Single stage paint job cleaning and detailing

[jd4320t]

I recently bought a project 91 Mustang LX with single stage Oxford White paint. This is the first vehicle I've ever owned that wasn't clear coated. I've done a little reading and watched a couple youtube videos so far and honestly had no idea the amount of work these old paint jobs take. I'm getting ready to clean it up and get to detailing before spring.

I'm sure a lot of you older guys have plenty of experience. What are your secrets and which products do you use?

Thanks

 

[jd4320t]

 

[PGRChaplain]

Orbital Polisher and some light Compound. Stay away from Edges, not much paint on them.

 

[w_ADAM_d88]

My father in-law is a car guy, moe importantly a Mustang guy and a detailer, so I asked him. Here's what he said...

"Tell him there is a great Mike Phillips thread on the Autogeek forum about working on single stage. It's good to moisten it with a good glaze like Meg's #7 before polishing"

"The oils in glaze help remoisten old dried paint"

 

[Bennettjh]

Buff it and wax it. Takes A LOT of elbow grease.

 

[Leadeye]

Solid advice above and remember, be patient. A cut through is forever. Finesse-It from 3M was "the" product to use back in the day for final buff out, but things have improved since that day.

 

[halfmileharry]

Single stage isn't really a problem depending on condition and oxidation of paint.
Any way you can post some revealing pics of the finish?
Allen at Diamond Collision does this stuff for a living and has decades of quality time working with it.
I grew up in the Auto Body shop business and have messed with a lot of different paints. Each is different and can take many different paths to bring the finish back to life.

 

[jd4320t]

My father in-law is a car guy, moe importantly a Mustang guy and a detailer, so I asked him. Here's what he said...

"Tell him there is a great Mike Phillips thread on the Autogeek forum about working on single stage. It's good to moisten it with a good glaze like Meg's #7 before polishing"

"The oils in glaze help remoisten old dried paint"

That's funny. I have seen that thread and wow.


Thanks for the replies. I'm gonna get it cleaned up and get some pics before I start really working on it.

 

[jgressley2003]

Got any pics of the car? I love Fox bodies especially the notchbacks. Megiuar 105 is a compound I like. Wool pads cut better, but if you are worried about burning through then you may want to use a compound foam pad on your buffer. After that I like to use 3m 6064 swirl mark remover and finish with 6068. You could just use a good wax after the swirl mark remover.

 

[jd4320t]

I finally washed it. Man it was dirty. Definitely needs some touch up work for now and a new paint job someday down the road.

 

[Denny347]

Nice. I have a soft spot for Fox body 5.0's and that is a clean one. Nice find. I got rid of mine back in 1998 and I sure miss it. Clean Fox bodies are hard to find now.

What color interior does your have? I had the Ford red...pink interior...haha. Manual or auto?

Sadly, mine was suffering from a known Ford Mustang issue, RUST. Under the doors and the rear hatch were covered. I managed to keep it buffed and shined around the rust. A nice cleaner wax was all I used to keep it shiny. You might need to use a swirl remover initially with a buffer.

 

[jd4320t]

Thanks. I have to admit the pics make it look better than it is but I've definitely seen worse.

It has the red, black and white interior. White leather seats that need recovered.

And it's an auto. I know it's terrible but I like to think that it probably spent most of it's life being driven easy because of it.

It isn't my exact dream Fox body mustang but it'll definitely do for now.

 

[Denny347]

Thanks. I have to admit the pics make it look better than it is but I've definitely seen worse.

It has the red, black and white interior. White leather seats that need recovered.

And it's an auto. I know it's terrible but I like to think that it probably spent most of it's life being driven easy because of it.

It isn't my exact dream Fox body mustang but it'll definitely do for now.

Lots of parts for it are available. If it's a solid car but not your dream car, maybe turn it into your dream car. Lots of potential there. Your 5.0 LX is a better start than the heavier GT version.

 

[churchmouse]

Single stage can be made to look great if it is laid down right.

Both of these cars were shot single stage.