Polishing Principles DVD

[AdrenalineJunky]

Just watched the Polishing Principles DVD. Overall it will be helpful for my first time buffing/polishing. I have some questions that the DVD did not seem to answer.

1. Which polisher of the two featured is preferred?

2. Mike talks about using different pads and products depending on what the paint requires. However it seems he only uses the one Scratch remover with the one pad. Will I need to have other products/pads on hand if my test area results are not to my satisfaction?

3. What about buffing/polishing smaller areas around the vehicle? In between molding/decals, etc. What technique should be used?

4. Is there any technique for using the buffer when going over contoured areas or edges?

5. Once the correct pad is chosen, can this single pad be used for the entire vehicle?

[Mike.Phillips@Autogeek]

Hi AdrenalineJunky,

I just finished with a class here today and posting a few pictures from the class...


Pictures and Comments from April 24th Damp Sanding and Machine Polishing Class


Class days are pretty long but before I leave I wanted to try to give you a few nutshell answers...

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

Just watched the Polishing Principles DVD. Overall it will be helpful for my first time buffing/polishing. I have some questions that the DVD did not seem to answer.

1. Which polisher of the two featured is preferred?

I wrote an article where I ranked all the tools according to their "ease of use", ;you can read the article here,

How to choose the right polisher for your detailing project


I gave the Porter Cable style polishers an ease of use ranking a #1 and the Cyclo a #2 but they are both very easy to use. I don't like to make specific recommendations but I'm sure others will chime in...

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

2. Mike talks about using different pads and products depending on what the paint requires. However it seems he only uses the one Scratch remover with the one pad. Will I need to have other products/pads on hand if my test area results are not to my satisfaction?

In the video I used

Wolfgang Total Swirl Remover with a light orange cutting pad
Wolfgang Finishing Glaze with a white polishing pad
Wolfgang Deep Gloss Paint Sealant using a black/gray finishing pad

There was a section that went over the chemicals and pads specifically but to shorten the already long video it was edited out.

As for testing products, in order to test a few products you need to have a few products and the products I listed above are a good start as they will tackle most swirls and scratches most people want to remove using good technique.

You an always add more product at a later date if you like...

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

3. What about buffing/polishing smaller areas around the vehicle? In between molding/decals, etc. What technique should be used?

You can get a Spot Repair Kit which has 4" buffing pads for smaller, hard to reach or thin panels.

CCS Spot Buffs 4 Inch Foam Pad Kit Free Bonus!

Or you can purchase smaller pads by themselves, contact Customer Care at 1-800-869-3011 and then can help you get the pads you need for your car.

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

4. Is there any technique for using the buffer when going over contoured areas or edges?

A good rule of thumb is to not buff directly on top of hard body lines or edges, instead buff up to them, but not on them. With a DA Polisher it's actually not that risky, the idea of buffing up to them and not on top of them is just a "Best Practice" for any kind of electric polisher.

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

5. Once the correct pad is chosen, can this single pad be used for the entire vehicle

There's a thread posted in the last day or two that asks the question how many pads are needed to buff out an entire car, maybe some kind forum member can track it down and post the link to it in this thread?

Usually it's a good idea to have at a minimum 2-3 pads for the correction step, 1-2 pads for the polishing step and you should really only need on pad for applying a wax or paint sealant.


Great questions...

[Mike.Phillips@Autogeek]

Anyone wanting more information on this DVD can find a list of what's on the DVD here,

Autogeek Show Car Garage Video!

[AdrenalineJunky]

Originally Posted by Mike.Phillips@Autogeek

Hi AdrenalineJunky,

I just finished with a class here today and posting a few pictures from the class...


Pictures and Comments from April 24th Damp Sanding and Machine Polishing Class


Class days are pretty long but before I leave I wanted to try to give you a few nutshell answers..

Hey Mike,
Thank you for responding as quickly as you did. I would be interested in attending your class, however unfortunately I'm further than a days drive.

I wrote an article where I ranked all the tools according to their "ease of use", ;you can read the article here,

How to choose the right polisher for your detailing project


I gave the Porter Cable style polishers an ease of use ranking a #1 and the Cyclo a #2 but they are both very easy to use. I don't like to make specific recommendations but I'm sure others will chime in...

Thank you for writing that article, that answered many of my questions. I believe the Porter Cable 7424XP will work best for me.

