Best place to buy Touchup Paint?

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Lemon98
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Post Mon Mar 23, 2020 11:56 am

Hello,

I have quite a few little areas on my car that I want to touch up with a paint pen or similar product and am wondering who the best brands and places to order some are?

I'm not looking for a spray can as the areas are all less than 5p size really.

Car is gletscherblau metallic 1990.

I appreciate anyone's suggestions and feedback from products they have used in the past.

Thank you in advance :)
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ocde30
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Post Mon Mar 23, 2020 1:10 pm

Hi, I had a 0.25lt tin of my paint code colour mixed. That way you can get some fine/soft artist paint brushes of different sizes. I find this much more controllable than a touch up stick. Just be careful to only decant a tiny amount that you want to use at once to avoid waste.
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Post Mon Mar 23, 2020 1:56 pm

paints4u
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Lemon98
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Post Tue Mar 24, 2020 12:16 pm

ocde30 wrote:
Mon Mar 23, 2020 1:10 pm
Hi, I had a 0.25lt tin of my paint code colour mixed. That way you can get some fine/soft artist paint brushes of different sizes. I find this much more controllable than a touch up stick. Just be careful to only decant a tiny amount that you want to use at once to avoid waste.
Thanks for your reply :) I'm liking the idea of painting it on with a brush. My only question is what do you then do with regards to the lacquer?

Do you touch the spots up with a brush and then spray lacquer? Am I right in thinking that just a little patch of new stuff would look a bit odd?
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Lemon98
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Post Tue Mar 24, 2020 12:19 pm

Satan wrote:
Mon Mar 23, 2020 1:56 pm
paints4u
Just had a look at their products and they seem really good and well priced too!! Makes this company look expensive in comparison: https://www.chipex.co.uk/kit-select/

I'll get some photos of the areas today and see if that helps with narrowing down which product and whether a separate lacquer is needed as well.


Thanks all
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Satan
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Post Tue Mar 24, 2020 3:20 pm

Lemon98 wrote:
Tue Mar 24, 2020 12:19 pm
Satan wrote:
Mon Mar 23, 2020 1:56 pm
paints4u
Just had a look at their products and they seem really good and well priced too!! Makes this company look expensive in comparison: https://www.chipex.co.uk/kit-select/

I'll get some photos of the areas today and see if that helps with narrowing down which product and whether a separate lacquer is needed as well.


Thanks all
If I remember they do the touch up paint but you need the toothpick top applicator I think they supply some, while you are at it get the undercoat and a tin of spray paint in your colour.
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Post Thu Mar 26, 2020 10:42 am

[/quote]

If I remember they do the touch up paint but you need the toothpick top applicator I think they supply some, while you are at it get the undercoat and a tin of spray paint in your colour.
[/quote]

Are you referring to rough stone-chip stuff on the lower valences? Mine are in decent condition I'd say but need welding eventually so I might wire brush it back and respray for now in the mean time.

Here are some photos of the chips and little rust areas that I have.
IMG_20200324_160431.jpg
IMG_20200324_160410.jpg
IMG_20200324_160436.jpg
IMG_20200324_160406.jpg
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Lemon98
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Post Thu Mar 26, 2020 10:45 am

I do also have a spare drivers door that came with the car (different colour but no rust!!) so I'm thinking that with wire brush and sanding hopefully I can get those two rust patches at the bottom of the door down and then filler and paint the whole bottom section beneath the side trim?

I don't have any experience spraying metallic paint or anything like that though and don't want to end up with the car having a bunch of panels that look wildly different from each other :mad:

Think I'll just start with the little chips and the small applicators that come with the kit from paints4u.
IMG_20200324_160505.jpg
IMG_20200324_160457.jpg
IMG_20200324_160450.jpg
IMG_20200324_160448.jpg
IMG_20200324_160446.jpg
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Lemon98
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Post Thu Mar 26, 2020 10:46 am

Last ones :)
IMG_20200324_160536.jpg
IMG_20200324_160520.jpg
IMG_20200324_160509.jpg
IMG_20200324_160549.jpg
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Post Thu Mar 26, 2020 12:15 pm

I usually buy a Duplicolor aerosol spray can and spray a little into the cap and then touch up with a fine brush or airbrush . I find the 'touch up' pens and 14ml touch ups with a brush are too thick and even careful application leaves a 'blob' and if you thin them down, even a little, they are useless, I tried to airbrush some Range Rover 'genuine' Stonoway grey metallic 14ml touch up and had to thin it down which ruined it.

You will need to treat with an anti rust killer/primer after ripping out the rust, even on chips it is a good idea and smooth down before touching up. small chips are a pig to do as it will leave a 'scab' unless a slightly larger area is done so it ¡blends in', of course being an earlier model My '87 is not clear coated, thank heavens. you however, will need to lacquer after but a very light acrylic spray works well, just a 'puff'.
Last edited by Ukhozi on Fri Mar 27, 2020 12:16 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post Thu Mar 26, 2020 11:10 pm

When I got my roof re-sprayed the workshop gave me a little of the left over paint, that I use as touch up with a very fine tipped paint brush. For tiny little chips don’t bother with laquer just do a couple coats of the touch up. Any good body shop could make you some up.

