WHYDTYTT: What Have You Done To Your Truck Today?

[Gsmblue]

Clay bars are great for clearcoat. Not sure for single stage paint.

Good to here you are getting s shine, pics??

Had some clearing and grading work done. This is where all the Bullnoses will be parked, also a potential site for a shop…

[Gary Lewis]

Had some clearing and grading work done. This is where all the Bullnoses will be parked, also a potential site for a shop…

Better be a big shop, those things are multiplying!

As for the clay bar, BB has some clear coat, although I don't think he came with any. But the front end at least has been repainted and the hood is flaking clear coat. It is a mess.

Pics will hopefully come today as we now have internet. Long story short: Cox is blanketing our town with flags so they can bury conduit in which to pull fiber. We've had AT&T fiber for maybe a year and it was clearly marked with paint on the ground and flags, but Cox's contractor cut it in at least two places yesterday while digging to install the conduit. AT&T spent all evening trying to find the cuts, but finally gave up and ran a temp fiber on the ground to get us up and will come back later to bury it. But hopefully that will be after this contractor gets done or I'm sure they'll cut it again.

[Gary Lewis]

Better be a big shop, those things are multiplying!

As for the clay bar, BB has some clear coat, although I don't think he came with any. But the front end at least has been repainted and the hood is flaking clear coat. It is a mess.

Pics will hopefully come today as we now have internet. Long story short: Cox is blanketing our town with flags so they can bury conduit in which to pull fiber. We've had AT&T fiber for maybe a year and it was clearly marked with paint on the ground and flags, but Cox's contractor cut it in at least two places yesterday while digging to install the conduit. AT&T spent all evening trying to find the cuts, but finally gave up and ran a temp fiber on the ground to get us up and will come back later to bury it. But hopefully that will be after this contractor gets done or I'm sure they'll cut it again.

Well, I'm confused. In the pic on the left I'm trying to show the difference the two polishing compounds gave. The old Turtle Wax compound on the right gives a better reflection after waxing than the one on the left. It is really hard to see but my right shoe is much more distinct in real life than the left shoe, although the picture doesn't really show that.

I'm going to get some lunch and then I think I'll see how far the old compound will go. Or use the new compound longer? Maybe it just doesn't cut as fast as the old stuff does?

Thoughts?

[FordFETruck]

Well, I'm confused. In the pic on the left I'm trying to show the difference the two polishing compounds gave. The old Turtle Wax compound on the right gives a better reflection after waxing than the one on the left. It is really hard to see but my right shoe is much more distinct in real life than the left shoe, although the picture doesn't really show that.

I'm going to get some lunch and then I think I'll see how far the old compound will go. Or use the new compound longer? Maybe it just doesn't cut as fast as the old stuff does?

Thoughts?

Gary, is the old TW compound in the can a reddish color and almost gritty to the touch? I had a can of that stuff years ago and it would scratch some paint finishes it was so aggressive. The newer stuff is probably a finer grit product meant to be used as a final polishing glaze. I haven't been super happy with the turtle wax compounds, I've buffed a couple cars with it and it works OK for how cheap it is but the Meguiars ultimate compound and polish work way better I have found, both on clear coat and single stage paints.

This paint was flat and chalky with no shine whatsoever and the Meguiars compounds brought it back really quickly, and that old paint is extremely hard for some reason.

Then there is the paint on my truck, some areas of it just won't come back shiny no matter what, it's time for a repaint on that thing.

[Gary Lewis]

Gary, is the old TW compound in the can a reddish color and almost gritty to the touch? I had a can of that stuff years ago and it would scratch some paint finishes it was so aggressive. The newer stuff is probably a finer grit product meant to be used as a final polishing glaze. I haven't been super happy with the turtle wax compounds, I've buffed a couple cars with it and it works OK for how cheap it is but the Meguiars ultimate compound and polish work way better I have found, both on clear coat and single stage paints.

This paint was flat and chalky with no shine whatsoever and the Meguiars compounds brought it back really quickly, and that old paint is extremely hard for some reason.

Then there is the paint on my truck, some areas of it just won't come back shiny no matter what, it's time for a repaint on that thing.

I do have a can of the reddish stuff, but it is rubbing compound. The old polish is white.

Both the new rubbing compound and polish are white, but even the new rubbing compound isn't cutting the old, peeling clear coat that someone added to the hood. It isn't clear and really needs to come off, but it isn't coming.