My biggest concern with choosing a polisher/buffer is safety. I do not want to end up doing more bad than good. I once had a "professional," body-shop owner buff out a truck. He did correct some of the swirl concerns, but also burnt/cracked the paint in various areas. In that case I would've been better off leaving it alone.

From what I've read on this site, the 7424XP, is 100% safe?

In the video I used

Wolfgang Total Swirl Remover with a light orange cutting pad
Wolfgang Finishing Glaze with a white polishing pad
Wolfgang Deep Gloss Paint Sealant using a black/gray finishing pad

There was a section that went over the chemicals and pads specifically but to shorten the already long video it was edited out.

As for testing products, in order to test a few products you need to have a few products and the products I listed above are a good start as they will tackle most swirls and scratches most people want to remove using good technique.

You an always add more product at a later date if you like...

I agree with what you mentioned in the video about using the least aggressive material as possible to achieve the results desired. With that being said, Wolfgang seems to offer only a broad range of strengths. Compared to Pinnacle which I believe has four products to use for correction.

Do some of the brand names offer better control when it comes to increasing strengths than others?

You can get a Spot Repair Kit which has 4" buffing pads for smaller, hard to reach or thin panels.

CCS Spot Buffs 4 Inch Foam Pad Kit Free Bonus!

Or you can purchase smaller pads by themselves, contact Customer Care at 1-800-869-3011 and then can help you get the pads you need for your car.

One of the nice things about your store is that you offer many products. However being a rookie, I find it overwhelming to choose one brand over another when they all seem to claim doing the same thing. I plan on contacting customer care tomorrow, and hope to put together a package that will suit my needs.

Are specific brands higher quality than others and simply the prices reflect this?

Is there a brand that you would recommend over others?

A good rule of thumb is to not buff directly on top of hard body lines or edges, instead buff up to them, but not on them. With a DA Polisher it's actually not that risky, the idea of buffing up to them and not on top of them is just a "Best Practice" for any kind of electric polisher.


There's a thread posted in the last day or two that asks the question how many pads are needed to buff out an entire car, maybe some kind forum member can track it down and post the link to it in this thread?

Usually it's a good idea to have at a minimum 2-3 pads for the correction step, 1-2 pads for the polishing step and you should really only need on pad for applying a wax or paint sealant.


Great questions...

I hope to correct paint swirls on two daily drivers. 08' VW Jetta (red) and 07' Dodge Ram (orange). This would be my first time attempting to correct swirls on my own and I would like to have all the materials needed to complete each vehicle once I start tackling each. I will be doing this outdoors, which is why I would prefer finishing the vehicle on the same day started.

I have not been able to locate any packages that contain the multiple pads, which you have suggested. Will I need to purchase these separate from a scratch correction package?

Do you have any sort of list that I could use as a guide to making sure I have all of the tools/materials necessary?

Thank you again. It's hard to find a business that has this level of customer support. I look forward to gaining knowledge and buying from AutoGeek.

[Mike.Phillips@Autogeek]

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

From what I've read on this site, the 7424XP, is 100% safe?

Yes, did you see what I did to my hand in this video?

Porter Cable How-To Segment on Two Guy's Garage

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

Do some of the brand names offer better control when it comes to increasing strengths than others?

Yes, that is some brands offer a wider range of products. When it comes to paint correction there are only 3 products in the Wolfgang Line but they are all very safe and also very effective. You really can't go wrong with any of them and when using a DA Polisher the Wolfgang Total Swirl Remover and Finishing Glaze are both safe and effective.

I am supposed to have a black Porsche come by the garage tonight that has light to medium swirls throughout the paint and the owner is older and has never used a machine to polish paint; I'm going to show him how to use the Wolfgang products with the PC 7424XP

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

One of the nice things about your store is that you offer many products. However being a rookie, I find it overwhelming to choose one brand over another when they all seem to claim doing the same thing. I plan on contacting customer care tomorrow, and hope to put together a package that will suit my needs.

Trying teaching a class on just all the paint polishing products, pads and tool...

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

Are specific brands higher quality than others and simply the prices reflect this?

Everything we care is high quality otherwise we wouldn't carry it...

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

Is there a brand that you would recommend over others?

Not really, I can take anything off the shelf and make it perform using good technique, so all our products work, personal skill level comes from practice and experience. (You have to do that on your own )

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

I hope to correct paint swirls on two daily drivers. 08' VW Jetta (red) and 07' Dodge Ram (orange). This would be my first time attempting to correct swirls on my own and I would like to have all the materials needed to complete each vehicle once I start tackling each. I will be doing this outdoors, which is why I would prefer finishing the vehicle on the same day started.

