Ipa

[Mike Phillips]

I've tried both & I prefer the Mineral Spirits.

Me too...

Someone asked a few posts ago, but no one answered. Probably missed it, but do you dilute the mineral spirits or use it full-strength?

Correct full strength, I'm not sure what you would dilute it with? I've been using Mineral Spirits ever since I found out that's what Meguiar's chemists use when they want to strip the paint for testing purposes.

Everyone can use what they like, truth is you can use an All Purpose Cleaner, IPA or Mineral Spirits, there is no right or wrong approach. APC and IPA will be the least expensive as MS is about $8.00 a quart.

Sometimes I use all 3 if I find I find it important enough to really drive home a point for some questioning my results.

What is the technique one should use for an IPA Wipe-down? Spray it on a towel and then wipe, or spray the finish and wipe it down? It there anything bad that can happen to plastics, rubbers, or vinyl?

Pour your Isopropyl Alcohol into a spray bottle and mark it as such for safety reasons. Spray onto paint directly or onto cloth or both. Don't make it rocket science which is the nature of some.

Will mineral spirits damage our AG microfiber towels?

Not that I've ever noticed? I use zillions of microfibers and from what I can tell, as long as you're buying quality microfiber polishing towels the biggest factor that will determine your end-results will be "you".

Mineral spirits is paint thinner. I would not even consider going near a fine automotive finish with it. I can just imagine how well that would work with one of the older single stage enamel finish. Seriously, at least do a test spot before you wipe-down a whole car.

If I have to strip a clear coat finish I love using MS

I don't chemically strip single stage paints because most of the ones I work on are antique and I baby them like they are mine.

I agree it's cheaper, the problem is that I already have the wipes so I thought they would be best, but the more I read about IPA it seems that everyone uses the spray. So since I have the wipes I want to use them up if they are safe and won't scratch the paint. So what do you think?

If you're going to polish the paint after wiping, don't worry about them scratching, they probably are not too bad as they some type of disposable woven paper

If you're stripping a show car finish and plan on only applying a wax or sealant, then don't use them, you might mar or scratch the paint.

Don't make detailing more complicated than it has to be...

[Grizzly]

I do not chemically strip paint, but if I wanted to I would just use glass cleaner, like the one from Meguiars in the Detailer Line. at 10:1, a gallon of concentrate would last for years.

[Mike Phillips]

I do not chemically strip paint, but if I wanted to I would just use glass cleaner, like the one from Meguiars in the Detailer Line. at 10:1, a gallon of concentrate would last for years.

Glass cleaner actually works pretty well depending upon what you're trying to remove.

If you're wiping compounds and polishes of then it will work pretty well and one gallon of Meguiar's glass cleaner concentrate will make 11 gallons of glass cleaner.

If you're wanting to remove a quality polymer sealant, then you'll probably need something stronger.

[Mike Phillips]

Moved out of the Wet-sanding Forum

[ironman1982]

Sorry to revive an old thread but I need to ask just in case

Mike or others please chime in....what type of mineral spirits do you use as there seems to be normal, low odor, and odorless varieties. The chemicals in each are obviously different but are these differences limited to the aromatic properties or are they apparent or cause a difference in performance with regard to the application of cleaning the polished paint (i.e. the topic of this thread)? Obviously, I would prefer odorless since I am polishing inside a garage!

Thanks all!

[ironman1982]

Sorry to revive an old thread but I need to ask just in case

Mike or others please chime in....what type of mineral spirits do you use as there seems to be normal, low odor, and odorless varieties. The chemicals in each are obviously different but are these differences limited to the aromatic properties or are they apparent or cause a difference in performance with regard to the application of cleaning the polished paint (i.e. the topic of this thread)? Obviously, I would prefer odorless since I am polishing inside a garage!

Thanks all!

BUMP! Does no one have any preference they can share with the community as to which type of MS they use and if it makes a difference?

[Mike Phillips]

BUMP! Does no one have any preference they can share with the community as to which type of MS they use and if it makes a difference?

Hi Micah,

Sorry I didn't see this *bump* with a follow-up question... it's hard to keep up with a busy forum and offline projects...


Here's what I buy... it's easy to find, affordable and works well...




Any Lowe's or Home Depot will carry it. You'll want to get a chemical resistant spray head to pour off into or a squeeze bottle would work.

Personal Recommendation
DON'T get the "green" versions coming out on the market, they look like milk so they're not clear and you want a product that's clear because you're usually doing "visual inspections" when using mineral spirits. I forget the "green" version I bought last time but after one use I gave it away to someone that used it for cleaning paint brushes.


Also, some people ask if you can dilute Mineral Spirits with water and the answer is "no" and "you don't want to or need to".



I'm going to pick up a fresh gallon and pour some off into one of these new and see how it works... I'll take some pictures and report back...



Kwazar Mercury Pro + Double-Action Spray Bottles

Mike Phillips demonstrates the Kwazar Mercury Pro + Spray Bottle

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-nuyTuk74s]YouTube - Mike Phillips demonstrates the Kwazar Mercury Pro + Spray Bottle[/video]

[ironman1982]

Excellent info as always Mike...just what I was after. I figured you were busy...just finished reading over the monster of a truck detail you posted and can see why!

I saw those sprayer bottles on AG and was interested in them. Can you post the results of your test spraying MS through one of them to let everyone know how they do. I always find most sprayers don't get the liquid into a fine enough pattern and wind up putting too much streaming product on the surface instead of a more densely spread out pattern.

Thanks again!

[JohnnyC]

Sorry if this has been covered already. (I'm sure it was but I couldn't find it). 90% alcohol is hard to find. 70% is sold everywhere. Is using 70% mixed with 25% water or straight OK? How about denatured alcohol. Also is spraying and wiping the mixture supposed to remove wax and sealers. I tried it with the 70% and water still beaded on the hood. Is it bad to use Megs 105 without removing the wax first?

Mark

If you have a Wal-Mart by you they have it

[sportscarhiatus]

Thanks for reviving this old thread. I am still looking for a "safe" way of removing existing LSP's. I have tried the IPA way, and I could never get comfortable using it. Even though I was using a quality MF, it seemed like I had to use a lot of effort to get the MF to "wipe" the paint after I spray. I get worried about marring the paint by rubbing too hard.

So, after reading all the pages on this thread, I am still confused as to whether or not Mineral Spirits is safe to use on our clearcoat finishes. Since it's a paint thinner, will it REMOVE or DAMAGE clearcoat? or does it only attack the LSP? I was hoping to pick some up if indeed it is safe to use.