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Stupid nail polish touch up question

Old 04-03-21, 08:47 AM
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Plainsman
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Stupid nail polish touch up question

I’m sure this is a stupid question, but I’ve never bought nail polish before. Need some clear for touch up. My wife has some clear that is labeled as gel - no UV needed. Is gel-like different from regular clear polish?
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Old 04-03-21, 08:59 AM
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Gel Nail Polish 101: Everything You Need to Know About Gel Manicures | Teen Vogue You just need to decide if this is for evening events or a daytime working environment.
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Old 04-03-21, 09:03 AM
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Originally Posted by crankycrank
gel nail polish 101: Everything you need to know about gel manicures | teen vogue you just need to decide if this is for evening events or a daytime working environment.
lol! - well played, well played.

To clarify - I’m looking for something that is quick drying and will self-level as much as possible.
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Old 04-03-21, 09:33 AM
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Originally Posted by Plainsman
lol! - well played, well played.

To clarify - I’m looking for something that is quick drying and will self-level as much as possible.
I’m not a nail polish expert...but I think pretty much ALL nail polishes are that. Why not splurge the <$10 and get your own bottle to keep with your bike stuff and never have to bother wifey for hers.

Dan
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Old 04-03-21, 10:31 AM
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I would think the if you want the best self-leveling you would NOT want a gel, but a liquid. I agree with ForceD, get your own bottle of plain vanilla clear nail polish. Remover, too, for clean-up, but not the oily kind.
I would also suggest that you go to a craft store and get some fine artist's brushes; the control offered by the brush-in-a-bottle leaves something to be desired for covering something smaller than a fingernail.
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Old 04-03-21, 10:34 AM
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Originally Posted by dsbrantjr
I would think the if you want the best self-leveling you would NOT want a gel, but a liquid. I agree with ForceD, get your own bottle of plain vanilla clear nail polish. Remover, too, for clean-up, but not the oily kind.
I would also suggest that you go to a craft store and get some fine artist's brushes; the control offered by the brush-in-a-bottle leaves something to be desired for covering something smaller than a fingernail.
.

Thanks, doing just that. I have a pretty thorough selection of tiny craft brushes too. Thinking that while I’m at it I should buy my own remover. Think the wife’s has acetone in it, and I’ve heard that’s a no-no for paint - am I right on that front?
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Old 04-03-21, 10:57 AM
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As you may already know....Self-leveling works best when the chipped area is as close to horizontal as possible.....painting on a vertical surface will result in a blob of paint at the lower edge as can be seen in many nail polish touch-ups....Just Sayin.
Best, Ben
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Old 04-03-21, 11:01 AM
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Originally Posted by xiaoman1
As you may already know....Self-leveling works best when the chipped area is as close to horizontal as possible.....painting on a vertical surface will result in a blob of paint at the lower edge as can be seen in many nail polish touch-ups....Just Sayin.
Best, Ben
Sadly, yes, gotta set up a crazy jig with blankets and pillows for this operation. Hoping a fine polishing/swirl removing compound will help with the final finishing. And this is clear gloss on carbon, so really just trying to de-emphasize the white spot left from a slight clear coat ding.
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Old 04-03-21, 12:42 PM
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Originally Posted by Plainsman
Sadly, yes, gotta set up a crazy jig with blankets and pillows for this operation. Hoping a fine polishing/swirl removing compound will help with the final finishing. And this is clear gloss on carbon, so really just trying to de-emphasize the white spot left from a slight clear coat ding.
Plainsman,
How about posting a picture of the damaged area...it might yield more constructive responses.
If the knick is not to through to the CF you might be able to get away with folding some 800-1200 wet dry paper and only using the edge of the paper to lightly clean the spot of coarse clear and then apply the nail polish...of course if its a large knick that may be difficult...need to see what you are looking at.
Best, Ben
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Old 04-03-21, 03:09 PM
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Originally Posted by xiaoman1
Plainsman,
How about posting a picture of the damaged area...it might yield more constructive responses.
If the knick is not to through to the CF you might be able to get away with folding some 800-1200 wet dry paper and only using the edge of the paper to lightly clean the spot of coarse clear and then apply the nail polish...of course if its a large knick that may be difficult...need to see what you are looking at.
Best, Ben
Sure, and thanks for the advice. It’s a tiny nick but the light catches it so for me it jumps out on a pristine chainstay.
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Old 04-03-21, 03:10 PM
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Originally Posted by xiaoman1
Plainsman,
How about posting a picture of the damaged area...it might yield more constructive responses.
If the knick is not to through to the CF you might be able to get away with folding some 800-1200 wet dry paper and only using the edge of the paper to lightly clean the spot of coarse clear and then apply the nail polish...of course if its a large knick that may be difficult...need to see what you are looking at.
Best, Ben
I wouldn’t really even call it a damaged area, just a cosmetic tick.

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Old 04-03-21, 03:24 PM
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Originally Posted by Plainsman
I wouldn’t really even call it a damaged area, just a cosmetic tick.

