Define "polishing your car"
Are you going for show room correction ?
Are you going for paint/gloss enhancement?
40-70% defect removal ?
Showroom paint correction can not be done with 1 pad. Very difficult and it will take longer.
Paint/gloss enhancement if your going to go around the car for 2 hours yes you can use 1 pad.
It really all depends on what your trying to get out of your polishing experience.
:iagree:with :whs: :dblthumb2:
The goal is to remove all of the swirls on my black 2015 Mustang GT. Not sure if I should start with a white pad, then go to orange, or just begin with the orange pad.
I am debating on placing an order for 3 orange pads, 2 white pads, and 1 blue pad, along with Gold Plush microfibers and grit guards. Is there anything else that I am missing?
I already have Wolfgang pad cleaning products that came in my kit (cleaner and conditioner). Do I need a pad brush as well? I am just trying to have everything I need for this job this weekend, as well as future jobs.
Here is the kit that I currently own:
Griot’s Garage Random Orbital Perfect Starter Kit
Here are a few links to recent threads on pads, as well as new users trying to figure out what they'll need that first time around.
There is a LOT of good info in this one:
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/auto-detailing-101/97517-more-aggressive-pad-more-aggressive-compound.html
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...59-new-2016-3500-ram-need-some-direction.html
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/auto-detailing-101/98633-polisher-suggestions-newbie.html
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...16-questions-first-time-da-polisher-user.html
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...uggestions-appreciated-before-i-purchase.html
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...mportant-detailing-questions.html#post1339203
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/show-n-shine/96790-first-full-detail.html
That and I've pasted pertinent text.
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Likely the only reason you didn't melt down your single pad was using too little pressure, and going too fast. I can show you a LC flat pad that a guy destroyed of mine when all I did was go inside to the bathroom and get a fresh glass of tea! 
That pad did the front fender of his F-350 then he started down the door with it. When I got outside I looked at the back half of the door and he was getting zero correction. Got him to stop buffing and asked him if he changed the pad LIKE I TOLD HIM after he finished the front fender. Of course he didn't, and the pad on the machine was so hot that he almost destroyed the backing plate!!!!!
You should be using AT LEAST 2 pads on the hood alone, 1~2 on the roof, 1 on each fender, 1 on each door, 1~2 on the rear quarter, and another on the trunk, plus 1 on the front, then another on the rear bumper.
While you don't need the full 12~14 pads to compound it with, you DO need half that many, even if you are using them twice. Just changing them out on panels to keep the heat down, keep doing cleaning on the fly, and keep working with a SURGICALLY CLEAN PAD requires quite a number of pad changes.
It's possible to do a correction with 4 compounding pads, but that's pushing it because you have to be aware of heat build up inside the pad(s). I'd say get 6 of your heaviest cutting pads, then 6 of the next ones above that. Then get 3 blue, and 3 black.
What you want to do is prime your pad, work a section, clean it on the fly, then work another 2~3 sections, cleaning on the fly after each one. After that, clean the pad, toss it aside, and get a NEW one. OR... have a bucket of pad cleaner solution and toss your pads in that as you go. (You'll not be able to reuse wet pads however.) Heat will build up inside the pad that you'll not be able to control any other way than removing it from the machine and sitting it out to cool.
If you have only 4, and go FIFO (first in first out) then by the time you get to the first one the next time around it should be cool enough to use. (Even if it's in the 90's outside.) 
For polishing you can get by with less than compounding because you're building less heat in the pad(s). That however does NOT mean that you can polish a vehicle with a single pad. 
Of course the only thing that REALLY matters is what YOU think about your work.
Noticed you said you had limited time. It's not a sin to do one area, start to finish, when you can, then do another area next time. For instance, you might want to do the hood and front fenders, compound, polish, seal, knock it out. Then next off day (or weekend) do the roof and top of the trunk.
I sorta chuckled though when I read you got off work and went to work out, THEN detailed your car. IKR????
For those that detail a lot..... they'll tell you it's pretty darned physical. 
I'd save my energy AND TIME, and put that into the detailing session, (but that's just me).
