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Removing Scratches


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Driving through the back roads of Massachusetts this weekend in my wife's new 06 Sage Brush Pearl Acura MDX (Similar to Smokey Granite Mica), I caught the tip of an extruding tree branch and it put a 6 ft long scratch right down the side of the passenger's front and rear doors, with a little scuff on the windshield pillar.

I take meticulous care of this car so this has really bummed me out.

It's not a deep scratch into the paint, but it is VERY noticable (long white scratch in the clear coat)

I know that this will require a polishing to remove, but since I didn't have necessary polishing products in stock yet, I just cleaned it well, and put a coat of Meguiars NXT wax on it.

The NXT hides the scratch, but my eye can still see it clear as day.

I don't own a porter cable or any other polishing machine yet, so I'll be doing this by hand.

So, do I need to polish the entire panel of each door, or just the scratched area?

Do I need to clay first to remove existing wax?

Do I want to work the polish in a horizontal direction, or in a circular motion? (want to avoid swirls)

What polish is most recommended for hand polishing?

I was looking at Griot's Hand polish, but dont know if it's the best choice.

http://www.griotsgarage.com/catalog.jsp?L1...4&SKU=11374

Thoughts and suggestions please!?!?:cries:

Thanks!

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You should go to www.autopia.org and read some of the tutorials there, in my opinion this scratch will probably require wetsanding to completely remove, you'd probably be better off letting a professional have a go at this one.

If you run your fingernail over the scratch does it catch or skip?

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You should go to www.autopia.org and read some of the tutorials there, in my opinion this scratch will probably require wetsanding to completely remove, you'd probably be better off letting a professional have a go at this one.

If you run your fingernail over the scratch does it catch or skip?

Thanks Steve....

Nope, can't feel the scratch under the fingernail, and with a coat of wax, it really cant be seen at all

(My wife insists it's gone, but I can still see a hint of it)

I know I can buff out any remaining hint of it with a nice hand polish... definitely nowhere near deep enough to require a wet sand.... but I wanna go at it without causing any swirls.

I was gonna post a picture of it, but it doesnt even show up in the pictures.

I just want to know if I should use a horizontal motion since this is on the side of the car, or if polishing requires more of a circular motion.

Also looking for suggestions on products.

I've never used a polish before so I have no personal experience with them at all.

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Oh then you can definately remove it, maybe even by hand.

I'd pick up some Meguiars Scratch X and polish paralell to the scratch with a nice soft MF cloth, polish all the way in until the polish dissapears and repeat until its gone.

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Oh then you can definately remove it, maybe even by hand.

I'd pick up some Meguiars Scratch X and polish paralell to the scratch with a nice soft MF cloth, polish all the way in until the polish dissapears and repeat until its gone.

Thanks Steve!

That's exactly what I needed. :D

Do you suggest doing the complete door panel, or just the scratch itself and blend?

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