This is my first time colorsanding a car and it feels like a huge feat to accomplish....

I know it varies depending how bad of an orange peel you have or how many drips or sags you have...but my car has orange peel and i just started on the trunk today with 1500 grit and man! it feels like its not doing anything...after about 20 min or so..i can notice it getting a lil smoother but no much...

How long does it take you guys average...to colorsand a whole car??

any tips to speed this process up...feels like its gonna take days to finsih a whole car haha...i mite try to start with 1000 now..then work my way up....

I feel your pain......on another thread today I asked for some pointers regarding sandpaper ... if you are using the economy lines of paper maybe that is the problem. Meguiars and Nikkens are supposed to be really good. They are actually the same thing with different names.

Z is on the money.. Paper makes all the difference,, I only use Nikkens paper for color sanding and mirror glaze sells it too with their label on the package of course.. It is a dollar a sheet but it is worth every penny... I let a friend of mine try some a while back and he could not believe how much better it was than what he was using...

If you go the DA route in matters less... In that scenario I use Mirka paper on my DA ...dry... start with 1000 then work your way up.. Remember you will be hard pressed to get out sand scratches under 2000 grit IMO... Yes you can do it with 1500, but 2000 buffs out much easier...

Just food for thought

BK

yeh the sandpaper mite be my problem...im using ace hardware 1500 waterproof paper (the black kind)...Ima go try and see if i can find that nikken paper you guys are talking about...how bout 3m? how good is that compared to nikken?

OH! and this is a omni bc/cc paintjob...and man my car is painted white...and when you sand the clearcoat comes off powdery white...kinda scared the S**T out of me first time i sanded until i realized it was the powdered cc, thought i burnt thru...and i have 4 coats of clear...so i should be ok..thanks for you help

I tried 3M from a chain auto parts store....still took quite a while. There may be different grades of 3M paper though....check with a paint jobber, tell 'em you want the good stuff.

BK, does the DA save a lot of time when color sanding a whole car or a large panel? I've never tried it.....don't have a feel for how that works.

Yes you can cut your sanding time in half, but you must make sure you dont use to heavy a grit for your firtst cut or it is still allot of work.... I just tried some 600 on a black truck and had a hell of a time getting them out.... My next progression of paper was 1500...I did not have any 1000 on the da pad....

As a rule from now on I will use 1000, then 1500/2000 and if in doing a show car etc then step to 4000 and of course buff out

Matthew

BK I know what you mean. Anytime I even think I am going to have to drop below 1000 I scuff back and add more clear coat. I think it's faster than trying to fight getting out 800, or worse, like you said 600 grit marks, especially on those dark colors.

I tried 600 one time and had a heck of time getting it out also. I used to do the 1000, 1500, 2000 route by hand and a rubber block, but now that I have used a DA to do it I will never go back. I have a palm type orbitol finishing sander I use at work and it works very well, I think it has a 3/32 orbit made for cutting clear. Also I use a foam interface pad so I can work on fairly cuved surfaces without problems. It cuts my working time in half, or probably more....not to mention easier. At work I use a 3M trizac 3000 grit sanding pad (has foam backing to hold water) and I go over the hood and it takes about 5 min, that knocks off the top of the texture and leaves an OEM look. If i'm doing a car at home I go the extra step and use 1500 grit to level it out flat, then go over with a 3000 grit trizac to take out the 1500 grit scratches and then buff.

Either way it saves a TON of time and effort. I still use a hand block for the curvey edges.

Her's what's fastest fo me.
I color sand with 1000 grit by hand with block and lots of water.
Then use a Mirka Foam 2000 grit pad on my DA with water
sanding until I get a uniform finish, goes really fast
and takes out all the scratches of the 1000 grit.
Next I use a 4000 grit Mirka pad with water until it shines
(This happens almost instantly with the 4000 pad)
Then I buff with a foam pad and Meguiars #2 cut polish.
(This is also really fast after the 4000 grit)
I finish up with swirl remover on a soft pad and if it's a dark color
that's hard to get perfect I go over it with hand polish (by hand)

You guys are working your self to death,,,,Here is how I have been doing it for years in the dealership's.
After the bake cycle and cool down (Or air cured over night) Ill use 600 on the small block to get out what trash if any that I have in the paint.
Then I use 1000 or 1200 (Dry) on the DA air sander over the area that needs to be buffed. (Make sure you blow all the dust off of the DA before you do this, and also dont do it outside in the wind) One grain of sand will kill you! (Done that)
Then I use the 3M-Extra-Cut compound with the gray waffle pad. If it is a dark color Ill use Zymol glaze on it after I compound the area. You should be able to do a hood in about an hour...........

Let the machine's do the work for you,,,Dam all that wet sanding by hand stuff. I have not used water in MANY MANY years.