More aggressive compound or pad?

[Ztandem]

Today was the first time I did any polishing, and it's the first time that my bright red BMW got polished.
Starting with a orange pad, I used the Wolfgang swirl remover. I did two sets of passes on the trunk area. It definitely eliminated most of the swirls, but not all. I then used Meg 205, and did two set of passes with the same results.
Since this is the first time I'm doing any polishing, I'm glad that it did turn out better. But, I'm thinking I need a compound that is a little more aggressive, and not a more aggressive pad.

[Rsurfer]

Today was the first time I did any polishing, and it's the first time that my bright red BMW got polished.
Starting with a orange pad, I used the Wolfgang swirl remover. I did two sets of passes on the trunk area. It definitely eliminated most of the swirls, but not all. I then used Meg 205, and did two set of passes with the same results.
Since this is the first time I'm doing any polishing, I'm glad that it did turn out better. But, I'm thinking I need a compound that is a little more aggressive, and not a more aggressive pad.

Maybe a few more passes with Wolfgang before stepping up to a more aggressive compound. No point in going to 205 if you were not pleased with the swirl removal. 205 is a finishing polish and will not remove what WSR did not.
Always do a test section before doing the entire car.

[Ztandem]

When I did a test section, it did look better. I didn't do the test section twice. Since I'm a rookie, I really didn't apply any pressure to the buffer.
Maybe using the WSR with a little pressure would do the trick.

[Rsurfer]

When I did a test section, it did look better. I didn't do the test section twice. Since I'm a rookie, I really didn't apply any pressure to the buffer.
Maybe using the WSR with a little pressure would do the trick.

Yes, 15lbs of pressure will help a lot and slow arm speed (1 inch per second)

[Ztandem]

Yes, 15lbs of pressure will help a lot and slow arm speed (1 inch per second)

Would the same thing apply to using the finishing glaze also?

[Rsurfer]

Would the same thing apply to using the finishing glaze also?

You can let up a bit on the final polish. Most if not all the swirls should be gone and your finishing glaze is just cleaning up some haze that your compound might have left behind.

[Ztandem]

You can let up a bit on the final polish. Most if not all the swirls should be gone and your finishing glaze is just cleaning up some haze that your compound might have left behind.

Thanks! I'll get out my elbow grease when I do the hood next.

[Paul A.]

I finally realized an operational nuance some years ago. I was always motivated to use the least aggressive but MOST EFFECTIVE paint leveling approach. Back in the day i would do a test spot and would find i was removing maybe 60% of the marring. Dang, i need something more aggressive! Nope. Once i thought about it i realized THIS pad and THIS PRODUCT is working! Maybe another few passes and maybe more pressure would give me what i was wanting.

Maybe a second attempt at another test spot and more pressure for the initial passes and bam! Or maybe just one more attempt on that test section with the same pad and product and bam!

[dlc95]

I finally realized an operational nuance some years ago. I was always motivated to use the least aggressive but MOST EFFECTIVE paint leveling approach. Back in the day i would do a test spot and would find i was removing maybe 60% of the marring. Dang, i need something more aggressive! Nope. Once i thought about it i realized THIS pad and THIS PRODUCT is working! Maybe another few passes and maybe more pressure would give me what i was wanting.

Maybe a second attempt at another test spot and more pressure for the initial passes and bam! Or maybe just one more attempt on that test section with the same pad and product and bam!

That's a very true statement. I've done the exact same thing. Sometimes even changing the amount of liquid I put on the pad gave me the results I wanted.

Sometimes we get ahead of ourselves, and rush to find the "silver bullet" that does what we want, when we want. Sometimes the answer is right there in our hands, and we don't even see it.

[Ztandem]

Today, I did the trunk again, and the hood for the first time.
This time I used my 15 pounds of elbow grease. That was the only difference. The swirls are almost completely gone. I'm going to do the hood again, after my arms recover.
I did half of the hood with the WG finishing glaze. To me, the other half of the hood looks less cloudy without it.