How to Buff Metallic Acrylic Enamel Paint on Cars

Fresh painted car

Perhaps you've repainted your car to mask cosmetic damage or rust, but that new enamel paint isn't sitting right. To fully blend the new paint job with the finish, you will need to buff the metallic acrylic enamel paint on your car. A complete buffing job involves an initial wet sanding, a machine buffing, a wash and a final buffing by hand. If you buff without wet sanding first, you won't remove all of the imperfections in your metallic enamel paint job.

Things You'll Need

• 1500-grit wet sandpaper
• Bucket
• Water
• Cotton cloths
• Buffer
• Rubbing compound
• Soap
• Polymer sealant
• Foam pad

Instructions

1. Dip 1500-grit wet sandpaper into a bucket of water. Remove the sandpaper and rub it in long fluid strokes across the body of your car. Don't jerk the sandpaper or move in circles. As the sandpaper dries out, immerse it in the water again. You don't want the car to dry out, so wet the sandpaper as often as needed to maintain a wet surface. Work in this manner over the entire area that's received a new coat of acrylic enamel.

2. Rinse the car and dry it with cotton cloths.

3. Apply a quarter-sized amount of rubbing compound to the surface of your car. Using a buffer set on low speed, spread the rubbing compound around the affected area. Don't press the buffer into the surface of your car; you do not need to use a lot of pressure. Adding more rubbing compound if needed to make sure you cover the entire area. Once the area is covered, let the rubbing compound sit for at least 30 seconds.

4. Rinse the surface. Apply a light coat of soapy water with a clean cotton rag to clean the car. Rinse the surface again and dry the car with a cotton cloth.

5. Apply a polymer sealant, available at automotive paint stores, to the metallic enamel paint with a clean cotton rag. Work the polymer sealant into the surface of the car in concentric circles until the entire area is covered. Let the sealant sit for five to 10 minutes.

6. Buff the sealant out with a foam pad, by working the pad back and forth to remove all traces of sealant.

References

• Repair Nation: Paint & Body FAQ
• Talking Car Paint: How to Wet Sand and Buff Your Car