Extreme Overspray removal, Help!

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VaderSS

New member
I have a black 2007 Ford Focus. It has yellow industrial overspray all over it. It probably has about 50 yellow paint dots per inch on the paint and glass.



I bought a Clay Magic clay bar and spent about 2 hours getting about 90% of the overspray off of 1/2 of the hood, and the windshield. That wiped out the clay, so now I'm looking for a more effecient method.



I tried an agressive cut foam pad with Clear Kote Moose, but that seemed to do nothing.



I'm thinking a more agressive clay, followed up with compaound to remove the scratches would be the way to go, but am open to suggestions.
 
Depending on how bad/fresh the overspray is you might want to try some WD-40. I've seen it take off some pretty bad splatters from road line paint..... it's cheap and might be worth a quick try if you have some laying around.



The Clay Magic Red is more aggressive than the blue if you can find some locally.
 
Is your focus new? If so, I believe that you should take it back to the dealership and see if they can do something about it. I don't think it's fair that you are being sold a car with paint that is full of overspray. Of course, even worse would be letting them detail it.
 
Use a plastic (or carefully use a metal) razor on the glass. It'll save you a lot of clay. Perhaps try some mineral spirits or other solvents on the paint.
 
I've done cars like this. The worst is trying to get get it off the textured plastic.



But you're on the right track with claying. Knead frequently. And expect quite a bit of marring/scratching from the procedure - it's going to need a heavy heavy buff job afterward...and by someone who really knows what he's doing since it's black paint.
 
Thanks for the tips. I found a store that carries the red clay in Houston. I'll see if they are open tommorow.



I tried WD-40 and a bunch of other solvents. Nothing touchs this overspray. The overspray is my fault, I was parked near an oil producion rig being painted in a shipyard and the wind shifted.
 
David Fermani said:
For heavy jobs that clay isn't cutting though the easily, I use 4000 grit sandpaper from Micro Surface Finishing Products. It's a very padded sandpaper and it will only marr the finish equivelent to Red Clay Magic, but works quickly and throughly.



Check it out:

https://www.micro-surface.com/default.cfm?page_id=90&ID=3S4012&storeid=1
Click to expand...



Also a good thought, the overspray will sand off easily compared to the clear coat...you should be able to sand and buff and remove less than 4 microns of your clear coat (about 10%)...be sure to rinse the paper frequently to limit the depth of the sanding scratches. In fact, consult someone (preferable not a body shop guy) who is well versed in wetsanding and buffing.
 
yup, tried all kinds of solvents. This stuff is extreme.



Ordered some Micro-Surface paper and plan on trying it next weekend.



Figured I'd keep a hose going on the surface I'm sanding. I've level-sanded clear before. Figure this will be similar, just strange doing it to a brand new car. I'm hoping it will actually come out looking better than new, when I'm finished.
 
VaderSS said:
yup, tried all kinds of solvents. This stuff is extreme.



Ordered some Micro-Surface paper and plan on trying it next weekend.



Figured I'd keep a hose going on the surface I'm sanding. I've level-sanded clear before. Figure this will be similar, just strange doing it to a brand new car. I'm hoping it will actually come out looking better than new, when I'm finished.
Click to expand...



Here's a few very helpful hits:

1st - cut off 2 pieces of paper(about 6-7 inches long) from the roll and rub them together for a little while(dry). That will soften them up a little and will cause less marking of the finish.

2nd - try using one of the pieces dry(without water) and see how it works. Alot of times it works easier and better and will not marr the finish one bit. I've actually dry sanded tons of cars with overspray. While using the 1st piece dry, soak the 2nd peice in VERY SOAPY WATER. On another part of the vehicle try wet sanding with VERY SOAPY WATER.

3rd: - Compare each application and use the one that works the best.

**use as little of pressure when sanding**no need to rub hard**



Let me know how it works out for you, and yes the finish will look much flatter and better than new. I've sanded several brand new vehicles with 4000 grit paper and it will definately make the finish look much clearer and flatter. It works totally different than 2000 & 3000 grit sandpaper. Micro Finish actually sells sandpaper up to 12,000 grit levels that do less marring than some clays. It's mostly for polishing brass and similar metals.



Good Luck.
 
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