I have a couple of nicks on my bumper so I decided to buy the touch up spray paint from www.paintstratch.com. Has anyone one used it and does it produce much better results than just using the regular touchup paint?

 

I bought a paint pen from them-the color did not match. Then, I got a bottle of touch-up paint from Acura. It was a perfect match.

 

Novice, don't they guarantee the quality of the paint, provided you give them the proper paint code and factory code (I believe ours are all "A")?

Did you have a problem getting them to match it for you?

 

Exactly, when I ordered mine they asked for the paint code and the factory code which I specified as "A". So well see when I get the paint.

 

Lore:

I didn't even know they guarantee the quality of the paint. I put a small amount of paint (paint pen) and noticed that it was almost brownish color (I have desert mist). I ended up covering it up with the bottle of paint from an Acura dealer. I did a little exp on a piece of white paper. The color of the paint from Paintscratch was way off. I thought I gave the exact paint code written on a stickeron my car.

 

Maybe whoever mixed the paint was drunk. lol

 

Possible. Do they do really good job mixing paint to come up with the exact specifications? I would think that it would be best to stick with the OEM products?!

 

yeah, I agree. The reason that I found out that they mix the paint is because I went to check the order and it told me that they haven't mixed the paint and who many orders they have to mix etc.

 

Well, pre-mixed paint is good to a certain point. You don't want a pre-mixed bottle of touchup that's been sitting on a shelf for 2 years. You'd want it mixed to factory specs probably no more than a month before application.

PaintScratch is very "proud" of their ability to match the paint, so if you've had a problem with the match, you should have definitely contacted them. Their page includes a TON of information about what you need/should have done to get the bad paint replaced.

I'm getting my bumper re-painted soon due to the two bumps on it - and I'm getting an estimate on getting the hood done as well... we'll see how that goes. (I had two nasty rock chips on the hood that I simply butchered when I was touching it up. It was actually the rubbing compound that made it worse.)

 

How long after applying the paint do you use the rubbing compound? Also was it the touchup via brush, pen or the spray?

 

This is what you should do:

1) Clean the surface
2) Fill in the rock chip with either the paint pen or a touch up bottle. If you're using the latter, use a paper match stick to gently layer the paint in the chip. Let dry 20-30 minutes between EACH layer. (I know, this is the HARDEST part of the process, but patience is a virtue). After you're done with the last layer, let the paint dry at least 24 hours, preferably more. You want it to harden and not be tacky to the touch.
3) Put the clear coat on the paint. You don't have to layer it if you don't want, since you'll be using the rubbing compound to smooth it out. Let dry 3 days.
4) Apply rubbing compound to the surface area around the clear coat. Bear in mind that if your car is metallic, the touched-up area will look off if you're staring right at it, but from an angle you might not even notice it. The rubbing compound will blend the new clear coat to the rest of the surrounding clear coat. You'll still be able to see a difference from an angle in certain light, but it'll be a lot better than what it was with the chip.

My mistake was thinking I could do better with the base coat so I sanded it down and tried again, but boy was I mistaken -- I actually faded the "good" surrounding paint with the sanding and the rubbing compound. If I had stopped the first time, it would have been fine. But I'm a perfectionist paying the price.

 

Lore, I'm the same damn way. I'm gonna take your advice when the touchup spray paint comes. I'll let you know the results.