[boofis]

Hey
Just wondering if someone could clarify for me when to colour sand and when to wet sand and what the theories behind the two of them are. Have a good one!
Thanks
Troy

[302 Z28]

Color sand and wet sand are about the same thing, both are done wet. Some painters will wet sand the base coat before applying the clear..color sand. Once the clear is applied and a resonable amout of time has passed it is wet sander then buffed.

Vince

[BondoKing]

Some Ole timers will say color sand and allot of the younger guys just call it wet sanding...Wet sanding/color sanding remove imperfections from the top coat so you can buff it back to a high gloss... to put it simply!!

There are many reasons as to why you would sand a car/truck/part or area down. It could be dirt, fish eyes, orange peel, solvent pops, the list goes on, but the end results are unsurpassed.. You can take an otherwise "just OK" paint job and make it look slick as glass as long as you applied enough clear and or top coat for ss., and of course as long as your base coat and prepping are in good order..

Matthew

[Centerline]

There are materials and sanders out there now that allow you to color sand dry. 3M makes 3000 grit paper that is used with an air sander (AirVantage) is one brand and you can color sand an entire car in about an hour.

I'm not saying it's better than the old fashioned wet color sanding but it is IMHO just as good and a hellofa lot faster.

[wally]

I always thought that wet sanding was a method for keeping sandpaper from gumming up. But color sanding has two purposes one is too blend in added costs like flames or two tone integration. Color sanding also would apply to the 'pre-coats of clear' . In the old days with Lacquor color sanding was used in between coats to smoothe out defects. I think its good to always sand between 'heavy coats' just to blend in edges or overspray which seems always to appear majicaly

[boofis]

Thanks lads! So I'm thinking after I lay my base/pearl and then clear I'll wait and then wetsand the whole cars clear and then buff? Whats do you reckon?
Thanks
Troy!

[MARTINSR]

Troy, you got it.

The way I look at it is if you are sanding paint or clear to buff it is "color sanding". In other words any sanding done where NO MORE color or clear is going to be added. If you are sanding with water ANY other time it is "wet sanding".
That is just how I have always looked at it, and communicated it and everyone seems to understand so it must be "right enough".


These days, dry sanding has became the norm again. Both prepping for paint by sanding an old finish or in "color sanding" the clear to buff. It is MUCH easier to dry "color sand" IF you have the proper equipment. Wet color sanding is very easy, if you have a hand on the end of your arm and a 50 cent sheet of sand paper you can color sand perfectly for buffing. Dry sanding takes a nice fine cutting orbial sander, proper pad, proper paper. But it is much easier.

A note here, sanding between base and clear is a big NO-NO with a number of manufactures base coats so read the tech sheets first.

[boofis]

Hey MARTINSR
Thanks for the advice man. I think I'll sand with my own hand, the good ol' fashioned way, cos I can't afford any more tools lol! Anyway, what would the purpose be of colour sanding base coat ?
Thanks
Troy

[MARTINSR]

Well Troy, if you were to get the base coat as flat as possilble the clear would have a beautiful, flat substrate. The clear would be flatter and easier to buff out. The problem is, it just isn't in the cards in most cases. If you were to apply a single stage urethane solid color, wet sand it flat an then apply clear, this would be fine. But the base coat SYSTEMS usually don't have a recommendation for wet sanding between base and clear. If you apply it properly, honestly, there is no need for it.

Brian

[BarryK]

Originally Posted by MARTINSR

Troy, you got it.

The way I look at it is if you are sanding paint or clear to buff it is "color sanding". In other words any sanding done where NO MORE color or clear is going to be added. If you are sanding with water ANY other time it is "wet sanding".

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Makes perfect sense to me explained this way.

I was just setting here thinking, the words "color-sand"
have never come out of my mouth in 30+ years.

Everything has been wet sanding.
Never too old to learn.