Orange Peel

[crazyjoe]

Ok, pretty much every car I have ever owned had, to one degree or another, some orange peel qualities to the finish.

Is there a way to remove the orange peel that comes with a stock paint job that's easy enough for a non-professional to handle, or would I be endangering my paint job?

[gonzomania]

Crazyjoe,
I don't know how to answer that I don't think there is any kind of polishing or waxing you can do because your clearcoated , you would have to get to the actual paint to rub it out. Anybody else with an idea[:I]

[CREWZIN]

Funny story: These are two of the long list of cars I've owned....


The NOVA on the bottom was in an accident (wife's fault, but that's another story). I had it repainted by Earl Shribe (remember him.."Any car, Any color...$29.95), anyway, when I got it back there was so much "wrinkles" in the orange paint that I changed my handle (call name for those too young) to "ORANGE PEEL".

Sorry Crazy Joe, got off track...can't help you with your problem.

[crazyjoe]

The "orange peel" is actually in the clearcoat typically, and not in the base coat of paint. So if anyone has any ideas, let me know.

[turbomangt]

Joe, for orange peel you may need to wet sand. I would not recommend anyone doing this without experience. Heck , even if someone brought me a car with it, I would send them to a body shop. YOu need to know how thick the paint is to be worked on, (by using a paint thickness gauge) Some people confuse orange peel with overspray. The later you can remove with a clay bar. Orange peel is the result of a poor paint job, or a paint job simply not finished in tersm of sanding , buffing. Some people try to save $$$ when they paint their cars by leaving the final finishing undone, with the intent on doing it themselves. This is NOT where to save money unless you are an expert. Now, I forgot to ask you how old the car is? if it is a new car, it should be covered under warrenty. Gary

[quicksilverdon]

If you haven't clay-barred it, give that a shot. Next step up is rubbing compound (by hand) - with caution. If still there, you're where Gary said - a good paint shop.

[crazyjoe]

Gary,

The car is an '03 PT GT. And if you look closely at your paint, I am sure you'll see orange peel. I see it on just about every car out there, with the exception of a lot of Pontiacs (they seem to have really good paint for some reason) and some of the higher end domestic and import cars. It's not the exception, it's the rule.

Wet sanding was what I was afraid of. Don't think I am gonna go that way. Thanks for the tips!