After the wet sanding.....

[86TonaZ]

I used some 3M buffing compound to remove the 2000 grit wet sanding on my black paint. It's color/clear.

I'm using the Porter Cable 7424XP. I started with the 3M compound wand yellow Lake Country pad then used Meguir's Ultimate compound with an orange pad.

I'm reading that I should have used Meguiar's 105 and yellow pad and then 205 and orange pad.

My question is this..... how much damage or trouble will I get into if I 'redo' the panel I've done? I don't plan to wet sand it any more overall. I 'may' touch up a few high spots. But the question is if I skip the 105 (other than the touch up areas) and simply use the 205 will it produce a less gray surface than the process I used above?

I realize that with the 205 or the step I took (the Ultimate compound) that there are still two steps before I'm done. The polish and then the wax. But I want black and not gray.

Any comments or suggestions?

[DLB]

There are a few different 3M compounds...which one exactly are you using?

In any case - the Ultimate Compound, the 3M that you were likely using, and the M105 are all in the same range as far as cut goes.

The 205 is a finishing polish and needs to follow any of the previous three mentioned. After the 205, you can use a fine finishing polish - but most of the time people don't find it necessary.

Redoing the panel will take off more clear for certain, so you need to be careful.

I will suggest, although a little late, that you do a test spot. Refine your process on a 16x16 area before you hit the whole panel. If you are going to try several different processes, I would use more than 1 test spot.

DLB

[86TonaZ]

The 3M cmpound I used was the Perfect it- III. It was some I had left over from when I buffed my other Daytona. Looking at it now I may have done more work than needed as the Perfect it - III may have been the product I used second. I have some other 3M compound but it's thin and it didn't cut as well as the Perfect it - III so I didn't use it.

So, at this point since the 3M has done its work and followed up with the Ultimate Compound (Meguiar's) would it be safe to then polish with the 205? I'm not considering any more material removal other than the necessary steps to complete the buffing process. Then the polish and then wax.

Is this a safe assumption?

[DLB]

I would *guess* that you are safe to use the M205, but this is largely dependent on if the Ultimate Compound (that was your last product used if I read correctly) has achieved all that it needed too. After the UC you should have a fairly clear working surface, no more heavy sanding marks.

DLB

[RaskyR1]

The 3M cmpound I used was the Perfect it- III. It was some I had left over from when I buffed my other Daytona. Looking at it now I may have done more work than needed as the Perfect it - III may have been the product I used second. I have some other 3M compound but it's thin and it didn't cut as well as the Perfect it - III so I didn't use it.

So, at this point since the 3M has done its work and followed up with the Ultimate Compound (Meguiar's) would it be safe to then polish with the 205? I'm not considering any more material removal other than the necessary steps to complete the buffing process. Then the polish and then wax.

Is this a safe assumption?

Any chance you can get a pic of the finish after the UC? It will really depend on how deep the marring was from the 3M and whether or not the UC was able to take it out or not.

Also, was it the extra cut compound or the regulars stuff? 3M has two perfect-it III compounds....

[86TonaZ]

Thank you both for the replies. There are no sanding marks at all and the finish is smooth with very little swirl. The issue I want to resolve is that the color is a little gray.

I'm assuming at this point that if I use some polish that it will seal the very tiny imperfections left and darken the color.

Here are some pictures of the work before this last buffing.

[RaskyR1]

M205 should work well then.

[Mike Phillips]

M205 should work well then.

I agree.

Try a test spot with M205 and either a polishing pad or a finishing pad and then inspect.

Be sure to apply a wax or paint sealant also as M205 is water soluble.


Looks good!


What size pads did you do your initial cut with?

[86TonaZ]

Thanks guys. I used the 6.5 inch pads from Lake Country. I got the Porter Cable 7424XP special bonus offer Autogeek had week before last. It came with some smaller red pads, Microfiber cloths and pad cleaner and conditioner. I got an orange, yellow, white, gray and blue pads with my kit.

