paint chip repair

[dti-dave]

Can anyone recommend a good paint chip repairer other than chip away I have seen some of here work and it was not good. For the Hants, Berks region

[da_murphster]

I'm in Reading and have been looking for ages - people don't want to do it because a decent job is labour intensive.

I went to Racing Green a few weeks ago and they reckoned they could do them - I would try there.

Be aware that a chip repair will always be slightly visible.

Will be trying RG for a quote when I have time.

Let me know if you find anything - the most promising place I found was a smart repair place in Swindon recommended to my by a professional detailer.

http://www.smartcar-uk.co.uk/

Phil is supposed to be the man to talk to - they gave me a decent quote but I've not got round to trying it yet.

[Blown2CV]

Unless you are going to pay for a proper spray job to make it fully disappear, just do it yourself using touch-up paint and a smoothing compound. There is no middle-ground, smart repairs ruin your paint - fact.

[Anatol]

Blown2CV said:

Unless you are going to pay for a proper spray job to make it fully disappear, just do it yourself using touch-up paint and a smoothing compound. There is no middle-ground, smart repairs ruin your paint - fact.

I'd invite you to support that statement with any creditable evidence, but I rather suspect that it's not based on any.

For a start, modern SMART techniques *are* a proper spray job that make suitable damage fully disappear.

I imagine you're quite comfortable in your ignorance and prejudice though.

Tol

[dti-dave]

What is a SMART technique? And who is able to perform this work and what does it cost

[potato muncher]

Anatol said:

Blown2CV said:

Unless you are going to pay for a proper spray job to make it fully disappear, just do it yourself using touch-up paint and a smoothing compound. There is no middle-ground, smart repairs ruin your paint - fact.

I'd invite you to support that statement with any creditable evidence, but I rather suspect that it's not based on any.

For a start, modern SMART techniques *are* a proper spray job that make suitable damage fully disappear.

I imagine you're quite comfortable in your ignorance and prejudice though.

Tol

well i have just seen a smart repair on a TVR and you can see the scratch that was being smart repaired, you can see the flatting marks all around and you can see where the laquer has been blended out, this will look even worse as time goes on. I have also witnessed a smart repair being done outside while it was raining, if that is a modern smart technique and a proper spray job then i think my job is safe.
I only posted this because of your response and my response is based on what I have seen, fact

[Anatol]

Does having seen several rubbish repairs done in reputable bodyshops mean that bodyshop repairs are all rubbish too? Of course not!

I know traditional bodyshop sprayers are told from the beginning of their apprenticeships that localised repairs are either impossible, or inferior and only done by cowboys. I know it's very difficult to let go of what's been drilled into you for that long and that often. But stating that your opinion of an entire industry is a fact because you've seen a couple of examples when there are literally hundreds of thousands of SMART repairs done yearly that delight their customers makes you out to be a bit of a buffoon.

Tol

Edited by Anatol on Thursday 6th August 19:56

[dti-dave]

Thanks for the info I think i will try again myself. Using my touch up it seems to be to risky to have someone else doing it RG was expensive and the chip is not that bad.

[Scrooloose]

Don't some of the detailing guys offer this as a service?

[the jollyrodger]

ive a few stone chips,nothing too serious but i prefare the car to be perfect,so i contacted 'chips away' through their website,telling them my details,etc. i never got a response from them,although there is a couple of guys from them near me.
their either too busy,or couldnt be bothered to reply. either way,it was very unbuisness like and if they had of done a decent job,im sure i could have got them more work.
now in the spring time,im just gonna get a front end re-spray.

motto of the story,,,CHIPS AWAY,I DONT THINK SO.....

[Blown2CV]

[quote=AnatolI'd invite you to support that statement with any creditable evidence, but I rather suspect that it's not based on any.

For a start, modern SMART techniques *are* a proper spray job that make suitable damage fully disappear.

I imagine you're quite comfortable in your ignorance and prejudice though.

Tol
[/quote]

There are millions of dissatisfied customers of SMART treatments. The repairs degrade over a short period, and end up looking awful. The work is cheaper than proper paintwork repairs because it requires lower skill and poorer grade materials. Paint is often poorly matched, the finish is frequently awful, and worst of all it can cost many times the cost of an original authorised bodyshop repair to put right. How about you try and explain away these pictures by saying I am wrong:

Edited by Blown2CV on Friday 7th August 07:56

[Anatol]

I don't buy into the "bodyshop vs SMART repair" debate because I don't have a side - I own and run a bodyshop side by side with a SMART repair business. They both have their place and both are completely viable business models.

I hasten to add that I don't consider myself a painter by trade, I'm a businessman - but the technicians I employ *are* painters by trade, and obviously, they have skills in both bodyshop and SMART repairs. They would disagree with you that SMART repairs take less skill. Different skills, but certainly no less skill to do properly. And our SMART refinish materials are produced by industry giants like PPG and HMG.

Can I ask if you have any training in SMART repairs, or experience of running a SMART repair business? Or are you speaking solely from a position of experience of bodyshop methods?

