How to remove existing wax?

[Eldorado2k]

The APCs leave surfactants behind that make the water sheet. If you had given it an IPA wipe down after using the APCs you would see the beading return. The IPA removes the surfactants. Check out this thread: http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/auto-detailing-101/66896-lsp-stripping.html


Yes I know. When I 1st posted a thread with that experiment a few months back on MOL I mentioned that.. But I chose not to overthink it, plus that was a spur of the moment experiment with the little time I had to play with before work that morning.😊

[gulfcoaster]

FYI: It has nothing to do with the pad heating up.. The problem with using that backing plate Especially with those HF pads is the backing plate is too big, combined with the fact that the velcro on those pads doesn't extend all the way to the end of the already oversized backing plate, which results in the possibility of the pad disintegrating without warning and you digging your polisher full speed into your paint... But hey, "it's a self teaching process" lol. Smh.

Awesome, Eldorado!--just in time, I was about to head to the store! Money and frustration saved! -- I'll just make due with my 3" Lake Contry pad and backing plate then until the larger Lake Country Backing Plate arrives in a week or so.

[Eldorado2k]

Glad I could help👋🏼

And I know exactly how you feel about wanting to test out your new stuff.. Heck, I just recieved a new bottle of headlight restoring polish in the mail a few days ago and I'm thinking about which neighbor I can give a free bee to because I can't wait to try it! Lol.

Speaking of that 3" backing plate... If you have plastic headlights that have any yellow haze on them you can try using Ultimate Compound w/your 3" backing plate to help clear them up. It works well in most cases. Speed 5+

[Scoobertin]

Glad I could help👋🏼

And I know exactly how you feel about wanting to test out your new stuff.. Heck, I just recieved a new bottle of headlight restoring polish in the mail a few days ago and I'm thinking about which neighbor I can give a free bee to because I can't wait to try it! Lol.

Speaking of that 3" backing plate... If you have plastic headlights that have any yellow haze on them you can try using Ultimate Compound w/your 3" backing plate to help clear them up. It works well in most cases. Speed 5+

I remember using compounds and waxinging my headlights years years years ago before dedicated headlight restores came out. I need to restore a set of headlights. Is this method of using Compounds and waxing my headlights still good to do with decent results. I can not remember the results. It has been awhile. I have all the supplies now. I would like to save money and use what I got instead of buying a kit.

[gulfcoaster]

Progress Report: First time was a small success!

Well I tried to upload photos to an album to show the results inline, but AGO was unable to upload photos at this time-- I'll try that feature another time. Photos attached however.

Test subject: 17 year old white Jeep with some obvious scratches, discoloration patches, water spots, and general cloudiness to finish--not bad, but up close can see defects.

Did not notice a difference using the Meguiars #2 Fine Cut Cleaner, so moved on to the Meguiars Ultimate Compound-- got results with that, though did not seem to lighten a 3" long surface scratch--the scratch doesn't look deep; maybe foam pad would have been more effective than the microfiber pads?

Followed up with Meguiars Ultimate Liquid Wax. Removed tape and could see and feel a difference. Paint felt smoother, looked whiter, and reflection in paint was decidedly clearer.

Yay! Off to a good start :-) -- Boo! it was only a 2x2 square! :-(
But a learning experience nonetheless. See attached photos: 2nd photo shows discolorations, possibly the scratch is visible. 3rd photo is adjacent area uncorrected, showing cloudy reflection of pole and transformer (that's cloudiness in paint, not a blurry photo) . 4th photo is corrected test square, showing clearer reflection. 5th photo shows the original discoloration and scratch better.

I expect the paint correction to show better on a day that isn't overcast.

[Eldorado2k]

Good stuff. It'll get even better once you get your stuff in the mail. It's nice that you were able to enjoy some results for the time being though👍🏽

[gulfcoaster]

5" pads don't come in till next week but today we had a break in the rain. So I used my 3" pads on the hood and front fenders. A ton of paint defects and oxidation came off in the pads--should have taken photos of pads for the thread.

Will be easier next time with 5" pads--I learned today that the 3" pads get dirty too quickly to be practical.

3980239803

[AZpolisher15]

5" pads don't come in till next week but today we had a break in the rain. So I used my 3" pads on the hood and front fenders. A ton of paint defects and oxidation came off in the pads--should have taken photos of pads for the thread.

Will be easier next time with 5" pads--I learned today that the 3" pads get dirty too quickly to be practical.

3980239803

Did you "clean pads on the fly" ?

[gulfcoaster]

Did you "clean pads on the fly" ?

I did clean the pads on the fly, using a microfiber towel and hand pressure while spinning the disk--Like I have seen Mike Phillips do in his instructional videos. Still a lot of gunk on the pads and the microfibers were essentially caked flat by the Ultimate Compound polish. (referring to Lake Country microfiber pads--yellow shag type pads) Perhaps regular foam pads clean on the fly better than these microfiber pads? At any rate, this is why I only did the hood, one fender, and one door panel-- 3/4 of the hood with 1st pad, and remainder of hood and fender and door panel with the second pad.

FYI, I did order Mike Phillips' "Complete Guide to a Show Car Shine Paperback Book" and am continuing to seek out how-to videos. However just getting out there and experimenting seems to be the best learning aid.