Hand Polishing

[spielwurfel]

Hello guys

This weekend I had the very "good" surprise of finding a few scratches in my car. The severity of them doesn't seem to bad, but I wanted to remove them to make my car perfect.
I was thinking about hand polishing. I've never been into polishing so I'm a complete noob. Questions are:
- Polishers and tools to do the job!?
- Do I run the risk of leaving holograms? From what I've heard, Golf TSI seems to have a hard clear coat.
- I know that you normally can polish your car up to three times until you run out of clear coat. Does it include hand polishing? Or hand polishing is an "softer" process?

Sorry I could't put any photo of the scratches here, but it seems they barely went through the clear coat. I'm travelling the whole week so I'd like to order the products and already have them when I'm back.

Thanks!


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[VeloNYC]

The Meg M205 or Ultimate polish for light defects, and for severe scratches but not through clear coat Ultimate compound. I used them all with a great result, it is only the large scale imperfection I have problem with. My hands not that strong like popeye's and feel like falling off after a few sq. ft.

[TTQ B4U]

This weekend I had the very "good" surprise of finding a few scratches in my car. The severity of them doesn't seem to bad, but I wanted to remove them to make my car perfect.
I was thinking about hand polishing. I've never been into polishing so I'm a complete noob. Questions are:
- Polishers and tools to do the job!?
- Do I run the risk of leaving holograms? From what I've heard, Golf TSI seems to have a hard clear coat.
- I know that you normally can polish your car up to three times until you run out of clear coat. Does it include hand polishing? Or hand polishing is an "softer" process?

Sorry I could't put any photo of the scratches here, but it seems they barely went through the clear coat. I'm travelling the whole week so I'd like to order the products and already have them when I'm back.

Welcome to the club and the obsession.

You can certainly hand polish, not a big deal. Use a good foam applicator and some soft MF towels. Go to the local Auto parts store and pick up Meg's Ultimate Polish and for the sake of costs and having a little more aggressive product for when the time comes Ultimate Compound.

Going a step further if you want to invest in a polisher, a basic Porter Cable, Griots or Schurhold Unit would suffice. Lots to learn but the good news is the curve isn't steep and with one of these Dual Action/Orbital units you won't ruin anything and no, you won't introduce any holograms.

Once you fully correct your car and maintain it you shouldn't need to polish more than once per year perhaps in the spring and even then it may only be spot areas. Proper washing and more importantly, drying technique, will reduce if not eliminate the damage or swirls.

There's more to it of course but the above should address your questions.

[Desertnate]

As the owner of a GTI, I can tell you the chances of doing a successful hand polish are slim to nil. You'll need a DA polisher, some good polish/compound products, and good pads. The good thing is you can get all of them here.

When looking at the polish and compound, I'd look at maybe Menzerna, Blackfire, or Wolfgang which have a reputation for working well on hard German paint.

If you are careful and use a DA polisher you shouldn't have any hologram issues. Those are typically associated with using a rotary. Unless you are getting extremely aggressive with your process, you won't polish through the clear in only three sessions. If you are gentle with you're approach and products you can correct your car for a very long time and never worry about polishing away the clear coat. The amount of product being removed is minimal.

[spielwurfel]

As the owner of a GTI, I can tell you the chances of doing a successful hand polish are slim to nil. You'll need a DA polisher, some good polish/compound products, and good pads. The good thing is you can get all of them here.

When looking at the polish and compound, I'd look at maybe Menzerna, Blackfire, or Wolfgang which have a reputation for working well on hard German paint.

If you are careful and use a DA polisher you shouldn't have any hologram issues. Those are typically associated with using a rotary. Unless you are getting extremely aggressive with your process, you won't polish through the clear in only three sessions. If you are gentle with you're approach and products you can correct your car for a very long time and never worry about polishing away the clear coat. The amount of product being removed is minimal.

Sorry, my english isn't that good. You mean I won't be able to hand polish my Golf's paint by hand due to the hardness of the clear coat?


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[Desertnate]

Sorry, my english isn't that good. You mean I won't be able to hand polish my Golf's paint by hand due to the hardness of the clear coat?


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I'm sorry...I should have been a little more concise. I didn't realize you weren't a native English speaker.

What I'm saying is hand polishing to get good results is very difficult. When working on hard German paint, it becomes even more difficult.

When working on my Volkswagen, I find some swirls hard to remove, even with a dual action polisher. I can't imagine much working if I had to the work by hand.

Where are you from and what are some of the products and polishing tools available in your area? Information like that might allow us to be more helpful. Many of the products and tools we recommend may be too expensive to ship to your location, but we could recommend something you can buy locally.

[enrique]

Griots is the best products i have use to remove imperfections

[spielwurfel]

I'm sorry...I should have been a little more concise. I didn't realize you weren't a native English speaker.

What I'm saying is hand polishing to get good results is very difficult. When working on hard German paint, it becomes even more difficult.

When working on my Volkswagen, I find some swirls hard to remove, even with a dual action polisher. I can't imagine much working if I had to the work by hand.

Where are you from and what are some of the products and polishing tools available in your area? Information like that might allow us to be more helpful. Many of the products and tools we recommend may be too expensive to ship to your location, but we could recommend something you can buy locally.

I actually live in Brazil. Normally you can find Meguiars products here, but they are very expensive.

These are some branda you can find here to buy this stuff

Thanks for the attention

When I get back home I'll take a photo of the scratch to get your opinion on how hard it should be to remove them

Polishers


Hand polishing tools



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[CC268]

I would buy a Griots DA.

[shadwell]

Menzerna and Sonax products are well suited to harder paints given the options you list.
The cost may seem high but the rate of useage and frequency of use is low, its good to remember this.

May i suggest you try Facebook for local detailing clubs and recommendations for local equipment supplies..
Autogeek is awesome, but i am in a similar position to you (living in Australia, the postage is prohibitive etc).
So i try to repay the help i have received by passing on my experiences...

Many local detailing guys are more than happy to come and help others for a bunch of beers.. often lending equipment and products..
Most o f my family and mates cars i have done for the price of materials used.. (ie bugger all)..
Saves them hundreds, gives them pride in their cars again, and builds my skills...

Once you find what works you can purchase only what you need....

Best of luck, enjoy.