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You should be cleaning the pad after EACH AND EVERY SECTION!
I'm saying... a section should be something like NO MORE than 24" x 24". Then when doing your "section", you'll be overlapping each pass of the pad by 50%, going up, down, up down, till you do the section. Then left, right, left, right... again, till you complete the section. You want to do EACH section at least 5~6, if not 8~10 passes.
The trick is that after EACH SECTION you absolutely MUST "clean on the fly". You do that with a pad cleaning brush AND a terry cloth bath towel. Spin your machine up to speed 4.5~5 and let is spin while brushing the pad. Then take a folded bath towel in one hand, set your machine on speed 5~6 and as it starts to spin up... you BURY the pad into your open hand that's holding the bath towel. Do that 2~3 times. You have now cleaned your pad on the fly.
Another critical thing...
You DO NOT do the entire vehicle with 1 or 2 pads..... EVER!!!
You can do the HOOD with 2 pads, but not the entire vehicle.
Good rule of thumb is no area larger than a door with a single pad. That'd be 2 on the hood, 2 on the roof, at least 3 on each side, 1 on the trunk, 1 on each bumper. That's rotating out pads using FIFO along the way. (First in - First out) Doesn't mean you HAVE to have 12 pads, but you need to ***act*** like you do. If you're cleaning on the fly, you'll be able to use 6 pads, moving through 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, then back to 1 and so on. It's possible to do it with 4, just make SURE that you're not building up heat inside the pad(s) along the way. If you think you're using a pad too long... pull it off, put the BACK of it against your cheek (or inside your forearm). If it's anything more than slightly warm... STOP USING IT then and there, and switch to a cool pad.
As for the GG6 stopping spinning.... pffffft... that's hard to do.
Don't be afraid to run it on speed 5~5.5 when compounding. You're right by looking at the pad rotation speed, 1 per second is good. On that speed though, with medium arm pressure, with a 5½" pad, (that is properly primed, and not overloaded with product) you shouldn't be having pad stoppage.
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First things first....
- As others have said, get used to a 2BM (2 bucket method). Get grit guards for both. In fact... you'll need a third bucket for your wheels.
- Daytona brushes, and/or Wheel Woolies are a must have.
- IRON-X is a MUST on a new vehicle that has been shipped via train and truck.
- Wash, then rinse, then IRON-X, then rinse again.
- Nanoskin pad in fine for your GG6, break it in on the windshield and side glass BEFORE you put it on paint. You can also get the Nanoskin hand held sponges in both medium and fine to use everywhere your pad and DA can't reach.
- NOW... you use your Nanoskin, with just a splash of CLEAN lightly soapy water.
- Pads for your GG6. And I mean AT LEAST a dozen pads. Your RAM has fairly hard paint, so you'll probably be safe with orange and white Lake Country flat, or Lake Country CCS pads. (As already mentioned, get a 5" backing plate and 5½" pads.)
- Get 6 of each, orange, and white.
- If you want a softer/less cut/more of a finishing pad... either blue or black, 4 should work as long as you go FIFO when using them.
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In fact... you are going to need MORE THAN ONE PAD just to polish the HOOD!
If you are not using FIFO (First In - First Out) and using a pad for a few sections, while cleaning on the fly, then tossing it in a bucket of pad cleaner, you will need more like 8 to 12 to compound a full sized SUV.
It is unrealistic to think a single foam pad will be able to hold up for a hood, much less an entire vehicle. While it's really hard to do serious damage to paint when PROPERLY using a DA style machine... it is VERY EASY to do damage when IMPROPERLY using the same machine.
Pads build heat...
Backing plates build heat...
The combination of the two will melt BOTH!
Using a melted pad on your paint will cost you thousands more than spending an extra $100 buying the proper amount of pads going in.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by
AGOatemywallet 
Polishing your entire vehicle with one pad could be a problem.
Were you at least cleaning the pad on the fly?
Many AIO products have some filling capability, so I suspect that the Swirls were always there and washing removed the fillers...revealing the defects
:iagree:WITH :whs: x 1,500,000,000
In other words... you just won the
how not to do it detail and polish powerball lottery.
