if the scratch you are trying to repair is noticeable from any distance.

The minute you step into to any dealership lot moaning about the scratches and dings that have appeared on your car that you can see at a distance of six feet or more away, they instantly will try to sell you touch up paint, claiming it’s all anyone needs to get rid of the scratch.

Warning! Touch up paint never blends well with any car’s paint and using it will only make matters worse! Swallow their sales pitch and you will simply replace a scratch with an unsightly even gob of paint that will be even more unsightly than the original scratch.


Good Rule of Thumb: Only use touch up paint for tiny nicks and scratches– nothing more.

To Effectively Get Rid of Those Annoying Scratches, Follow These Simple Steps:

First, carefully sand the scratch down, using 400-600 grit sandpaper, initially, then working your way up to 800-1000 grit sandpaper, taking care to assure that you are getting a very even smooth feathered surface. Really deep scratches have to be sanded with 400-grit wet and dry sandpaper.

Once the surface is nicely flattened and smoothed, clean the area you want to be paint carefully, making certain to remove all dust, debris, sand, etc. Then evenly apply the primer.

Lastly, apply three coats of color over the primed area. After the color is dry, wind up the project by adding a good two coast of clear coat.

Tips:

Allow enough time for each coat to dry thoroughly, fifteen minutes or so, before applying the next coat.
Don’t attempt your car paint repair project if the temperature is below 55 degrees, or you will get inferior results.

Really deep scratches need a total re-painting of the car or panel if you want truly professional looking results. Blending will be another option.

To learn more and to get a Free auto body and paint manual click here:  
http://learnautobodyandpaint.com/blog/2010/11/19/how-to-fix-scratches-in-car-paint/