The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop De-gloss shiny paint

I want to de-gloss the paint on my truck and I was considering rubbing compound. Would that be too agressive? I originally wanted to have a low sheen paint application but for various reasons that did not work out. Any ideas on this subject? Steve

I put a flat clearcoat on the interior of my '64 to reduce the glare. The basecoat was rustoleum hammertone. It worked pretty good.

For applications such as flexible bumper covers, etc. there was a paint additive known as "flattening compound" that we used to kill gloss. I'm not sure if that would work in clearcoat or not. If you wet sand with very fine grit wet/dry paper (1000 or 1500 grit) it will kill the gloss but it might also make the top coat porous. Talk to a professional paint supply jobber- - - -they will probably have a good solution for your situation.
Jerry

Check your local home depot.lowes.menards .whatever you have in your area. Mine sells a liquid De glossing chemical.its used in residential painting.takes the sheen off gloss painted walls before re painting. How it will work in an automotive application is up for grabs but you can try on a small out of the way area.

Thanks fellas for your ideas. I like your idea of consulting a pro Jerry. I'm still looking for more solutions from some of you guys who would fall into that "pro" category. I would like to know if rubbing compound would work. Steve

A paint job is a big investment, and it seems your first attempt didn't end up the way you wanted it. Before trying something like rubbing compound (which hasn't been used in decades by "professionals", at least since the days of acrylic lacquer) it would be wise to talk to someone who makes a living selling paint. I guess you need to find someone with more than my 50-something years' experience so you can consider him to be a "Pro".
Jerry

Jerry, thanks for your good advice. Sounds like the road to take. Steve

Having been in the industry for over 20 years, I'm not a pro but have an idea nonetheless.

Go to the nearest pick n pull and grab an old fender or door for 5$. Then take 1500 on an orbital and sand a small area to see if this is what you're looking for. I can't say you will like the result, but it will knock the gloss off. If you have a polisher, you could use a wool pad and then foam pads with different compounds to polish it back up again. This process is how the pro's clean up a paint job that has imperfections and/or orange peel.

Sanding it with 1500 will not make the clear coat porous or harm it in any way unless you sand on it too long or hit an edge to cause a "burn through" which means you've taken the clear off and now you are into the base coat if it's a cc/bc paint job. If it's a single stage urethane, you can still sand through the paint to metal on edges very quickly.

In short, grab a crash panel and test different methods before attacking your truck.

Thanks for your reply FootStomper. I will give this some thought.

rubbing compound is normally used to bring back the shine to paint; either after sanding it smooth, or to remove oxidation, etc. I have never seen it used to de-gloss paint. The issue with sanding it, or wiping on some de-glosser is that it will be very hard to get a uniform sheen. Depending on what you have on there now, your best bet may be to lightly sand it and put a coat of low gloss clear on it (consulting a paint supply store for the proper product to work with what is on there now)

Thanks Mike. these are very good, practical solutions. Steve your neighbor in Vashon.

Jerry's suggestion of sanding with 1,000 or 1,500 grit may give you the look you are after, but it depends on what paint is on it now. A single stage metallic can look strange if you sand it.

After reading all these good suggestions, I decided it would be best just to leave it alone and allow time to give it the "look" I am after. Thanks for all your helpful ideas. Steve