# Soft lacquer problem after respray



## kelpbeds (Dec 3, 2010)

Just had a car resprayed and am not at all happy with the result.
Lacquer on the car is soft i.e. that soft that when I rub a clean microfibre cloth across it, it scratches it pretty badly, i've done a quick clip on youtube so you can see




The scratches are really nasty, hard to capture on video they look ten times worse to the eye.
The guy who sprayed the car is saying that there is nothing wrong with the paint job.
If you buff it with a machine buffer and light t-cut the scratches do come out but if you try to use the t cut with a micro fibre cloth that puts loads of scratches in it again.
To be honest I am really annoyed and just wondered what other peoples opinions were. BTW the guy who sprayed it didn't bake it, which is where I think the problem has arised.
Thanks


----------



## rob929 (Aug 15, 2010)

I thought the baking process is essential in order to harden the paint?!


----------



## A.B (Feb 8, 2010)

The paint needs to fully harden (2-3 months)


----------



## Dixondmn (Oct 12, 2007)

it should have been baked.
I guess this wasn't a full respray. i.e. all rubbers and trim removed....


----------



## A.B (Feb 8, 2010)

I had the same problem with my car, i foamed, washed and rinsed(open ended hose)the panel 2 times per week taking alot of care not to scratch it.


----------



## A.B (Feb 8, 2010)

rob929 said:


> I thought the baking process is essential in order to harden the paint?!


It should of been forced cured if it was a good bodyshop, which bodyshop did u take it ?


----------



## Andyb0127 (Jan 16, 2011)

I would seriously be asking the guy why he didn't bake it in an oven, these new HS CLEAR COATS are designed to be baked. And don't air dry very well unless they have drying accelerators added to them. Which I would advise using on a resray.

Did he mix clear properly usin right mixing ratio, correct hardener (Activator).

Another reason for it to be soft, could be the basecoat has not been dried properly, this will cause clear coat to be soft, the clear coat will appear to be dry, but soft base colour will make clear move, finger print, mark, easily.

With way weather is at the moment how damp, wet, it is moisture in the air, paint will never dry properly. Needs to be done in a spraybooth no matter what I'd never leave a car to air dry at all.


----------



## Tom-B (Oct 31, 2010)

I've just had some spray work done on mine and dont know when it is safe to wash it! Im scared of damaging the paint too but theres mud splatters all over mine :lol: should snow foaming be safe?


----------



## kelpbeds (Dec 3, 2010)

Cheers for the replies chaps, paint has been on for about 6 weeks now, and isn't hardening at all.

I did ask the guy about mixing ratios etc.. but he didn't really want to comment. I now need to decide what action I will take against him.

It was a full respray so the whole car is like this and on top of that he did things like spraying across the rear number plate lights, spraying across seals, masking poorly in places so you can see the old paint, it is also orange peeled in some places but ok in others, plus there a couple of little blemishes in the paint oh and and the plastic bumpers have cracking paint on them cause they weren't plasticsed. Not good eh!


----------



## quattrogmbh (May 15, 2007)

you paid him for a service... You ask a question and now he doesn't want to comment?

sounds a bit of a cowboy to be honest.

Set him an ultimatum to rectify the situation (ideally by baking the paint) or http://moneyclaim.gov.uk


----------



## TheGav (Feb 11, 2011)

Thats just **** poor workmanship.
I cant comment on the lacquer as I only have experiance with 2k paint.
But poor masking and overspray is terrible, can I ask how much you paid for this?


----------



## Andyb0127 (Jan 16, 2011)

He should know the mixing ratios, for the basecoat and clear coat. Not exactly a hard question.

The paint cracking/splitting you mention, could actually be the following.

1, primer has been flatted through repair, ie base colour has been absorbed into repair making it appear the paint has split.

2, primer/ base colour has reacted and just been laquered over, makin it Poear same as above.

3, poor prep work from previous repairs.

Your only real course of action would be to pay an independent accessor/paint technician to look at your car and write a report on it, then take that to the bodyshop and see what they say.

After 6 weeks your paint should be fully cured. 

Don't let this alarm you, but the bodyshop I work at we had a BMW brought into us, because another garage had painted the whole n/s and front end, customer brought it to us asking for our opinion because paint was very dull and still soft unlike new paint work should be, it turns out the other garage had put such a light coloured primer on, that when they applied basecoat it would not cover, so it had to much basecoat causing laquer to be soft and dull.

Way we rectified problem strip whole n/s and front end back to bare metal and start again. Our paint tech guy did a complete report, the other garage has just been sent our bill for putting it right.

This is why I didn't want to alarm you because if base colour is soft it will never dry, as it's sealed of by the laquer, and would result in what we did to above car.


----------



## kelpbeds (Dec 3, 2010)

Cheers again for comments.

He charged me just over a grand for the job. I basically had a big row with him, certain questions he sidestepped but he just kept saying that there was nothing wrong with the job no matter what I said (or what I told him the independent had said.)

I have taken it to an independent for an assessment and he was pretty shocked by the job. It will have to be redone at some point. I have been told that the best way (and most cost effective) is to strip off the current paint, then seal it with an epoxy sealant to stop anything leaking back through and then respray it.


----------



## Andyb0127 (Jan 16, 2011)

Good for you mate for getting independent to look at it, yes he's right most cost effective is to do it all again.

But would you really trust this guy doin your car again, as sounds like he has no pride in his work, I know they say every one deserves a second chance but I'd have my doubts with him.

Side stepping questions is just away of avoiding or admitting hes in the wrong and did a poor job.....


----------



## kelpbeds (Dec 3, 2010)

No the guy won't ever go near a car of mine again! I will look for compensation and then get the job done properly.


----------



## Bilt-Hamber Lab (Apr 11, 2008)

Ask for the details of the product that he used. Contact the manufacturer and describe the problems and ask for their tech data. You need to know how the product should've been used and this will tell you.


----------



## kelpbeds (Dec 3, 2010)

Cheers good plan


----------



## Andyb0127 (Jan 16, 2011)

Bilt-Hamber Lab said:


> Ask for the details of the product that he used. Contact the manufacturer and describe the problems and ask for their tech data. You need to know how the product should've been used and this will tell you.


Good idea:thumb:

Let me know if you have any problems getting a technical data sheet.

If you do let me know the make of paint used on your car, and I'd be more than happy to get you one and post it to you.


----------



## AdrianW (Sep 17, 2010)

There might not be enough activator put into the lacquer when mixing .If thats the case it will always be soft .Does it thumb print ,I mean can you leave a thumb print if you press hard into the lacquer.


----------

