Rear Garnish deep scratch repair?

[smh0101]

I'm getting everything on my legacy back in good order and I want to put my RS-RA rear garnish back on however in the time it sat it got quite scratched up. Looks like something was rubbing on it pretty good. Also has a semi deep scuff in a spot.

Any thoughts on repairing it?

I'm thinking right now maybe wet sanding with 2000 grit then using a polishing/rubbing compound then a few layers of clear coat.

Any specific types of clear coat I should be looking for? Anybody dome this?

[cj91legss]

Because it's just a garnish, I would just use some rustoleum high gloss and wet sand in between coats to get it all shiny and purdy.

[cj91legss]

or sell it to me...

[Legacy777]

You may want to practice or try your repair method on a regular garish piece first. That way you can practice and make sure the method you choose actually works well.

[cj91legss]

Something else that just came to mind is maybe using the 3M headlight restoration kit.

[kimokalihi]

How deep is it? I think the only way to "remove" a wcratch is to bring the surrounding area down to the same depth as the scratch. I doubt 2000 grit will get a scratch out. Pics? The 3M headlight kit uses 500 grit and 800 grit I believe and then a buffing pad and compound to polish it and then you need to seal it which the 3M kit does not include unfortunately. But clear coat will seal it so do that. And then maybe a light cut and buff on the clear and hit that with a spray on sealant or wax but the sealant lasts longer and is easier to apply.

[Legacy777]

Usually if you can run your fingernail across the scratch and it catches polishing compounds will not be enough. Even 500 & 800 grit may not get out a deeper scratch.

[smh0101]

So I've started working on it. I bought a 3M Headlight Deep Restoration Kit. Comes with a buffing head for a standard drill. Also with a few 500 grit sand paper sheets, a few 800 grit sandpaper sheets, a 3000 grit foam buffing pad and a foam polishing pad.

I didn't want to start with the 500 for fear that it would be too rough and mess it up. I started with the 800 grit and used it to sand sections down to remove the scratches.

I followed that with wet sanding using the 3000 grit foam pad. After I finished it using the water I used some quick detailer that I use for clay bar-ing cars as a lubricant. Not sure if it did anything extra but I figured it wouldnt hurt.

Finished up with a liquid rubbing compound on the foam finishing pad. Spent quite a bit of time on it and it came out beautifully.

I'm not finished with it as I only did one (and a half sections) drill ran out of battery. I'll finish it tonight. Here are some pics though.

First pic... This is what it looks like after the 800 grit paper and two passes with the 3000 grit foam.



This is what the left side came out like after it was finished. Unfortunately I didnt take any pics of the scrates but I would say they were more of gashes than anything else.

Notice the shine




This is the right side which I have not done yet. Not a great clear pic though.




I'll post final pics later once I'm completely finished. And I'll post the exact name of the kit I used.

[Legacy777]

Cool work Spencer!

[James614]

That looks amazing!

[smh0101]

Thanks guys I'll post up final pics tomorrow. Have a small amount of work left.

[mike-tracy]

Wow Spencer, that is something I really need to do! I was wondering how kleinkid got his so nice looking.

[smh0101]

Here are some pics of the garnish after I finished working on it as well as some pics of the Touring Wagon badges I used since you can't buy sedan badges anymore.

[cj91legss]

Hmm, I may have to go check those badges out. I like the red background.

[kimokalihi]

How did you tint your garnish?

[smh0101]

It's not tinted. It's a 93 RS RA type D rear garnish.

[cj91legss]

I want the dog and the rear garnish.

Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk

[smh0101]

Haha, I didnt even notice she was in that pic

[kimokalihi]

Oh, nice score. Wasn't aware those were tinted from the factory.

[smh0101]

Thanks, I've had it for years, longer than I've had this shell lol. But I took it off my 92 for some reason and it got all messed up. But I got it all back together and looking good again. Monday or so I'll take it for a drive and post up some better pics of the car.