Care and upkeep of flattened paint.

[Nads]

I'm still not 100% sure my '54's gonna be flattend or not, the car's turning out straight enough for gloss.
Believe me, there light at the end of the tunnel.
The only reason I wanna go flat on the main body is because it'll look just plain sinister. I don't want there to be anything girlie about this car. I love the way Jesse James' '54 Chevy looks and my purple paint's super dark.
So the question is can flattened paint be waxed? Can standard procedures of rubbing the paint out still be applied? How much should I degloss it?

[**DONOTDELETE**]

Nads..i remeber someone on here "waxing" their flat paint with wd40..don;t know how well it works but i would imagine it shines it up and keeps it waterproof.

[RF]

Seal it with clear...just don't shoot base and call it suede. The paint on my '53 "was" roughly 10 years old, with a pearlized/flattened clear. I'd wash it like normal, then "polish" with Mother's spray-on California Gold (I think that's the name) detailer. That stuff would never leave any white residue, but kept the sheen.

[QQMOON]

I wipe my coupe over with a rag and prepsol or wax and grease remover seems to keep it looking flat
JR

[34 GAZ]

Try it out on the underside of the trunk or hood and
see what happens.

[lostn51]

ok im bumping this to the top because it is asking the question i have on the care of a suede car. i have a good sheen but i want to know what can you use to maintain it. is there a spray on type of detailer or what?

[Buzznut]

Good question...I'd like to see what others are using as well.

[HOTRODPRIMER]

What color of flat paint are you thinking about? HRP

[LUX BLUE]

oddly enough, the "spray on" wax at the local car wash does a great job! so does the Mothers stuff. no chalky discharge (yuck. nobody want chalky discharge.) and it beats the heck out of rubbing it for hours.
Years ago, I had a guy bring in a real Trans Am circut race car with a flat black hood and decklid. I asked him how he kept it clean and black.
his one word answer was funny.

lard.

apparently, not only does it make a better pancake, but it will keep semi gloss really semi gloss.
I wanted to ask him if got really hungry for french fries after a long drive.

[GassersGarage]

I use Adams detail spray. Works great.

[Haunyawk]

I use Adams detail spray. Works great.
That's the pink shit in a spray bottle that smells like bubblegum right? My car is flat process blue, and white on top and trunk, the blue is petty faded.

[billshari]

I use Total Prep. Made by MarHyde, I think. It is an aresol spray. I believe it is like prepsol.

Bill

[Jdee]

On a test panel try some gibbs brand and use some Bronze Wool to rub out the finish.
Don't rub in circles but go with the body flow.
It makes for a nice look. the gibbs can always be cleaned off and painted over later.
You can also clean the paint later with some gibbs and a light scuff...
The Bronze wool does not get in the paint and rust like steel wool could and its softer.
its kind of like how the old Grand Pianos we done, making black lacquer look almost silver
by adding the scratches with steel wool and mineral oil to break up the light that was hitting the surface. I think it was called stippling or something like that.
but i like the look I'm getting, and know I can always paint over it later.

Jdee

http://woodgraining.com/photos/39/new/IMGA0133.jpg

[Pops]

On a test panel try some gibbs brand and use some Bronze Wool to rub out the finish.
Don't rub in circles but go with the body flow.
It makes for a nice look. the gibbs can always be cleaned off and painted over later.


Gibbs brand of what?

J.

[Jdee]

http://www.roadsters.com/gibbs/
this is it...
Jdee

[lostn51]

What color of flat paint are you thinking about? HRP


its a Black single stage enamel with about a 20% in gloss reduction. its a little shinier that Blitz Black.

[lostn51]

so does the Mothers stuff. and it beats the heck out of rubbing it for hours.

what kinda Mothers stuff?

[Pops]

I'm sorry, I have to ask one more question. If you spray Gibbs penetrant or WD-40, doesn't that just collect dust and dirt? I've read threads like this before and it's been stated to use stuff like this but I've often wondered about it collecting dirt and dust. My car was shiny before the wreck so I don't have anything to compare it to.

J.

[heyitsnate]

i have used orange cleaner...you know,that orange oil stuff....made it look pretty cool.

[David Totten]

try pledge spary wax works great on flat and semi gloss. wont collect dirt like some products

[Jdee]

On the Gibbs page it says.

" # Gibbs Brand leaves metal slippery, not sticky. Surfaces that have been treated with Gibbs will not attract dust or dirt. Any dust that does settle on metal that has been treated with Gibbs can easily be wiped off."

And thats what I have found also.

You wipe it off real good when you are done.
Its the fact that you can paint over it later, were the WD and other wax stuff will
give you fits to paint over... Do test panels just like you would do when doing custom paint.
that way you get the look you like. and be careful with the other things that will ruin
a future touch up or paint job...
Jdee
PS: thats on Metal but what i did on Paint I had to wipe it off the next day again, and it stayed good...

[Fish Tank]

I've heard different opinions on the actual flat black paint itself, DuPont, etc. What do you guys have and or have found to work best and give the best appearance when fresh or cleaned?

[slammed49]

I have Hot Rod Flatz in black......Windex cleans it great and leaves NO residue,fingerprints and dirt are gone fast

[hrm2k]

When I bought my T, Clark told me to use simple Green and a rag. I'm happy with how it looks

[Haunyawk]

Now that I think about it, my gramps buddy told me to use Pledge, he siad it works great on flat paint and grandfather clocks, I'm going to try it out. I'll post pics.