How much product do I use with my DA Polisher? Use an "ample" amount of product
When I say use an
ample amount of product this means don’t use too much product and don’t use to little product.
From The Free Dictionary.com Quote:
am·ple
adjective1. Of large or great size, amount, extent, or capacity: an ample living room.
2.
a. Large in degree, kind, or quantity: an ample reward.
b. More than enough: ample evidence.
3. Fully sufficient to meet a need or purpose: had ample food for the party.
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Out of the above definitions, I'm using the 3rd definition.
Using too much product
If you use too much you can hyper-lubricate the surface and this will make it more difficult for the abrasives to abrade the surface as they’ll tend to want to glide or slip over the surface instead of bite into the surface.
Using too little product
If you use too little product there won’t be enough lubrication to enable the buffing pad to rotate and thus engage the abrasives against the surface so they can bite into and remove small particles of paint.
You want an AMPLE amount of product when first starting out because you pad is dry and some of the product is going to seep into the pad leaving less on the surface to LUBRICATE and ABRADE the paint.
Another option is to use a Pad Conditioner to lubricate and condition the surface of a dry pad, this will improve the buffing cycle and provide protection to the paint surface to help prevent micro-marring.
XMT Polishing Pad Conditioner Cut down on the amount of product AFTER pad is broken-in...
After your pad is broken in with product, clean your pad after each section pass and when you apply fresh product you can cut down on the amount of product you actually apply to the face of your pad.
Some people will recommend 3 to 4 dime size drops of product as the proper amount of product to use and this can be correct for
concentrated products or working small sections and if you follow this advice make sure you are not under lubricating the surface being worked.
I usually place about a
2/3rds circle pattern to the outer face of my buffing pad and get back to work.
Remember you want enough product on the surface so you have,
- Abrasives working for you.
- A lubricating film keeping and maintaining a wet film between the paint and your pad.
Often times if you don't have enough product you'll end up buffing to a dry buff and when you lose lubrication friction increase and this can lead to micro-marring or hazing.
So a good rule of thumb that has worked for THOUSANDS of people over the decades is to start out with either a
Circle Pattern or
X Pattern of product on the face of your pad.
Why I prefer a Circle Pattern
I tend to prefer a Circle Pattern as a habit because as you work around the car you'll find that
your product will migrate to the center on it's own. This can lead to
pad saturation starting at the center of the pad where most of the heat is generated. Knowing this... I don't help it by using an X pattern.
Circle Pattern on a clean dry pad and then worked for a Section Pass
Pad is now equally dampened with residual product. At this point you could clean your pad or add fresh product and when you add fresh product you can adjust how much product you apply. In this example I used half a circle of product since the pad is now dampened.
X-Pattern on a clean dry pad and then worked for a Section Pass
After making a thorough Section Pass. The pad is now equally dampened with residual product. At this point you could clean your pad or add fresh product and when you add fresh product you can adjust how much product you apply. In this example I used half an X-Pattern, or a single strip of product since the pad is already dampened.
The key it to have enough product on the surface as you're working a section to have a film of product that you can see on the surface
behind the polisher as you move the polisher in a direction.
Hope that helps...
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