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Old 06-03-2023, 10:07 AM
78w72 78w72 is offline
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Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: iowa
Posts: 4,723
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i will comment on my amateur cut & buff experience & advice for something like this. looks like the worst case scenarios have been covered but here is a more positive view on this situation:

if the body shop is reputable & does good work using quality products, its safe to assume that theres at least the standard 2-3 coats of clear so a light scuff & buff to fix light orange peel or dirt nibs should not be an issue. can also try to call the shop to ask how many coats of clear they used?

dust nibs are usually easy to deal with & see how far they are into the clear, body shops have a little tool that shaves them flush to the surface but is not always needed as the sanding will knock them down.

the orange peel should also not be too much of a problem if its not too bad since youre just knocking down the high spots to get level with the low spots, you dont go much if at all further than getting it smooth & there should still be plenty of clear once smoothed out. always a good idea to test on an inconspicuous area.

paying a pro is of course the best way to do this, a pro will be able to tell whats happening as he does the initial sanding and avoid rubbing through. but, if you have or can learn basic sanding/buffing experience this can be done yourself with some care, there are all kinds of videos on youtube or tutorials to read showing how to scuff & buff, can also practice on some scrap metal if you have any paint left over you could pay a shop a small fee to spray a small piece of metal.

i had some basic experience as a teenager buffing cars while working in a auto detail shop & at a big used car lot as the lot attendant/detail guy, didnt do any cutting then but learned the basics of buffing. then later in life i have a friend that owns a classic car & hot rod body shop that lets me do all the prep work on my cars & he does any major metal body work and sprays the paint, then i do the cutting & buffing & reassembly, saves me a ton of money. once you see/learn whats involved with the cutting its pretty easy to tell when the orange peel is smoothed out & nibs are gone. my cars may not be 10/10 concourse restorations but the paint looks very good to excellent, as good as most cars i see at car shows that were done professionally by owners that just write checks for the work as opposed to doing most or all of it themselves.

i think if you have decent mechanical skills & watch some videos, read up on it & practice some you can do this yourself, or if thats not an option you can pay a pro to do it. check with an actual body shop first before a detailer, unless the detailer knows how to do paint correction, usually a reputable body shop will have guys with more experience that do this on a daily basis & may be able to get you in for a decent price or do it on the side.

just trying to help & provide a little more positive angle on doing a basic scuff & buff.