Wax/polish - Best One To Hide Scratches

[Azza]

I have just bought a 2013 black C4 and want to keep the paint looking nice and shiney, I also have a few scratches (a couple of which I have attached a photo of) that I would like to try and conseal!

 

What is the best polish/wax?

[paul.h]

This should be an interesting topic, I have tried coloured polishes before including one with a coloured wax crayon and not had any luck in hiding the scratches.

[paul.h]

I am surprised there have been no further replies to this by now so I have moved it from the C4 General section to the General Discussion and Nonsense section which I hope will attract replies from owners with cars other than a C4.

[coastline taxis]

Colour magic works for us. When using the wax crayon for the scratches make sure you heat the end of the crayon up with a lighter otherwise the wax dosnt stick in the scratch. then a quick polish with the colour magic and its job done

[Azza]

Thanks paul.h for moving the post and thanks coastline taxis, I have ordered this from Amazon and will let you know how I get on!

[MichaelDavis]

I had a black car with lots of scratches and what I did was use a good quality cutting/polishing compound from a body shop with a machine polisher. This removed most scratches then went over the ones that were deep scratches with black colour magic. I found this to be the best solution but the colour magic doesn't last and you will find the scratches come back again - ideally a paint shop visit would then sort this out if you want it perfect.

[paul.h]

Welcome to the forum.

 

Many cars now have a laquer layer over the colour coat so using a cutting compound  would not help. They also all seem to use a white primer so any scratches show up if they go through the colour coat.

[MikeLane]

Just watched a couple of videos about Colour Magic and the upshot is, don't expect too much!

[MikeLane]

One used to buy small bottles of paint which exactly matched your car's colour from Citroen Garages. Don't know whether they are still available but I found that the brush in the bottle is rather large. I used to pour a little paint into a shallow "dish" (like a jam pot lid) and thin it with cellulose thinner (or nail varnish remover) and carefully fill the scratch with several layers using a fine artists paint brush and allowing the paint to dry between layers. It's a bit fiddly but.....

[paul.h]

Citroen still sell the small touch up paints, about the size of a finger and as you say, the brush is a bit large for a small scratch and I end up with a bit too much paint or laquer on so it is then proud of the scratch/chip being covered. With metallic paints the shade depends a bit on how thick the paint is applied - applying thin layers will be lighter than a thick layer.

 

Nail varnish remover is usually acetone so I do not know how much success you would have using this to thin the paint.

[MikeLane]

One could buy acetone in bottles in French supermarkets a few years ago - not sure if it's possible now. I used to thin the decanted cellulose paint (after shaking the tube hard for a couple of minutes) with a drop or two of acetone, just enough to make it "runny" and not dry almost immediately.

As you say, using the brush in the tube makes the repair proud and often overlap the scratch or chip.

[MichaelDavis]

I'm sure I put a post on here and it's got deleted so I will try again. Small surface scratches on modern clear coat lacquer can be removed with a buffer and polish I've done this for years- only deep scratches that go through the lacquer to the base coat cannot be polished out so you would have to use a touch up paint brush and when the paint has dried you can remove any excess with thinners - there are repair kits available to buy that include a special cloth and instructions along similar lines - I've used them and they give excellent results. Please make sure if you are touching up scratches with paint that you also put lacquer over the top - modern paints tend to be water based and wash off over time unless lacquered - never used to happen years ago but we have to protect the planet now.

[paul.h]

Your only previous post I could find is post 6 on this topic.

 

If you remove the excess new paint with thinners, does this not also remove the old paint or is there a technique to it ?

[MichaelDavis]

Don't know what happened with previous post - anyway it's not easy to remove excess paint but generally so long as paint has hardened and you don't have a heavily soaked cloth and are careful you can clean it up. Another tip when touching in paint is to use a wooden cocktail stick and a magnifying glass so you can see easier what you are doing- tacking your time is also a key to success with a steady hand Edited August 15, 2016 by MichaelDavis

[issus]

You need a good quality rubbing down paste or compound paint restorer

Good Quality Car Shampoo (not wax)

Clay Bar - essential this

after second wash use a Good Quality Wax Finish

Lastly a clear varnish

An hand held circular polisher unit (a must I am afraid as this is the only way to obtain top results)

 

Selection of materials is your choice but Maguairs do a kit expensive but is a good product. They also do FOC seminars at their Daventry Office normally on a Sat. These seminars can cater for 22 people max. Suggest Forum members organize their own party?

 

regards

[Bluebird16]

I Think the secondhand car market Add Colour Magic of the cars colour to their normal polish and buff off

Coz Every secondhand car I’ve bought scratches seem to appear without being parked anywhere busy but after couple of washes hey presto there’s tiny scratches

I’ve been using the waterless polish lately,,obviously if the car is really dirty quick wash and dry followed by waterless polish gives a really good finish Aldi / Lidl £ 2.99 for starter kit included microfibre cloth as well ,,@ £2.99 worth a try. Note:::not always in stock

 

Have thought about this ceramic protection “polish†apparently you have to spend a full day preparing,,Nah.