Well the title says it all, I have a nice rock chip down to the primer. I've done some searching on touch up kits (I have DG paint), and I'm leaning towards the dual tip pen with clear coat applicator. Any thoughts yes or no for the pen?

I read about this Langka system, but also see that it does not do well with metallics (which of course DG is).

What do you guys think is my best approach short of repainting the whole hood?

 

i've got 2 areas on my hood and roof that i will be working on tomorrow or the day after w/ a touch up pen and paint. i'll be posting pics after. but it's my understanding that this will take some work as it is down do the base/primer. wish me luck

 

Do you guys have a writeup on how to do it right? (i.e. sanding it with the right paper, etc)

 

I've had some bad experiences with sanpaper before, so my approach was going to be the following:

-Thoroughly clean area
-Use rubbing compound to smooth the area as much as possible
-Use the touch up paint as directions say (2 or 3 coats needed)
-When paint is dry, rubbing compound again to smoot things out
-(For Zaino, z5, z2, repeat).

I'd love to see a guide if you have a link though!

Good luck Frizzle.

 

http://articles.autopia.org/index.ph..._v2&id=27&c=16

 

Is that the method you're following?

 

Yes. I'll be working along those lines. Basic concept is just bring the chip above the paint surface and wet sand and polish. seems simple enough right? haha... is sure hope so. the toothpick concept i really like. i hate the brush.

 

i have langka. it doesn't work. you're basically screwed when you get the chips. if you even try to fix it and you mess up, it'll look worst.

 

this is what i did on my paint chip. I cleand the area. used a toothpick, to fill in the chip, using MANY thin coats of paint ( I know, it's a long process), then when I got just slightly above the paint I used a rubbing compound and worked it in unlit it was all flush. then buffed it with a wax and now I can't even tell there was a chip there.

 

I work at a Nissan dealer, and I get our used car restorer to fix small stuff like that for me. He got a little ding in my rear quarter out from 20 bucks, not paint scratched or anything, took him 10min! But back to the chip i got my first one on the front of my hood and he said he would fix it for $70. I think its a good deal, and i know that it will look perfect. My advice to you would be to try to find some one like that to help you out.

 

rock chips...haha....welcome to the world of Infiniti. Get used to it. It's going to get worse.

 

I think the rock chip problem is due to the car's aerodynamic shape. If it were shaped like a box, I think the compressed air in front of the car would deflect rocks and stuff away.

Anyway, unlike what other people have said, I've had a pretty good result using the paint pen and lanka. The touchup paint you'll most likely get from a US Infiniti dealer sucks. I had that initially and it made it look worse. I bought a the paint pen from a nissan dealer in texas and it matches much better. Even wierder is that the pen is sold by Nissan Canada... go figure. Anyway, my car is painted desert platinum (KX6), so you're results may be just as good or better.

The best results I've had was filling the chip with paint over multiple days (meaning I would fill the chip... let it dry... go to sleep then work... come back... fill the chip... etc). When it was slightly over the factory paint, I would use lanka to flatten as much as possible. I'd then use the clear coat side of the pen and do the same except I wouldn't flatten all the way down when it came time to use lanka. I'd flatten just enough to smooth and blend the edges of the clear coat.

BTW, since you do it yourself, you'll always know where it is. That's just a fact of life. (What matters is if other people don't notice it.)