So if I use the 205 at this point I can use the polishing or finishing pad for that then to apply the wax. I can either apply the wax by hand or use the gray or blue pad.

But, now for the rest of the question.

The part we know now is the hood. It's the largest flat area as the deck is a hatch with a piece of glass nearly as large as the hood.

I need to do the rest of the car. Should I use the product I still have available or abandon that for some 105? I will do the hood and the rest of the car with the 205 as the final compound step before the polish and wax.

Make sense?

[Mike Phillips]

Let me see if I can dissect your posts and give you some answers without causing too much confusion.

I used some 3M buffing compound to remove the 2000 grit wet sanding on my black paint. It's color/clear.

I'm using the Porter Cable 7424XP. I started with the 3M compound wand yellow Lake Country pad then used Meguiar's Ultimate compound with an orange pad.

I'm reading that I should have used Meguiar's 105 and yellow pad and then 205 and orange pad.

If you're able to remove sanding marks using an XP with 3M and a 6.5 Yellow Foam Cutting Pad then you probably ought to stick with that recipe, you could try the M105 with the yellow pad and see if it's any faster or if it yields better results and if it does then alter your recipe.

This is where you do your testing or your test spot. Dial in a system that works for you. The goal would be to find a single cutter that will remove all the sanding marks. With the XP or a polisher like the GG ROP, if you hold the pad flat on a flat surface it will rotate a 6.5 pad just like a rotary buffer even under pressure, it won't have the power of a rotary buffer but it comes close enough for people that either don't own a rotary buffer or are not ready to move up to a rotary buffer.

So try to do some testing with your most aggressive foam pad and see if you can remove the sanding marks with just one product, there's actually a way to test,

• Sand a section
• Test 3M and your yellow foam cutting pad for 8 passes back and forth to just one portion of the section.
• Now duplicate this to a section right next to the first test section only used M105

Now compare the two sections. You should still have sanding marks as the goal is not to remove all the sanding marks, (that would/should take more passes), the goal is to see which product is removing the most sanding marks under a controlled test.

Does that make sense? If not then call me as this is pretty hard to teach with a keyboard.

After you dial in your recipe for removing all the sanding marks all you should have to do is remove any haze or micro-marring and restore a clear, high gloss finish. M205 should do this with a polishing pad for sure, and maybe a finishing pad, again test.

You might find that it takes the polishing pad to remove the haze and if you're in love with your truck you might want to maximize the finish with a finishing pad and the M205

The key is testing till you find a recipe that makes you happy and gets the job done and then duplicate this over the entire finish.

So if I use the 205 at this point I can use the polishing or finishing pad for that then to apply the wax. I can either apply the wax by hand or use the gray or blue pad.

See above where I talked about testing a polishing pad first and checking the results and then test a finishing pad and checking the results, use whatever level of aggressiveness in your pad selection to get the job done.

But, now for the rest of the question.

The part we know now is the hood. It's the largest flat area as the deck is a hatch with a piece of glass nearly as large as the hood.

I need to do the rest of the car. Should I use the product I still have available or abandon that for some 105? I will do the hood and the rest of the car with the 205 as the final compound step before the polish and wax.

Make sense?

M105 is a compound, M205 is a cleaner/polish. So when you wrote,

Should I use the product I still have available or abandon that for some 105? I will do the hood and the rest of the car with the 205 as the final compound step before the polish and wax.

Did you mean to write? (not the red part)

Should I use the product I still have available or abandon that for some 105? I will do the hood and the rest of the car with the 105 as the final compound step before the polish and wax.

If you meant the second quote, then again, test till you can hopefully find out which compound is cutting the best and then you should be able to use just that one compound over the entire car to remove sanding marks. You may have to do each section multiple times however to get all the sanding marks out. If you run out of one compound you can always just start using the other compound. By the time you get done with the truck you should have a feel for which compound is cutting the fastest.

After all the compounding is over and all the sanding marks are removed, then re-polish the entire truck with the M205 and then go to wax or paint sealant.