i hear people talk about wet sanding their car before they get it painted. What is wet sanding? I might take my car down to Macco in a couple of months and i want to do the prepping my self. I know macco isn' the best place but ill live with it.

 

Good question I'm gonna need to prep my car soon too I'd like to know what the whole prep is...

 

wet sanding = sanding with wet sand paper

i remember i was reading about it earlier this week, i'll try to find the thread.

 

Yes I'd like all the details I can get my hands on..

 

Wet sanding is the process of scuffing the clear coat on your car to make the new paint stick. You can also use a scuff pad, but it doesn't do the job that wet sanding does.

It is also used after the paint has cured to take imperfections out of the clear coat and to make the clear shine (that is done by wetsanding with a very fine grit and then buffing).

 

Wet sanding is a process that usually comes AFTER the painting process. It smoothens out the paint and gets rid of minor imperfections. I recently did this to a lip that I rattle-canned, and it really improved it's appearance. I'll try to put together a DIY on the process soon.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by alfaaay &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Wet sanding is a process that usually comes AFTER the painting process. It smoothens out the paint and gets rid of minor imperfections. I recently did this to a lip that I rattle-canned, and it really improved it's appearance. I'll try to put together a DIY on the process soon.</TD></TR></TABLE>

wet sanding doesn't JUST come after... you wet sand the car first with 400, all over. paint, clear, then re-wet sand with 2000 grit

A good trick to know just how much you need to wet sand when prepping (not after you paint, before). Get a magic marker and make some lines, then sand it so you can no longer see the ink, once you can't see the ink, that's how far you need to go

 

the only reason to wet sand is because with fine grit sand paper, the paint debris gets stuck in the fine grit VERY quickly. When you're sanding with water, the debris stays with the water and does not clog the paper.

This allows you to use 600 grit, 1000 grit, or 2000 grit without clogging the paper.

This can be done anytime. Usually wet sand the primer surfacer prior to sealer, and if you need, after the clear coat is dry, to smooth out orange peel

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by tegasaurus &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

wet sanding doesn't JUST come after... you wet sand the car first with 400, all over. paint, clear, then re-wet sand with 2000 grit

A good trick to know just how much you need to wet sand when prepping (not after you paint, before). Get a magic marker and make some lines, then sand it so you can no longer see the ink, once you can't see the ink, that's how far you need to go </TD></TR></TABLE>

Hmm...that's a really good tip. I sanded the lip before, then primered, sanded again (not wet, but I guess that would've been a better idea), then did the whole painting thing, then wet sanded, ****'s hella smooth!! But I already chipped it on some stupid parking curb. Anyway, to the guy wondering about this, find out about the process that the person painting it is gonna use. Like Emerika was saying, wet sanding will get rid of that orange peel look.

 

before you paint dont go any finer then 600 because you need something for the paint to stick but also dont go to low that you see scratches though the paint

 

not to jack your thread but...i just got my car painted and it didnt come out all that shiny plus the guy told me that the car has not been buffed or wetsanded...so if i get it wetsanded and buffed it's gonna make my car shinier?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by drevinder &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">before you paint dont go any finer then 600 because you need something for the paint to stick but also dont go to low that you see scratches though the paint
</TD></TR></TABLE>

So I'm thinkin 600 is fine? hehe.

 

hey guys don't forget that with cheaper paint jobs that have an integrated clear plus metallic or pearl you can not wet sand after the paint has been sprayed! the metallic and pearl materials in the paint do not respond very well to wet sanding, actually it will totally f up the look of your finish!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by alfaaay &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Wet sanding is a process that usually comes AFTER the painting process. It smoothens out the paint and gets rid of minor imperfections. I recently did this to a lip that I rattle-canned, and it really improved it's appearance. I'll try to put together a DIY on the process soon.</TD></TR></TABLE>

nada, a good wet sand will use rough sand paper + paint solvent/lubricant to remove everything down to metal, and water wisks it away. YOu can do between 2-3 steps for a good wetsand.
YOu apply clearcoats over paint and these can be "sanded" with VERY FINE nonabrasive buff pads, but that's different. You wouldn't want to sand after you paint.
Unless you're talking about sanding after primer'ing. Between prepping a car for painting, if the surface is bad enough (or old vehicle) it may be necessary to primer the car, then sand it smooth for painting..please check around for this if i don't answer your ?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by watacivic &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">not to jack your thread but...i just got my car painted and it didnt come out all that shiny plus the guy told me that the car has not been buffed or wetsanded...so if i get it wetsanded and buffed it's gonna make my car shinier?</TD></TR></TABLE>

are you sure he didn't say "this is the best we can do without wetsanding the car down and redoing it completely?"

 

egtodc2...the guy told me to take it to an Oasis(detail shop) to get the car buffed. he doesnt know how to buff that good but just knows how to paint and touch-up.