Tried a cheap paint blending pen on a repair and totally regret it

Honestly grabbed a $12 blending pen from the auto parts store for a quarter panel chip on a silver Civic last Saturday and now the blend line is super obvious in sunlight. The color didn't match at all and it dried with a weird matte finish compared to the clear coat. Anyone else had bad luck with those budget blending tools or am I just using them wrong?

2 comments

2 Comments

rowan_thomas3d agoMost Upvoted

super obvious in sunlight" - my buddy tried one on a black truck, looked like a cloudy mess.

diana554d ago

I mean yeah, cheap blending pens are basically just a solvent in a marker body, not really a proper blending tool. I've messed around with a few and you gotta be super careful about how much pressure you use and the temp of the panel - if it's cold, that stuff dries even more matte and chalky. Maybe try hitting it with a light polish or a quick spray of clear from a rattle can to blend it in better, but honestly those pens are more for hiding scratches on flat colors than matching metallic flake.