Thanks for the forum. I have been picking up tidbits for more than a year, but this is my first post. I am writing about my latest project, a 1989 BMW 535iM. This silver with blue leather e34 with a factory manual transmission is relatively rare. According some sources, only about 500 came into the states in 1989. This example has spent a lifetime outside in the harsh Northeast as evidenced by the level of oxidation and blemishes in the paint. Pardon the cellphone pic quality, but here is what $2350 buys these days:
Ouch. There are blemishes that I know will never come out, but this is a cheapie third car so it need only look presentable. I marked the hood into sections and got to work. I used my cheap Secco dual action polisher with Meguiar's M105 and a dark red cutting pad. I struggled using this stuff even after reading and attempting to employ the Kevin Brown Method. I saw the most improvement when I used Ultimate Compound and a yellow pad. My cheapie da simply loves the UC and I was able to work the compound longer for better results. I saw some minor improvement:#
#
I followed with SwirlX. Here is how it ended up:
Now I am ready for the next step since the paint still has no depth due to the numerous small scratches in the clear coat.
The paint also has a number of water deposits and blemishes in the clear. #To address these problems I have the following questions:#
1. Will moving to a Surbuf pad enable my cheapie da to spin the smaller pad under more pressure?
2.Can I get good results with Ultimate Compound or will I need to move up to M105? I love the longer work time I have with Ultimate Compound so it should yield even better results, right?
3. Any other helpful tips?
Thanks in advance.
Ouch. There are blemishes that I know will never come out, but this is a cheapie third car so it need only look presentable. I marked the hood into sections and got to work. I used my cheap Secco dual action polisher with Meguiar's M105 and a dark red cutting pad. I struggled using this stuff even after reading and attempting to employ the Kevin Brown Method. I saw the most improvement when I used Ultimate Compound and a yellow pad. My cheapie da simply loves the UC and I was able to work the compound longer for better results. I saw some minor improvement:#
#
I followed with SwirlX. Here is how it ended up:
Now I am ready for the next step since the paint still has no depth due to the numerous small scratches in the clear coat.
The paint also has a number of water deposits and blemishes in the clear. #To address these problems I have the following questions:#
1. Will moving to a Surbuf pad enable my cheapie da to spin the smaller pad under more pressure?
2.Can I get good results with Ultimate Compound or will I need to move up to M105? I love the longer work time I have with Ultimate Compound so it should yield even better results, right?
3. Any other helpful tips?
Thanks in advance.