Paint Care/Repair

Hey all, sorry if this is in the wrong thread and feel free to move it if it is, but I have a question and would love to hear some community feedback. I use a magnetic tank bag that has recently gone to hell and put some scuffs and scratches on my tank, and not knowing enough about paint I don't really know how to fix this. I like keeping my Honda immaculate but don't have the money or care enough to re-paint the tank, and since the scratches aren't/don't seem like they're that deep I don't think I can use a colorrite paint pen or something like that, but is there anything I can do to fix this? Clay bar? Clear coat paint in a pen applicator? Help!!!

 

If the paintwork on your tank is OEM it's clearcoated. Before you do anything, remove any wax or waxlike product. Many of the "polishes" on the market are acrylic coatings and not wax. Go easy..

Clay bars are cleaning "tools".

Check your public library for a current book on auto painting or buy one of the paperbacks from someplace like Amazon..

The final treatment or fix is going to depend on how severe the damage is. ie how deep the scratches are.


IMO you will hear from the "Rattlecan Rangers" who abound. Earplugs are a good thing..

 

If it is just the clearcoat that is scuffed or scratched, white polishing compound such as Formula 1 Scratch Out or 3M polishing compound will do a good job.

 

A picture of the affected area would help

 

Sorry this took me so long to get pictures, it's been a crazy week for me... Anyways here's the area, as I mentioned it's not a huge area but it is somewhere pretty visible and it irks me more than anything else every time I see it. Hard to see in this picture I know, but it looks worse in person, more than anything like the glossy finish of the paint has been removed. There do not seem to be any noticeable imperfections in the surface finish of the paint, i.e. running my hand over the area I can't feel any roughness or scratches beneath the surface of the paint. I am already working on getting the problem fixed i.e. getting my tank bag replaced/repaired as it is under warranty.

 

Looks like overspray.

 

Nope, definitely not overspray. Like I said, came from my tank bag being on the tank and scuffing/rubbing it.

 

Was your tankbag full of rattlecans?

 

I have a magnetic tank bag, too, and I have found that the magnets are really fond of attracting metal filings from my workshop. They are nearly impossible to remove from the magnets once they are stuck on. This is more than likely the cause of your scratches.

I know exactly what kind of damage you are seeing (spider webbing in the clearcoat) and it is very easy to fix with polishing compound followed by a high-end polish, then a wax of your choosing. Because your bike is black, the appearance of the damage is amplified.

 

How those chunks of metal get from VT to CA is a mystery all on its own.

 

You are going to have one hell of a hard time keeping spider scratches from being visible on a dark coloured tank. I suggest all you have scratched is the clear coat. And I suspect you can polish those out with a bit of elbow grease and good rubbing compound, some already mentioned. You might even try some careful wet sanding and a new application of clear. But be diligent in putting the bag on and off and like Tink has eluded to, watch for filings and debris on the magnets. If mine wasn't white, it would look like hell I am sure. Well it looks like hell anyways.

 

I suggest a product call 3M hand glaze, that you can get at O'Reillys or probably any of the major automotive stores. I've been using it on show cars for years for the exact same kind of scratches... Those type of scratches can come from the smallest things like wiping your bike down with a microfiber cloth. Granted, this product is NOT a wax, but it fills in the tiny scatches better than wax, and with MUCH less effort machine polishing it. After you've applied 2 or 3 coats of hand glaze, wipe it down again and then a nice coat of wax to put your protective layer back. Hope this helps.

 

If you plan on still using a tank bag a lot in the future, you might want to look at some of the protection options. There are companies that sell a clear 3m product that sticks on, similar to the hood paint protection you see for cars. Cheap version would be using clear Contact paper from Target or Wal*Mart. Also there are magnetic options that come on and off easily, but given you think the scratches came from tank bag picking up metal filings in your garage, I would think that would not be a good option for you. I have also used a foam like shelf liner, cut to size and just laid on the tank under my tank bag.

 

There are some guys on this forum that have done amazing results in detailing, without re-painting. Unless that picture is really deceiving, I have no doubt that $50 (or less) worth of paint care products from your local auto store and a little elbow grease will fix that right up, and you'll have the products to use again in the future.

Wash it to remove any traces of oil, wax, etc. This might be the one time you actually DO want to use dish soap.
After drying, you can use a clay bar if you'd like in order to remove the very fine impurities.
Use products of your liking. I think Meguairs makes a decent product at a fair price.
You can start by using the "Scratch X". Real easy to work with. Keep your applicator pad clean. Tanks are small enough, so doing it by hand is fine, unless you happen to have a buffer handy.
After the Scratch X, you could apply a coat of polish - such as what OSA mentioned above. This should help "fill in" any minor scratches.

I prefer to use an all natural carnuba wax after I'm done cleaning and polishing.

After the carnuba, try a synthetic wax on top of that (again, using Meguirs, I'd go with their NXT Generation).

There are also sprays at your local auto parts store that might take about 12 hours to cure, but they put a nice finish on top of that.

Make sure you:
Use separate applicator pads for each step
Use clean towels to wipe each coat off.

Once you have a solid coat of wax, you'll find there aren't really going to be any more "surface" scratches.

 

The adhesives on the 3M clear films are not fuel proof. Shelf paper might be nice if one is available with Micky Mouse on it.