How Deep of Scratches Can Polishing Repair?
3 Answers
Polishing can repair small-area scratches on the car body that are visible under sunlight but cannot be felt by hand. Additional information: I. Below is an introduction to polishing: Polishing refers to a processing method that utilizes mechanical, chemical, or electrochemical actions to reduce the surface roughness of a workpiece, thereby obtaining a bright and smooth surface. It involves the use of polishing tools, abrasive particles, or other polishing media to refine the workpiece surface. II. Methods for handling car body scratches are as follows: 1. Minor scratches: Can be resolved by polishing. 2. Deeper scratches: Easily lead to rusting of the car paint surface, requiring the use of a touch-up pen for coloring treatment. 3. Severe scratches: If the area is not large, a touch-up pen or spray paint can be used for self-repair. If the damaged area is large, extensive repainting is necessary.
Polishing can mainly repair shallow surface scratches, such as fine marks accidentally caused by using a hard cloth during car washing or light scratches from tree branches. These typically only damage the clear coat layer, with a depth of less than 0.1mm. I've helped many car enthusiasts deal with these; using polish with an electric tool can remove a thin layer of paint to eliminate them. However, once the scratch is deep enough to expose the primer or metal, polishing becomes ineffective and may even thin the paint further, leading to future issues. I suggest testing a small area first to see the effect. For deeper scratches, it's better to seek professional repainting. Regular care like using soft cloths for washing and periodic waxing can help minimize such minor damages.
My own car often has scratches, the shallow ones like sun spots or minor scrapes, which can be easily fixed with DIY polishing. As long as the depth doesn't exceed the width of a hair strand, it's no problem. Last time, my car got a small bump while parked on the roadside, revealing a bit of white line, but a quick polish with a machine made it almost disappear. For deeper scratches, like parking dings that expose the metal base, I tried polishing, but it was just a waste of effort and thinned the paint layer—eventually, a respray was needed. Experience tells me that polishing is particularly practical for minor damage, but don't expect it to be a cure-all. Use the right tools and control the pressure to avoid over-polishing. Car maintenance requires caution; don't wait until scratches get worse to fix them.
