Sanding by hand equals waves and how to quickly get rid of them bumpers for paint and make your boss super happy

I am fortunate to have many  mentors during my time as paint helper.  Some taught me good, some taught me bad.  Like my philosophy teacher says, "take a little of everything and apply it to your advantage."  I agree.  Now, I'm not saying bad things are good but in a high volume high turnaround surrounding, sometimes you need to go as fast as possible to get the desired outcome.

For example, let's say I have one front bumper that was repair on the corner and needed primed.  I know priming takes 15 mins to prep, spray, clean gun and work area.  Then, with about 2-3 hours, (using Advantage Urethane Primer Surfacer), it's ready to sand, spot putty, overall sanding, cleaned and given to painter for, well, painting.

Time to complete a primed bumper should take 45 min to 1.5 hours depending on condition.  The bumper should be fully ready for paint without any flaws.

Well, simple  right?  Not quite. Let's say it's 2 pm and your boss  says  that 3 primed bumpers need sanding and cleaned for the painter by the time you leave.  Easy?  Nope.  You just got thrown a "mission impossible." 

What do you do?  Do you move faster?  Yes, of course, but you also have to have a game plan instantly.  I can have all bumpers ready by 3:30 pm, guaranteed.  How?

Follow these steps:

1.  Game plan, i.e, have all materials you need ready and good to go
2.  Sand all primed areas first  using 320 wrapped around a scuff pad
3.  DA entire bumper with required grit, (someone say gameplan)?
4.  Spot puddy
5. Wet sand primed area
6. Wet sand rest of area
7. Grey scuff sides, corners etc.
8.  Grey scuff shiny spots if necessary,  tip!! Using a wet soft grey scuff to avoid sand scratch swelling
9. Clean with soap scuff or wax and grease remover
10.   Give to painter,  congrats, you made the company 1200 bucks or more in 1.5 hours

Now, why the title "Sanding by hand equals waves" when I'm talking about bumpers?  Easy, this shortcut will leave waves but not as noticable as you think.  Why, It's a curvey plastic bumper and the sandpaper with scuff pad method is a good way to prevent noticeable waves when done wisely.

Well, that's it for now!