Touch up paint

[94 formula]

I got my car stuck yesterday in the snow (just about ready to get rid of it and get another jeep). When I pulled it out it rubbed up against a snow bank and got a small paint chip out of the front left fender. Its not bad but i'd like to patch it up can I buy a bottle of touch up paint and do it. Its down low and not very noticable will it look better if I use the paint or can't that be done right unless its done by a professional?

[00 Ragtop Z]

you can certainly do it yourself. My son's sonoma was keyed last summer, and I used bottled touch up paint to virtually - note virtually - remove the scratches. It requires a lot of time to do it right (learned from watching one of the classic car shows where they have repair tips)

You need to use teh correct color touch-up - go to a auto paint store not just the local wal-mart automotive dept. Then it is a matter of slowly filling in the chip/scratch (a little bit at a time, not in one big blob of paint) with very pointed and LIGHT sanding of the added paint--not teh surrounding paint just the added paint. You must be verrry careful not to get too rough or you will hit the surrounding clear coat and sand it off.

It will most likely never be "perfect" again doing it this way, but you will be able to make it invisible to all but the most critical eyes. No one looking at teh sonoma would see the repair I did-my son couldn't even see it and he knew where to look. I can find just teh right cross angle in just teh right light and see it, but you have to look very hard.

Again, the 'key' is to go verrry slow and verrrry easy, and it will virtually disappear. Or you could spend a few hundred to have the fender repainted (and find it may not match teh rest of teh paint.)

[tabahr]

Originally posted by 00 Ragtop Z

You need to use teh correct color touch-up - go to a auto paint store not just the local wal-mart automotive dept. Then it is a matter of slowly filling in the chip/scratch (a little bit at a time, not in one big blob of paint) with very pointed and LIGHT sanding of the added paint--not teh surrounding paint just the added paint. You must be verrry careful not to get too rough or you will hit the surrounding clear coat and sand it off.

Yup, what he said... I've done this in the past also. A gentle hand applying the paint, and a little color sanding afterwards followed with a buff can do a pretty decent job.