BLACK SAPPHIRE PEARL TCUT

[markeyszoo]

I have a few minor scratches, not deep, on the car and wanted to use a coloured Tcut to buff out. The black is too black i suspect and the blue too blue. Anyone with this colour found a suitable Tcut or similar? Black sapphire pearl is the colour of the car.

[ColinBarber]

I don't see the point in putting colour over a clearcoat. It won't blend and will just wash away after a short time.

If you have the odd scratch, rather than a lot of swirl marks, just get some Meguiars scratch x.

[Linas.P]

Just to note - it is colour code 8U0 and in UK it is called Windsor Blue, Black Sapphire Pearl is the name in US.

I would stay away from T-Cut products myself, especially colour specific ones - it just proves they use some sort of filler rather than removing the scratch. Scratches are in clear coat (especially if you saying they are light) and that is transparent - just basic logic tells me that you don't need colour specific compound to remove the scratch from something transparent.

So what would I recommend - maybe something like Farcela G3 Pro hand polish on Tri-Foam applicator pad (well...  I would do 2-3 stage machine polish on whole car, but that is just me). Bare in mind Farcela G3 is quite aggressive compound (but it has to be for hand polish) and it is "diminishing" abrasive compound, means the more you scrub it, the finer it gets - so you need to work it in properly to get good results. 

[markeyszoo]

3 hours ago, ColinBarber said:

I don't see the point in putting colour over a clearcoat. It won't blend and will just wash away after a short time.

If you have the odd scratch, rather than a lot of swirl marks, just get some Meguiars scratch x.

i would describe as swirl marks more than scratch. When it was full of sahara sand last week somebody must have brushed past and done the deed.

[Linas.P]

Yeah... the problem is that it is very hard to consistently polish entire panel by hand if it is just swirl marks. If it would be like the specific scratch you trying to remove, it is probably possible to do it by hand. But if it is loads of swirls, then after polishing them by hand you just going to make the panel look patchy. 

[Mr Vlad]

As Colin stated above. You say a few minor scratches not deep. What colour do you see in the scratches? Black? Then don't bother doing anything as you'll probably make it worse like 90%of us do. White? Then no amount of rubbing polishing will sort the scratches out. White means the scratches have gone thru the clear coat and black paint. 

If you really want to do something about that 'White situation then you'll need a touch up paint kit. A 2 part. Colour and clear coat. Then a polish.

Just a few 'minor scratches then leave them be. When I bought my car it had a kazillion scratches. Took it to a body shop I know and trust. 1 day later my car has about 30 or so around the car as the paint is now to thin to polish out. Only remedy is a paint job. But you know what? Black cars look good with a few minor scratches. Look at my thread 'not bad for 13yr old paint ' check out my photos. 

Just polish your whole car. Use Meguuires Ultimate Compound all over your car 1st then a polish of your liking. Best of luck.

[Linas.P]

In my experience black cars are worst for scratches and imperfection being visible - grey is the way to go (they look crap either way 😁 and you can see scratches).

Not sure about Meguiar's Ultimate compound either - never liked polishes with fillers (gives fake results) and doing entire car by hand... well good luck!

[ColinBarber]

10 minutes ago, Linas.P said:

Not sure about Meguiar's Ultimate compound either - never liked polishes with fillers (gives fake results) and doing entire car by hand... well good luck!

It doesn't have 'filler'. It has lubricant oils because it is designed for hand use by owners, not professionals. If you don't fully flatten the scratches out they be can filled by the oil but it isn't its purpose.

[Linas.P]

Ok... I have educated myself now and indeed it seems like decent consumer product (indeed no fillers) and based on M102 compound with more lubricants etc. to make it more dummy friendly. Sadly (or luckily) in my experience I just skipped past consumer products and right into professional ones, but I appreciate that for somebody who just wants to address few scratches on the car and don't want to jump into car detailing and invest hundreds into all equipment something like Meguiar's Ultimate Compound could be good enough.

I would note that from what I seen the results by hand are marginal at best and you really need to use machine to use full potential of this compound. That said by the time you get the machine polisher, probably there are better products which both cuts quicker and finishes better (likely in 2 stages).

So overall.. I learned something new today and agree it is not bad product, but considering how involving is detailing process I would not waste my time with it, but that is because I have all tools and compounds to do it professionally. If I had nothing then maybe it is worth a shot and it is cheap as well.

Finally, as I said I would go G3 way - it is quicker to work with and capable of removing quite deep scratches (more aggressive, so don't use it on machine). Other option is Gtechiq P1, it is good for scratches removal, but not great for good finish as it is not diminishing compoind.