What should I tape off when I attempt to DA my car? Black trim? Rubber window surround? How about adjacent panel edges?
M K J - Welcome to the Forum ! As you have looked at pictures of vehicles being Detailed here and other places, you may have seen masking tape on plastic and rubber trim, and that is what you would want to tape up. If you decide to do this, the trick is to get the tape Just on the edge of the trim as close to the paintwork as possible, but not overlapping onto the paint work... Pretend you are going to paint the car... What do you Not want to get paint on?? Years ago, there was this idea that you had to tape off adjacent panel edges so you didnt remove the paint from them. While it is True that all edges have less paint than any other part of a vehicle, I have never seen anyone or burned through an edge, and I only use a Rotary for correction... If you will keep your machine moving, and not lay down on it on an edge, you will be fine.. I never tape edges, unless I can see they are so thin from being abused by some Hack, and then it would be with 1/8" tape to just cover the edge... Look at the panel you are correcting before you start... Do you see really bad defects on the edges? Usually not. because they are such a small surface area.. It is good to correct close to the edges and with a Random Orbital, I believe you will be safe.. For sure, all black Rubber - well, most rubber or black plastic/rubber surfaces do not do good when a compound is rubbed into them.. Some are more forgiving of this than others.. If you want to experiment and find out which ones are safe, then dont tape and hope for the best. Better still, keep control of your machine and dont get near them.. Or just run some masking tape along the edge as explained above and that is one less thing to deal with later.. If you decide to tape up the non painted black parts, I always try to use one continuous tape run, so it will be neater and way easier to remove when done.. Masking tape can stretch just a little and enough to go around curves even pretty severe ones. Just work with the tape - 1 hand has the roll and the other the tape itself, and go down the trim, etc., until you get to the end or come back all the way around like in the rubber trim around a sunroof.. The above is how I do it, others may offer their own process which may be totally different than mine ! Good luck ! Dan F
Question: So even though that rub strip is painted trim, you mask that off and don't buff it? I have a strip like that.
As your skills progress, you'll tape less and less items. Especially if you are using a DA. You'll have/understand control of the machine better and know how close you can safely get to trim that would be at risk. I personally tape as I go most times. Even reusing the previous panel's tape. Depending on the products you are using or the trim you are buffing can sometimes alter the time you are comfortable using leaving tape on. Some polishing compounds can form a very thick line on the edge of the tape that is only visible upon removal. If you don't wipe the remnants within a short period of time it makes it more difficult to remove. Also, some trim (usually older) is sensitive to the adhesive and when you rub against it will heat the tape and cause the glue to stick causing more issues during clean up.
Not sure exactly sure what stripes you're referring to, but I am imagining taped-on pinstripes? If so, no. Don't buff these. It's gets a little tricky with this though. You either need to get super thin fine line painter's tape that fits just over the pinstripes, or you're have to keep taping off a hard line from on top (to buff above the stripe) and below (to buff below). Again, I just detach my tape and move it around.
LOL. "Strips" not "stripes" No. I mean in the pic above. The red car has those door protector type things that are painted in the car color. I notice those are taped off. Is that because you should not run the DA over those. I think they might be some kind of painted rubber or plastic stuff. My car is a Sentra 04 and they have those things on the door from the factory.
Ohhhhhhh, you're referring to body side door moldings. Yes, those are pretty soft (painted plastic/rubber) and should be taped off. If they are painted then they can still be polished, but with very little pressure and speed with more of a lighter finishing type polisher rather then a heavy compound.
