[tdorit]

Hi gents,

I have a single stage napa crossfire project, about 2 yrs old, no wax, which turned out about a 9.2. I now need to repair a couple of dings. Any sage words of advice. The paint is a deep non-metalic blue,overwhite. My plan is, repair chips, prime, spray panel to a point, then color sand and polish. Any tips will be appreciated. Thanks Tracy

[crashtech]

Open blends are not the best way to repair damage. Not only that, there is some artistry to getting the paint at the blend to "melt in" to the existing finish. Then once you are done, it's very easy to burn that carefully laid out blend right off by overpolishing, leaving a visible edge. I guess what I'm getting at here, is maybe you ought to consider spotting the color in, then covering the entire panel with a compatible clear coat according to the paint mfr. guidelines. This way you can buff with no worries, and color match will be maintained.

[MARTINSR]

If you have the paint that was used on the car, paint complete panels. That would be my choice hands down.

Where is the repair and where would you want to blend?

Brian

[kenseth17]

I too would paint the complete panel but could mean color match problems cause you are not blending in the color and then clearing the whole panel like if it was base/clear. If you need to get more paint mixed. take a part with you to help them match the paint and before you spray it on the car, spray a piece and compare it to the adjacent panel to make sure it is a match. You could clear it also like crash said, just thinking with the clear on top and the rest not cleared if the panel will look a little different being clear will add some depth to that panel. Being you have a metallic color that is single stage, that will make a successfull blend more difficult then if it were solid. Can't really buff where the blend is with singlestage metallic.
Ohh and welcome crash tech. Your name kinda scared me. There is a user with a similar name, and similar subtitle that I am sure others know who I am talking about. But from your posts I can tell you are not even close to being the same guy.

[crashtech]

Thanks for the welcome. I went and did the introduction thing, and too bad some yahoo had a name like mine. Hope he is gone!

Anyway, if the original paint is available, entire panel painting may be the best option, though keep in mind that paints do fade with time, so even though there will be some "depth" with clear (I'm not convinced that it shows with solid colors), the color match will be best assured by the 2-step base-clear procedure and it is the preferred method of most body shops.

A caveat: I remember a Toyota single-stage black that if cleared, would NOT match the rest of the vehicle. It was subtle though, and I knew why, but I don't think it applies in too many situations.

[jcclark]

I agree with clearing the whole panel when possible.
I have successfully blended in areas in the past but I avoid it if
at all possible. I really don't think I saved much work by blending when
looking at the overall job. Also remember , even if you do blend
a small spot successfully down the road it probably will look much
more different than if you had done the whole panel.
Sometimes it takes a while, I've seen the blend edges reappear
usually at about three years of age. So if you plan on keeping it for
a while definetly clear the whole panel.

[tdorit]

Your comments have been very helpful. Thanks for the benefit of your experience. It makes us neophites appreciate the knowledge and skill of the true artisans. Tracy.