WOW, It looks really tiny.....I think that applying the nail polish without sanding may be all that is needed to make the knick less noticable....to apply it use a toothpick and tap the polish in the center. if after dabbing it is still there you might have to wipe clean and "barely" down the knock roughness.
If this were mine, I would use a "pinpoint "of gloss black and forget about it,after a few rides and not looking at it, you won't notice it
You may make more of a problem trying to make it perfect....been there done that.
Not OCD, Ben
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Old 04-03-21, 03:43 PM
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Originally Posted by xiaoman1
WOW, It looks really tiny.....I think that applying the nail polish without sanding may be all that is needed to make the knick less noticable....to apply it use a toothpick and tap the polish in the center. if after dabbing it is still there you might have to wipe clean and "barely" down the knock roughness.
If this were mine, I would use a "pinpoint "of gloss black and forget about it,after a few rides and not looking at it, you won't notice it
You may make more of a problem trying to make it perfect....been there done that.
Not OCD, Ben
Thanks Ben, you’ve hit on my two options. I tried the black first, but this spot is so shallow I couldn’t find the sweet spot. The spot of gloss black stood proud of the chain stay and caught light from all angles. Was hoping this white was coming from marred clear and that a little polish might render it mostly invisible. If not I’ll clean off the polish and go back with the black (or even a Sharpie). I do ride my bikes, A LOT. But I’m also pretty tenacious about keeping them touched up as things happen.
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Old 04-03-21, 04:14 PM
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i'd let you in on a secret nail polish, but victoria has since discontinued selling those beauty products.
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Old 04-03-21, 04:43 PM
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Originally Posted by Plainsman
Thanks Ben, you’ve hit on my two options. I tried the black first, but this spot is so shallow I couldn’t find the sweet spot. The spot of gloss black stood proud of the chain stay and caught light from all angles. Was hoping this white was coming from marred clear and that a little polish might render it mostly invisible. If not I’ll clean off the polish and go back with the black (or even a Sharpie). I do ride my bikes, A LOT. But I’m also pretty tenacious about keeping them touched up as things happen.
HAHA, Got it.....I am compulsive about my things too but I have found that sometimes going for just a little bit better can make things worse. Just like the first dent on a new car, we always look at it but after a while, we don't notice it anymore.
We all have our own level of what we can live with....No Brush...remember the toothpick!
Good Luck!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLJnqiBxKtg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4f9zqVbcZDQ
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Old 04-03-21, 05:03 PM
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q-tip dabbing can be an option if a brush isnt for use.
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Old 04-03-21, 07:42 PM
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Originally Posted by Troul
q-tip dabbing can be an option if a brush isnt for use.
I’m all for dabbing the paint on as well, whatever works, thanks!
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Old 04-03-21, 09:37 PM
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Originally Posted by xiaoman1
WOW, It looks really tiny.....I think that applying the nail polish without sanding may be all that is needed to make the knick less noticable....to apply it use a toothpick and tap the polish in the center. if after dabbing it is still there you might have to wipe clean and "barely" down the knock roughness.
Well, I guess I will see how this goes. I have a bike that lives on my trainer with some scuffed carbon stays, the older 3k weave with gloss clear. I’ll test on that. Here is what $1.98 at Walmart scored me tonight...

Last edited by Plainsman; 04-03-21 at 09:47 PM.
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Old 04-04-21, 07:24 AM
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Originally Posted by xiaoman1
HAHA, Got it.....I am compulsive about my things too but I have found that sometimes going for just a little bit better can make things worse. Just like the first dent on a new car, we always look at it but after a while, we don't notice it anymore.
We all have our own level of what we can live with....No Brush...remember the toothpick!
Good Luck!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLJnqiBxKtg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4f9zqVbcZDQ
Thanks, that was a great video, will help my auto work too for sure! Hopefully this is one of my last pesky questions - if I apply the nail polish clear and hate it, what is the best/safest way to remove it? TIA!
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Old 04-04-21, 07:44 AM
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Originally Posted by Plainsman
Thanks, that was a great video, will help my auto work too for sure! Hopefully this is one of my last pesky questions - if I apply the nail polish clear and hate it, what is the best/safest way to remove it? TIA!
If your wife has some polish remover just use that as it's fairly safe for any paint. Just wipe off the remover with a damp rag afterwards to get rid of the residue which may discolor the paint after a few hours if left on. Acetone will work even faster and also not that harmful to paint if you just use a Q-tip or some such on just the polish and not a big deal if it gets on the paint if you wipe it off quickly. Polish remover used to be just acetone years ago but mfrs saw a market in developing acetone with some conditioning oils and I'm not even sure what it is now, maybe non-acetone but takes longer.

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Old 04-04-21, 09:47 AM
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Originally Posted by Plainsman
.

Thanks, doing just that. I have a pretty thorough selection of tiny craft brushes too. Thinking that while I’m at it I should buy my own remover. Think the wife’s has acetone in it, and I’ve heard that’s a no-no for paint - am I right on that front?
Not exactly. Acetone is pretty effective at cleaning paint out of natural bristle brushes. If you spill it directly on a finish, or try wipe a finish with an acetone-soaked rag, it will remove lacquer and enamel paints and will soften powdercoatings. It will dissolve and/or soften a lot of plastics, so a synthetic-bristle brush is probably a no-go. But there would be no harm in cleaning a natural bristle brush (with a wooden and not plastic handle) with acetone, letting it dry, and using it to apply finish later.

