• If you currently own, previously owned or want to own an Avalanche, we welcome you to become a member today. Membership is FREE, register now!

Cladding my journey

I was advised to use some 3m rubbing compound to work out some of the small imperfections and then use some polishing compound. How soon can I do this after clear coat? Or, if you don't mind listing the process you used on your cladding after painting. Would be very much appreciated.  :rolleyes:
 
I wet sanded 48 hours after clear and buffed with Chemical Guys V32 and a orange Hexlogic Pad mounted on a rotary polisher. After I got the wet sand marks out I used my random orbital polisher and Chemical Guys V36 with a green pad and finished with V38 on a blue pad. No wax for 3 weeks then I used  jet seal and a synthetic wax.
Now the 3m stuff works just fine, but after the rubbing compound you will want to use a medium compound then a fine compound. Remember to wait a couple of weeks before waxing tho.
 
I knew things were going too good yesterday. Today I had a problem with the clear coat. Put on two coats and then on the third...not sure if the gun clogged or what, but the clear bogged down and the air pressure and loss of clear produced this effect.

C65666D5-148E-4C1C-B9CF-FD460740DE3A_zpsn5ow9yxn.jpg


8E38A4AE-25AC-4C64-B738-EC87CF1271F5_zps8xycaayu.jpg


Can this be fixed with sanding, or am I going to have to do this again?
 
It's called orange peel and it does happen, but yes you can lightly sand it off.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orange_peel_%28effect%29
 
old skool said:
I knew things were going too good yesterday. Today I had a problem with the clear coat. Put on two coats and then on the third...not sure if the gun clogged or what, but the clear bogged down and the air pressure and loss of clear produced this effect.

C65666D5-148E-4C1C-B9CF-FD460740DE3A_zpsn5ow9yxn.jpg


8E38A4AE-25AC-4C64-B738-EC87CF1271F5_zps8xycaayu.jpg


Can this be fixed with sanding, or am I going to have to do this again?
Click to expand...

How did the sanding work out ???
 
Just remember to not panic, even if you sand thru the clear just re-apply it. This is where taking time to breath pays off.
 
Sanding did not go well. I had the above effect on 3 pieces that I cleared (inner sail, outer sail, saddle bag cover). I know that looks like orange peel from the pictures, but the clear is actually dimpled and rough. Tried sanding out the inner sail with 2000 grit. The dimples were too deep for the 2000, so I went to 1500...same thing. In the end I went with 1000, and it seemed to be doing the job, but then I got too close to one of the edges, and sanded down to the primer.  :E: :E: I'll have to repaint that one.

So far I have went thru a quart and a half of paint because of problems I've had...and I haven't even painted the tailgate spoiler, the grab handles or the grates. So, it's back to the paint store today. I have 4 pieces that came out almost flawless.
 
I feel your pain, no one said this was easy. One of the reasons why people pay 700-1000 bucks to have it done.

Are you wet sanding them.

And yes I had the problem also
 
I had some fish eye problems when I was clearing mine as well, my problem was trying to rush the clear and putting it on to heavy. One of my friends swears its silicone in the air that causes it. Point is it can be a number of things, when you go to re spray just make sure it's all wiped down and ready to go, it's a process that takes patience and knowledge, which you are getting tons of as you do what your doing.
 
You called it Blackcomb, rushing clear coat. That was my issue also.
 
Ok, I feel like a real "Big Dummy" as Fred Sanford would say...The reason my gun clogged is that I added too much hardener to the clear. I retraced my steps today and realized when I added hardener to the cup to mix, I used the 3rd column in the 4(y)1 mix  :E: :E: Guess I was in too much of a hurry to get done. Redone the pieces that were screwed up and they came out much better.  :love:

0633D634-4618-4C19-A397-DDCC8D81AE68_zpsjiyskdzu.jpg


Got the tailgate spoiler done also...

670D3B50-A180-4C15-BF5F-CB5F6B8736AE_zpse7a38lac.jpg
 
Wow that's much better, it happens to us all.  (y)
 
Cladding installed...Thank you Blackcomb for your instructional thread, and all others who chimed in with helpful hints.

D30D6F88-F180-4969-A593-526F9AF6EDF4_zpsj9gjffhr.jpg
 
Blackcomb said:
Looks sexy. Your going to love how much nicer it is to care for now.
Click to expand...

Yep, no more ugly faded cladding. You mentioned that you covered the tail gate spoiler with clear vinyl...where can I get some of that? I can see it getting scratched without some protection.
 
Local auto parts store, it came on a roll. Or Amazon which ever you choose. It will have some clarity issue at first but does completely adhere and look clear.
 
Decided to do some wet sanding and polishing on the tailgate spoiler. It came out looking pretty good. You can see in the picture that some of the primer shows thru on the edges. I'll fix that up with some touch up paint.

37EE9484-60BD-40B1-A428-8B8585CE66DD_zpsoug2xwhh.jpg
 
Great Job on that cladding!!!!!!!!!! I'm about to do mine the same way..
 
Blackcomb said:
If anyone chooses to undertake this I encourage careful sanding, it is a PITA but worth it in the long run. And I would do it over again in a heartbeat, it looks so much nicer than the textured plastic, and still looks different than the Cadi because the lines are softer.
Click to expand...

Wasn't sure what you meant about the softer lines on the Avalanche sails compared to the EXT. I saw an EXT today and now I know what you mean. The EXT sails have sharper angles. I'm not sure if I like the bigger 3rd brake light on the EXT.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top