How do detailers deal with stonechips?

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as400

Active Member
Joined
Sep 2, 2009
Messages
176
Location
Arundel
Car
W212 350cdi
Mine will be off to a detailer for a major detail soon, its black with 6 figure mileage there must be 50+ stone chips over the front bonnet. You can see them as little white spots against the black background.

How does a detailer correct this?...do they really have a tiny paint brush and paint each one?...can't believe that...but how else?
 
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Don't know. But take photos afterwards and show us how it ends up.
 
There's various techniques depending on your time/skill and how keen you are. General consensus is that you need a smaller brush than the one that comes with touch up paint, plenty of patience and lots of time. Each chip needs carefully cleaning, painting and then flatting off and polishing.

IMHO on a black car with over 100k miles (and as you say, 50+ noticable stonechips), if it really bothers you just get the bonnet painted :)

Will
 
I am trying to keep the cost down to £600, so a total bonnet respray will add £300+ to that, I'm not going to pay £1000 as that's too much.

Its going for an interior clean at £70 on Monday will ask them there what they recommend.
 
£600 for the stone chip work:eek:,got to be cheaper for a bonnet respray?
 
£600 for the stone chip work:eek:,got to be cheaper for a bonnet respray?

Ah no, misunderstand, the detail for 'correct and protect' is from £500, depending on car size and condition...so I'm guessing £600 for my E. This would in effect hopefully return the whole car as near as possible to factory new condition.

Drive 'n' Shine
 
Ah no, misunderstand, the detail for 'correct and protect' is from £500, depending on car size and condition...so I'm guessing £600 for my E. This would in effect hopefully return the whole car as near as possible to factory new condition.

Drive 'n' Shine

That would be a bargain at £600 for most high mileage, damaged cars as a full respray can be 4x that.
 
Good luck with that,as jaymanek suggested i would(and have) chosen the cheaper Halfords pen option & done stonechips myself(rather save the £600 for when the wheel arches etc start to show rust!)
 
Good luck with that,as jaymanek suggested i would(and have) chosen the cheaper Halfords pen option & done stonechips myself(rather save the £600 for when the wheel arches etc start to show rust!)

I did just that, and on my black car I have to spend a fair while hunting around trying to find the stone chips I touched in...

Perhaps more of an issue on non-black cars...
 
Its worth trying a cocktail stick as a substitute for a brush rather than over-doing it with the touch-up paint and ending up highlighting the chips, particularly where the paint top coat only is damaged so less chance of corrosion occurring. Chuck it away after every few chips as the wood softens up and becomes less precise.
 
If you get a respray done, they will generally mop the whole car anyway - especially if you throw them a few quid. Personally I'd spend the money on the respray and find someone a little less 'bespoke'. You can get a good detail done in a day for £250 - none of them should be charging more than £25 per hour. They also won't be able to do much to your car in terms of stone chips in this time - it really needs to be done in stages as the paint sinks.
 
I found this last year when I was looking for info on my chips...but in the end I had the whole bonnet sprayed.

Stone Chip Repair Guide

Good informative link- Thanks for this.:thumb:

I have seen similar accounts on the web over the years mainly examples from the USA though. Must admit the BMW bonnet did look good after this guys work.
 
Mine has so many, I've given up. Soon for a full respray hopefully.
 

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