WHAT AM I DOING WRONG!!! Swirls galore :(

[Mike Phillips]

Ok since im a newbie im going to start fresh and wash with dawn. Now if someone can give me a run down on order of product usage along with pad selection and PC speed.

Read my post about using a tape-line to trouble shoot. Try to use the pads and products you already have to create a clear surface on one side of the tape-line.

You need to get the paint to the point where the side you're buffing on looks clear as compared to the side that you say looks foggy right now.

Try cleaning your pads, then prime your pad and the buff using the M205 again. See my post above.


What other polishes do you have on hand?

[SOREBACK]

Ok i willl strip it down with dawn then start back with 205. Which pad do i use during this process? I will make the center of the hood and Post picss through out m process. As far as other products no listed above that i have not listed above are; meguiars nxt, meguiars ultimate comPound, meguiars ultimate wax and thats about it

[SOREBACK]

Ok check this out to see if this is acceptable. Going to place my AG order for the following:
LC 5.5 crimson flat pad
LC 5.5 blue flat pad (2)
LC 5.5 tangerine pad
*now i will have 2 of each
Pack of Terry cloths for on fly pad cleaning
Mezerna sf4000
Microfiber towels (unsure which yet)

Now once i achieve the finish i desire, how and what do i do to keep the swirls from coming back? Although my car us parked in garage all the time its always covered with dust theb when wiping it off i get more scratches. My california duster seems to smear more than anything ir leave a pile of dust on the fender edges. That is going to br the make or break for me. I know i can get the finish right with time and practice but keeping it that way is going to be extremly hard. Also where i live has lots of farms and the front of the var gets pelted with bugs no matter what time of day. Then when i get home and go ti wipe the bug guts off. Back come the swirl marks again. It really has me hating this car!!! I need to know what do you guys with black/dark cars do to always have them looking their best? Would an indoor car cover help? If so which do you recommend? Im in desparate need of help and break it down step by step so i can print it out and follow the process to the t until im able to remember it. PLEASE help i feel like im having a nervous break diwn eith this cars finish. I keep missing car shows because i cant get it to the level i feel it should be at.

[Buckskincolt]

Here is a great suggestion for MF towels.
Super Soft Deluxe Blue Microfiber Towels, microfiber detailing towels, buffing towels, micro fiber towel, detail cloth

Don't get the green like these, they are no where near as soft.

They don't make a crimson flat pad, are you talking hydro tech pads?

[Mike Phillips]

Now once i achieve the finish i desire, how and what do i do to keep the swirls from coming back?

Although my car us parked in garage all the time its always covered with dust then when wiping it off i get more scratches. My california duster seems to smear more than anything ir leave a pile of dust on the fender edges. That is going to br the make or break for me. I know i can get the finish right with time and practice but keeping it that way is going to be extremely hard.

As the saying goes... black isn't a color, it's a full time job.

(Or dark colors)


Here's the deal SOREBACK,

Roll Call - What's your real first name?


Modern clear coat paints are what is called, scratch-sensitive. What this means is even though they are harder than traditional single stage paints, (The only two types of paint we've had in the "car world"), they still scratch easily.

That's why I'm always telling people to not get caught up into creating a show car finish on a daily driver because keeping the finish on a daily driver is difficult. This is why some people buy a silver metallic car, it's hard to see the swirls so you don't see them and thus you don't go crazy.

I owned a black Honda Pilot when I lived in the high California Desert, which was hot, windy and dusty. The car was garage kept and even then it was hard to keep it clean.


After you get the paint how you like it then anything that touches the paint has to be of the highest quality you can obtain and "you" have to touch it carefully. There's no magic to it.

I tested 4 different coatings on black paint to see if the coatings resisted scratching and from my test the answer is "no". So even coating s won't protect the pant from becoming scratched.

Also where i live has lots of farms and the front of the var gets pelted with bugs no matter what time of day. Then when i get home and go ti wipe the bug guts off. Back come the swirl marks again. It really has me hating this car!!! I need to know what do you guys with black/dark cars do to always have them looking their best?

Weekend toys? Not daily drivers?

Would an indoor car cover help? If so which do you recommend? Im in desperate need of help and break it down step by step so i can print it out and follow the process to the t until im able to remember it. PLEASE help i feel like im having a nervous break diwn eith this cars finish. I keep missing car shows because i cant get it to the level i feel it should be at.

All our Customer Sales Staff can help you get the right car cover, just give them a call at,

1-800-869-3011

[truckbutt]

I believe that most car covers will impart fine scratches to paint. I have had the same experience with one from Covercraft (Noah). I read an article a while back that showed a fellow covering his garaged car with flannel sheets that supposedly left no scratches.

[NFA]

As Mike has said numerous times, WORK CLEAN! Microfiber towels are cheap so change them often. Clean pads at least every single panel and change or clean them completely after every 4th or 5th panel. I opt to change them out as it's speeds up my workflow and I have more then 1 of each pad.

I would step down to 5.5" pads. I have had really good luck with the Hydrotech pads. I have all 3, Cyan, Tangerine and Red pads. Personally, most cars do not see the Cyan pad as it is too aggressive on most of the clears that I have worked on. Tangerine is what I use most when using foam pads. If I need something more agressive for the RIDS, I go with my trusted combo of Megs 101 and Surbuf pads. I find that most of the time, I can get most scratches and swirls off with 1 pass with this combo. But it will leave micromarring, so I am back to using the Tangerine pad to clean up the micromarring that takes place with the Surbuf.

I have also been using the Megs MF system a lot lately and it does make life a whole lot easier. The cutting pad with Megs D300 cutting compound will take most if not all the light swirls off. I still use my trusted Surbuf M101 combo for the heavy RIDS. For the most part the Megs MF will finish down just about LSP ready. At least with 4 cars I have worked on they have.

If I need to do a final polishing (usually on red or black paint) I would reach for Menzerna SF4500 on a black LC pad, as it will give a bit deeper look then M205.

About the only time I one pad for the whole car is when I am applying a LSP as it's only used to apply the product. You are really not working the product in to remove anything. Removal of the LSP usually does take at least 3 to 4 towels since I flip to a new section of the towel very often.

[SOREBACK]

Thanks im gonna order a washing mitt, sf4500, 1 tangerine pad 5.5, 2 black 5.5 pads and some gold microfiber towels. Then im gonna study the videos to make sure i have the correct machine and arm speed plus tape off small sections and of course clean my pads after every section. Im going to buy some flannel sheets just to through over the truck, roof and hood. Thank you guys soo much. If anyone has more to add please do.

[tuscarora dave]

Perhaps it would be beneficial to use something like AutoGlym High Definition wax as your LSP. It has terrific gloss and also has some filling capabilities to help hide some of the light swirls that are clearly driving you nuts. If you are not into spending tons of time polishing and would enjoy more time showing the car, you might consider using something like Mothers Machine Glaze and a 5.5" foam finishing pad. It really does make achieving a stellar look really easy though temporary with the tons of fillers in it.

Edit...Also, the yellow pad in my experience causes more hazing problems than any other pad, especially on dark colors with a DA polisher. I suggest switching it out for an orange pad if correcting dark paint in the future.

[Mike Phillips]

Then im gonna study the videos to make sure i have the correct machine and arm speed

I might have a black Camaro here this Thursday that has swirls. Live on camera I will show you how to remove them using a foam pad system since this is a restored car with a custom paint job. (Meguiar's MF system is for factory paint).

I should find out if this black beauty will be this Thursday along with the green Plymouth Coupe.













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