Oxidized Paint restoration help

Discuss anything after that final masking comes off.



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PostPosted: Wed Jul 14, 2021 1:30 am
Hi Group,

I just purchased this 1967 Morris Minor, as you can see the wood and the paint can use some help. I would like to start with the paint which seems very solid, no chips, flaking, or blisters from rust, just badly oxidized. The wood will be another topic later.
I have only put wax on a family car years ago with a hand rag wax on wax off method, so this will all be new to me.

What I'm asking about is product info and steps to take to see if I can salvage this finish to a OK looking level as a daily driver, not a show car in any way. I did a search here but nothing came up that fit the question very well..

Look forward to any and all advice.

TX
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PostPosted: Wed Jul 14, 2021 9:18 am
Are you planning to fix the rusted areas?
1968 Coronet R/T


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 14, 2021 3:42 pm
Well, let me try to at least address the green (yeah, rust, that's an encyclopedia to itself). I restore old coatings for a living so you just need to understand a few things right up front. As much as we say it's not peeling, flaking, etc., it is still far from being a sound coating. Oxidation is not something you are going to "fix." You instead are going to "conserve" the painting coating to a certain level that you will have to maintain. Compounding/buffing if you haven't noticed on here is a skill that rivals laying down the coating itself. First, I'd go to a nice out of the way place on that car and hit an area with some Dawn, dry it, and hit it with some quality wax and grease remover. Pick yourself up some 3M Super Duty Compound. Try a small area with some of that on a nice clean soft cloth. You will pick up some green transfer in your rag. Do it once, let it dry for some time, now do the same thing again. See if the green transfer has reduced and the area is looking somewhat matte to satin in appearance. If that seems to be working move out and do a larger section. Now, you could quite literally do the entire car this way however that is not what I would do. I would take a buffer and get an assortment of quality Lake Country wool pads. Twisted wool would be the most aggressive with finer wool pads for less aggression. I'm pretty good with a buffer so personally I'd be using the twisted wool on lower speeds but again just depends on your skill set with a buffer. Okay, so here comes big print....BE CAREFUL, GO SLOW, YOU CAN CUT DOWN TO PRIMER IN A HEARTBEAT WITH OLD PAINTS.....I'm sorry for that but it is true.
Okay, so you ended up compounding the paint up, looks great, period correct.....now what? If it's always garaged it could look okay for a year, maybe 2 years but understand this, it will start oxidizing again from the day you are done with it. You cannot stop it, clear coating will not stop it, waxing will not stop it, glazing will not stop it, the latest ceramic gobblty goop will not stop it,......you will simply have to keep compounding/buffing for the rest of your life.......
:pcorn: So now you'll have a new hobby.....
Metal, wood, fiberglass, we work it all... www.furniturephysicians.com We can restore the irreplaceable!



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PostPosted: Wed Jul 14, 2021 11:26 pm
Hi DarrelK,

That is the best information I could ask for. All I can say is Thanks..! The rust at this time is only going to be cleaned up and coated with a rust inhibiter, this was bought as a daily driver and to be driven as is, so minimal work on the rust.

The paint as you say is OLD, and probably not going to improve a lot being a daily driver.
I'll give your suggestions a try and see if It can just get a bit of a shine back, not a new finish look, just see if the chalkiness can be lessened.

Thanks for the advice. I'll report back with what I find out and hopefully a picture or two.

TX
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PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2021 5:57 am
I've never done this, but knowing Meguire's reputation, and good products, I'd try their advice. I don't remember exactly, but I'm sure if you access their website, they should have explicit instructions. They had a procedure to revitalize old paint, that involved using their Mirror Glaze, and applying it heavily, letting it soak in for a long time. Then trying a hand polish. Repeat if necessary. The product soaks into the paint to help it back to a healthy condition. After repeating as much as necessary, a good waxing was advised to lock the shine in. And of course, you would need to re-polish and wax, when the paint starts to get dull again/

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PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2021 8:36 am
Now that's a blast from the past....When I was a kid Meguiars Mirror Glaze was about the only thing we had that could revive crapped out paint. It was a unique product back then using an ultra-fine ground tripoli (abrasive used in fine furniture polishes) and what I always suspected was almond oil. Some organic oils like that induce swelling/healing of coatings. In museum grade conservation we use raw almond meats to swell/fill minor scratching. The only bottom line to any of this hocus pocus is you just can't stabilize how pretty you get things looking. I think you'll be surprised how much the gloss will come up on this paint. It can look quite good.....
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PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2021 8:06 pm
Hi Guys,

I had to have a laugh today, :rotfl: I went to the NAPA Store and they had Meguiar's products, so I looked for "Mirror Glaze" and EVERY product on the shelf said Mirror Glaze on the bottle with a sub category from High Tech Yellow wax to sealants to cutting cleaners.
I did ask, and the fella behind the counter (which I need to be carful of there suggestions) said use the fine-Cut Cleaner #2 and you should be good. Well, after reading the bottle it does say Designed to remove water spots, light stains, scratches, oxidation, and other paint problems, so I bought a bottle.
Is this the product you guys were suggesting or was it another sub category product ?
I'm going to give it a good bath and use the wax & grease remover before I get started.
It was also suggested that a little water on the car for lubrication when using the Fine-Cut cleaner would be a good thing, what's the consensus on that idea?

I look forward to your continued guidance on this new adventure....!

TX
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Chris :)

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PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2021 8:38 pm
Mrfixit_PDX wrote:It was also suggested that a little water on the car for lubrication when using the Fine-Cut cleaner would be a good thing, what's the consensus on that idea?


With the older style compounds we always used water. Just a little, sprayed lightly on the panel. Splattered everywhere but kept the compound active for longer. Newer compounds have built-in lubrication and don't need it. They also don't cake as hard and are much easier to clean up.

Now you take it easy with that thing. You don't want to call on all 48 horses at once. :goodjob:
Chris



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PostPosted: Fri Jul 16, 2021 4:14 am
Been a while, but I think the Meguire's #3 is the modern version of the old Mirror Glaze.

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PostPosted: Fri Jul 16, 2021 10:01 pm
So whatever you end up using just let your rag be your guide. If you start seeing a lot of that green coming up you better back off....if not as much, go at it a little harder or step up to a more aggressive compound. I'd still consider sampling an area with a buffer and low speeds.....
Metal, wood, fiberglass, we work it all... www.furniturephysicians.com We can restore the irreplaceable!
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