Polishing Compound Help

[Snakeroad]

polishing compound my paint to restore it and i am dissapointed. its all shiny but when under certainly lights at some angles, florecent in this case, i can see micro lines that follows the same direction my hand polishing. any tips? how do i get the shine perfect without any signs on the clearcoat?

[drunkn munky]

Yep.... mop it or go like the clappers with your hands.

What compound you using?

[blur1]

meguires scratch and swirl remover and a lot of elbow grease.

then a nice carnuaba wax to finish. i use mothers in the round tin that you 'swipe' out.

[baileysam]

hi there if you compound by hand or mop you will allways get small scraches in the paintwork,dont compound it anymore,use swerl remover, farecla do one ,rub it in small circula motions on to an area of about 6in square, get that right and move on till you have finished the compleat job ,then get a wax polish with a slight cut in , it is sold as a restoration wax, then repeat what you did with the swerl remover then give it a good wax polish, and remember to use a lint free cloth it may take some time but you will get the results you are looking for.

[Snakeroad]

cool, that is definitely more info than i got, probably its the type of polish compound i have got thats doing me in. it feels a bit abrasive when it starts spreading. brand is No.7 White Polishing Compound. so swerl removers cut in a little but lightly? and what sort of wax that cuts a little into the paint rather than just coats it and fill in the scratches with wax? im thinking of trying out turtlewax's polishing compound or its ultimate polishing compound but might o more scratches as you mention i should stop and i agree. mcguires ultimate polishing compound it good info, youtube had lots of demo on it but yeah, got to mop like an clapper,

[drunkn munky]

Ive got no experience with those products, ive only used farecla products. Start with G3 which will leave the swirl marks you mention then finish off with G6 which removes the swirls.

[sonic]

Ultimate polishing compound is good but I do use it with a DA mop.Try doing a Bentley by hand-no thanks!

The compound breaks down with use so gets finer and finer.I use it after the more abrasive compound then wax.

[drunkn munky]

If you dont have access to a DA mop you can get 3" finger pads which velcro round your fingers then you stick a compounding or polishing mop on it. It does make life a little easier but you still need plenty of elbow grease.

[baileysam]

i wouldent use a mop if i were you it does get hot and you can run the risk of scorching the paint or cutting through the paint on the edges ,i wouldent use anymore compound if i were you just cosentrait on getting the shine back the corsest compound you should use for bikes is farecla G10 ,DO NOT USE T CUT if anybody has any THROW IT AWAY it is a old fashion product for use on celluloes and contains ammonia that can burn modern paits and clearcoats , dont use G7 it is avery corse compound and it has ammonia in it as well its used on commercial vehicle, the rest of the farecla range is safe to use on all paints.

[baileysam]

Ultimate polishing compound is good but I do use it with a DA mop.Try doing a Bentley by hand-no thanks!

The compound breaks down with use so gets finer and finer.I use it after the more abrasive compound then wax.

we used to have to wax hearses a long time ago, useing the old fashoned turtle wax ,the hard stuff in a tin ,doing a square foot at a time ,that took time, but even modern polishes and waxes were nowhere near as good or lasted as long as the block turtle wax, the problem was to find some poor sod to put it on

[sonic]

i wouldent use a mop if i were you it does get hot and you can run the risk of scorching the paint or cutting through the paint on the edges ,i wouldent use anymore compound if i were you just cosentrait on getting the shine back the corsest compound you should use for bikes is farecla G10 ,DO NOT USE T CUT if anybody has any THROW IT AWAY it is a old fashion product for use on celluloes and contains ammonia that can burn modern paits and clearcoats , dont use G7 it is avery corse compound and it has ammonia in it as well its used on commercial vehicle, the rest of the farecla range is safe to use on all paints.

Dual action mops don't create the heat of rotary's so are a lot saver,Thats why I have one.There will be some work you need a rotary for but that would be serious indeed.

[speedy sie]

wd40 hided all......scratches

[alexp5]

I use a Metabo SXE400 D/A sander polisher for paintwork restoration. Never burned through any paint yet (lucky, maybe?)

I've also used Meguires Scratch X with a foam pad kept damp at a slow speed with the Metabo and had some bloody awesome results with it.

Agreed with baileysam - T-Cut is shite. If you have any, bin it.

Years ago, I worked at a GRP fabrication company. We used to use a carnauba based mould release hard wax. I hand waxed my Mum's MkIII Escort with it once and it ripped my arms off doing it but the result was stunning. It was like glass, water and dirt just slid straight off.

[blur1]

ok, i'm going to say it again.

meguires scratchx swirl remover.(it comes in a tube)

put it on a cotton rag. a small dab. rub it into the paint till it makes a squeking sound. you can only do very small areas at a time. rub off excess with a clean rag.

look for no more swirl marks. if any remain, repeat previous.

once all swirl marks are gone or your arms hurt.

'then' get some carnuaba wax (the hard stuff you swipe from a round tin) i use mothers brand.

then apply again all by hand as per can directions, (it comes with a foam applicator hand pad) and stand back and admire your work then thank me!

