Runs In Clear! Help!

[67RScamaroVette]

Just painted my firewall, 2 coats white base, 2 color base, 1 clear coat, let flash properly, shot another, and i've got runs in 2 spots. what do I do to get rid of them do i wait till theyr'e dry or do i smooth them out now with a razor blade or whatnot help help help...
olly

[J2speedandcustom]

Just an idea, let dry. Take some paper and wet sand out the runs. Wet sand the whole area and shoot another coat or two of clear. If that is applicable to your situation.

[Steve68]

let dry, sand out and reclear if necessary, my have to buff it, then no reclearing

[68fusion]

Blade the runs out after the clear is dry. If you have enough build left water sand and buff , if not re-shoot it.

[gmachine68]

for sure, flat blade the runs out and if you have enough buff it right out, this is where a high solids/quality clear saves you.
jake

[camcojb]

realize also that the clear is thinnest right where the run starts (at the top) so be careful. Worst case you'll go through the clear and base and have to re-shoot.

Jody

[67RScamaroVette]

thanks, guys, i really appreciate your input. I ignored one run once i realized it was behind the engine, completely, the other i'll gently remove with a razor, then wetsand until i'm happy, and buff with some 3M. I was just really bummed at the time, making a stupd ameteur mistake by being impatient. live and learn..
olly

here's how it came out... i'm actually pretty happy with the results.
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/pt/2006/03/VROOMVROOM014-1.jpg

[malibu9in]

it would be better to paint the whole car at once so there will be no color variation between panels witha a metalic color like that. Just a thought.

[CAMAROBOY69]

Dont worry about runs in clear at all. Thats the beauty of BS/CC. If the clear runs you just sand it right out. No big deal. Where you dont want runs is in the base coat.
Looks like that turned out great. As I have told you in another thread, I really like that color and cant wait to see how it turns out. Get some pics with sunlight if you can. :)

[cad]

thanks, guys, i really appreciate your input. I ignored one run once i realized it was behind the engine, completely, the other i'll gently remove with a razor, then wetsand until i'm happy, and buff with some 3M. I was just really bummed at the time, making a stupd ameteur mistake by being impatient. live and learn..
olly

here's how it came out... i'm actually pretty happy with the results.


Looks great! I cannot say that I recall my "painter" friends mention razor blading a run. Just like the others state....let it dry/harden and wet sand it out. You will be surprised at the results. If you catch an edge of the razor on a flat surface, you'll be fixing more than the run.

[Travis B]

Looks great! I cannot say that I recall my "painter" friends mention razor blading a run. Just like the others state....let it dry/harden and wet sand it out. You will be surprised at the results. If you catch an edge of the razor on a flat surface, you'll be fixing more than the run.

you can razor blade a run out but the blade has to be properly prepped....it is easier to razor blade them out in my opinion!

[CAMAROBOY69]

you can razor blade a run out but the blade has to be properly prepped....it is easier to razor blade them out in my opinion!
I agree. Using the razor blade takes all of the mills off instantly instead of sanding all the mills off the run. You just have to be careful with the razor just like when you shave your girlfriends....um nevermind. :yum:

[gmachine68]

you will never get the run completely away if you just wet sand, there will be alittle wave where the run is, i razor like i would a block sander and run it over run till run is down to same level as the surrounding clear, i then hard block with 1000-1500-2500 then buff and it is 110% gone, BUT you had better hope you have some clear onthere to do that. goodluck let us know
jake

[67RScamaroVette]

yeah i hear you take off the little raised bit of the razor, epoxy the now-flat blade to a small block of wood, etc... to "shave" the run, then wetsand it in increasingly finer grits. It makes sense, because its impossible to keep the sandpapered block pefectly on the run, and you run the risk of cutting through the clear somewhere else.. thanks again everyone.

[cad]

I did not know that...very cool.

[68fusion]

Most paint stores carry "run razors"..little blocks with teeth to shave runs out....not that I have ever run any clear...but I have been told.

[colt zantop]

you can also wrap masking tape around each end of the razor so then you cant catch the corner or edge...thats how I was taught to shave runs.....

[CAMAROBOY69]

you can also wrap masking tape around each end of the razor so then you cant catch the corner or edge...thats how I was taught to shave runs.....
I think thats the best idea in hear that I have read so far.

[J2speedandcustom]

you can also wrap masking tape around each end of the razor so then you cant catch the corner or edge...thats how I was taught to shave runs.....

Nice. We just bend the blade into a slight u shape does the same thing, but I like the tape idea better! :)

[SPEEDZONE]

Oh yeah, been blading out runs for years. The first time I busted out the razor, to remove some runs for a friend, he was freaking out. Thought I was gonna ruin his paint job. Too funny. www.speedzonepaint.com (http://www.speedzonepaint.com)

[projectPONY]

I'm suprised that nobody mentioned the reversed tape method, with all the old schoolers in here. when I was in school one of my instructors showed me how to fix a run in the booth, before it's dry. he always said a run or sag is less costly to fix in the booth. I've been using the same method for about 10 years.

all you do when you notice the run, hopefully before it's dry, is you take some masking tape and wrap it around you four fingers with the adheasive out. pull it off your hand and dap the run with the tape. the adheasive on the tape will pull the run off the car. now, when the run is pulled off the car sometimes you will have to bridge the area with more clear. what I mean by bridging is that you will have to let the clear flash off properly, lower your fluid flow and your air pressure. narrow your flow pattern to about the size of a half dollar (coin) and apply it to the area where the run was. let it flash again and then apply more clear, and so on until you build (bridge) the area to the same level as the surrounding area. when you are satisfied that the area is level to surrounding area allow it to flash one more time and then give the whole panel another coat. I know, I know, it sounds like alot of work. in all honesty though, the whole process shouldn't take more than 20-25 minutes, which in my opinion beats the hell out of wet sanding and buffing for 45min. to and hour.

now, in a WORST case scenario you might still see a very, very slight wave in the clear where the run used to be, but if your planning to wet sand and buff the whole panel this will be taken care of in that process. if your NOT planning on wet sanding and buffing the panel then I doubt the wave would be serious enough to pose any concern.

hope this helps someone one day. good luck to all.:usa:

[painterdude32]

I usually round both of the sharp corners off the razor blade with some 80 grit, so you don't have worry about digging a trench in the clear. after shaving it down a little ,you can use some 800 grit/w water wraped around a short wood paint stir-stick, to smooth it up, then polish it out. also if your concerned about breaking through, put some masking tape right next to the run ,so your not sanding on the thinner areas. Thats how I fixed the 1 run that I had lol...:)