Everything You Need to Know about the Touch Up Brush

Touch Up Brush FAQ

We here at TouchUpDirect love a good paint applicator. We’re here to talk about the amazing Brush applicator. Rid yourself of those pesky scratches ruining your car’s paint job. We’re sure you still have questions so we’ve put together a little FAQ to answer all your burning questions about these handy car paint markers. 

What is a Touch Up Brush?

The touch up Brush is a brush-in- cap style applicator that is good for touching up wider areas while also handling smaller scratches.

What’s the Difference Between a Brush and a Pen?

A Brush is used for slightly bigger scratches than the Pen as they release a more generous amount of paint. If your car’s coat has a rock chip or a pencil eraser sized scratch, use a car paint pen. If your car has chips or scratches that are the size of a quarter, use a Brush.

What’s the Difference Between a Brush and a Combo?

A Combo has both a Pen and a Brush applicator on each side so your vehicle will be ready for any scratches that befall it.

When Do I Need to Use a Brush?

Check the size of the scratch on your vehicle. Is it the size of a quarter or smaller, you’ll be needing the Brush.

How Do I Know if I Have the Correct Color?

This is actually an important question. Even the slightest mismatch between your new car paint and your body color paint can be noticeable. The best and fastest way to find your color is by finding its color code. 

What Is the Color Code?

A color code is a string of letters and numbers that identify exactly what color has been put on your vehicle. Even the most common of car colors can come in a variety of shades and going by name or sight could cause you to put the wrong paint on your car. For example, a 2021 Acura ILX has two gray colors: Lunar Silver Metallic and Modern Steel Metallic. The naked eye might not know the difference between Lunar Silver and Modern Steel but the manufacturer’s database knows the difference between NH-830M and NH-797M. 

Where Do I Find This Code?

It depends on your vehicle. Many cars place the code on the inside of the door jamb. Sometimes it is towards the back of the car, under the spare trunk lid, the mat, the spare rear tire compartment, or trunk lid. Looking for an easier way than searching your car for a code? We’ve got your back. Go to TouchUpDirect’s website and simply enter to find your make and model in the dropdown menu to find your code.

How Much Paint is in a TouchUpDirect Touch Up Brush?

We fill our touch up brushes with 6ml of our high quality, low VOC touch up paint. 

How is a Touch Up Brush Filled?

First, we pour the paint into the Brush container. Once it’s filled, we insert the brush-in-cap top and screw it on.

How Do I Hold the Brush When I Open It?

Please make sure the cap is facing upwards when you open the Brush. If it is facing downwards or sideways, the paint will pour out of the applicator.

How Do I Apply Primer, Colorcoat, & Clearcoat Using a Touch Up Brush?

Clean the scratch area with soap and water. Wipe it dry. Open the package of Wax & Grease Remover and gently wipe the area in one direction for 2-3 times. This will remove any excess grease from the project area. 

Remember! Hold the Brush applicator with the black cap pointing up. Twist the cap to open the container. Remove the excess paint by lightly dragging the brush along the inside opening as you remove it from the container.

Now it’s time to apply the Primer if necessary. Only use Primer if you see bare metal, fiberglass, or plastic. Apply evenly and allow to dry for 15 minutes before you apply the Colorcoat. Repeat until the repair area is thoroughly covered (2-3 coats).

Apply the Colorcoat evenly over the damaged area. Allow to dry for 15 minutes. Repeat until the repair area is thoroughly covered (2-3 coats). Don’t paint outside the damaged area.

Apply a light, even coat of Clearcoat in the same manner used to apply the Colorcoat. The first coat should have thorough, even coverage. Allow to dry for 15 minutes. Allow to dry for 15 minutes. Repeat until the repair area is thoroughly covered (2-3 coats). Do not exceed 4 coats.

What is a Tricoat?

Some car colors are what we call Tricoats. Tricoats add an extra Colorcoat layer to give the paint a special Candy or Pearl effect. The process is almost identical to a non-Tricoat touch up application except that instead of a Colorcoat, you will receive 2 paint markers: a Basecoat and a Midcoat. The Basecoat goes on after the Primer. 2-3 coats dabbed on, with 15 minutes in between coats. Let the coat dry for 30 minutes before you apply the Midcoat, repeating what you did with the Basecoat step.