How can I fix this, and avoid this blemish in the future?

[StevenGuthmiller]

8 minutes ago, Milo said:

Are these cut and polishes nonspecific to the clear coat paint type laid down?

Doesn’t matter what paint was used, as long as it’s sufficiently thick to withstand some sanding, and is completely cured.

 

 

 

Steve

[CA Whitecloud]

1 hour ago, StevenGuthmiller said:

Turtle Wax

[CA Whitecloud]

That's a question.

[Ace-Garageguy]

4 hours ago, Milo said:

Are these cut and polishes nonspecific to the clear coat paint type laid down?

Pretty much. As Mr. Guthmiller said, as long as there's sufficient material on the model to sand out the orange-peel without going through it, and as long as it's fully dry, you're fine.

Modelers develop their favorites over time. I'll use automotive body-shop sandpapers sometimes, because I have ready access.

Other times, if the sanding required is minimal, I'll use the sanding pads as shown in the videos.

I also usually use automotive rubbing compounds and polishes because I have easy access to them too, and after having tried the tiny tubes of hobby-specific stuff, I don't see any difference.

One thing I have found to be true when you're wet-sanding, especially if you use sandpaper rather than the pads, is to discard your water and rinse your container and hands each time before going to a finer grit.

Abrasive particles can become dislodged from pads or paper, and if you're up to, say, 3000 grit, and you happen to get a loose particle of 800 under your pad, you may get a scratch that can be the devil to get out...possibly resulting in sanding through your clear and making a real problem.

EDIT: A word of warning on coated abrasives (i.e. sandpaper and pads). Grits are not universally all the same from manufacturer to manufacturer, or from country to country. It's probably prudent to stick with the standard hobby-specific pads until you really know what you're doing.

Edited February 1, 2024 by Ace-Garageguy

[Milo]

2 hours ago, CA Whitecloud said:

I believe that Steve is referring to this:

 

Correct me if I'm wrong, especially because I hope to use the right one.

[StevenGuthmiller]

2 hours ago, CA Whitecloud said:

That's a question.

Actually no,  what I’ve been using is Turtle Wax “scratch and swirl remover” but I’m not certain if they make the same stuff that I have anymore.   It’s probably 10 or 20 years old! ?

 

 

 

Steve

 

[StevenGuthmiller]

6 minutes ago, Milo said:

I believe that Steve is referring to this:

 

Correct me if I'm wrong, especially because I hope to use the right one.

Probably the same stuff.

 

 

Steve

[StevenGuthmiller]

1 hour ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

Pretty much. As Mr. Guthmiller sais, as long as there's sufficient material on the model to sand out the orange-peel without going through it, and as long as it's fully dry, you're fine.

Modelers develop their favorites over time. I'll use automotive body-shop sandpapers sometimes, because I have ready access.

Other times, if the sanding required is minimal, I'll use the sanding pads as shown in the videos.

I also usually use automotive rubbing compounds and polishes because I have easy access to them too, and after having tried the tiny tubes of hobby-specific stuff, I don't see any difference.

One thing I have found to be true when you're wet-sanding, especially if you use sandpaper rather than the pads, is to discard your water and rinse your container and hands each time before going to a finer grit.

Abrasive particles can become dislodged from pads or paper, and if you're up to, say, 3000 grit, and you happen to get a loose particle of 800 under your pad, you'll get a scratch that can be the devil to get out...possibly resulting in sanding through your clear and making a real problem.

EDIT: A word of warning on coated abrasives (i.e. sandpaper and pads). Grits are not universally all the same from manufacturer to manufacturer, or from country to country. It's probably prudent to stick with the standard hobby-specific pads until you really know what you're doing.

I can’t argue with a single word of Ace’s post!

All very relevant information, and very frequently, he’s much better at articulating what I’m trying to say than I ever will be!

Thanks Bill! ?

 

 

 

Steve

 

[Milo]

Can I polish a flat paint to make it glossy, or must it only be on the gloss coat?

[StevenGuthmiller]

6 minutes ago, Milo said:

Can I polish a flat paint to make it glossy, or must it only be on the gloss coat?

No, polishing a flat paint will not make it glossy.

glossier, but not glossy.

 

If you plan on polishing your paint jobs, it’s best practice to begin using clear costs.

Most preferably, several of them.

 

 

 

 

Steve

[Ace-Garageguy]

10 minutes ago, Milo said:

Can I polish a flat paint to make it glossy, or must it only be on the gloss coat?

Flat paint is flat paint.

