Silicon carbide vs. aluminum oxide on modern paint jobs

I keep hearing everyone swear by aluminum oxide discs for clear coat removal. But after messing up a 2023 Toyota Camry hood in Phoenix with them, I switched to silicon carbide and never looked back. That hood had ceramic layer issues and the aluminum oxide just burned through in spots. Has anyone else had better luck with silicon carbide on newer waterborne finishes?

3 comments

3 Comments

kai_burns7314d agoMost Upvoted

Question whether it's really that big of a deal. I've been using aluminum oxide discs on clear coats for years, from old lacquer jobs to modern waterborne paints, and never had a burn through issue unless I got too aggressive with the pressure. Seems like it might be more about your technique or the specific grit you chose rather than the material itself. Silicon carbide cuts faster but also leaves a rougher finish in my experience, so you trade one problem for another.

jessem5914d ago

Yeah, I get what you're saying about technique mattering a ton. I actually switched to silicon carbide specifically for the speed on harder clears and just did a lighter pass with a finer grit to smooth it out, which saved my butt a few times.

jennifer_jones1714d ago

Wait, are you telling me I've been burning through clear coats for the last three years because my grip strength is secretly a ninja death grip in disguise? I guess I never thought about it that way, but I swear my technique is fine, I use a light touch and everything, but on some of these modern ceramic clears it might as well be a butter knife on a hot stove. You've probably got some kind of magic touch that lets you use the same disc on a 1930s lacquer job and a 2024 Nissan fender, but for the rest of us mortals, those aluminum oxide discs just turn into a heat gun after ten seconds of work.