Soft Black Paint - Removing Polish Oils - Eraser & Prep Causing Towel Marring

[Tim711]

Hi, I have a brand new black car that I'm lightly polishing before applying my lsp of choice. According to the manufacturer of the lsp I have chosen; if the vehicle was compounded and polished than a 50/50 mixture of isopropyl alcohol and water must be used for removal of the remaining oils from the polish before application.

I have done extensive testing and I feel that my paint is so soft that during polish removal without the slightest of pressure using a high quality microfiber towel I will cause directional micro-marring.

I want to ensure I remove all the remaining oils from the polish before application of my lsp as required by the manufacturer. I opted to use Eraser or Prep instead of an IPA because of the soft black paint. However, it's difficult enough trying to avoid marring during the dry removal of polish that I have been unable to find a way to use a product such as Eraser or Prep without leaving me with very very very bad directional micro-marring.

I have read posts from members on the AG forums about having great results using OPC for removing polishing oils. Before products like Eraser and Prep existed, when a lsp required an IPA wipedown prior to application -was there a product people used for washing their car after polishing only that would be sufficient for polish oil removal on soft black paint instead of an IPA wipedown?

Q. In my case, since I can't seem to be able to use Eraser or Prep, instead should I now consider washing the car after polishing using P21S TAW, OPC, Dawn dish soap, etc. to remove the remaining oils from the polish before coating? My concerns being that this could cause worse marring or any byproduct that may be left from the wash without a final IPA wipe.

Note: using Menzerna SF3800 (believe it has lots of oils)

Thanks for any help!
Tim

[mwoywod]

Menzerna's 3500 & 3800 finish really well and utilize great abrasive technology and are known for being fantastic on both hard and soft paints. But you are right about them being extremely oily. I know exactly what you're talking about with a polish being difficult to remove with a soft dry microfiber towel so you think it would be beneficial to use IPA or Eraser/paint prep to help provide lubrication to remove the polish but you end up just making everything worse.

The problem is that 3500 and especially 3800 can require so much buffing with a dry microfiber just to remove the polish which causes marring especially on soft paints, then you have to use IPA or a paint prep 1-2 times just to remove all the oils still on the surface that you end up causing so much marring it completely negates the incredible finish these finishing polishes are capable of leaving.

I'm sure guys are tired of hearing me talk about HD Polish+, but it's just so good especially on soft black paint when oily polishes like menzerna are requiring a ton of buffing to remove. The lubricants in HD Polish+ are fantastic because they remove off the paint with very little effort and they never smear or leave behind an oily mess. Your buffing cloths won't get all oily and nasty either.

Onto you're primary question.

I personally use an 11-13% IPA solution in a 32oz bottle with either 1-2oz of N-914 or D114 for additional lubrication. Also, rather than using a high gsm fluffy towel you may have better luck with a lower-pile edgeless 300-365gsm for initially removing the polish and for using with your IPA/paint prep solution.


I definitely wouldn't recommend washing the car with P21s TAW, OPC, or Dawn dish soap. Especially on a car that has just been polished to perfection. Honestly, you'll end up just chasing your tail because even if you manage to wash the car without causing any additional marring, all of them will leave there own surfactants on the paint that will require you to use a paint prep or IPA solution to remove.

Good luck my man

[jdne5b]

I also suffer from the OPs issue. I'm about out of Menzerna 3500, I'll have to give the HD Polish + a try.

For my last coating prep, I used N-914 in the prep-dilution ratio and edgeless towels. It worked pretty well and seemed lubricated.

[Tim711]

Menzerna's 3500 & 3800 finish really well and utilize great abrasive technology and are known for being fantastic on both hard and soft paints. But you are right about them being extremely oily. I know exactly what you're talking about with a polish being difficult to remove with a soft dry microfiber towel so you think it would be beneficial to use IPA or Eraser/paint prep to help provide lubrication to remove the polish but you end up just making everything worse.

The problem is that 3500 and especially 3800 can require so much buffing with a dry microfiber just to remove the polish which causes marring especially on soft paints, then you have to use IPA or a paint prep 1-2 times just to remove all the oils still on the surface that you end up causing so much marring it completely negates the incredible finish these finishing polishes are capable of leaving.

I'm sure guys are tired of hearing me talk about HD Polish+, but it's just so good especially on soft black paint when oily polishes like menzerna are requiring a ton of buffing to remove. The lubricants in HD Polish+ are fantastic because they remove off the paint with very little effort and they never smear or leave behind an oily mess. Your buffing cloths won't get all oily and nasty either.

Onto you're primary question.

I personally use an 11-13% IPA solution in a 32oz bottle with either 1-2oz of N-914 or D114 for additional lubrication. Also, rather than using a high gsm fluffy towel you may have better luck with a lower-pile edgeless 300-365gsm for initially removing the polish and for using with your IPA/paint prep solution.


I definitely wouldn't recommend washing the car with P21s TAW, OPC, or Dawn dish soap. Especially on a car that has just been polished to perfection. Honestly, you'll end up just chasing your tail because even if you manage to wash the car without causing any additional marring, all of them will leave there own surfactants on the paint that will require you to use a paint prep or IPA solution to remove.

Good luck my man

I didn't actually need to heavily dry buff the residue from Menzerna 3800 because I had worked it just long enough for it to not even be visible on the paint (no visible haze) and then just dry buffed any remaining oils I couldn't visually see. This could totally be the incorrect way to use this product as I don't know how long I should be working it but this didn't leave any visible marring. It's only when I introduce Eraser or Prep to remove any remaining oils from the polish that are hidden prior to coating that I cause excessive marring. I have also tried high and low edgeless gsm towels to no avail.

I will look into HD Polish+ and N-194 as you suggested, thanks.

[Kamakaz1961]

Love Menzerna 3800 waorks great! Gyeon Prep is what I use for cleaning off anything for the final stage of LSP

[ducksfan]

What about IPA or reset in a bucket applied with a plush MF? No pressure, just kind of mop it on, rinse it, and then blow it off. Follow with application of LSP. Keep everything super wet. Maybe add a little N-914 like mwoywod said.

[BudgetPlan1]

Scholls S40 works nicely on soft, black paint. Very little product usage, nice wipe off.

[DaveT435]

Reflect is another polish that removes extremely easily. I've never used it on really soft paint, but it has definitely worked great and wiped right off of everything I've used it on. May wipe off even easier than HD which I also use and really like.

[The Guz]

What LSP did you choose to use?

[Tim711]

What LSP did you choose to use?

AMMO Reflex