Getting out micro scratches.

[PhredValk]

Last summer my sister gave me a nylon weave bag for stuff that I didn't have room for on my trip home. I bungied it on the trunk behind my duffel with a chamois under it, and the cloth disappeared half way home (2500 miles, four days). Now I have a small cloud of dullness/microscratches on the trunk lid. I bought a trunk rack so this won't happen again, but is there a way to get rid of this cloudy patch in the paint? I have a sander/buffer, but don't know what kind of product or wax to use for this.

Also, one of the letters on the trunk is now skewed due to the bungie cord and the hot sun. How might I straiten or reglue it in it's proper position?
Thanx, Fred.

[ptgb]

I have had really good success using 3M Finesse-It II machine polish:

http://www.autogeek.net/3mfiniimacpo.html

This stuff isn't for frequent use. I use it once a year or less to get out fine scratches and the like. The description linked above also says it works on "paint oxidation", which I imagine is similar to what you describe. I have a dull spot on one of my bags and it does a pretty good job of shining it up. UAUOR - YMMV

As far as attaching the letter, I would use 3M tape for that. Shouldn't need too strong of a tape as the letter is very lightweight.

Good Luck...

[doubletee]

Griot's Garage - Machine Polish 3

You'll thank me later. 

(no affiliation, yada, yada, yada....)

[jer0177]

I had some scratches in the trunk lid of my car (prior to the jacka$$ rear-ending me, now there's more than scratches  ), and this stuff was recommended to me, I tried it and it worked like magic:

http://www.autogeek.net/menzerna-super-intensive-polish.html

(not affiliated, ymmv, etc.)

[Attic Rat]

3M Finesse-It
http://www.tcpglobal.com/AutoBodyDepot/ItemDetail.aspx?ItemNo=MMM+5928&gclid=CJKMwsn1oq8CFQcFRQod1U07Xg

[JetDriver]

Meguiares makes Scratch-X and Swirl-X.  Both have worked well for me, and are available at Walmarts, Targets, and any auto store.

http://www.meguiarsdirect.com/product_detail.do?q=4580

[gordonv]

For the letter, wait for a hot summer day, point your rear towards the sun and let it heat up again (DO NOT APPLY a heat gun, I know why). Give it some time, and then apply some presure, try to twist it back into alignment. Apply some tape ,if you need to hold it in place, and get the bike out of the sun to cool down.

Like mentioned, there are lots of products out there for light scratchs and swirl marks. Just remember that all of them are "sanding" away a very fine amount of paint.

[Ricky-D]

The trunk along with the fairing and radiator pods are all plastic and the finish is a cast surface.

If you confuse it with a painted surface and treat it as such you will be disappointed at the results.

The surface may (will) polish up a little but no amount of any kind of rubbing compound will get back to the original gloss and eliminate any scratching.

Like chrome plating, the best finish is original and any attempt to buff or rub out defects will result in a less than satisfactory result.

A little polish is the best way to approach the problem.

***

[gordonv]

Ricky-D, do you think that the plastic parts are cast like a boat, gel coated, not plastic that has been painted over? Then why a color code?

[Ricky-D]

Yes.

It's not gel coat however. You can polish gel coat.

It's plastic, cast with color.

When you try to rub it you'll see what I mean.  it's a pretty hard finish, though.

***

[gordonv]

So we should be using plastic polish, Novex, not paint polishes then.

[John U.]

So if the trunk is "cast plastic with color" then the hard bags should be the same thing, ABS plastic. I can tell you that if you scratch deep enough into the lid of a Sonoma red hard bag the cream color is beneath the red. This sure looks like paint to me.
How would you cast a double layer of color into the plastic, and why? It may very well be that paint on ABS plastic is a different compound than paint on steel. This might explain why buffing results could vary.

[PhredValk]

Thanks for the replies. I have to remove the trunk to mount a luggage rack, so need something fast. The Walmart item sounds good, as it's only a dull patch if you look at it right.

The letter thing happened because of a bungee cord on a hot day, so sunshine it is. The rack should help with that in future also.
Fred.

[JetDriver]

As has been mentioned, any scratch remover, swirl remover, or polish is a form of very fine sandpaper.  The idea is to use an increasingly fine sandpaper until the scratched area looks as smooth as the surrounding finish.  You have started out with a very course sandpaper (your nylon weave bag!  ).  I don't see that it matters if the finish is paint or color cast into the plastic, the smoother you make the finish, the better it's going to look.  If you end up looking at polishes, read the label to determine if it's a chemical polish, or mechanical (sometimes they use the term "diminishing crystals" or some such).  In your case a chemical polish won't do what you want it to do- you have to "sand" it.