H8 LUZN

Well my 2000 Black SS's paint is about as perfect as it gets (from the factory), however i am now looking to make it even better. We all know factory paint jobs are FAR from the best but how much clearcoat is put on from the factory? I want to do a little color sanding to get rid of the wonderful factory orange peel but am quite cautious on how much i can do before i go through the clear.

I plan on only using 2000 grit and above but how much can i get away with? I may just live with the 'slight' imperfection untill i can get everything else how i want it to be.

And if i know GM, they made it as thin as possible so i have no chance in doing any color sanding...

5550racing

The factory clear coat is fairly thin so you would have to be real careful... It can be done but if you **** up it will look worse than when you started. Your planning on starting with 2000? Damn... you could start out with something with more grit to it... I would do it if it looks that bad... Wet sanding and buffing makes the paint look killer.

99zee

iTrader: (4)

Like stated above the factory clear coat is very thin. If it is not that bad I would leave it. You have a good chance of it looking worse than before

jargan04

iTrader: (1)

Do not go lower then 2000.

floman

iTrader: (54)

I have wet sanded on quite a few GM vehicles. You never know exactly how much clear is on there, just be very cautious around the body lines and sharp edges. Even with 2000 grit you can go through on the edges if you dont pay close attention. The 2000 and 2500 grit paper makes the buffing a lot easier also. As long as you see milky colored water your good. Also dont buff with aggressive compounds, the least amount of paint you take off the better you are. If you have the patience to do the whole car it will look so much slicker .Good luck!

Jeremiah

iTrader: (5)

Not to be rude at all but if you have to ask this question then you should leave it alone. Even a seasoned polisher will risk screwing up a factory paint job when collor sanding/polishing, especially on a black car!

I personally like a well cared for original finish over a collor sanded/polished finish. Also, if it ever gets scratched or needs to be polished again in the future you can consider yourself screwed.

Just my .02

H8 LUZN

I've color sanded quite a few cars (almost all with new paintjobs with thick clear coats).. all i was looking for was how thick the factory clear coat is.

And yes.. i have decided to leave it alone. If i had a thicker clear coat..i would be on it like white on rice..

Jeremiah

iTrader: (5)

Like I said not trying to be rude, just honest.

Not only is the factory paint three times harder to polish sanding scratches out of than a fresh new soft finish you have to polish three times longer to achieve the same results you would with a fresh new soft paint job, all this with three times less clear to work with.

hammerhead

iTrader: (1)

The idea of wet sanding the factory paint makes me cringe. If a clay bar and some polish doesn't solve the problem, you might as well repaint it. Screw the orange peel. It's original at least.