polishing white paint question

[gkcomp22]

Hi i'm new to auto detailing and I have a question about polishing white paint. I just recently picked up a Udm with Menzerna polishes. The car i'll be polishing is a 2008 white Ford Explorer.

The polish i'll be using will be Sip and 106ff. How can I tell if the polish is breaking down properly on white? On all the videos you see showing you how to polish its on darker color paint. Does shining a light on the surface help to show the polish breaking down? Are there any videos showing someone polishing on lighter color cars?

I'm looking for some tips for polishing white paint or lighter color paint. Since it'll be my first time polishing I want to be prepared.

Any help would be appreciated.

[makdaddy626]

Polishing or applying waxes and sealants can be tricky on white for that reason... good lighting helps a lot and if you pay attention you can still see the polish change color/opacity.

[gkcomp22]

Any other tips besides lighting? Which way should the light be facing? At an angle? What kind of light works best? Halogen? Sorry for all the questions. I just want a few tips before I start.

[TOGWT]

Dark Field Micro Inspection:
Since concourse cars are judged solely on the way light reflects from their surfaces this is what really determines the appearance of a car, so you should inspect it under all possible lighting conditions.

For a surface to be optically near ‘perfect’ it should be free of all surface imperfections. The surface should be viewed very closely and from all possible angles. Start by looking at the surface in a darkened room, once your eyes have fully dilated, turn on a bright Halogen light beam. Direct the beam away from you and at a low angle and from various directions (you’ll be able to see even the most minor paint film surface imperfection) this is 100X more sensitive than viewing a vehicles paint film surface in normal light.

This viewing technique is an adaptation of “Dark field microscopy” used in many scientific fields. Direct or cloudy sunlight, shaded, low-angled, directly overhead or light reflected from other surfaces, or the type of artificial light the surface is viewed under can all influence what surface imperfections can or cannot be seen
(See also 3M Sun Gun ®, Brinkmann Inspection Light)