Which pads top use

[Paulyfe12]

I am going to use The Wolfgang paint correction line for my mk6 white gti, the car is brand new but somehow has fine scratches all over it. probably thanks to the dealer. but being that its a brand new car, im not sure if I want to skip the swirl remover 3.0 and go right to the polish. the scratches and swirls are more plentiful in some areas than others. I want to attain that "perfect paint" so im wondering what CCS pads I should use as well as product. I was planning on orange, white, and red pads for swirl removal, polish and sealant. but since the paint just has a lot of light scratches and only a few bigger ones nothing you can actually feel, should I just use white pads with the swirl remover and polish and skip the orange. or should I even go white for swirl remover and grey finshing pad for the finishing polish. I want to be as gentle as possible and at the same time I cant order a million pads. The product descriptions on the site kinda contradict themselves. it says to use a finishing pad with the finishing polish then in the picture right next to it it says apply to a white polishing pad. just trying to clear up the confusion

[CarolinasFinestDetailing]

This is where a test spot will be your guide. IMO, if you on somewhat of a budget, go with Orange and White. Get at LEAST 3 of each. Perform a test spot with the few options, and settle the combo that gives you the results you're looking for.

[Mike Phillips]

Just to note...


You posted this thread in the Introduce Yourself (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/introduce-yourself/) forum group.

I've moved it to the "Detailing 101" forum group as you'll get more help.

You should get more help on the forum than in the "Chat Box" too....


:dblthumb2:

[Paulyfe12]

could I get away with using two pads for each color, orange white and red? trying to keep the pad buying to the "pick your 6" packs they offer. a side note, im getting a 3 inch backing late and a set of 4 inch pads as well, so what I get for my 6.5 inch pads ill have to get for my 4 inch ones as well. and opps, im srry Mike. I clicked the wrong forum. thank you for moving my topic :)

[spiralout462]

I would get two 6 packs. 5 orange, 5 white, and 2 black/gray. The blue and red pads are too soft for my taste. There is no such thing as too many pads. You will also want to "clean on the fly". Mike has written extensively on the technique.

[Paulyfe12]

I am going to be cleaning on the fly, I have watch a video of Mike's cleaning method and I bought pad cleaner as well so I will be cleaning the pads after each body panel or for the larger ones 2 a panel. and the red pad is just to apply the sealant, its not going to cut or polish anything, so do I need the black/grey pads for sealant applications?

[allenk4]

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/how-articles/50162-how-do-test-spot.html

This will provide a base of knowledge which will allow you to make the right decision for your car.

[Mike Phillips]

im not sure if I want to skip the swirl remover 3.0 and go right to the polish.


the scratches and swirls are more plentiful in some areas than others. I want to attain that "perfect paint" so im wondering what CCS pads I should use as well as product.


I was planning on orange, white, and red pads for swirl removal, polish and sealant.


but since the paint just has a lot of light scratches and only a few bigger ones nothing you can actually feel, should I just use white pads with the swirl remover and polish and skip the orange.

or should I even go white for swirl remover and grey finshing pad for the finishing polish.




Good questions.


What you want to do is a test spot. If it were me I would test the Wolfgang Total Swirl Remover with a white polishing pad. If this removes enough of the defects to your satisfaction then do this to the entire car.

IF it doesn't, then either use the orange cutting pad with the TSR or the orange cutting pad with the Uber Compound.


This is where experience helps a lot but if you don't have it then that's okay, just share the results on the forum and our members will help you know what to do next.

Paint hardness or softness is the determining factor as well as your technique. I actually talk about the topic of doing test spots and how to diagnose the paint hardness in my how-to book.

Also read through this just to make sure you don't make any of the common mistakes.


DA Polisher Trouble Shooting Guide (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/auto-detailing-101/37769-da-polisher-trouble-shooting-guide.html)


Tyler, age 15 removing swirls using a Porter Cable 7424XP Dual Action Polisher
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1436/medium/1965Plymouth035.jpg


When you're first starting out machine polishing and learning to use a DA Polisher it's common to have questions about your results and your results are directly tied to your technique.

Here's a list of the most common problems,


1. Trying to work too large of an area at one time.

2. Moving the polisher too fast over the surface.

3. Using too low of speed setting for removing swirls.

4. Using too little downward pressure on the head of the polisher.

5. Using too much downward pressure on the head of the polisher so the pad quits rotating.

6. Not holding the polisher in a way to keep the pad flat while working your compound or polish.

7. Using too much product or using too little product.

8. Not cleaning the pad often enough.

Here's a list of the solutions in matching order,

1. Trying to work too large of an area at one time.
Shrink the size of your work area down. You can't tackle to large of an area at one time. The average size work area should be around 20" by 20". Most generic recommendations say to work an area 2' by 2' but for the correction step, that's too large. You have to do some experimenting, (called a Test Spot), to find out how easy or how hard the defects are coming out of your car's paint system and then adjust your work area to the results of your Test Spot. The harder the paint the smaller the area you want to work.


