I'm a bodyman by trade and have been doing this kind of work for the past 6 years. In that time, I've earned my ASE Master certification as well as completed I-CAR training and certification. These are the two primary organizations that identify and establish repair standards in the collision repair industry.
I got laid off a little over two weeks ago, but that doesn't mean I can't still get some things done. I've had a project in my shop since early November, it's my brother's '90 Miata. It was here for some body work and a full repaint. I got it painted the week after my layoff, and have been working on "cutting and buffing" the past couple days in between applying Sharkhide on the new boat.
First step in the process is to de-nib, which means to sand down any small imperfections due to lint or small dirt particles that get in the clear coat. I went overboard with that since it's my brother's car, and took it one step further, and fully sanded the entire car, first with 1500 grit, then with 3000, and after that, started the buffing process.
Here's what it looked like after going over the whole car with 1500 grit...
After that, it gets another complete sanding with 3000 grit, notice the difference in the reflection of the light on the right side of the decklid vs the left. The right side has been sanded with 3000 and the left side only with 1500, you can see the difference...
The next step is to buff the clear to start to bring the shine up. I do this with a white wool pad and 3M Perfect-It 3000 compound, notice the swirl marks on the left quarter panel...
After buffing the entire car, I begin the first stage of polishing using 3M Perfect-It 3000 swirl mark remover. To show how this process works, I start with the left fender and capture the reflection of the light on it. The first photo shows what it looks like after initial buff with the wool pad...
Same fender after the first polishing stage...
Notice the difference in the reflection, it's much more distinct in the second photo. Normally, I wouldn't go beyond this step, most of the time, this already looks better than the rest of the car and I don't want to make the repairs "stand out" nor do I want to have to buff the whole car to make it look as good as the repair.
Last step in the process when someone wants the extra "pop" on their car really brings it all together. Again, look at the light reflection and compare to the previous two photos. The difference is subtle, yet visible, even in a photo. The difference is huge in the sun.
And here are the sides after the final polish...
So, what's all this take you ask? It took 17 hours to prep, mask, seal, and paint and I've probably got 20 - 25 hours in cutting and buffing the car. This doesn't take into consideration the 40 or so hours it took to disassemble car parts, make repairs, and least partially reassemble. I have another couple days worth of work to finish assembling the car and then I get to wash and detail it for delivery, which will take, oh, half a day anyway. I've amassed 80 - 90 hours in this job and that's probably a little light on actual labor.
Just thought I'd share.
