DA Microfiber System Results - Amazing!
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allenk4
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- Mar 12, 2013
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allenk4
In time out
- Mar 12, 2013
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All of the demo hoods at Meguiar's HQ are repaints and I have a bit if experience on them. They are black, so they show any errors in technique and/or judgement
Only difference is that everything seems to cut a bit quicker...pads, compounds, etc
SameGuy
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- Jul 1, 2011
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Oh brother Allen, are you stalking me? I have pictures on Photobucket going back a decade. Those sites aren't going anywhere. You mean if the OP closes and deletes his or her photo hosting account at some point down the road it'll lessen your enjoyment of this place? Gimme a break. Thanks, but I prefer to retain ownership of my pictures without watermarks so I can post them anywhere I want.
cardaddy
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- Nov 20, 2012
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Take all your photos that you want to upload and put them I a folder by themselves, say "resized upload folder". Then you can use Microsoft Picture Manager and resize them all at the same time. Just highlight the first one, hold down shift and highlight the last one. Then go to "picture" then "resize" and choose "predefined width x height" and choose 800 x 600. All the file names will have an * in the name at that point. Then go to "file", "save all" and BOOM you're done.
THAT will resize them all for optimum upload and viewing size in forums.
There is a complete thread from Mike Phillips about how to create and upload files to your own Autogeek photo albums. They can be private or public.
:iagree:AGO graciously lets us host as many files as we want, as big as we want, for as long as we want, FOR FREE.
The watermark has only shown up lately, and might be a problem if you want to pass on files to others to print, but honestly.... in a effort to keep photos from being stolen (that are listed on a public forum) it's better than not having the watermark.
You can link the files individually or entire folders to whomever you like.
cardaddy
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- Nov 20, 2012
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Finally got around to my first ever paint correction with a DA polisher. After lots of reading I decided to go with Meguiars DA microfiber system, and I'm glad I did. It was very easy to use and, wow, it just made those unsightly defects disappear. Almost completely! There are still some RIDS on the paint, but those I can feel with my fingernail, so I didn't expect to eliminate them. The results came out better than I had hoped. Here are some pics.
I don't have many before pics other than a few I took with my phone. Here is what I was working with.
Haaaa.... I didn't even have to look at any of the other photos and I knew INSTANTLY what the above photo was from!
The one below you might recognize.
This is my lil' 6MT, Sport Package, Aero Package, wheat interior, 4 wheel steer.
I applaud you for learning just how nice D300 is. :xyxthumbs:
But BOY does working on that paint with microfiber cutting pads make me nervous.
They are a GREAT pad to have, and have done an enormous amount of paint correction in the last 2 years.
For compounding with D300 it'll work if you;
- Keep the speed down
- Keep the arm pressure down
- AND keep the pad(s) religiously clean (with prodigious amounts of air).
Here are a few from my last correction.
IMO the microfiber pad system just is not capable of finishing this paint like it would say.... hard GM paint. They correct like the bee's knee's.... but finishing is hit or miss (depending on the paint system you are working with).
Anything less than 205 with a foam pad and this particular Laser Red paint is nowhere near it's best.
This paint will scratch and swirl when you LOOK AT IT funny! It's bad, really REALLY bad.
(And it's stupid thin and prone to chipping.) 
If you really want it to finish well, get a white or blue foam pad with Menzerna 2500.
Then get a blue or black pad with Menzerna 4000 (or 4500). :dblthumb2:
Last edited:
Take all your photos that you want to upload and put them I a folder by themselves, say "resized upload folder". Then you can use Microsoft Picture Manager and resize them all at the same time. Just highlight the first one, hold down shift and highlight the last one. Then go to "picture" then "resize" and choose "predefined width x height" and choose 800 x 600. All the file names will have an * in the name at that point. Then go to "file", "save all" and BOOM you're done.
THAT will resize them all for optimum upload and viewing size in forums.
There is a complete thread from Mike Phillips about how to create and upload files to your own Autogeek photo albums. They can be private or public.
:iagree:AGO graciously lets us host as many files as we want, as big as we want, for as long as we want, FOR FREE.
Thanks a lot I will try tonight, just need to read your directions a few times, you know what I mean.