For the rust patches, only way to proper treat is scrape back then do a full respray (or very good blend) on the panel. For the time being I’d get some Jenolite, apply, then apply a coat of some sort of rust treatment like hammerite that acts as a primer kind of base, then finally your touch up paint. That’ll stop it (sort of) spreading and getting worse until you properly sort it!
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Post Fri Mar 27, 2020 8:10 am

Personally I would not worry too much about what the end result looks like as long as you kill the rust well. You can get it all blown in at one go at a time to suit.

The one that has not broke primer can be brushed with paint, however the one on the bottom of the door may have gone through and will need a bit more, maybe filling.

Rust needs carefully wire-brushing back to good metal (something like a dremmel or die grinder is ideal) treating with rust converter like Jenolite. Etch prime then build up to level with coats of primer and a final couple of coats of colour

Anything mixed professionally will either need a hardener to cure properly or a specific amount of heat, I would use aerosols sprayed into the cap for ease and a pack of cheap artists brushes.

You can get a good result even on metallic if you are patient use thin coats and let each coat dry properly. some 400, 600 and 1000 grade wet and dry round a matchbox size sanding block for rubbing down, plenty of soapy water.

A properly patch repaired car is far easier to put right than perfectly matching bubbling paint rusting through underneath
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Post Fri Mar 27, 2020 12:19 pm

OR,,,,, chipsaway and save some hassle.

https://www.chipsaway.co.uk/
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Post Fri Mar 27, 2020 1:00 pm

Ukhozi wrote:
Fri Mar 27, 2020 12:19 pm
OR,,,,, chipsaway and save some hassle.

https://www.chipsaway.co.uk/
Might be less hassle but for the price those boys would charge for that lot I would take it to a good bodyshop and have the job done properly.

I've also seen rust come through from a couple of their repairs when there was no rust to start with. Hate to imagine what some of them would do with a rusty bit of metal.
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Post Fri Mar 27, 2020 6:50 pm

Anything mixed professionally will either need a hardener to cure properly or a specific amount of heat, I would use aerosols sprayed into the cap for ease and a pack of cheap artists brushes
Potentially harder to find a good paint match with aerosol? Where as a body shop can match to a T. But then again it’s just touch up..

I’ve never had an issue using my professionally mixed paint as touch up. Dries real fast and hasn’t come off yet
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Lemon98
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Post Sun Mar 29, 2020 12:12 pm

flybynite wrote:
Fri Mar 27, 2020 8:10 am
Personally I would not worry too much about what the end result looks like as long as you kill the rust well. You can get it all blown in at one go at a time to suit.

The one that has not broke primer can be brushed with paint, however the one on the bottom of the door may have gone through and will need a bit more, maybe filling.

Rust needs carefully wire-brushing back to good metal (something like a dremmel or die grinder is ideal) treating with rust converter like Jenolite. Etch prime then build up to level with coats of primer and a final couple of coats of colour

Anything mixed professionally will either need a hardener to cure properly or a specific amount of heat, I would use aerosols sprayed into the cap for ease and a pack of cheap artists brushes.

You can get a good result even on metallic if you are patient use thin coats and let each coat dry properly. some 400, 600 and 1000 grade wet and dry round a matchbox size sanding block for rubbing down, plenty of soapy water.

A properly patch repaired car is far easier to put right than perfectly matching bubbling paint rusting through underneath
Thanks for this and what you said first is true, the main reason I'm wanting to do this is to treat the rust and not have a show car!!

With regards to the door it probably is beyond repair but I have a clean spare door that came with the car so that will replace it eventually.

I can understand what you say about the body shop paint needing a hardener which hadn't crossed my mind but makes sense now as they have the capability to cure the paint at high heat afterwards. So definitely leaning towards an aerosol or this type of liquid paint https://www.paints4u.com/ProductDetails ... uctID=5260.


And @Ukhozi I'm not looking at paying anyone to do this job at all, the whole point is to do the best job that I can myself and therefore am really appreciating the feedback and advice from others so that I can make an informed choice and have the appropriate products.

@BristolE30 why do you think it'll be harder to get a good match with aerosol? Do you mean more of a match the actual colour of the paint now 30 years on to account for fading or whatever so that it blends in better or to match the original BMW colour? The website that I linked above have the 1990 year getscherblau/glacier blue that I need.



Again thank you all for your inputs!! I know more now than I did when I made the thread but I can't say it's made my choice any easier or pointed me definitively in one direction over another hahah :mad: but I'm getting there. Just don't want to screw up the car
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Satan
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Post Sun Mar 29, 2020 12:51 pm

It'a all a learning curve Lemon, let's know how you get on.
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Lemon98
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Post Sun Mar 29, 2020 3:47 pm

Satan wrote:
Sun Mar 29, 2020 12:51 pm
It'a all a learning curve Lemon, let's know how you get on.
Thanks :) I will do!!

I'll start off with the front bumper area as it's not too easily visible.

Don't hold your breath though won't get started till mid next week I reckon.
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Post Sun Mar 29, 2020 10:11 pm

Get the clear coat as well.