4" pads caused micro marring

BlueGenCoupe

BlueGenCoupe

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So I did a detail this weekend and I used m105 and 205 with lc ccs 7.5" pads and 4" pads that arent sold here. I noticed some micro marring after I put a coat of sealant in the areas i used the 4" pads. Now I have to strip that area and go over it with a large pad.

I'm just wondering if all 4" pads cause micro marring or if it's just the pads I was using?
 
What color pads what type of machine did you use and what kind of car was it?
 
BlueGenCoupe said:
I noticed some micro marring after I put a coat of sealant in the areas i used the 4" pads.

I'm just wondering if all 4" pads cause micro marring or if it's just the pads I was using?
Click to expand...

Over the years, I've noticed that when using a rotary buffer, if you use small pads on larger panels after a few wash jobs you can usually see the tale-tale sign of rotary buffer swirls left by the smaller pads. Could be pad related if the pad offers any type of mechanical abrading ability, could just be the direct drive action plus the pad, chemical and pressure imparting it's own scratch pattern.

Re-buff the affected areas with a larger pads, hold the pad as flat as you can to the paint.

If you can't do that then re-polish the affected areas by hand. Seems some countries don't have access to DA Polishers to finish out with so do the best you can with the rotary.


:)
 
Mike.Phillips@Autogeek said:
Over the years, I've noticed that when using a rotary buffer, if you use small pads on larger panels after a few wash jobs you can usually see the tale-tale sign of rotary buffer swirls left by the smaller pads. Could be pad related if the pad offers any type of mechanical abrading ability, could just be the direct drive action plus the pad, chemical and pressure imparting it's own scratch pattern.

Re-buff the affected areas with a larger pads, hold the pad as flat as you can to the paint.

If you can't do that then re-polish the affected areas by hand. Seems some countries don't have access to DA Polishers to finish out with so do the best you can with the rotary.


:)
Click to expand...


Thanks for the reply Mike. The only reason I used the 4" pads on my roof is b/c I have a sun roof and there is some small areas that are hard to hit with a larger pad. I guess next time I'll just have to tape over a larger area and just hit it with the large pad.
 
Small pads on a rotary generate a lot of heat underneath them. So when using the smaller pads with a rotary be sure you are operating the machine at a slower speed than with the larger sized pads. If not you could easily cause a burn through but most often it just leaves behind issues like you have now that just need a light polish step to remove. Also, if your paint is soft and you are applying the sealant with a machine don't apply any pressure at all or else that too can leave behind some buffer trails. If a rotary is all you have just hand wax to be on the safe side.
 
BlueGenCoupe said:
Thanks for the reply Mike. The only reason I used the 4" pads on my roof is b/c I have a sun roof and there is some small areas that are hard to hit with a larger pad. I guess next time I'll just have to tape over a larger area and just hit it with the large pad.
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I figured that and that's what I would do. This is the age-old problem associated with using a rotary buffer is how to finish out 100% hologram or swirl free.


sahrcar said:
Small pads on a rotary generate a lot of heat underneath them.
Click to expand...

If you're applying medium to heavy pressure. If you're only applying light pressure and you keep the polisher moving then the heat build-up is nominal.


sahrcar said:
Also, if your paint is soft and you are applying the sealant with a machine don't apply any pressure at all or else that too can leave behind some buffer trails.
Click to expand...

And this is why, on the topic of finishing out 100% swirl or hologram free using only a rotary buffer doesn't always come to how great or talented the operator is... some paints are not as polishable as others.

Everyone can work the way they want but personally I don't and won't apply a finishing wax or paint sealant using a rotary buffer. I would switch to a DA Polisher or work by hand.


:)
 
Guys, polishing with the rotary came out great on the rest of the car. The problem is the areas I did with the 4" pads.
 
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