Polish it and it will get a little glossier, but won't usually equal a gloss paint. And whatever gloss you get probably won't be even.

HOWEVER...you CAN shoot gloss clear over a flat paint and polish it if necessary.

That's a way to get gloss versions of some of Tamiya's flat military colors, for example.

Edited February 1, 2024 by Ace-Garageguy

[StevenGuthmiller]

20 minutes ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

Flat paint is flat paint.

Polish it and it will get a little glossier, but won't usually equal a gloss paint. And whatever gloss you get probably won't be even.

HOWEVER...you CAN shoot gloss clear over a flat paint and polish it if necessary.

That's a way to get gloss versions of some of Tamiya's flat military colors, for example.

Absolutely! 
As a matter of fact, this is a terrific way to begin practicing with painting and polishing.

This 1953 Ford was done many, many years ago by mixing the colors that I wanted with Testors flat enamels, airbrushed on, and then over coated with a single coat of Testors gloss enamel, and lightly polished.

A word of caution.

Should you decide to try this method, be aware that Testors clear enamel takes a loooooong time to completely cure, and has a slightly yellow hue directly from the can, so it’s not recommended to use over light colors such as white, and you might as well figure in putting it back in the box for a month or two to let it cure before attempting to polish it.

But yes, it is a very viable technique if you don’t mind the time involved.

 

 

 

 

Steve

[Milo]

If I use acrylic paint, how do I wet sand it? If any water comes in contact with my acrylic jobs, it washes away or just makes a huge smudge. 

Also I am wondering how I can apply waterslide decals to acrylic paint.

[Milo]

7 minutes ago, StevenGuthmiller said:

Absolutely! 
As a matter of fact, this is a terrific way to begin practicing with painting and polishing.

This 1953 Ford was done many, many years ago by mixing the colors that I wanted with Testors flat enamels, airbrushed on, and then over coated with a single coat of Testors gloss enamel, and lightly polished.

A word of caution.

Should you decide to try this method, be aware that Testors clear enamel takes a loooooong time to completely cure, and has a slightly yellow hue directly from the can, so it’s not recommended to use over light colors such as white, and you might as well figure in putting it back in the box for a month or two to let it cure before attempting to polish it.

But yes, it is a very viable technique if you don’t mind the time involved.

 

 

 

 

Steve

Is that BMF for the trims around the windows? How did you accomplish that level of brightness that so well matches the stock model chrome pieces? 

[StevenGuthmiller]

44 minutes ago, Milo said:

Is that BMF for the trims around the windows? How did you accomplish that level of brightness that so well matches the stock model chrome pieces? 

Just by polishing rather vigorously after application.

 

 

 

 

Steve

[Milo]

3 hours ago, StevenGuthmiller said:

Just by polishing rather vigorously after application.

 

 

 

 

Steve

Polishing as in burnishing, or literally using polishing compound and stuff?

[Kit Basher]

9 hours ago, Milo said:

If I use acrylic paint, how do I wet sand it? If any water comes in contact with my acrylic jobs, it washes away or just makes a huge smudge. 

Also I am wondering how I can apply waterslide decals to acrylic paint.

For water based paints, dry sanding is recommended. If decals cause a problem, you may have to use a non-water base clear.

[StevenGuthmiller]

8 hours ago, Milo said:

Polishing as in burnishing, or literally using polishing compound and stuff?

You can do both.

I usually just burnish it pretty vigorously with a soft cotton cloth to a high luster.

 

 

Steve

[Milo]

3 hours ago, Kit Basher said:

For water based paints, dry sanding is recommended. If decals cause a problem, you may have to use a non-water base clear.

So clear it, then decal, then gloss again?

[Milo]

15 hours ago, Kit Basher said:

For water based paints, dry sanding is recommended. If decals cause a problem, you may have to use a non-water base clear.

So clear it, then decal, then gloss again?

[Kit Basher]

8 hours ago, Milo said:

So clear it, then decal, then gloss again?

You can. I usually don't clear over decals, but a lot of people do. So you can do whatever works best for you.

[Milo]

1 hour ago, Kit Basher said:

You can. I usually don't clear over decals, but a lot of people do. So you can do whatever works best for you.

If you don’t clear after decals, how do you get them to gloss?

[Kit Basher]

4 hours ago, Milo said:

If you don’t clear after decals, how do you get them to gloss?

Most of my models are more or less stock, and don't have decals. The exception is my most recent build, a race car with lots of decals, but I didn't want it to be glossy, so no clear. That's just me, you can do it however you want. You might want to do some research on this forum, tho. I have seen some posts where the clear killed the decals.