CarPro Eraser Residue!?

[JamesWithASubie]

Hello AG community!

With a bunch of recommendations and guidance from you fine folks I finally got all my stuff together and found the time to do some paint correction on my car, 2011 Subaru Impreza WRX in dark metallic gray.

I did the whole car using a GG G9 w/5" backing plate. Primarily used white foam Lake Country 5.5" CCS pads and Sonax EX 04-06. I was really really happy with the way things had been coming out. Test spot looked great so I did the whole car. I have some deeper scratches and random other spots I couldn't get out and since this was my first time and Subaru clear coat is notoriously thin, I wanted to stay away from anything too aggressive.

Now, onto my issue. As i polished I was using Cobra Gold Plush MF's to wipe up the compound, it came off pretty nicely and easily. After doing the whole car i gave one more wipe all the way around with a fresh MF (I used probably 5 before this during the polishing) and then grabber my CarPro Eraser and started sprayign and wiping. I decided to grab my flashlight and really examine my, I thought was, great work. Upon doing this I noticed that I had what appeared to be crap loads of tiny, hard to see micro scratches. In normal garage light and even with a fluorescent work light everything looks so shiny and deep and pretty, but at just the right angle with the flashlight you can notice all the marks. I have ruled out holograms from polishing because they are very straight scratches. I should note that these MF are brand new, washed in my washing machine alone with Blackfire MF cleaner and then put immediately into a brand new plastic tote until being used today. I have discovered that these marks go in line with the direction I wipe with the Eraser and, when wiping perpendicular to a previously wiped spot the old lines are no longer visible. I tried this with both the Cobra Gold and Gyeon bald wipes, same result's.

I have read mixed things about Eraser maybe leaving a residue? But then others say absolutely not. I was so excited for how good everything came out and this issue is really bugging me. My next step is CQuartz 3.0 but I don't want to jump into that until I know my paint is clean and mostly swirl scratch free.

Sorry for the lengthy post and THANK YOU for reading!

[The Guz]

You could be experiencing towel marring on soft paint and not so much the Eraser.

[Rand0m]

So you were able to wipe the lines away? If so, reapplying eraser should show residue if it was actually that? I’ve only used 16oz of eraser but never had residue, even on gloss black paint.


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[JamesWithASubie]

You could be experiencing towel marring on soft paint and not so much the Eraser.


I was able to rule out the Eraser as I had not wiped down the roof yet and it has the same markings. It appears it likely is towel marring, how I can I avoid that? I thought I was using quality MF already and I took every precaution to make sure they were clean and soft (tumble dried with no heat after washing).

Are these towel marks going to be as visible as normal swirls?

I suppose I don't exactly know what the compound consistency should be when I was cleaning it off in between sections, it wasn't dry at all, but a thin layer greasy layer left over, am I using too much compound?

[gorillapr]

Im not a MF expert in any way but are those towels 70/30?, could it be the edge of the towel that is marring the paint?

I used to have an STI in WRB and that thing got marred with just looking at it, Subaru paint is pretty but a headache to work with

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[2wookies]

Don’t go light with the eraser, get good coverage on the panel and let it sit for a min. Use two towels one for the initial wipe, second for the final buff. Don’t use pressure either.

[JamesWithASubie]

Im not a MF expert in any way but are those towels 70/30?, could it be the edge of the towel that is marring the paint?
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The Gold Plush are 70/25 but the edges are finished with microfiber as well. But I also have some Gyeon Bald Wipes that don't have any stitched edges and i've been getting the same results with those.

I'm thinking the EX 04-06 may be too aggressive for the soft clear coat?

[The Guz]

I was able to rule out the Eraser as I had not wiped down the roof yet and it has the same markings. It appears it likely is towel marring, how I can I avoid that? I thought I was using quality MF already and I took every precaution to make sure they were clean and soft (tumble dried with no heat after washing).

Are these towel marks going to be as visible as normal swirls?

I suppose I don't exactly know what the compound consistency should be when I was cleaning it off in between sections, it wasn't dry at all, but a thin layer greasy layer left over, am I using too much compound?

Soft paint is hard to work with. This is where a primer polish often comes in handy if going the coating route. Something like CarPro Essence since you are using Cquartz. A prep wipe is not required with even a light prep wipe is ok since the silica within the primer polish cures if you let it sit overnight.


The Gold Plush are 70/25 but the edges are finished with microfiber as well. But I also have some Gyeon Bald Wipes that don't have any stitched edges and i've been getting the same results with those.

I'm thinking the EX 04-06 may be too aggressive for the soft clear coat?

Try the bald wipe. I am not the biggest fan of the gold plush with panel wipes. They seem to be more grabby.

[Bruno Soares]

I’m not a fan of those cobra yellow towels. I use them for interior only.

Once I started using Essence as a finishing polish this prep wipe became much less important and I do it lightly mostly to remove dust from sitting overnight which I prefer to let Essence cure.

[fly07sti]

Welcome to the world of soft paint. What is your end goal for LSP? Coating, sealant? I also second using a product like Essence from CarPro. Also don’t put too much force on your towels while wiping and don’t wipe too quickly.

[acuRAS82]

I agree with the ideas of using a prep polish if you have it. For some reason, wiping off prep polish seems less marring risk than wiping prep spray, probably due to the polish residue you are wiping off is blocking possible marring?

Either way, really light pressure and multiple towels during your wipe off, whether polish or spray. What you are experiencing sucks but I’ve seen this on even hard black paint when being sloppy with prep spray wipe off. But it’s definitely a common experience for many, I’m sure.

[JamesWithASubie]

I went ahead and ordered some Essence at your folks suggestion, hoping that helps my issue some. I only have a handful of the bald wipes, I got a 12 pack of the Gold Plush back when I did my main order thinking they were going to be great for my use.

What MF would you recommend given my issue?

[fly07sti]

TRC Eagles work well as do “2 face” from CarPro

[psnt1ol]

I own a Subaru so I feel your pain but at least mine is white for whatever its worth. I ran into towel marring issue a while back while I was working on a black BMW 3 series. I switched my towels to Microfiber madness and it was smooth sailing from there. I picked up some rag company eagle edgeless early part of the year to replace my old towels. They worked just as well as the microfiber Madness ones. I worked on a vintage 911 with very soft paint recently and noticed my standard polish removing towel was marring the paint during the test spot. I switched to the rag company towels and the issue went away.

Like other had said... If you are going with a coating like CQUK, use Essence as your coating primer. You will get a little more gloss in the end minus all the extra wiping with a panel prep prior in coating your vehicle. Essence and CQUK have great synergy together and I had yet to have any issues with durability.

P.S.

How is it going with you... Flysti ???

[JamesWithASubie]

This community is the best, I appreciate all the advice and support! I have Essence and TRC Eagles on the way.

If I'm understanding correctly Ill use the Essence as a finishing polish, wipe it off then let it sit for day before coating with CQUK?