One thing I didn't mention about the MF pads. I have compressed air and run around 135 psi. Taking advise from the Meguiars video, I tried cleaning the pads with a air gun and that is the only way it go. Cleaning was a snap and the fibers on the pad look like new after a few seconds. Much easier than foam pads. Washing was also easier after I finished. Sprayed the pads with XMT pad cleaner, let them set for a few minutes, held them under hot water, used a pad cleaning brush and in a flash they were clean.
I should have tried the MF system a long time ago. The Megs guy said they took 7 years to develop them. They don't release anything unless it's perfected!
allenk4
In time out
- Mar 12, 2013
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Not stalking you, don't know you
EDIT: Just noticed you are the one who argued about the Cyclo brushes on a DA for tires because they are too big for his 2" tall tires and he can clean them faster with a brush, due to all of the time and effort required to change the BP on a DA
Post however you want, wherever you want
I suggest people use the AGO Upload, simply because I hate photos inserted inline and hosted on other sites; which as you mentioned, can disappear down the road due to account inactivity OR over activity
On occasion, I have searched the Forum for a particular product or technique and found a promising thread, only to be treated to the "Black X"
Thanks,
Kyle Allen
sparkism13
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- Nov 17, 2009
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Cardaddy, you have excellent taste. 
and that is one clean andmean G35! You're so right about the paint - I said the exact same thing to my wife the other day- don't look at it wrong or you'll scratch it! LOL! It did haze very easily but since I didn't have the right lighting I could not see it. The D300 seemed to leave no haze but I did some further testing and this paint hazes very easily.
I'm going to leave good enough alone for now, but come spring I will be trying some white pads with m205. I'd love to try the menzerna stuff but its just too pricey for my purposes. Especially when there are many other products that produce similar results for much less.
and that is one clean andmean G35! You're so right about the paint - I said the exact same thing to my wife the other day- don't look at it wrong or you'll scratch it! LOL! It did haze very easily but since I didn't have the right lighting I could not see it. The D300 seemed to leave no haze but I did some further testing and this paint hazes very easily.I'm going to leave good enough alone for now, but come spring I will be trying some white pads with m205. I'd love to try the menzerna stuff but its just too pricey for my purposes. Especially when there are many other products that produce similar results for much less.
Air blow guns on our air compressors.
Some of you who use blow guns, for cleaning pads or just cleaning out parts of cars and trucks, might be interested in what I do to make them work better. Several years ago the government made manufacturers reduce the volume of air at the nozzle to around 30 psi. I don't know about you but I don't think it's any of their business.
When I buy a new one I take it apart and drill the little orifice, that controls the amount of air coming out, two or three times bigger so I have a decent volume of air at the end of the nozzle. Most are brass and easily drilled out. It really makes a difference.
Some of you probably already do this, just thought it's something that everyone might like to know. Just a tip to make things easier.
Some of you who use blow guns, for cleaning pads or just cleaning out parts of cars and trucks, might be interested in what I do to make them work better. Several years ago the government made manufacturers reduce the volume of air at the nozzle to around 30 psi. I don't know about you but I don't think it's any of their business.
When I buy a new one I take it apart and drill the little orifice, that controls the amount of air coming out, two or three times bigger so I have a decent volume of air at the end of the nozzle. Most are brass and easily drilled out. It really makes a difference.
Some of you probably already do this, just thought it's something that everyone might like to know. Just a tip to make things easier.
cardaddy
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- Nov 20, 2012
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Yeah.... the Megs MF pads are a snap to not only work with, but as you've found out.... keep clean.
rops: Where I'd use 5~6 foam pads to do a vehicle I can get away with 2~3 MF pads. The trick is KEEP THEM COOL!
Work say half the hood, (doing the air clean after each section pass) then pull it off and place it foam side up on a rack to cool. (I use plastic 2 liter drink cases turned upside down to cool pads on, dry pads on, dry wash mitts, you name it.)
Then take another MF pad and finish the hood while the first one is cooling.
The heat that builds up isn't so much from the fibers and the paint, but more so from the Velcro interaction between pad and backing plate. The Meguiar's engineers went to great lengths to redesign their approach (after reports of early failures) to perform as a "system". The Velcro itself is matched between the pads and the backing plate. In my experiments (not totally scientific/lab controlled) measurements taken with an IR thermometer showed that the Meg's backing plate did make the pads run a bit cooler.
Cardaddy, you have excellent taste.
Thank you so much sir!
You're so right about the paint - I said the exact same thing to my wife the other day- don't look at it wrong or you'll scratch it! LOL! It did haze very easily but since I didn't have the right lighting I could not see it. The D300 seemed to leave no haze but I did some further testing and this paint hazes very easily.