I've gone back over a stretch of the dark blue that I'd used the new rubbing compound on and then the new polish compound, but it wasn't shiny. This time I used the old TW polishing compound and it didn't really help.

I may go back and get some of the Meguiars if I can't get a shine with the TW.

 

[Gary Lewis]

I do have a can of the reddish stuff, but it is rubbing compound. The old polish is white.

Both the new rubbing compound and polish are white, but even the new rubbing compound isn't cutting the old, peeling clear coat that someone added to the hood. It isn't clear and really needs to come off, but it isn't coming.

I've gone back over a stretch of the dark blue that I'd used the new rubbing compound on and then the new polish compound, but it wasn't shiny. This time I used the old TW polishing compound and it didn't really help.

I may go back and get some of the Meguiars if I can't get a shine with the TW.

Don't know that the Turtle Wax stuff worked as well as Meguiars would have, but I used it anyway. Got all but the tailgate and the roof done today.

And I got the black trim treated with Back To Black. I used B2B instead of Cerakote since the latter is in a wipe and I needed something which I could use with a toothbrush to get down into the grain of the trim. Here's a before and after on the left rear trim, and you can kinda see me in the reflection:

And then I turned to the rear window trim which was gross, as you can see in the pic on the left. After an application of B2B it looked better, but the center piece was still awful. Turns out the ugly stuff is the outer coating for that piece and it is hard and chips out. So I chipped some of it out, as you can see in the pic on the right.

[FordFETruck]

Don't know that the Turtle Wax stuff worked as well as Meguiars would have, but I used it anyway. Got all but the tailgate and the roof done today.

And I got the black trim treated with Back To Black. I used B2B instead of Cerakote since the latter is in a wipe and I needed something which I could use with a toothbrush to get down into the grain of the trim. Here's a before and after on the left rear trim, and you can kinda see me in the reflection:

And then I turned to the rear window trim which was gross, as you can see in the pic on the left. After an application of B2B it looked better, but the center piece was still awful. Turns out the ugly stuff is the outer coating for that piece and it is hard and chips out. So I chipped some of it out, as you can see in the pic on the right.

Is the light blue on the truck paint code 34? looks the same as the light blue on my truck. My neighbor a few years back had an 85 F150 4x4 that was the dark blue your truck has and silver up the middle.

[mat in tn]

Don't know that the Turtle Wax stuff worked as well as Meguiars would have, but I used it anyway. Got all but the tailgate and the roof done today.

And I got the black trim treated with Back To Black. I used B2B instead of Cerakote since the latter is in a wipe and I needed something which I could use with a toothbrush to get down into the grain of the trim. Here's a before and after on the left rear trim, and you can kinda see me in the reflection:

And then I turned to the rear window trim which was gross, as you can see in the pic on the left. After an application of B2B it looked better, but the center piece was still awful. Turns out the ugly stuff is the outer coating for that piece and it is hard and chips out. So I chipped some of it out, as you can see in the pic on the right.

yes that "chrome" rubber trim center gets really bad looking after some years. I think it looks better black anyway. b2b makes a great difference.

[Gary Lewis]

Is the light blue on the truck paint code 34? looks the same as the light blue on my truck. My neighbor a few years back had an 85 F150 4x4 that was the dark blue your truck has and silver up the middle.

Yep, 34/Light Regatta Blue and 7H/Bright Regatta Blue Metallic. I think it is the metallic bit that makes the dark blue so "dead". But the light blue shines up nicely - everywhere but on the hood. Someone put a clear coat on there and it is anything but clear. And apparently you don't have to buff the color coat out to put a clear coat on since where the clear coat has flaked off the light blue is very rough.

Can that rubber tube be removed easily? Can I take it out to clean it?

[mat in tn]

Yep, 34/Light Regatta Blue and 7H/Bright Regatta Blue Metallic. I think it is the metallic bit that makes the dark blue so "dead". But the light blue shines up nicely - everywhere but on the hood. Someone put a clear coat on there and it is anything but clear. And apparently you don't have to buff the color coat out to put a clear coat on since where the clear coat has flaked off the light blue is very rough.

Can that rubber tube be removed easily? Can I take it out to clean it?

I believe you can find this at lmc for a reasonable price if you want it to be chrome again. aside from that it may be worth taking out and stripping the failed chrome off and coating it like the rest of the gasket.