Sue Esponte
11-18-2013, 01:51 AM
I love this site...but there's so much great information I often find myself questioning what I thought I learned from reading another thread a minute earlier! lol
I've got a first generation PC7424 and have always used Griots thin pads (red and orange) for waxing and polishing my cars. I've found and read some of the great posts about the downsides to these early machines which have explained a lot. That said, I only use mine on my cars and their paint tends to be in pretty good shape. I've never needed a heavy cutting pad for any of my cars although removing swirls on my wife's cars hasn't always been as easy since she's a frequent flyer at the local car wash.
My arsenal of product has changed over the years but most recently I've found myself reaching for Pinnacle Bodywork Shampoo, Griots Speed Shine and Paint Cleaning Clay, when needed I use Griots Polishes, Poor Boys Black Hole Glaze, and Pinnacle Souveran Paste Wax. I've been thinking about picking up the Pinnacle Black Label system but that's a separate issue. :)
I've never really loved the Griots Polishes and I've been reading a lot about Wolfgang Swirl Remover 3.0 and Wolfgang Uber Compound. They sounds like great products so I've been thinking about giving them a try, too!
So, here are my questions...
1. Most of my cars' paint problems are light swirls. I had one car in for service recently and I told them to forgo the 'complimentary' wash. When I went to pick it up my adviser apologized profusely -- evidently one of their landscapers got a little rambunctious and basically cover my car in dust -- so they felt compelled to wash it. I had just detailed it 5 days earlier. Anyway, it now has light swirls in it. Do you think the Wolfgang Swirl Remover has too much cut for this kind of damage? Or, do you think I should also pick up Wolfgang's Uber Compound, too, to start with? What's the best product for the job?
2. Can you follow up the Swirl Remover with Black Hole or is the Wolfgang Glaze more complementary by design?
3. Pads -- my Griots pads are starting to show their age so it's time for new ones. I was thinking about picking up new LC backing plate and some LC 5.5 inch thin pads but I'm not sure which ones I really need. I don't think I need yellow...but is orange/light cut too much for cars that don't really exhibit worse than light swirls? My thought was to pick up orange, white, black and blue pads. Does that sound right? When would I use the black vs. the blue?
I've noticed that some people post about the cars they're working on at times. I've read in posts about the types of paints being different between American, European and Asian manufacturers but would you not recommend a particular product based on the manufacturer? For what it's worth, I've got a 2004 Porsche C4S (http://distilleryimage1.ak.instagram.com/19d1e1ce45ee11e3868a22000a9f18a6_8.jpg) (grey), a 2005 Volvo S60R (http://distilleryimage6.ak.instagram.com/d92a64283f9b11e3809922000ae911bb_8.jpg) (grey), a '73 Saab Sonett (http://distilleryimage4.ak.instagram.com/bda5b2d8422111e396c422000a9e0891_8.jpg) (burgundy), a 2013 Honda Pilot (the car wash queen is grey) and a 2014 Mercedes CLA45 (red) on order. I've had red cars before and I know how much harder they are to keep up compared to a grey car -- I really want to maintain its deep red color from day 1.
Sorry for the newbie questions. I really appreciate any suggestions and guidance! Thanks everyone!
-Eric
I've got a first generation PC7424 and have always used Griots thin pads (red and orange) for waxing and polishing my cars. I've found and read some of the great posts about the downsides to these early machines which have explained a lot. That said, I only use mine on my cars and their paint tends to be in pretty good shape. I've never needed a heavy cutting pad for any of my cars although removing swirls on my wife's cars hasn't always been as easy since she's a frequent flyer at the local car wash.
My arsenal of product has changed over the years but most recently I've found myself reaching for Pinnacle Bodywork Shampoo, Griots Speed Shine and Paint Cleaning Clay, when needed I use Griots Polishes, Poor Boys Black Hole Glaze, and Pinnacle Souveran Paste Wax. I've been thinking about picking up the Pinnacle Black Label system but that's a separate issue. :)
I've never really loved the Griots Polishes and I've been reading a lot about Wolfgang Swirl Remover 3.0 and Wolfgang Uber Compound. They sounds like great products so I've been thinking about giving them a try, too!
So, here are my questions...
1. Most of my cars' paint problems are light swirls. I had one car in for service recently and I told them to forgo the 'complimentary' wash. When I went to pick it up my adviser apologized profusely -- evidently one of their landscapers got a little rambunctious and basically cover my car in dust -- so they felt compelled to wash it. I had just detailed it 5 days earlier. Anyway, it now has light swirls in it. Do you think the Wolfgang Swirl Remover has too much cut for this kind of damage? Or, do you think I should also pick up Wolfgang's Uber Compound, too, to start with? What's the best product for the job?
2. Can you follow up the Swirl Remover with Black Hole or is the Wolfgang Glaze more complementary by design?
3. Pads -- my Griots pads are starting to show their age so it's time for new ones. I was thinking about picking up new LC backing plate and some LC 5.5 inch thin pads but I'm not sure which ones I really need. I don't think I need yellow...but is orange/light cut too much for cars that don't really exhibit worse than light swirls? My thought was to pick up orange, white, black and blue pads. Does that sound right? When would I use the black vs. the blue?
I've noticed that some people post about the cars they're working on at times. I've read in posts about the types of paints being different between American, European and Asian manufacturers but would you not recommend a particular product based on the manufacturer? For what it's worth, I've got a 2004 Porsche C4S (http://distilleryimage1.ak.instagram.com/19d1e1ce45ee11e3868a22000a9f18a6_8.jpg) (grey), a 2005 Volvo S60R (http://distilleryimage6.ak.instagram.com/d92a64283f9b11e3809922000ae911bb_8.jpg) (grey), a '73 Saab Sonett (http://distilleryimage4.ak.instagram.com/bda5b2d8422111e396c422000a9e0891_8.jpg) (burgundy), a 2013 Honda Pilot (the car wash queen is grey) and a 2014 Mercedes CLA45 (red) on order. I've had red cars before and I know how much harder they are to keep up compared to a grey car -- I really want to maintain its deep red color from day 1.
Sorry for the newbie questions. I really appreciate any suggestions and guidance! Thanks everyone!
-Eric