I'm going to leave good enough alone for now, but come spring I will be trying some white pads with m205. I'd love to try the menzerna stuff but its just too pricey for my purposes. Especially when there are many other products that produce similar results for much less.
So you noticed the hazing/micromarring then? Honestly, I think D300 leaves micromarring on this paint. It has however become my favorite Megs compound hands down.
As you already know...... it's easy enough to just let it go. Lots of folks would never even see it. (Short of "geeks" that is.)
I can say that your daughter is a lucky girl, I'd NEVER let mine drive a G35. Heck back when she was in high school and college she had a Pontiac G6 GTP and that sucker cost us (for a while) over $3800 a year in insurance! She's 26 now and has to pay her own.... not my problem anymore. :laughing:I agree that Menzerna is expensive, but it's nowhere near as bad as Wolfgang!
It is however REALLY nice to work with. :xyxthumbs:Look, you're in Atlanta right?
If you wanna' spend a weekend afternoon, mid-day etc. working it down before it gets too cool, drop by the house. Heck, I might even be talked into a weekday, doesn't really matter to me.
Who knows... you might run across a microfiber or 20 that you've not seen yet. :laughing:I'm literally 4 turns off 75 (counting the one at the top of the ramp) and you are in my subdivision. (About 28 minutes from mid-town, being as I go downtown every month for back injections I have it down pat.)
Am starting physiotherapy this week (tomorrow) though 2~3 days a week for my shoulder and back (we'll see how darned well that flys). :dunno:
I've got 151, 205, UP, 301, 302 for starters (on the finishing end). Also have Menz 400, 1000, 1500, 2000, 4000 & Finishing Wax (some are lower than others at this time of year). That and ohhhhh 100 or so pads!
Don't break out the 6½" pads too very often (other than finish work) but they'll spin up just fine on a GG6 or Flex. But seriously.... drop me a note if you wanna' bring that beast down south.
rops:Yeah.... the Megs MF pads are a snap to not only work with, but as you've found out.... keep clean.
The trick is KEEP THEM COOL!
Work say half the hood, (doing the air clean after each section pass) then pull it off and place it foam side up on a rack to cool. (I use plastic 2 liter drink cases turned upside down to cool pads on, dry pads on, dry wash mitts, you name it.)
Then take another MF pad and finish the hood while the first one is cooling.
The heat that builds up isn't so much from the fibers and the paint, but more so from the Velcro interaction between pad and backing plate. The Meguiar's engineers went to great lengths to redesign their approach (after reports of early failures) to perform as a "system". The Velcro itself is matched between the pads and the backing plate. In my experiments (not totally scientific/lab controlled) measurements taken with an IR thermometer showed that the Meg's backing plate did make the pads run a bit cooler.
So you noticed the hazing/micromarring then? Honestly, I think D300 leaves micromarring on this paint. It has however become my favorite Megs compound hands down.
As you already know...... it's easy enough to just let it go. Lots of folks would never even see it. (Short of "geeks" that is.)
I agree that Menzerna is expensive, but it's nowhere near as bad as Wolfgang!
Thanks for all the advice on keeping the pads cool and drying them. I will put your method into effect tomorrow. Sharing our experiences on this forum is what makes it so fun to read. I've learned tons of techniques since joining that make my detailing passion more fun than ever. I learn something new every day!
I'm ordering Menzerna soon after talking to Mike in Germany. Can't hardly wait until they make their new cleaner wax available in the U.S.
cardaddy
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- Nov 20, 2012
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Good to hear.
I think we should all strive to keep learning.... I know this old guy still tries all the time. :xyxthumbs: This place OTOH is easily one of the very best to get input from all walks of life, all corners of the globe.
I know that Mike (Smack) has some now that he's stationed over there. Maybe we can get him to send us some.
And yes.... it is a TON of fun for me. :buffing:
Yes Sir! Now we have to try the new Wolfgang Uber AIO. We don't have any choice, do we. I can't help myself, I have to order some.Good to hear.
I think we should all strive to keep learning.... I know this old guy still tries all the time. :xyxthumbs: This place OTOH is easily one of the very best to get input from all walks of life, all corners of the globe.
I know that Mike (Smack) has some now that he's stationed over there. Maybe we can get him to send us some.
And yes.... it is a TON of fun for me. :buffing: