Am I ready?!?!

**chris.ganucheau** · 09-25-2012, 10:09 PM

Am I ready to polish my car an get it looking brand new? I have a 7424xp, 5" backing plate, lc flat pads (2 white, 2 orange, 1 black, 1 blue) i also have the pinnacle extreme pad cleaner kit, menzerna sf4500 and 4000. I do have a lot of other AG supplies but these are the main ones. My car is a 2011 Nissan Altima coupe that has 3000mi always washed with the two bucket machine an never seen a swirl o matic before. Very minor swirls.

**Kinalyx** · 09-25-2012, 10:27 PM

Im going to say you are ready when you feel like you arent quite ready. You wont really be ready to polish a car until you start polishing and get some hands on experience. Last year i had never done any polishing in my entire life. I was nervous when i started, and didnt think i was quite ready. As soon as i started the first panel with the first bit of product and saw the results.....i was ready.

Ill be doing a new car in the next couple weeks or so, and i honestly cant wait. This is coming from a VERY lazy person, i hate doing most things that are active, or involve being outdoors at all. My first real detail took me over 20 hours in a weekend, and i enjoyed every second of it.

Go for it as soon as you feel like you have the time, dont cut corners, and be proud of your work.

Shawn

**mg6045** · 09-26-2012, 08:19 AM

Once you do one panel you will see how easy a DA polisher is to use. Add to that the fact that Menzerna Polish's are super duper newb friendly and I would bet you will have a great experience !

Since you only have finishing polish's I would probably recommend the SF4000 with the white pad first. If that doesn't cut out the swirls (which it probably wont), then step up to the SF4000 with an orange pad. After that I would recommend the SF4000 with the black pad to finish out with.

I'm not a big fan of the SF4500. I feel the SF4000 works better. cuts more and finish's the same while working faster.

If the orange pad and SF4000 arent removing the swirls you are going to need a polish instead of a finishing product. I would then recommend PF2500 (Power Finish) or SI1500 (Super Intensive Polish).

The Power Finish comes highly recommended. It removes swirls very well even on hard paint's and finish's very very clear. You can also use it with pretty much any polishing or cutting pad.

**DocV** · 09-26-2012, 08:47 AM

Not more than 2 years ago I was in your shoes in terms of doing my first 2 stage correction and I was hesitant until I started. Be sure to watch Mike's videos on polishing with the 7427XP and don't forget to mask. Put on some good tunes and you'll be fine.

As recommended I would try the SF4000 with the white then orange pads first, but if that does not work and you don't want to wait for another shipment, I recommend Megs Ultimate Compound. You can pick this up at a local car parts store. This will remove scratches and is slightly less aggressive than M105. I used it recently on a black Honda Pilot and it finished clear without marring, then followed up with a final polish. The results were great.

**darkangelism** · 09-26-2012, 09:00 AM

You are ready, just go do it.

**chris.ganucheau** · 09-27-2012, 08:39 AM

Originally Posted by mg6045

Once you do one panel you will see how easy a DA polisher is to use. Add to that the fact that Menzerna Polish's are super duper newb friendly and I would bet you will have a great experience !

Since you only have finishing polish's I would probably recommend the SF4000 with the white pad first. If that doesn't cut out the swirls (which it probably wont), then step up to the SF4000 with an orange pad. After that I would recommend the SF4000 with the black pad to finish out with.

I'm not a big fan of the SF4500. I feel the SF4000 works better. cuts more and finish's the same while working faster.

If the orange pad and SF4000 arent removing the swirls you are going to need a polish instead of a finishing product. I would then recommend PF2500 (Power Finish) or SI1500 (Super Intensive Polish).

The Power Finish comes highly recommended. It removes swirls very well even on hard paint's and finish's very very clear. You can also use it with pretty much any polishing or cutting pad.

Did you mean to start out with SF4500 and a white pad then if it doesn't work move to the SF4000? Thanks for the response! I will be working on a 2010 Cadillac DTS with a pearl white color.

Originally Posted by DocV

Not more than 2 years ago I was in your shoes in terms of doing my first 2 stage correction and I was hesitant until I started. Be sure to watch Mike's videos on polishing with the 7427XP and don't forget to mask. Put on some good tunes and you'll be fine.

As recommended I would try the SF4000 with the white then orange pads first, but if that does not work and you don't want to wait for another shipment, I recommend Megs Ultimate Compound. You can pick this up at a local car parts store. This will remove scratches and is slightly less aggressive than M105. I used it recently on a black Honda Pilot and it finished clear without marring, then followed up with a final polish. The results were great.

Thanks I will be trying it this weekend if I can find a garage to use!

**tuscarora dave** · 09-27-2012, 09:27 AM

Originally Posted by Kinalyx

Im going to say you are ready when you feel like you arent quite ready. You wont really be ready to polish a car until you start polishing and get some hands on experience. Last year i had never done any polishing in my entire life. I was nervous when i started, and didnt think i was quite ready. As soon as i started the first panel with the first bit of product and saw the results.....i was ready.

Ill be doing a new car in the next couple weeks or so, and i honestly cant wait. This is coming from a VERY lazy person, i hate doing most things that are active, or involve being outdoors at all. My first real detail took me over 20 hours in a weekend, and i enjoyed every second of it.

Go for it as soon as you feel like you have the time, dont cut corners, and be proud of your work.

Shawn

This posting reminds me of the day that this Mega Cyclo polisher kit, Cyclo orbital polisher, car polisher, cyclo buffer, cyclo polishing pads, cyclo model 5, car buffer came to my front door step. I was confused about the different color pads so I went online to research them and discovered the marvel of "detailing discussion forums". I was so nervous but so excited after doing that first section of the hood and seeing the results!! It's gotten gooder and gooder since that day!!

**chris.ganucheau** · 09-27-2012, 10:13 AM

Originally Posted by tuscarora dave

This posting reminds me of the day that this Mega Cyclo polisher kit, Cyclo orbital polisher, car polisher, cyclo buffer, cyclo polishing pads, cyclo model 5, car buffer came to my front door step. I was confused about the different color pads so I went online to research them and discovered the marvel of "detailing discussion forums". I was so nervous but so excited after doing that first section of the hood and seeing the results!! It's gotten gooder and gooder since that day!!

Thanks man, I can't wait to try it out!