Battling haze and micro marring

[EugeneGoldberg]

Greetings!
Seeking an expert advise on combating haze and micro marring.
For my very first detailing project I have my black Mercedes Benz C300 - year 2008. My goal is to elevate the paintwork from mildly neglected to excellent. I chose my test spot to be on the horizontal panel of the trunk lid. The main offenders there are scratches and swirls. My DA polisher is Porter Cable 7424 XP with 2 sets of Lake County pads (yellow, orange, green, white and black. I also have 2 red pads, which came with the Porter Cable polisher. I washed and clayed the car prior to beginning. I picked the following 3 polishing products: Meguiar's Mirror Glaze 2 professional Fine-Cut Cleaner (scale 0-5) - for cutting ,Meguiar's Mirror Glaze 9 - Swirl Remover 2.0 (scale 0-3) for swirl removal, and Meguiar's Mirror Glaze 3 professional Machine Glaze (scale 0-1) for the post-removal polishing. I used the Fine-Cut cleaner with the yellow pad, Swirl Removeer 2.0 with the orange pad and Machine Glaze with the white pad. I watched the instructional videos and read the first 92 pages of Mike's book. I primed my pads, used about 3 dime-sized portions of each working product. I was making 6 section passes with slow arm speed. At the end of all this, most of the scratches and swirls appear to be gone, but were replaced with a thin layer of haze and micro marring. Based on my description, was there something obvious, that could have caused this outcome? My expectations were to end up with a high gloss polished surface (besides removing scratches and swirls). What would you recommend me try to remedy my results?

-Eugene

[Dr Oldz]

As far as I know, #9 and #3 do NOT have abrasives in them. Meaning that the marring you left from the use of the Yellow pad and #2 will not be undone by 3 or 9. 3 and 9 are basically glazes that have fillers IIRC. What you can try is using the #2 with a less aggressive pad such as the white and see how the results are(as a second step after you use the yellow pad and #2 initally). You need to polish out that marring you see with a less aggressive method and changing the pad will be a good starting point from what you have already purchased.

[ponypower5.0]

#9 swirl remover 2.0 does have abrasives to remove swirls and the #3 is an oil-laden glaze with no correcting or polishing capabilities. The marring you are seeing is normal, you just need to finish up with a true finishing polish on a finishing pad. By "true polish" I mean a polish with fine abrasives that removes the marring and doesn't just hide them which is basically what #3 was intended to do on older, single stage paint. I won't give a specific product recommendation since everyone, including myself, has their favorites for different paints. Did you want to stick with Meguiar's Mirror Glaze line of products?

[swanicyouth]

The micro marring or haze maybe because you are using olde styler Meg's polishes. I think the only one that is a real polish with abrasives is Fine Cut. Your using a medium polish with a very aggressive pad (LC yellow) which is sort of a miss match IMO - especially on black

This is just a guess, but I'm wondering if you bought all those polishes locally at a parts store trying to pick through what they had? I think my local Pep Boys sells all those products.

You may want to move up to some newer style polishes/compounds as it may make your life a whole lot easier. Many newer polishes are likely as aggressive as Fine Cut, but have the ability to finish haze free in a single step if used on an orange or white LC pads. Then, all you have left is to use a super fine finishing polish if you so desire. Depending on factors, you may not even need it.

[Dr Oldz]

#9 swirl remover 2.0 does have abrasives to remove swirls and the #3 is an oil-laden glaze with no correcting or polishing capabilities. The marring you are seeing is normal, you just need to finish up with a true finishing polish on a finishing pad. By "true polish" I mean a polish with fine abrasives that removes the marring and doesn't just hide them which is basically what #3 was intended to do on older, single stage paint. I won't give a specific product recommendation since everyone, including myself, has their favorites for different paints. Did you want to stick with Meguiar's Mirror Glaze line of products?

" #9 Swirl Remover is completely non-abrasive and safe for all paints, including clear coats. You can choose your favorite method of application: Hand rubbing, orbital buffer, or dual action polisher! The results speak for themselves—high-gloss finish with a newly-painted luster that grabs the eye and commands attention. That finish is exactly why #9 Swirl Remover is so popular with professional detailers and motoring hobbyists."

The above is quoted from the AG web site. Non-abrasive

[AutowerxDetailing]

Pick up some m105 & m205 or megs ultimate compound & ultimate polish. You will get the results you are looking for faster and with less haze to deal with. I've tried the fine cut cleaner and found that it leaves a terrible haze even with lighter pads. It might have been a decent product back in the day but is essentially worthless compared to the plethora of new compounds with high tech abrasives.

Sent from my LG-VM696 using AG Online

[ponypower5.0]

"#9 Swirl Remover is a very gentle cleaner/polish, the only product more gentle that #9 SR 2.0 that still offers some cleaning ability would be Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner which is a chemical cleaner only, while the #9 SR 2.0 contains a diminishing abrasive. If you were to feel some #9 Swirl Remover 2.0 between you fingers you would thing you were applying Jergens hand lotion is so rich and creamy."

Quoting Mike Phillips on MOL 09-30-2004

Not trying to cause an argument just trying to clarify.

I agree with the above comments regarding products better suited to modern clear coats. As paint systems have evolved, so have the products to correct them.

[Wheelzntoys]

Fine cut cleaner is rotary only, use DA friendly compound/polishes.

[HateSwirls]

Get to auto-Zone and buy you a bottle of Ultimate Compound and a bottle of Ultimate Polish both made my Meg's.
It will only cost about 20 bucks and you see progress, I worked on a few Benz and have to say its bot an easy task, reminds me of Honda CC.
I think you'll be happy with the two products.
Work both products well, 3-4 passes on each section, inspect after each section.
It's very close to working with m105 and m205 for half the cost and bought locally.
Keep good pressure on your PC with slow movements.
Work the UC first then follow up with UP

[EugeneGoldberg]

#9 swirl remover 2.0 does have abrasives to remove swirls and the #3 is an oil-laden glaze with no correcting or polishing capabilities. The marring you are seeing is normal, you just need to finish up with a true finishing polish on a finishing pad. By "true polish" I mean a polish with fine abrasives that removes the marring and doesn't just hide them which is basically what #3 was intended to do on older, single stage paint. I won't give a specific product recommendation since everyone, including myself, has their favorites for different paints. Did you want to stick with Meguiar's Mirror Glaze line of products?

I only picked Mequiar's because it was available in my local O'reilly / AutoZone stores. At this point, I would really like to have any combination, that gives my high gloss at the end. I'm just starting with detailing, and I do not have any favorites yet. Please, feel free to make your specific recommendation.

-Eugene