Rookie Painter with a SANDING/BUFFING Question

on this website theres a products page/how to use/perfect paint job. then it comes to the statement that says normal sanding and buffing, what is the norm. im going to use a metallic paint. i guess what im wondering is what grit to use on the 2k primer right before the basecoat, and do you sand metallic paint or just the clear? is there a easy way to explain how to go at this? i wish this would have been included in that article to give something to go with.

Search for posts by Jim C. No one does more sanding and buffing. He is the man, his results speak for themselves.

There are as many methods as there are members on this forum.

Don

Wet sand the 2k primer with 600 grit paper. After wiping clean, wipe it again, and maybe a third time, let it sit overnight, then sealer (reduced coat of epoxy), then base as explained in the perfect paint job write up. You don't sand the basecoat, just the clearcoat.

Even though the tech manual states the 2K primer doesn’t require a sealer I would highly recommend sealing it with a coat of reduced epoxy. This will fill in any minor scratches that were missed when wet sanding .

even single stage metallic is not good to sand

I wish there was a sticky, or pinned thread on cut and buff. I asked a similar question a week or so ago, and got about the same answer. I have searched and searched. I piece milled together the cut portion, and enough of the buff portion I feel. I did the cut and hopefully time allows for the buff this weekend. We will see.

If you are doing base clear, then it happens after clear only as it pertains to the process. Metallic SS can be done, but it is not advisable, and depends on a lot of factors so I read.

I am not pro and am not finished with the buff process but here are my cliff notes:

Cutting I did: Use a DA 1000 dry, 1500 Wet, then 2000 foam wet,3000 foam wet, 5000 foam wet.
My notes on buffing are: Step 1: Wool pad with Meguires M100. Step 2: Foam Pad medium M205(I went with Menzerna SF2500), then Foam Polish Pad and Menzerna SF3800.

Never sand metallic single stage….