Need advice on Polishing

[JeffsToy]

I have an '08 Camry that I take good care of and keep it garaged. It is a daily driver for me and I like to keep it clean. I've owned it 1 year and wash with Megs Gold Class and use the 2 bucket method. I also waxed it twice using Gold Class Liquid Wax. I am interested in trying the Megs Ultimate Paste Wax and was wondering if I should use the Ultimate Polish on it before I wax it. I do all work by hand and the paint is in very good condition. When I read about the polish here at the AG store, I got the impression that the polish is intended to be used with the Ultimate Compound. I don't think I need to compound. Should I just wash and wax, or is the polish something I should consider using before wax? I do appreciate your suggestions.

[CM8 6MT]

Yes Ultimate Polish was designed as a follow up to Ultimate Compound, but that doesnt mean you cant use it as a stand alone product. Ultimate Polish is very similar to M205.

Since youll be working by hand, you wont get the full benefit of what Ultimate Polish has to offer, and that is its ability to permanently remove fine swirls & scratches. You'll need a DA polisher in order to do that, thats not to say working by hand cant achieve good results, you can, just nowhere near as good as using a DA with a foam pad.

With that said, if your paint is in great condition, applying Ultimate Polish by hand will give you better results than if you didnt apply any type of polish. Megs Gold Class Liquid Wax isnt good at all in my opinion. I think you will like Ultimate Paste or Liquid wax alot better. Take note, its not actually a "wax", its actually Meguiars longest lasting sealant that beads water like crazy.

Heres a picture of my car using Ultimate Paste Wax.


Note that this is on highly polished paint using a DA polisher, though by hand you should be able to get similar results. Personally I prefer the warm pop of a carnuba wax like M26 or the super slick glossy shine of M21. Youll find that there are better waxes/sealants out on the market, as Meguiars really excels on their polishes, on their LSP's eh not so much.

[thebamboo23]

This guys knows his Mega products very well^

Invest time into the products he was speaking of

[rmagnus]

This guys knows his Mega products very well^

Invest time into the products he was speaking of

Like a DA polisher...makes life sooooo much easier.

[thebamboo23]

+826492926490101836492918364028254929.13 ^

[ihaveacamaro]

How did you calculate 0.13

[thebamboo23]

Because DAPolisher that's why lol

[Mike Phillips]

I do all work by hand and the paint is in very good condition.

Removing swirls and scratches mean removing a little paint because this is how you level the surface. Some people don't like hearing that but that's the truth. The goal is to remove as little paint as possible and then do what you've been doing and that's wash and dry carefully and avoid any practice that would put swirls back into the car.

You can hand apply both the polish and the wax and by the time you're done there should be some "filling-effect" to get your paint where you want it to be to make you happy.

If you get to the point where you want to actually remove the swirls then it's time to get a machine. Can't tell you how many times someone has made a post like yours, (only work by hand), then they get a simple DA Polisher and then post something like this,


I should have stepped up to machine polishing a long time ago...


That's just normal and that's how it goes... here's something I wrote to kind of show how easy and safe it is to work by machine...

It's not that hard...


Note these people are not just "learning" on daily drivers aka new cars, they're learning on someone's "toys" or Special Interest Vehicles. More risk for me, more fun for them...



In the below live broadcast I show a 15 year old boy how to machine polish

Live Broadcast Video - 1965 Plymouth Valiant - Extreme Makeover






And in this one I show a 21 year old girl how to machine polish

Video & Pictures: 1965 Fastback Mustang - Gtechniq EXO Show Car Makeover!

Trista working with the rest of the team to machine polish this 1965 Mustang Fastback 2+2



Trista removing swirls on a show car...




And in this one I show a 80 year old man and a young lady and here boyfriend how to machine polish for their first time...

Video and Pictures - Two 1967 Camaro's - Show Car Makeovers!







PLUS you have everyone on this forum to help you along the way...