Topic: Blending clear coat?

[pellets4fuel]

First, hope it's OK to post this in this section.  It is not a "concourse" question, but this topic seems to be for other makes and models and about processes.
So my 67 Lime frost Cougar has an "oops" in the paint job that needs to be fixed. Don't have a picture to put up at the time. Pretty easy to describe though. Just a scratch through clear coat and base coat in the small flat raised area of the rear wheel well on drivers side. It is lower about a foot above where the rocker attaches to quarter. It is just basically in the flat but does make it to the body line. The wheel well trims will cover quite a bit of it but obviously not all.
 The paint is 15 years old already, but never seen any driving time or much sun except when I move the car around from garage to shop to work on it, or what peeks in the windows.
 So I talked to several different body guys. One looked at it, one I sent pictures. All have initially said blend base coat, and then re-clear the whole back of the car along with the sail panels and roof (minus trunk deck, quarter extensions, rear valance, etc.) Not cheap.  They are saying this because there are no good places to stop the clear coat. I asked about clear coat blend, and all said you can do it, but spoke of haze lines, possible pealing issues, and visual differences.
 So the pin stripes are not on my car yet, so I brought that up as a possible break point to one of the body guys. Two 1/16 in stripes isn't much, but doable, and now you just have to re-clear the one quarter. Still a repair that can be seen though he said. They would wet sand the edge of the clear then the paint on pin stripe would go over that.
However I have seen plenty of video and looked up just spot repairs (cutting and blending clear) and it looks very promising. Here are a couple of links to what I found. One is from a prominent restoration shop about 3hrs from me. https://www.hotrod.com/articles/ccrp-08 ... storation/# and http://nastyz28.com/threads/blending-cl ... ay.258231/   I have also posted this on the Cougar forum and at least one guy was "pro" this process, and if any body guy is not saying it is wise I should find one that is "versed" in how to get this done.
 So I am at a quagmire on what to do. Right now the plan is to get the F-42 stripe stencil from Finesse get it placed correctly on the car so the local body guy can see where he has to work to, and just clear the quarter, then put the lines on. Re-clearing the whole back and roof of car just don't seem like a great option. Restored window trims, bumper, quarter extensions, repro quarter emblems etc all have to come off and go back on, not to mention cost.
 Target is a nice driver quality car that could perhaps be taken to some local events (without a gouge in the fender well)
 Thanks in advance for input.

David Siedschlag
 #16306 1967 Lime Frost S-code, Ivy gold interior
 4-speed, A/C, sports console, AM-8track.
 1980 Toyota truck, woodgas powered
 22re 4x4

[69bossnut]

I would not recommend blending clear. Unless there is a very narrow area. The problem is you usually will have a blend line. It won’t be as noticeable when first done although if your looking for it you will be able to find it. As time goes on it becomes more pronounced. If properly prepped & adhesion promoters are used you won’t have any peeling issues later. Without looking at it in person because I can’t tell from pics how wide that top body crease is on a cougar. But it looks like you should be able to back tape on that line. This will create a soft edge to color sand & blend in. When done properly it should be invisible. But if that line does not have a sharp enough edge it will be hard to hide. I have also done it with a striped car as long as you don’t ever plan on removing them. Because then the line will be visable. Also the lighter color cars are easier to hide these issues. You may get away with a blend area on a white car. But will be very noticeable on a black car.

[rrenz]

As a professional painter I would advise not blending clear. Initially it may look ok but eventually a halo or haziness will appear. In collision work if a clear blend was ordered I would usually just re clear the whole panel to avoid issues later down the line.. just my two cents. Do it right the first time. If in a small area like a A Pillar or un noticeable spot thats small you may get away with it. Ive seen paint breaks at Stripes and decals. Its not pretty.