Paint Correction and the Different Levels
Picture this. You’re out on a beautiful, sunny day. You walk up to your vehicle and see the sunlight shining down on it in all its glory. As you get closer and closer you notice the paint looks worse and worse the closer you get. You see all sorts of swirls, halos, kind of a spider web effect, and scratching all over it. It’s not something you ever really pay attention to, but today it really caught your eye. You think to yourself that it really looks nothing like it did when you bought it. Then you wonder if anything can be done to make your baby shine like the diamond you think of it as.
Good news! The paint on your vehicle can regain the brilliant shine your recall. In this blog post I will be discussing paint correction and the different levels or steps involved. I will describe each step, its purpose, realistically what percentage of defects can be removed, when each step or combination of steps is appropriate or even safe to employ.
What is paint correction? Simply speaking, paint correction is a process meant to improve or restore the aesthetic appearance of a vehicle by eliminating or leveling out flaws and damage from the painted surfaces by removing a small amount of the clear coat. When I speak of damage to a painted surface I mean scratches, not rock chips or gouges that almost always break completely through the paint to the substrate below. Paint correction is primarily for automobiles, motorcycles and the like, but can be applied to planes and helicopters, RVs, boats (gel coat), construction or professional equipment and even painted appliances.
Now that we have a general definition of paint correction let’s look at the different levels of paint correction starting with the simplest level. Generally, there are three common steps that make up paint correction. The simplest, most common, and least aggressive is a one-step correction. In many cases it’s called paint enhancement. The purpose of a one-step correction or enhancement is to remove light damage and flaws like swirls, halos, micro marring, and shallow scratches. Paint enhancement is a quick job often used in detail packages like my Tenderfoot exterior detailing package. Most often a mild/medium polish and medium foam polishing pad are used with polisher. When performing an enhancement, the detailer will take a few rather quick passes to enhance the gloss of the clear coat before wiping off the polish and applying some form of protection afterward. A one-step correction will often use the same tools and products, but it usually takes a bit longer as the detailer takes more deliberate passes to maximize the percentage of flaws he or she can eliminate in the least aggressive manner. This process is always the least expensive as the least amount of product, time, and effort is involved. Depending on the condition of the paint along with the tools and products used, one can expect to remove anywhere from 50% to 70% of the flaws from the clear coat. That’s a pretty good improvement.
The next level is a two-step paint correction. This level is a bit more involved and consists of a compounding step and a polishing/finishing step. The compounding step is the cutting step that attacks the flaws and some of the deeper scratches. Depending on the hardness and condition of the paint, the detailer can use different cutting pads along with the cutting compound. The different cutting pads include a microfiber cutting pad, a wool pad (usually the most aggressive pad available), or a heavy foam cutting pad. There are also compounds that contain varying levels of abrasives to assist the chosen cutting pad maximize its effectiveness in removing the heavier flaws in the clear.
This level may include different polishing tools compared to a one-step. A one step most often uses a free-spinning or a forced rotation dual action polisher. In a two-step the compounding step explained above, the detailer may choose to use a rotary polisher (a single action spinning head), which allows the detailer to be most aggressive in their ability to remove flaws. This tool in some cases may leave what are known as buffer trails. More experienced detailers have honed their skills to minimize the appearance of buffer trails in the compounding step. Whichever tool used doesn’t usually matter as the aggressiveness of the pad and compound combination will almost always leave micro marring or hazing in the clear coat because of eliminating or reducing the flaws.
After the compounding step we move to the polishing step. This is the refining or finishing step. Here a light polishing or finishing foam pad will be combined with a polishing product to refine the gloss of the clear coat removing the haze or micro marring left over from the compounding step. This step is sometimes referred to as jeweling the clear as it accentuates the appearance of the clear coat to look like a finely polished gemstone. With a two-step correction one can expect up to around 85% improvement in the appearance of the paint depending on hardness and condition of the paint as well as skill level, tools, and products available to the detailer.
Now we move onto the most involved version of paint correction, the three-step correction.
A three-step correction can be done a couple different ways depending on who you ask and which line of products the detailer may be using. One way of performing a three-step is by using three levels of compounding and polishing steps with a heavy cut step, a polish step, and a finish/jeweling step. This method will yield a bit of an improvement over the two-step but won’t be as effective as performing a wet-sanding step with the compound and polishing steps. Wet sanding can also be split up into a couple steps on its own. This is dependent on the condition and thickness of the paint, and the expectations of the client. With isolated deeper scratches the detailer may take a coarser grit of sandpaper to reduce those scratches then followed by a much finer grit of sandpaper to remove the coarser grit sanding marks and smooth out the whole panel. Depending on the thickness of the paint and the depth of the scratches, this isn’t guaranteed to remove all scratches but greatly reduce the appearance of the scratches to where you don’t notice them or need to take time to look for them. Once the wet sanding step is completed each panel will be compounded and polished to the sparkling luster we long to see. A three-step using wet sanding can expect to see a 90%-95% reduction in noticeable flaws in the paint. I don’t talk perfection because it’s so subjective. What you might consider to be looking completely flawless, the next person may strongly think otherwise.
Now you know what the different levels of paint correction include, you may be asking yourself, “Which one is right for me?” Which level is right for you depends on your budget and your expectations, and why you’re having it done.
A paint enhancement is great for someone who sticks to semi-annual schedule of having their vehicle detailed inside and out. As mentioned above, it’s the least aggressive and is meant to enhance the gloss of the paint keeping minor swirls and halos at bay with a quality paint sealant applied each time. Enhancements are also great for the vehicle you are preparing to sell or trade in. It makes the vehicle look presentable to potential buyers and helps with resale/trade-in value.
A one-step is what you might consider when you buy a new daily driver and want to have a ceramic coating installed to keep that showroom fresh look for the foreseeable future. This will make sure the swirls, halos, and any minor damage from the factory, shippers, and dealerships handling it before it’s delivered to you are removed.
A two-step is for that used car you just bought and want to make it look better than the dealership or private seller ever planned on making it look. Again, a ceramic coating is probably the best way to seal in the results afterward.
A three-step is for the worst of the worst and is used the least to remove/reduce deep scratches, swirls, and halos that are all over the painted surfaces of the vehicle. It is the most aggressive process that removes the most material from the layer of clear coat on your vehicle. The detailer better make sure a paint thickness gauge is being used to determine whether this is even a safe option for your vehicle. Realistically, a three-step paint correction is primarily for show cars that need that flat, mirror-like finish on the exterior. In many cases show cars have been repainted and there is a substantial layer of clear coat over the body color of the vehicle. This allows the detailer plenty of material to safely work with reducing the chances of burning through to the base layer. With the ever-decreasing thickness or shall I say ever increasing thinness of clear coat manufacturers are applying to new cars, the idea of a three-step paint correction is becoming an increasingly bad decision for newer cars. I will expand on that further in a future post.
To wrap it up, paint correction is a process used to remove flaws and damage from the paint or clear coat and restore the aesthetic appearance of a vehicle. To remove the flaws and damage fine amounts of clear coat are removed progressively to reach a certain improvement percentage. Which option is right for your vehicle depends on expectations, condition of the vehicle, and thickness of the paint being worked on. Make sure you discuss all options with your detailer. To inquire about paint correction for your vehicle give me a call at 608-354-6295 or book your appointment today by visiting https://www.eaglecustomdetailing.com and follow the links.