{"id":23142,"date":"2018-08-10T08:00:40","date_gmt":"2018-08-10T12:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.detailedimage.com\/Ask-a-Pro\/?p=23142"},"modified":"2018-09-04T09:57:19","modified_gmt":"2018-09-04T13:57:19","slug":"paint-defects-and-paint-correction-part-1-swirls-and-scratches","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.detailedimage.com\/Ask-a-Pro\/paint-defects-and-paint-correction-part-1-swirls-and-scratches\/","title":{"rendered":"Paint Defects and Paint Correction – Part 1: Swirls and Scratches"},"content":{"rendered":"

Rodney Tatum of Mirror Reflections Auto Spa shares what exactly imperfections are, how to remove them and how to prevent them in this 4 part article series. Click here<\/a> to read them all!<\/em><\/p>\n

What is paint correction and how does it improve the appearance of your vehicle?<\/p>\n

If you are a Professional Detailer you often have had a potential client say “my car is missing that pop”.\u00a0 But when you bring up what is visually obvious to your trained eye, the person responds by saying “it does not have any swirls!\u00a0 I don’t see what you are talking about!\u00a0 What is this paint correction talk!\u00a0 It just needs a good wax!”<\/p>\n

If you are a potential client discussing the needs of your car with a Professional Detailer, you may have thought to yourself “what is with this crazy paint correction talk!\u00a0 He must be trying to con me out of my money.\u00a0 Sure my paint looks dull, but I don’t see what he is talking about.”<\/p>\n

What you do not see is making your paint look dull.<\/p>\n

What is wax and what is polish?\u00a0 Wax is for paint protection.\u00a0 Polish is a product consisting of liquid abrasives designed to level and consequentially clean your paint in order to improve its appearance.\u00a0 Many people mistakenly believe a wax is performing the way a polish would.<\/p>\n

One of the reasons that this misconception is perpetuated throughout the mainstream public is that most waxes sold over the counter are cleaner waxes.\u00a0 In other words, many over the counter products are all in one type products.\u00a0 So upon application, the paint cleaners in the product are cleaning up the road grime and performing some of the duties a clay bar would perform.\u00a0 These products were made knowing the average consumer is not going to be as meticulous as a professional or enthusiast.\u00a0 In addition, some of these over the counter products also have built-in glazes that can fill in some of your paint’s defects temporarily.\u00a0 Wax itself will slightly fill. The clarity this brings will dissipate as the wax degrades.\u00a0 With a cleaner surface and a very temporary masking of some paint defects, the consumer falsely believes the wax is making a significant and permanent change to a car’s painted surface.<\/p>\n

I believe this the number one reason there is so much confusion about what products actually do.\u00a0 In the short run it helps the company sell a product with a result.\u00a0 In the long run confusion by oversimplification has created more problems for the budding enthusiast and the professional trying to educate his or her clients.<\/p>\n

Now answering what is wrong with your paint:<\/p>\n

For perfect mirror-like clarity, you need a smooth\/even surface for light to reflect perfectly (specular reflection) back to your eyes.<\/p>\n

\"perfect<\/p>\n

When there is an uneven surface, light waves are scattered at many different angles (diffuse reflection).\u00a0 Consequentially your paint will look dull.<\/p>\n

\"dull<\/p>\n

There is not a smooth signal to and from your eyes with a blemish.\u00a0 Now imagine 1,000s of these!<\/p>\n

\"swirls\"<\/p>\n

A picture of a Jaguar XK8, prior to a Two Stage Paint Correction.<\/p>\n

These are referred to as swirls.\u00a0 Many people make the mistake of thinking they come from a polisher due to an optical illusion created from direct sunlight.\u00a0 But the circular pattern is really thousands of tiny straight line scratches if you look at them closely.\u00a0 Your eyes trick you because of the pattern around direct sunlight is where your eyes are focused.\u00a0 This is why the defects are known as swirls (swirl pattern around intense light).\u00a0 They are primarily the cause of poor wash technique, that includes definitely includes hand washing.<\/p>\n

The owner of this Jaguar did not see these swirls, yet he wanted me to “make paint his pop”, and he had yet to find someone who could address the problem.\u00a0 Long story short, fixing the problem, meant paint correction.\u00a0 As obvious as to some what was wrong with his car with the help of a swirl finding light, this is a relatively common issue.<\/p>\n

The video of this turnaround can be shown here:<\/p>\n