I helped a guy yesterday learn how to use a PC to correct the paint on a "show truck", because of the size I recommended to him to only tackle a panel at a time and I recommend this to a lot of people if you really want the paint to come out looking GREAT!

The reason for this is because...

"You can't rush quality"

That is you can't simply move the polisher faster to get done quicker, when it comes to removing swirls you have to move the polisher slowly over the surface.

If you're new to machine polishing then doing all the steps to all the car in one day is a huge undertaking. Just doing the below will take you 4-6 hours.

• Wash and dry the car
• Clay the paint
• Machine clean the hood to remove swirls
• Machine polish the hood to maximize gloss and clarity
• Machine or hand wax or seal the hood.
• Remove the wax or paint sealant
• Clean up and put your supplies away

Doing a good job of washing and drying the average car will take you up to an hour.

If you have a lot of passion then go for it otherwise maybe just tackle a few panels the first time, like the hood and trunk lid or hood and roof.

I don't' want to see you get burnt out. It's easy to start out all excited but then about 3-4 hours into the correction step, realize how much more work you have to do and then get in a hurry or then get disillusioned with the project.

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

I have not been able to locate any packages that contain the multiple pads, which you have suggested. Will I need to purchase these separate from a scratch correction package?

If you call Customer Care, they help people doing the same thing you're doing 6 days a week and are very good and making sure you have everything you need.

1-800-869-3011

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

Do you have any sort of list that I could use as a guide to making sure I have all of the tools/materials necessary?

Not really. I've created a list like this on another forum but it's old and out dated. Customer Care will be helping you with current products and tools.

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

Thank you again. It's hard to find a business that has this level of customer support. I look forward to gaining knowledge and buying from AutoGeek.

I like doing two things in this industry...

• Detailing cars
• Helping others to detail their cars...

Kind of simple, but that's what I like to do. I'm fortunate to have a job that includes doing what I like to do.

[AdrenalineJunky]

Hey Mike,

Here's what I ended up ordering today with the help of Matt. Hope these are products you also would recommend. Thanks again for the help.

MG-PC-1500XP - Meguiars Porter Cable XP Ultra Polish K
1 PAD-TOOL - Foam Pad Conditioning Brush
1 DP-730 - DP Polishing Pad Rejuvenator
1 BR-800-2200-0 - Brinkmann Maxfire Dual Xenon Rechargea
1 DP-360 - DP Poli-Coat Paint Sealant
1 DJ-SNYM1PC - Dodo Juice Supernatural Wash Mitt "Yeti'
1 DP-368 - 32 oz. DP Final Gloss Quick Detailer w/Spraye

[AdrenalineJunky]

The salesmen who helped me with my order was very knowledgeable and did a good job. However after studying your compound chart I question jumping into using the Meguiars Mirror Glaze #205 Ultra Finishing Polish. Based on the chart it is the most aggressive product Meguiars offers.

Perhaps I may need the strength available from the #205. However you have taught me to slowly move my way up as needed. Less=better.

Do I need to order other less aggressive compounds?

[Mike.Phillips@Autogeek]

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

Do I need to order other less aggressive compounds?

M205 is very NON aggressive... see where it ranks in this thread...


The Aggressiveness Order of SMAT Products - This might surprise you!


I would try it first and see if it's aggressive enough to remove the defects out of the paint you're working on, if it's not then you'll need something more aggressive.

[AdrenalineJunky]

Originally Posted by Mike.Phillips@Autogeek

M205 is very NON aggressive... see where it ranks in this thread...


The Aggressiveness Order of SMAT Products - This might surprise you!


I would try it first and see if it's aggressive enough to remove the defects out of the paint you're working on, if it's not then you'll need something more aggressive.

I meant to say the M105. Should I have something in between?

[Mike.Phillips@Autogeek]

Originally Posted by AdrenalineJunky

I meant to say the M105. Should I have something in between?

From the sound of the condition of your car's finish then go with the Wolfgang Total Swirl Remover, easy to use, works great, wipes off easy and proven winner for removing swirls and leaving behind an LSP ready surface for most people or further refine with a less aggressive product.

I have some Porsche pictures to post that was de-swirled using the Wolfgang Twins and the results are phenomenal. Cool thing is this was the FIRST time this guy ever buffed out a car by machine.