[baileysam]

Dual action mops don't create the heat of rotary's so are a lot saver,Thats why I have one.There will be some work you need a rotary for but that would be serious indeed.

duel action dont give out the heat of a rotory they are used to repair damaged paintwork one but somtimes heavy scraches you need heat to move the paint insted of cutting it back,i use a mop as little as possable and just do the bits that are damaged on cars [apart from carwash wear] and trucks if we are talking bikes here a larger 5in is to heavy to hold in one hand while you holding the job ,on bikes i use a lightweight 3in pistol air mop, larger electric mops are ok on cars but not on bikes, i never mop parts or panel on a bike allways strip them off to minimise compound splatter, a larger electric mop would be very hard to control on small parts with bad contours that is why i sugested not to use a mop, it may be a lot slower by hand but at least you minimize the risk of damage

[drunkn munky]

@ baileysam, You got a link to the 3" pistol mop you use? Been looking for for a small mop for ages, currently using a Milwaukee polisher which im sure you know is a big beast but it is pretty light for what it is and i use a 3" backing plate on it.

[baileysam]

Uploaded with [url=http://imageshack.us]ImageShack.us[/url

This is what i use on bikes and small areas, I have had it for years it is a tex we have a ingersol rand one at work it is a very good mop ,CP do one dessoutter do a good one and there are plenty of cheap ones on the market that are plenty good enough ,it will run on any compresser above 8 CFM as said an electric mop is no good on small stuff this is as good as you get, the sponge mops are £15 for five, not exspencive ,i have had a look on ebay and you can get them for as little as £30.

[Snakeroad]

thanks for all this info, im going to try by hand since i need the workout and improve my stroking, swirl remover for now then wax. definitely going to try farecla since im havent yet...

farecla G12 looks the business as well

[blur1]

thanks for all this info, im going to try by hand since i need the workout and improve my stroking, swirl remover for now then wax. definitely going to try farecla since im havent yet...

farecla G12 looks the business as well

good choice mate. just rub the swirl remover hard till you feel the heat through the rag on your finger tips and it makes a squeking sound.

for most marks/scratches i dab about a 8mm line of product onto the rag with my middle or pointing finger doing the work to get the marks/scratches out.

p.s, i've won multiple bike shows with my 14 year old bike.

hand polishing and hand waxing has always worked well (for me)

[Snakeroad]

m going to try exactly as per your instructions, curious though, what are the possibilities of having a top paint pre-waxed? initial idea was to get paint repaired and then mint before carnauba finish then off to the pubs.

[willbloke]

Ok , as you guys seem to know what your talking about !

What's the deal with the clay stuff Maguires sells ?

Does it just pick up crap from the surface or does it actually flatten the paint ?

[sonic]

It removes contaminants from the surface.Works to remove all the grime that washing doesn't and means you then polish the paint/Lacquer.

Does anyone know if you can wet sand and polish powdercoat??

[blur1]

m going to try exactly as per your instructions, curious though, what are the possibilities of having a top paint pre-waxed? initial idea was to get paint repaired and then mint before carnauba finish then off to the pubs.

what does 'pre waxed' mean?

if you have good paint with swirls in it then what i suggested works.

if you have deep scratches you will indeed need to repair the paint before any waxing etc.

Ok , as you guys seem to know what your talking about !

What's the deal with the clay stuff Maguires sells ?

Does it just pick up crap from the surface or does it actually flatten the paint ?

i have used both mothers and meguires clay bars for years.

i prefer the yellow mothers clay bar to the white meguires one.

it is really only to remove contaminants after wet washing a vehicle.

it does not 'flatten' paint.

i mainly use clay on my car.

after washing the vehicle you clay bar the paint. it makes it smooth as glass.

after that you need to wax the vehicle.

you only need to clay bar a vehicle every 3rd or 4th wash/wax.

[baileysam]

It removes contaminants from the surface.Works to remove all the grime that washing doesn't and means you then polish the paint/Lacquer.

Does anyone know if you can wet sand and polish powdercoat??

powdercoat is very hard so makes it very difficult to flat off, the idea of compounding is to wear away a very thin layer of paint to bring back the finish, but on powdercoat it would be far too hard to polish back ,there might be some way it could be done but i dont know it. i would say no

[sonic]

Thanks,i've had a bike frame done as it's harder wearing than 2 pack but not quite as good a finish.

[Snakeroad]

blur1/sam, arms, foreamrs and fingers ache but ive got my wow effect and an believer of hand polishing now thanks. paints shines and ive added sealant, strong stuff got my palm sticky after 15 minutes, used my nails against the sealant and non-sealant area this morning and i have to say massive difference, a plus for those who are tough on their paint with the way they use their vehicle.

i think there is an element of fluke though, my early scratch work might have made the surface more level then when i applied the swirl & scratch remover, the shine screamed out. followed your advice on rubbing until she squeaks although earlier proccess with too much juice is why my arms ache now, really made the difference.

i might go back to using the shitty polishing compound on areas not done yet to scratch off the ripples. still curious what if i added farecla's G12, sam?

didnt quite go mcguires though thinking if i went wrong then i would go back to it but was really happy with turtle wax scratch & swirl remover. i gambled on their bottle mentioning "showroom shine" and not dissapointed at all

[control_67]

followed your advice on rubbing until she squeaks although earlier proccess with too much juice is why my arms ache now, really made the difference.

Fnarr