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Using Spray Can Paint for Touchup

For scratched or damaged areas that require more than a brush touchup a good alternative is a spray can repair. Of course the best repair would use professional spray equipment. But if you do not have that equipment then a spray can repair may suffice.

Here we have a damaged area on the lower right corner of a 1967 F100. The color is 2000 Ford Vermillion.

The first step is to make any repairs needed to the panel. In this case a skim coat of plastic filler was needed to remove a dent.

Next we used a spray can primer to seal and smooth the filler repair. Primer was sprayed three times and sanded between each coat with progressively finer sandpaper. In this case we used 180, 220, and 400 grit paper.

For this example we used a basecoat/clearcoat although an enamel would have eliminated the clear step and would appear the same. When using basecoat you should coat the repair completely with color and then blend the edges into the surrounding area. Here you see the basecoat color has been applied from a spray can.

After waiting about 1/2 hour for the base to dry we coated the area with a spray can clearcoat. We coated the entire area from the panel crease down. Ending the repair at a panel crease hides the edge left from the repair. The edge can be hidden further by using a softly folded making tape edge instead of the machine cut edge on the roll. This creates a softer paint line. Notice how we pulled the tape up slightly to be sure the clear fully covered the basecoat.

Here you see the final repair. Depending on the clear, you should be able to lightly color sand and buff the area if needed.