2. Moving the polisher too fast over the surface.
For removing defects out of the paint you want to use what we call a Slow Arm Speed. It's easy and actually natural for most people new to machine polishing to move the polisher quickly over the paint but that's the wrong technique. One reason I think people move the polisher too quickly over the paint is because they hear the sound of the motor spinning fast and this has psychological effect which causes them to match their arm movement to the perceived fast speed of the polisher's motor.

Another reason people move the polisher too quickly over the paint is because they think like this,

"If I move the polisher quickly, I'll get done faster"

But it doesn't work that way. Anytime you're trying to remove swirls, scratches, water spots or oxidation using a DA Polisher you need to move the polisher s-l-o-w-l-y over the paint.



3. Using too low of speed setting for removing swirls.
When first starting out many people are scared of burning or swirling their paint, so they take the safe route of running the polisher at too low of a speed setting but this won't work. The action of the polisher is already g-e-n-t-l-e, you need the speed and specifically the pad oscillating and rotating over the paint as well as the combination of time, (slow arm speed), together with the abrasives, the pad aggressiveness, and the downward pressure to remove small particles of paint which is how your remove below surface defects like swirls or scratches.

Removing below surface defects is a leveling process where you need the abrasives to take little bites out of the paint and to get the abrasives to take these little bites with a tool that uses a Free Floating Spindle Bearing Assembly (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/hot-topics-frequently-asked-questions/23995-free-floating-spindle-assembly-story-behind-story.html) you need all of the above factors working for you including a high speed setting.



4. Using too little downward pressure on the head of the polisher.
For the same reason as stated in #3, people are scared, or perhaps a better word is apprehensive, to apply too much downward pressure to the polisher and the result of too little pressure is no paint is removed thus no swirls are removed.



5. Using too much downward pressure on the head of the polisher so the pad quits rotating.
If you push too hard you will slow down the rotating movement of the pad and the abrasives won't be effectively worked against the paint. You need to apply firm pressure to engage the abrasives against the paint but no so much that the pad is barely rotating. This is where it's a good idea to use a permanent black marker to make a mark on the back of your backing plate so your eyes can easily see if the pad is rotating or not and this will help you to adjust your downward pressure accordingly.

Correct technique means finding a balance of applying enough downward pressure to remove defects but not too much downward pressure as to stop the rotating movement of the pad.

This balance is affected by a lot of factors like the lubricity of the product you're using, some compounds and polishes provide more lubrication than others and this makes it easier to maintain pad rotation under pressure.

Another factor that can affect pad rotation are raised body lines, edges and curved surfaces as anytime you have uneven pressure on just a portion of the face of the pad it can slow or stop pad rotation. This is where experience comes into play and experience comes from time spent behind the polisher.



6. Not holding the polisher in a way to keep the pad flat while working your compound or polish.
Applying pressure in such a way as to put too much pressure to one edge of the pad will cause it to stop rotating and thus decrease abrading ability.



7. Using too much product or using too little product.
Too much product hyper-lubricates the surface and the result is that abrasives won't effectively bite into the paint but instead will tend to skim over the surface. Overusing product will also accelerate pad saturation as well increase the potential for slinging splatter onto adjacent panels.

Too little product will means too little lubrication and this can interfere with pad rotation.

Again there needs to be a balance between too much product and too little product and finding this balance comes from reading articles like this one, watching videos an most important, going out into the garage and putting in time behind the polisher and as you're buffing with specific product and pad combinations, pay attention to pad rotation.



8. Not cleaning the pad often enough.
Most people simply don't clean their pad often enough to maximize the effectiveness of their DA Polisher. Anytime you're abrading the paint you have two things building up on the face of your buffing pad,

Removed paint


Spent product

As these to things build up on the face of the pad they become gummy and this has a negative affect on pad rotating plus makes wiping the leftover residue on the paint more difficult. To maintain good pad rotation you want to clean your pad often and always wipe-off any leftover product residue off the paint after working a section. Never add fresh product to your pad and work a section that still has leftover product residue on it.


Pad Cleaning Articles

Why it's important to clean your pads often... (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/tricks-tips-techniques/28755-why-s-important-clean-your-pads-often.html)

How to clean your foam pad on the fly (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/how-articles/20135-how-clean-your-foam-pad-fly.html)

[Paulyfe12]

Thank you guys so much for helping me out. I will definitely be doing test sports and will be getting back to you guys with results ASAP. Thanks again :) Just gotta wait for my stuff to ship now lol

[CarolinasFinestDetailing]

Where in NY are you OP?

[Paulyfe12]

New Paltz, between Kingston and Poughkeepsie