Production Shop looking for a better Wetsanding Procedure

[ohmy34]

are you using the interface pad with the trizact disc. it seems to help soften the grind of the da when using it.
The last cut an buff, I used 1200,2000 and fg 400 on a orange hybrid pad with the 3401 and followed with 2500 on a white hybrid pad. it worked very nice. jonathan

[zckid]

great pics Casey. wonderful job you are doing.

I'm also eager to know since most of my wet sanding is done manually.

Above the 3000 grit, please try the Denim pads or Velvet pads. You'll remove the pigtails and sanding marks too. But you need to be very careful near the edges. use foam or wool pads near the edges.

What I'm eager to know how you would remove the sanding marks from a previous/lower grit with a higher grit sanding

[Woob]

Try messaging Kevin Brown of Buff Daddy, he may have some very interesting sanding technology that may help you. Forced DA/Large stroke DA's with the right 3k/5k surface can be one stepped out with the right MF pad & chemical!

[Matt@Revive]

Try messaging Kevin Brown of Buff Daddy, he may have some very interesting sanding technology that may help you. Forced DA/Large stroke DA's with the right 3k/5k surface can be one stepped out with the right MF pad & chemical!

Kevin Brown also speaks a lot about residue control, cleaning your sanding discs often to prevent build up.

[Audios S6]

I don't think you'll find a 1500 grit disc that doesn't leave at least some pigtails, it's not just the grit of the disc leaving them, abraded paint will too. It is all about residue control, clean often. The only way I have completely eliminated pigtails is with water running over the surface the whole time I'm working, but this is not really feasible on a whole car.

I would also look at eliminating the 5000 grit in favor of a couple more 3000 grit passes. You can remove 3000 grit acceptably in one step, two steps if your a perfectionist. A couple extra 3k passes will help knock down the pigtails and still reduce your overall time by eliminating the 5k.

[allenk4]

Above the 3000 grit, please try the Denim pads or Velvet pads. You'll remove the pigtails and sanding marks too. But you need to be very careful near the edges.

Why do you suggest Denim instead of going to Compound?

If you don't keep those Denim Pads very clean....they will actually instill Pig Tails

[skysdalimit]

I use the same system described by the original poster. We eliminated the pigtails by doing the 1500 dry. We go through ALOT of sandpaper, but you can see the coils the second they begin. Some sheets are only good for a few seconds, others last half a panel. We wipe them clean with microfiber. I do not do production, but more custom paint like restoration. Another thing that helped tremendously was the clear. The clear i'm using drys hard and cures fast. One a black paint job 3 coats of clear, after 2 days, i can put tape on it without leaving marks, no matter how long i leave the tape on. If the clear coat is soft, you will get coils regardless. Just my tip. good too see someone trying it the same way as us. Also, after 1500 DA, i'll do 2000 by hand to make sure DA scratches are gone. 3K/5K after that. It should be beautiful after that. If the shine is uneven, you will see DA marks or hand scratches and you will know if it was the 1500 or the 2000.

[skysdalimit]

I will be testing the Klingspor Fusion discs soon. They are available in aluminum oxide or silicon carbide 3500, 2500, and 1200. I will be trying to find an in between 1500 and 3000 in foam.

[GSKR]

Well I have been in the business for sometime. I own a production shop and we have been consistently having issues with the buffing. Im ready to make a move and streamline our setup. I make sure the surfaces are clean before sanding and buffing and always clean the buffing pads and use an interface pad on a 3/16" fine throw d.a .Currently we are using trizact 1500 to level the surface. Ideally the next step is to go to the 3m 3000 then 3m 5000 with multiple passes of each. We then use 3m's one step compound and finishing pad on a 8" electric rotary buffer at 1800 speed. When all is said and done we still have light pigtails throughout. I sometimes use mirka 2000 foam pad after the 1500 which helps but doesn't solve the pigtails. I am thinking of switching to a better paper, compound and pad. Any recommendations would be excellent. It seems a lot of users recommend the orange lc pad (which one?) and meguiars 105 compound. We are a production shop but I do a lot of high end restorations where we buff the whole car. I need a setup that is relatively simple so I can avoid confusion with the staff. Thanks Guys.

Go with the Mirka,the 3m is causing the pigtails the paper grit surface breaks down and gets trapped between the surface and the paper causing pigtails.And if your area is not clean it can be a additional major promblem with pigtails.In a production shop you know as well that time is money,so I would look into a compound that is lsp ready menzerna fg 400 and HD polish both are really good effective products.HD cutting compound and polish are a system,but it's a 2 step process there are many good products out there but none are the best every paint and condition is different.As far as pads you will need many micro cutting disk orange buff and shine and finishing pads.

[skysdalimit]

I will be testing the Klingspor Fusion discs soon. They are available in aluminum oxide or silicon carbide 3500, 2500, and 1200. I will be trying to find an in between 1500 and 3000 in foam.

The Klingspor do not compare to the 3M discs. The 3000 3M Cuts out 1500 grit scratches AND it begins to polish. The Klingspor did neither well. And the 5000 3M polished very well and only leaves cloudy spots where it needed more 3000. After the 5000, the one step polish from 3m on the green pad leaves a flawless finish. No haze, dullness, swirl marks at any angle. And deep! The klingspor couldn't compare.