I won't pass comment on your photos other than to say that clearly that's a bad repair example. I don't think anyone would disagree that there are some cowboys and some duff repairs out there, from both traditional bodyshops and localised repairers.

Advancing this example as evidence that the entire industry is flawed is not a strong argument, however.

As a matter of debate, you're trying to prove a negative ("SMART repairs are never good quality, durable repairs.") which is next to impossible. It's the logical equivalent of stating that you know for certain how people you have never met, using techniques, paint systems and equipment you have no training in, will perform on repairs you have never seen. Every time. That's quite a bold position - some would say (myself included) indefensible.

There are good and bad bodyshops, and good and bad SMART repairers. And bad repairs turned out on occasion by otherwise decent repairers. It's a mistake to use cheap materials, regardless of your business model. It's a mistake to try any use SMART techniques on large or more complex repairs, or to attempt localised repairs with traditional bodyshop training and equipment.

It's entirely possible to turn out professional repairs with both bodyshop methods and materials, and the SMART equivalents - we do both in our business, every day.

Tol

[Blown2CV]

I found to my cost that smart repairs are cheaper for a reason. I was kicking myself for being so stupid. I mean, merc authorised bodyshop quoted £400, smart repair was £100. Why did I think it would be anything other than rubbish? The only purpose I feel that they serve in the market is for lease vehicle returns/hire car repairs to get through damage inspections in the short term. There is simply no other reason why they have a market. Just because people buy You say you don't buy into the whole smart vs proper repairs argument, but you seem to be the most vocal poster so far.

[DonnyMac]

Anatol said:

SMART repairs take less skill....but certainly no less skill to do properly.

[potato muncher]

Anatol said:

Does having seen several rubbish repairs done in reputable bodyshops mean that bodyshop repairs are all rubbish too? Of course not!

I know traditional bodyshop sprayers are told from the beginning of their apprenticeships that localised repairs are either impossible, or inferior and only done by cowboys. I know it's very difficult to let go of what's been drilled into you for that long and that often. But stating that your opinion of an entire industry is a fact because you've seen a couple of examples when there are literally hundreds of thousands of SMART repairs done yearly that delight their customers makes you out to be a bit of a buffoon.

Tol

Edited by Anatol on Thursday 6th August 19:56

You do seem to be an angry man, no one else can have an opinion then, as a sprayer for 33 years I have seen hundreds of blow ins / smart repairs that have gone wrong and I think I might know a thing or two about how long or not a smart repair might last, I do smart repairs myself unlike you, and I am confident that mine will last a lot longer than most of the examples I have seen.

Instead of having a go at people who dare to have a different opinion or experience why not post helpful information to educate them as to the benefits of a smart repair and how this might work on the new compliant laquers. As for being a buffoon well what can I say.

[lawfield eng]

More like a northern paint guru than a baffooooon id say,but who am I to coment

[Anatol]

potato muncher said:

You do seem to be an angry man,

Hmm, well, not generally I hope, but when making the post that you were responding to, possibly. It's actually very insulting to someone who has built a business in a particular trade to denigrate the service their business provides.

I'm intrigued that you would attack the SMART repair industry in one post and in the next identify yourself as a SMART repairer (I do carry out repairs, by the way, I'm in the booth 3 or 4 days a week, but the bulk of the work in the business is done with those more qualified than I).

Rather than get into a debate about the intricacies of paintwork in a manufacturer's forum, (I'm reminded of the paint protection film flame war in the Porsche forum which became a bit of an embarrassment to all involved, and an annoyance to those who actually wanted to discuss Porsches!), if you fancy a robust debate on the issue, let's take it up in Bodywork & Detailing.

Or if you're a SMART repairer yourself, come and join the community over at http://www.smartrepairforum.com - some of the members there have literally decades in bodyshops before moving on to being SMART repairers and in some cases SMART repair trainers. They'll be able to debate the technicalities with you more knowledgeably than I.

I don't suggest your first thread be along the lines of the "SMART repairs damage paintwork - fact" approach that we've seen earlier in this thread though

Tol

ETA - I'd also like to apologise for misunderstanding your original post, I thought your citing a few examples of bad work was an attempt to support the view of the earlier poster that all SMART work was damaging to paintwork - which would have been a baffoon's comment. Your later post makes it clear that this isn't your point of view - you obviously know decent SMART work can be achieved - including your own repairs.

Edited by Anatol on Saturday 8th August 00:27

[7even]

Just a wee reply on the old smart v's bodyshop debate. All I would say is choose your provider via recomendation. Most of us guys are consummate professionals and all it takes is one job to go t!ts up and look what happens. There are also a few cowboys, hence the above statement.

I see a link to our forum in the above post, guys your quite welcome to join, we have, at the time of posting, over 250 technicians registered. Many repairers with a vast amount of bodyshop experience that you are welcome to share your thoughts with. And of course gather new techniques that are emerging through various sources.

[s5tuart]

I had Bedford Chips Away repair a 300mm scrape (down to the bone) on my Lotus Elan, for £145. To my eyes it was a perfect match and was un-noticeable for the remaining 3 years I had the car.