New to XMT polishes...what went wrong?

[jcarson112]

So there are some really (seemingly) soft black painted plastic b-pillars on my personal car. It's new so I haven't really messed with it. The more it gets washed the more I start to notice things appearing that weren't there when it was picked up.

DISO, holograms, etc. I didn't have a ton of time to fix everything today but I decided to attack the B-pillars as a first run with the XMT polishes.

I went ahead and used XMT #2 and an orange CCS pad and did about 4-5 passes. Followed it with XMT #1 and white CCS pad. In the garage it looked like it came out perfectly but when I pulled out the car and set it in the sun it turns out that I just shortened and cobbed it up so much that they are less noticeable at a distance than they were. For now it looks better but it also bothers me.

Could anyone toss out a few suggestions? Pics below...



Before:

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4147/5023491687_3756d4a2ae_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4129/5024093210_e7c3433403_b.jpg



After:

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4124/5024067078_b7226cf619_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4154/5024060104_46003e08a9_b.jpg


DISO and Holo's I mentioned (didn't work on these):
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4145/5023430917_30b798d61c_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4105/5023424835_87416e9c2a_b.jpg

[somguy2u]

i think they are similar to the Poorboy's ssr series with which i have had the exact same results - i just got something else :(

which is annoying because sooo many people have fantastic results with these polishes. but a finishing polish shouldn't be THAT abrasive in my eye

[jcarson112]

That's what I felt about it as well, then again there may just be a trick to working with it. I don't know, But what better place to ask then the AG boards.

If it matters, #2 was done at 5500 on a PC and the #1 at 4,000.

[redg35]

I hated the xmt polishes as they didnt work for me at all.

[somguy2u]

good luck, i hope you figure it out - someone had similar results and commented that it he fixed the problem by working it longer, really longer... i gave in and got the wolfgang twins and never looked back.

[tuscarora dave]

I just use Pro Polish or PWS (something non abrasive) on a 4 inch polishing pad on a PC at full speed. Always try non abrasive or at least the least abrasive method first.

[A4 1.8tqm]

I have had great results with XMT 360 on similar b-pillars.

Your not too far from me, I'd be happy to give you a hand, I got both the Flex 3401 and L3403, 3" and 6.5" pads, decent selection of polishes etc. and some free time, let me know. :xyxthumbs:

[jcarson112]

Thanks for the offer man. I might take you up on that if there isn't much help on the boards or maybe try and get a sample or two from you, I'll pay shipping of course.

It's a bit of a trip unless I can't figure it out. I'll keep your offer in mind though :)

[A4 1.8tqm]

Thanks for the offer man. I might take you up on that if there isn't much help on the boards or maybe try and get a sample or two from you, I'll pay shipping of course.

It's a bit of a trip unless I can't figure it out. I'll keep your offer in mind though :)

For sure, I can come to you. I don't mind driving... I'll drive to Chelan and back because I forgot my hat! LOL (Not literally, but close) :D

[gibbsj87]

Looks like you where using to much pressure?

[jcarson112]

I normally don't do this but would like some suggestions as I ran out of my other polish and have a car to do in 2 days.

Soo bump...

[somguy2u]

get some megs ultimate compound from a local store? that stuff really works great and is available

[Da Fats]

First crank it up to speed 6 for both steps... second use enough pressure to slow the rotation of the pad. If these guys are anything like srr line up it takes a lot of pressure to break down the abbrasives. Did the polished get worked until the broke down to clear? Looks like you didn't break the abbrasives down. The shorter ticks are pretty tell tale of DA micro marring I've seen before its just really bad in that pic.

[jcarson112]

First crank it up to speed 6 for both steps... second use enough pressure to slow the rotation of the pad. If these guys are anything like srr line up it takes a lot of pressure to break down the abbrasives. Did the polished get worked until the broke down to clear? Looks like you didn't break the abbrasives down. The shorter ticks are pretty tell tale of DA micro marring I've seen before its just really bad in that pic.


I'll give it a whirl tomorrow, thank you for the advice. For the pressure I was pushing until the pad was moving maybe at an even speed that was a lot slower than just the weight of the machine. I hope that made sense.

The thing I've noticed of the XMT polishes (in my short time of use) is that maybe after 30 seconds of working it looks like vaseline being spread over the surface of the paint...

Like I said I'll give it a whirl... any other suggestions are EXTREMELY welcome ;)

[TornadoRed]

Keep us updated. I'm going to do the same thing to my GTI in two weeks. These b-pillars on the GTIs are way soft and I think starting with XMT #2 is too aggressive. I'm thinking of using Griot's Polish 4 (similar to XMT #1) with a hydro tech orange pad.