[nikeman]

My wife took my truck to get gas this morning and the drivers door swing open and it hit a brick wall by the pumps. Now there is a decent scratch on the edge of the door. I do not want this to rust so please give me some advise here. I will post the picture when I get home from work

 

[Phildo]

gets some touch up paint from the dealer and paint over the exposed metal. That should do the trick to seal it up from rust

 

[Stump3r]

gets some touch up paint from the dealer and paint over the exposed metal. That should do the trick to seal it up from rust

+1 Phil nailed it, that's exactly what I do. My old 99 Dakota had quite a few dings in the 11 years I drove her and I always did the touch up paint trick. Not one of my touch up's has rusted.

 

[nikeman]

how much does touch-up pain cost? I have an oil change scheduled for Tuesday so I will see if I can buy it then. Of course this is the only month that I have not gotten a coupon in my email for an oil change!! lol

Anyway, heres the pic. I have not seen it yet in person since it was dark when I got home but it doesn't look to bad in the pic my wife took.

 

[daggertats]

i believe my paint was a little over 8.00 at the dealer.

 

[rbu1]

Touch up paint and those door guards so she can't do it again.....You will never see it.

 

[RansRAM]

It's hard to see in the pic, is it just the chips along the edge ? If so the touch up paint will do the trick. Any other marks not through the paint should buff out. It's funny, my wife did the same thing to my passanger door however it was opened into the car my Son drives and actually put a small dent in it. My door never got a mark on it so I was lucky. Yup small little accidents like this are bound to happen.

 

[CajunDodge]

I agree, small little things like that are almost inevitable lol, happened to me once, but everyone's right, the touch up paint should do the trick and it's really not that expensive.

- Cajun

 

[nikeman]

yea, there are 3 little chips on the very edge of the door. Hopefully it will be ok until Tuesday so I can atleast order the touch-up paint from the dealer.

 

[25bduse]

:smileup:

gets some touch up paint from the dealer and paint over the exposed metal. That should do the trick to seal it up from rust

^^^^^^^^^exactly

 

[nikeman]

They had to order my paint color, probably because I have the Cherry Red color, and its sitting at the dealship now. Only problem is, I have worked since the day after I ordered it and I am not off until Sunday. Of course they are closed on Sunday, and then I work Mon-Thursday next week. You guys think it will be ok for another week? I worry about it rusting and I don't want it to!

 

[nikeman]

Ok. I picked up my touch up paint this morning. It has 3 application methods and I would like some tips on applying this the right way. It has a pen, ball, and a brush tip. I plan on using the brush since it makes the most sense to me. The instructions say to apply 1 coat and then to wait 30 mins for a second coat. Then it says to apply clear coat later. How many coats should I do? Do I really need clear coat? If so where do I get that and how would I put it on such small areas? Does it matter that it's cold as hell out side? I plan on doing this friday when im off and will actually have time. Also how can I clean the very edge of the door? I will have to have the door open to get to the chips and the truck is pretty dirty. I will drive through a car wash before to get the bulk off

 

[tguil]

Been doing touchups for a darn long time...50+ years. Don't use the brush that comes in the bottle of paint. Go to a hobby store and get a very fine artists brush. If bare metal is showing, you should lightly sand the scratch with very fine sandpaper and apply primer. One coat should work. It there is no bare metal showing lightly sand the scratch and apply one thin coat of paint. To do it right you really should wait the thirty minutes before applying a second coat. You may need three coats. On a repair like this you will not need clearcoat...on a scratch in a more conspicuous place you probably should apply clearcoat. Yes, it really matters that it is cold as hell outside. My suggestion....Just clean the area and hit with one coat of paint. Then redo it when it warms up. I did this to a good sized rock chip on my 2007 Ram over five years ago and never got around to a "redo'. It's still holding and looks fine. Here's a darn good "how to" site. http://autopiacarcovers.com/auto-detailing/how-to-repair-paint-chips-deep-scratches/

 

[snrusnak]

Wash the area to remove dirt/etc., then gently sand the chipped areas with medium grit sandpaper like 1000 grit. Next wipe/scrub the chipped area with a mix of dawn dish soap and water (to remove any oils/waxes). Make sure all loose pieces are off, and then let dry. Use a hairdryer to get the metal warm, then apply a thin coat of the touch up paint using an artists brush like said above, and while it dries keep the hairdryer on the area (just keep it warm). After about 15 minutes or so give it a second coat and keep it warm. Apply additional coats as needed. The longer you keep it warm after you're done, the better it will bond, if you can keep it warm with a space heater directed at it somehow do that for an hour or so, but again just warm, not HOT. Don't worry about clear coat in that area.

 

[moparornocar72]

When i worked at the body shop we used the bottom of the match stick after u tear it out of the cardboard, it fills in better than the brush. just an old tip.

 

[Dodgeramhemi09]

My wife is afraid to drive my truck.........I'm SO happy about that!!!

 

[nikeman]

Thanks guys!! I will try it Friday. The hair dryer is a good idea. What's the coldest temp I can work in though? It's going to be 48 degrees here which I'm sure is to cold for painting. Also how can I tell if its bare metal? It's bright white where the chips are.

What's the purpose of the sanding? That part scares me a little since the spots are so small I'm sure I would sand to much.

 

[snrusnak]

48 is probably too cold to paint, but if you keep heat on it it will be fine (again though, don't "burn" it, just keep it warm. If it's white, it's probably primer, so just paint over that. You really need to lightly sand it to scratch the surface so the paint will adhere. If it's a smooth surface, it will likely flake off. Wiping it with dawn/water real good before you paint (after all the prep is done) is also an important step, as if there is wax/oil/contaminants on the surface the paint will not adhere. Just sand very lightly and make a couple passes, just enough to "rough it up", it'll be fine.

 

[tguil]

Rather than Dawn and water, I use PrepSol or 90% ISO Alcohol to clean the area before touch up.

 

[snrusnak]

^the reason I use dawn/water is because I've used prepsol before and it has made the paint/clear coat wavy. I have found that dawn is a very good degreaser (even use it to wash greasy hands now) and it is very gentle on the paint. Also much cheaper. I have had no problems with paint adhesion with the dawn/water method.