Some paints can be removed using min spirits, some require a stronger solving like acetone.

There's probably no harm in putting a drop of nail polish to repair a chip. If the nail polish has acetone in it, it probably would be a good idea to avoid overbrushing it onto existing finish. There used to be an advertising jingle for a hair styling product for men (Brylcream): "A little dab'll do ya". Same principle here: put a drop of the polish in the chip AND DON'T BRUSH IT.
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Old 04-04-21, 10:25 AM
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Sorry, double post

Last edited by Plainsman; 04-04-21 at 10:29 AM.
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Old 04-04-21, 10:25 AM
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Originally Posted by WizardOfBoz
Not exactly. Acetone is pretty effective at cleaning paint out of natural bristle brushes. If you spill it directly on a finish, or try wipe a finish with an acetone-soaked rag, it will remove lacquer and enamel paints and will soften powdercoatings. It will dissolve and/or soften a lot of plastics, so a synthetic-bristle brush is probably a no-go. But there would be no harm in cleaning a natural bristle brush (with a wooden and not plastic handle) with acetone, letting it dry, and using it to apply finish later.

Some paints can be removed using min spirits, some require a stronger solving like acetone.

There's probably no harm in putting a drop of nail polish to repair a chip. If the nail polish has acetone in it, it probably would be a good idea to avoid overbrushing it onto existing finish. There used to be an advertising jingle for a hair styling product for men (Brylcream): "A little dab'll do ya". Same principle here: put a drop of the polish in the chip AND DON'T BRUSH IT.
Thanks again. I TOTALLY agree about NOT using a brush on this. I was more asking if acetone, or an acetone based polish remover would harm the existing clearcoat or paint on the bike if I need to do a little cleanup after touchup. Sounds like it’s not that big of a deal.

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Old 04-04-21, 12:02 PM
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Okay y’all, I freely admit I’ve made it almost 50 years on this earth and never used nail polish, but one of y’all could have warned me how sticky this stuff is! Now I feel like I have no choice but to master this mess. :-) Thankfully I have a test bike. Next step, to see if polishing compound, scratch and swirl remover, and rubbing compound can knock down a high spot on dried polish.
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Old 04-04-21, 04:03 PM
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Originally Posted by xiaoman1
WOW, It looks really tiny.....I think that applying the nail polish without sanding may be all that is needed to make the knick less noticable....to apply it use a toothpick and tap the polish in the center. if after dabbing it is still there you might have to wipe clean and "barely" down the knock roughness.
If this were mine, I would use a "pinpoint "of gloss black and forget about it,after a few rides and not looking at it, you won't notice it
You may make more of a problem trying to make it perfect....been there done that.
Not OCD, Ben
Thought you might be interested in some progress photos, or at least test photos. Honestly, I’m a little shocked. I bought this 2009 Allez from a police officer who used to put it in the back of his pickup truck to take it to rides. Not a lot of care in transport. Low miles, but both chain stays were pretty scuffed up, it lives on the trainer now. Wish I had before photos, but I didn’t expect it to go this well. There WERE 3 small scratches (1/8 to 3/16” each) running perpendicular to the chainstay where I’m pointing. The appeared as white stripes. Here is what I did, thanks to the advice here:

1. First, I applied cheapo clear polish with a toothpick. This was harder than I expected. The polish was less fluid than I had hoped, and got tacky very quickly. As a result, it was a much more gooey and less elegant application than I had hoped for.

2. Watch and wonder if this is going to work. I could still see the white through the wet clear, so I was a little skeptical. Decided to leave the premises for 30 minutes.

3. surprise and wonder. When I got back, the white marks were truly gone, replaced by 3 raised (but clear) “scabs” which caught the light in different ways. Better, but how to knock it down?

4. The long road. I admit it, I’m afraid of sandpaper. Woodworking? Total confidence. On my carbon frame? Total cowardice. But I do have some clearcoat safe turtle wax swirl remover which I use on my cars extensively, which is even less abrasive than the turtle wax rubbing compound I also use.

5. my right bicep is now noticeable larger than the left after 10,000 circles over this tiny spot, but I’m more than pleased with the result. I’ ll probably do the rest of the chainstay to practice on spots of different severity before moving to my primary riding frame (when I ride my bikes, they are tools for performance, when I hang them in the house, they become rideable art). Below is the test stay. I have to get my eye about 3 or 4 inches away to find where I did the touch up. That’s good enough for me. Thanks to all of you for the great advice! Now to find an application tool more precise than the toothpick...

The three scratches are below the two small chips I haven’t hit yet.

The three scratches were right where my finger is pointing. I polished the high nail polish spots with swirl remover until the reflected light ran continuously across the spot without waves in it.

Last edited by Plainsman; 04-04-21 at 04:08 PM.
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