Wrong pad?

[kaboom10]

I ordered a pad kit that contained 2 white, 1 gray and 1 blue pad. I used a white pad to apply swirl remover to my factory paint with no problem. I then used a white pad and swirl remover on the wife's car. It was hit and repair required paint work. The shop left swirl marks that took me 2 tries to remove them. Should I have used something like an orange pad or was it just me?

[Mirror Detailing]

Lake Country pads i take it? The white is more generally used with polishers and sealants. Try going back over with the gray pad! Also it matters what chemical you are using...which is?

[kaboom10]

Yes they are Lake County. I made 2 passes with the white one and applyed wax with the blue one. I'm just wondering if I did it right? The swirl remover was Megs 2.9 and the wax was Eagle nano wax. :buffing:

[Emile]

You mean Meguiar's #9, right?

#9 has no abrasives and a white pad isn't very aggressive, so it sounds like it took two passes because you were trying to refine the surface without removing any paint....that will take longer and an extra pass or two than using a polish with abrasives in it.


Next time you could use a finishing polish with a white or gray pad, such as Meguiar's M205. It has light abrasives so that you can correct in one pass. But it sounds like what you did was completely fine, especially if the swirls are gone and the paint looks good.

[kaboom10]

2.0 my mistake. It said swirl remover and I used it on my truck's factory paint prior to wax. It brought out a shine. Yes the swirls are gone on the wife's SUV. I just was wondering why I had to do it twice. I'm new at this so bare with me. Hey at least the purchase price was covered. The bump shop would have wanted a lot more than I paid.

[Emile]

It's not uncommon to have to hit a tough area twice. First pass corrects somewhat, the second pass corrects completely. This is usually the case when using a pad that is less aggressive than what the job requires. No big deal...a lot of the detailers on here have to do two or three passes on certain areas of customers' cars that have really bad/deep scratches. Totally normal.

[02nissanISR]

Are you using a random orbit? If so, I don't think you used the wrong pad just the least aggressive method which is good. An orange pad would have cut faster probably giving you the results you want in one pass. the 2.0 is a very light cut polish as you can see on the bottle. Ive had good success with pinnacle advanced swirl remover its heavier cut but has diminishing abrasives so works down to a fine polish in the end. This is perfect for random orbits because of the longer work time allowing the polish to break down slowly. also check the lc pad link it will give you a rundown of all the pads and what there good for. Don't just take my word for it. I research as much as possible then I check with form for trial and error then I research some more. :buffing:

[kaboom10]

Are you using a random orbit? If so, I don't think you used the wrong pad just the least aggressive method which is good. An orange pad would have cut faster probably giving you the results you want in one pass. the 2.0 is a very light cut polish as you can see on the bottle. Ive had good success with pinnacle advanced swirl remover its heavier cut but has diminishing abrasives so works down to a fine polish in the end. This is perfect for random orbits because of the longer work time allowing the polish to break down slowly. also check the lc pad link it will give you a rundown of all the pads and what there good for. Don't just take my word for it. I research as much as possible then I check with form for trial and error then I research some more. :buffing:

No it's not an orbital. I'm in negotiations to get one or my b'day. She wants more little spots done before she turns it in next May.
Maybe she'll believe me when my cheapie doesn't work. She fell for the floor jack needed to change the serpentine belt.

[02nissanISR]

haha your a sneaky one. well the pad suggestion still applies orange would have worked faster ive never used the pinnacle with a rotary i think its more designed for ro's

[kaboom10]

Gotta order me an orange and yellow pad come pay day. I've got like 5 different grades of Megs stuff from heavy cut on up.

[02nissanISR]

sounds like you'll be more than ready to tackle some correction happy detaling

[kaboom10]

Sure hope so. All those wear and tear spots on my truck and parking lot oops on the wife's SUV will keep me busy. Now to figure out how to paint some flames since I custom painted the grille shell.