Polyurethane paint overspray. Need some guidance

[ShaneB]

Ok I had posted a few weeks ago about how to go about removing overspray from a car. Not typical body shop overspray, but a type of paint that apparently managed to drift over a building 100 yards and land on a few cars.

Last week I went to work on the first car, the worst one. My initial test a couple weeks earlier revealed that a cyan hydro tech pad on a rotary would remove the specks. Clay fine/medium did nothing. When I went to work the next time, after about 5 hours I had the hood, trunk and half the roof at about 90% removal of the specks. So it was taking forever and wasn`t exactly satisfactory results. After some discussion with the owner, we had realized we need to go a different route. We contacted the painter and dug in to the paint cabinet to find what I was afraid of... A 2 part polyurethane based paint was used. Anyone who has used this stuff knows that it`s sticky, and nasty stuff.

Long story short, as I was going at it with my Makita, the specks were gumming up and little balls of paint were shooting out from under the pad. These balls would smear when wiped. So the paint hasn`t hardened yet even after about a month and countless days out in the sun.

We did find as a bit of a last ditch effort that laquer thinner would work with some elbow grease but I have concerns about the integrity of the vehicles paint. We did a small test spot and it seemed to work but the whole idea worries me. The owner fully understand the complications here and a repaint may be needed, but I want to see if we can avoid that. What suggestions would you guys have in terms of chemicals/solvents I could try short of paint stripper to clean the mess up? I go back tomorrow and if I can`t get the job done I`ll have to recommend he take it to a body shop. I should add that I did try (with minimal results) using tarminator. All it seemed to be good for was cleaning up any smears after it had already been buffed off

[WhyteWizard]

I would try a really hard clay bar like the one from Hi-Lustre Also - time is on your side. In my experience the stuff gets harder but easier to remove over time because the clay seems to catch it better as it gets harder. BTW - I`ve done hundreds of overspray removals of that kind of paint so don`t panic. Wash with Dawn and use Dawn for your lube and you`ll be fine.

Robert

[ShaneB]

Would that clay work better than my nanoskin medium grade mitt? I agree time would be on my side but it`s been over a month since it happened, and the car is black and bakes outside in the sun all day yet the specks still haven`t fully hardened up yet. I`m starting to wonder if they didn`t mix it correctly with the hardener

[WhyteWizard]

I think it would. This clay is pretty stiff and more aggressive than some of the other clays and nanoskin towels. The other great thing about it is, it`s not as susceptible to being broken down by detergents as some of the others. I still rinse with clean water before I fold it, but it`s pretty tough. Also, it`s not expensive. Great value for money.

Good Luck,
Robert

[ShaneB]

Any chance of finding it in a local store?

[Stokdgs]

What about this ??
Jeff Suggs overspray paint removal, he uses a carbon tipped razor blade, says its the only way to remove polyurethane paint safely. He has people who do this all over the country as well..
Me, I would be using either isopropyl alcohol or lacquer thinner..
Good luck,
Dan F

[WhyteWizard]

I think you`d have to order it, but they`re quick.

Take Care,
Robert

[Oldfordisbetter]

I would try a really hard clay bar like the one from Hi-Lustre Also - time is on your side. In my experience the stuff gets harder but easier to remove over time because the clay seems to catch it better as it gets harder. BTW - I`ve done hundreds of overspray removals of that kind of paint so don`t panic. Wash with Dawn and use Dawn for your lube and you`ll be fine.

Robert

Hey Robert, Not to get off topic, but do you use some of Hi Lustre`s products? Its a company that we dont hear much about. Thanks