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      06-08-2009, 02:37 PM   #52
eclipsisNA
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Here's something that may help everyone understand what kind of improvement can happen after wet sanding (courtesy of KDS in the UK):

http://www.pistonheads.com/xforums/t...bishment&mid=0

Quote:
Originally Posted by NewM3driver View Post
This statement is coming from a guy that makes his living wet sanding unsuspecting folks cars. I know of several dark color cars... a Jag, a porsche, and a vette that were wet sanded, looked great, and 6 months later look like dog ass.

Don't even think about wet sanding your new car.
Actually, I do not make my living "wet sanding unsuspecting folks cars". The majority of my income comes from a field with no relation to cars. And regarding your statement: wet sanding, if done right, can look like perfection. I find it sad and laughable when someone who has no clue what they're talking about acts as if they're an authority on the subject at hand. In your case, you do not know anything about detailing or paint correction. Wet sanding isn't a chemical that can have an adverse reaction to UV rays or some other element after several months of sitting outside. It is simply sanding down clear coat, nothing more. Wet sanding after two years will look identical to what it looked like on day one. What you said is like telling a neurosurgeon how to work on someone's brain stem when you have absolutely no knowledge of the human body.

Quote:
Originally Posted by ChitownM3 View Post
I would never wet sand a car, and polish is permanent because its abrasive, but what do you think an abrasive does to paint?!?! It creates millions of small scratches which are hidden by the final coat of wax. I'd rather have orange peel that a permanent amount of surface scratches.
This makes no sense as well. When wet sanding, you use several different grades of sandpaper in succession, working generally from 1,500 grit, to 2,500 grit, and then to 4,000 grit. After wet sending, a light polish will remove any trace of wet sanding PERMANENTLY. The only way scratches would remain is if the detailer is lazy and doesn't use different grades of sandpaper.

Quote:
Originally Posted by ideliver View Post
E...my Sapphire Black wears its orange peel as a badge of honor...but IMHO there is only a small handfull of people that are capable of doing this correctly...I have seen your posts and pics....you ARE one of them...

But the rest of us....no way....

To the guy who thinks that this can't be done...what does EVERY bodyshop do right before they polish your paint from its repair...is it wetsand to level out the clear???
Thank you for the kind words ideliver, I appreciate it. And you're right, body shops wet sand and polish paint several days after painting to remove bubbles or dust in the clear.

Quote:
Originally Posted by yamahuh View Post
I wet sanded / polished / buffed a front fender that I was planning on repainting anyway due to a dent. The results were amazing; however it wasn't until the car was under flourescent lighting that I realized I had gotten very thin on a crease. I didn't go through the clear but you could see a different shade in the color along the crease. It's not worth the risk to me, regardless who is doing the work.
High-end detailers use paint depth gauges to avoid the problem you ran into:

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