How do I remove Scratches!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Laddy]

While offroading I guess my car scraped against some bushes and now theres scratches down the side. Is there a way to remove them or at least make it look better, It's from bushes, not a key or something

 

[OZexplore]

polish and a lot of elbow grease use one without a cutting compound
it will work if they are only light scratches but may take 3-4 hours per side

 

[TSTONE]

polish and a wheel - 20min per side

 

[Nate1]

Porter Cable random orbital buffer + some nice pads and polish, won't take all that long and your truck will end up looking better than it did before.

 

[DanNEBTD]

i would go w/ a couple heavy coats of mequires scratch X, then wax the hell out of it

 

[jasonb]

I would stay on the street if you're worried about some small scratches there Lady.

 

[Robb]

I would sand it with 50 grit sandpaper. You won't notice the scratches at all after that.

 

[XplorerKid]

um if you planned to sell the car in a few months, WHY OFFROAD IT!!!!!!?????!!!!

when you offroad you usually get scracthes, even if its just in mud and crap, theres small rocks in them, ide take the advice and keep that Explorer on the street Lady.....

 

[kfkodiak]

I have similar scratches from some brush that attacked me. Driving through, it sounded like razor blades being dragged down the side of the truck.

I used a Porter-Cable Polisher with just a cleaner wax, and it took most of them out. The deepest ones are still there in the right light, but it doesn't really bother me at this point.

 

[matey]

'I would stay on the street if you're worried about some small scratches there Lady."

thats hilarious from a georgian dude to a texan dude

 

[msmith65]

Don't use "polish," as in polishing compound, on a clear-coated car, which I think is what you have. It will damage the clear coat and leave it hazy forever.

Guys, isn't there some sort of clay bar that works on clear-coat surface deformities?

 

[Doug]

Polishing compound will not hurt your clear coat, and if you're worried about scratches say off the trail. imho

 

[jnealg]

those are not scratches, they're badges. wear them proudly, each one has a story to tell.

"'I would stay on the street if you're worried about some small scratches there Lady."

thats hilarious from a georgian dude to a texan dude "

I dont know what was funnier that or the "mis-spelling"

 

[Glacier991]

I'll say it depends.... on how deep they are and much they bother you. Ultimate? If the scratches do not go thru the clear coat... dry sand with 3M 3000 to 4000 grit paper, leaving the dust as a guide coat... wife that off and buff it up with a very fine cut compound. Like new, but thinner clear coat.

Otherwise a detail cut polish (extra extra fine) and a buffer. Carfefully... Nice thing about detail stuff is the super fine grit breaks down and polishes off....

my 2 cents worth

 

[CDW6212R]

Light scratch or scuff removal

Do it by hand, with three items. Use a rag or t-shirt, a polishing compound(fine), and a wax(no grit). First, rub the scratch out with the light grit polish, then add the wax onto the same spot of the rag, and rub it again to remove the polish scratches. Finish it by rubbing again with just the wax.
This removes some clearcoat, but on the side it should be fine. I have removed many dozens of scratches, lately from my mail vehicle. I had new paint, so I knew that I had thick clear coat. I used to detail cars, so I know what I'm talking about.

You can use a machine, but that removes paint from a large area, not just along the narrow area of the scratch. It is relatively easy by hand, and when finished, and done right, it will be completely unnoticeable.
Good luck,
Don W

 

[X~FACTOR]

those are not scratches, they're badges. wear them proudly, each one has a story to tell.

"'I would stay on the street if you're worried about some small scratches there Lady."

thats hilarious from a georgian dude to a texan dude "

I dont know what was funnier that or the "mis-spelling"

50 grit is funnier.

advise from CDW6212R sounds about the best way to approach this. 2nd goes to Robb.

 

[spta97]

Porter Cable random orbital buffer + some nice pads and polish, won't take all that long and your truck will end up looking better than it did before.

I'm detailing my sisters car as a Christmas present (seemed like a good idea at the time ) and my buddy lent me his Porter Cable Random Orbital Buffer along with some Vanilla Moose Wax Hand Glaze and I was really surprized about how many of the scratches it removed. Her car was all banged up and it really made a nice difference. Had I had a real buffing wheel I probably could have done more but I also probably would have burned the paint.

The nice thing about the Porter Cable is that you cannot burn the paint with it.

 

[Lee S.]

Langka Scratch Remover

I ran across this site that sells a product for removing scratches which uses your own touch up paint...just wondering if anyone else has heard or knows anything about it. Could be snake oil...I'm definately a sceptic when it comes to things like this:

http://www.langka.com/

Anyone tried it

Lee