best scratch remover?

Hello,

I was driving along a country road when another car came towards me. I think there would have been room for both cars to pass, only he wasn't really keeping to the left, so I moved as far across as I could but brushed against a hedge. Perhaps next time I should just stop.

It seems it must have been a woody hedge because I have scratches along the side of the car. Hopefully, though, not too deep.

I am wondering what I could try to polish them out? I had a quick look on Halfords' web site and they do two turtle wax products but neither gets good reviews. I was wondering about the autoglym paint restorer that gets better reviews?

Any ideas? Can these be polished out by hand or is it better to buy a machine and are the cheap DIY machines (£30 ish) any good or do you need a pro tool for a pro result?

Thanks, Stephen

Reply to
Stephen
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If the scratches are down to the primer then it's respray time.

Reply to
Berty Blenkinsop

if the marks are just on the surface then first try a wash followed with normal polish. Anything that you can actually feel is much more of a problem. If the car is valuable then get a pro. opinion before doing anything more involved. If it is not, then start with the finest scratch remover. Anything by autoglym is good.

Reply to
MrCheerful

Some people do that deliberately to make you move over. Try to play them at their own game next time. They'll soon slow down.

Reply to
Dan S. MacAbre

Great idea! I did that once in a Yorkshire Dales lane. We both stopped, looked at the remains of our wing mirrors and agreed it was 50/50.

Reply to
Gordon H

Well, if you're both going to see the nuclear option through to the end :-) I'd suggest a little discretion as the situation develops. However, never again will I let some bastard force me into the hedges without at least making them think about what they're doing.

Reply to
Dan S. MacAbre

You first need to see how deep they are. Modern paint can have an undercoat, colour coat and a clear coat. If the scratch is only to the clearcoat - or it is a solid colour, it may be possible to polish it out. But to polish out a scratch means removing lots of the surrounding paint, so you need a product designed for this job - a cutting compound. Followed by polish.

Trouble is it's all to easy to make it worse.

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

Depends on the size and depth of the scratch, and perhaps the age and condition of the car :) I've filled scratches with touch up paint BUT not using the brush that comes with it. I've purchased very fine artists brushes (can be obtained for £2 for 10) in some 'pound' type shops. The trick is not to try and fill in one go but to try and build up thin layers and try not to over paint existing sound surrounding paint. After the final application leave for a week to harden and then a _light_ rub down with t-cut. Be careful/gentle with a cutting compound (t-cut et al) if your paint has a protective lacquer top coat.

I also recommend not using this method during the hottest part of the day - the paint starts drying too fast and becomes thicker and harder to flow it into the scratch.

Reply to
alan_m

Hmmmmm, I'm not too sure about you. Have you ever heard of T-cut? Google is your friend.

Reply to
Mr Pounder Esquire

This is a daily occurrence for me, but I have an older car and accept the minor scratches.

Farecla is the usual recommendation, and is available from Half&r*#. I used it successfully on a car with even worse scratches than hedge ones.

Reply to
Nick Finnigan

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