You should be using AT LEAST 2 pads on the hood, 2 on the roof, 1 on the trunk, 2 if not 3 on each side, and 1 on each bumper. That's 11~12 pads!
Now you don't have to use that many in practice, because you are cleaning your pads on the fly.
You ARE cleaning them on the fly,
RIGHT?
By cleaning on the fly you can (in a pinch) do an entire vehicle with 4 pads. If you're using FIFO (First In First Out) by cleaning the first pad after you've done each section, then once half the hood is done (it'll be 3~4 sections) you CLEAN that pad and sit it aside, like on a fan to cool. Then move to pad 2, use it for 4 sections, sit it aside, then move to pad 3, same thing. Then pad 4.
Once you've gone through the pads, Pad 1 should be cool, DRY, and ready to use again.
I agree though that it's likely that the swirls were still there. Of course if you did end up with 100% correction, the mitt and towels you are using will be guaranteed to swirl paint, and especially noticeable on dark and/or soft paints.
Swirls when washing....
Washing is a time when you need to take the utmost care to use as little pressure as you can, and as much foam/soap/shampoo as you can. It's VERY easy to induce swirls when washing.
NO... DO NOT use dishwashing soap! It doesn't have the lubricity of a pH balanced car shampoo, but more importantly, it will strip most LSP's. (
Especially AIO waxes like you'd see in HD Speed or say Meguiar's 151 and other AIO polish/wax products.)
Swirls when drying....
OMG... drying is something that I can't STAND doing!
If you think you can get swirls washing, pfffffttt drying will magnify that ten fold. There isn't any real lubricity there, combine that with the chance that there may still be areas that are not 100% contaminate free (
and those contaminates end up in your drying towel) then you'll just end up sanding the surface with your drying towel(s).
Best thing when drying is to get a 12amp leaf blower. That or the Metro Blaster (which is really expensive).
When looking at blowers, don't look only at MPH ratings. Look at the CFM ratings and find the one with the highest CFM as WELL AS the highest MPH rating and it'll serve you well.
Combine blow drying with some dedicated drying towels AND PROPER PROCEDURE WHEN DRYING and you'll cut your drying swirls down
significantly. I'd suggest not wiping at all, but laying your towel(s) flat, then patting and/or rubbing your open hand on the back of the towel(s) to absorb what water is left after the blowing process.
Even if you don't blow dry, using an open, flat, thick, absorbent, DEDICATED drying towel is your best bet.
The Cobra Guzzler HD drying towel is good.
It's foam core, and will soak up a TON of water. That is the only one from Autogeek that I like for any type of drying. Another one would be the "Korean Waffle Weave drying towel" from another supplier (
that AG doesn't want us to talk about anymore, even though they don't sell that towel). If you do a Google search on the quoted text it'll be in the top 4 results.
It comes in yellow and blue.
The one below it in that search, (
comes in white, has the word river in it) I have... but don't like it NEAR as well.
My first suggestion would be get a good inspection done under good lighting to find where you are with your paint. Next would be a plan of attack with ENOUGH pads to get the job done.
You'll need towels, GOOD towels, and AT LEAST 8~12 for the compounding step, another 6~8 for polishing, and another 4 or so for wiping LSP. If you run across another microfiber sale like the one Autogeek just had, (plus the 20% off on top of that) you can stock up, and get a couple dozen Gold Plush Jr's to get you started.
(FWIW, that place that came up on your *G* search with the Korean towels... also has gold towels that you can't tell from the "Jr's" at very affordable prices!!!):dblthumb2:
If you want to invest in a GREAT wash mitt... the Koala unit that's on BOGO now is a MUST HAVE.
rops:
Koala Wash Mitt, wool wash mitt, best car wash mitt
Of course all this is just speculation, not knowing what your car is. (IE soft vs. hard paint.) That and if you are using the 2 bucket method, with grit guards. You REALLY should be starting there. Wash bucket, rinse bucket, and a THIRD dedicated wheel bucket. Don't ever, I mean EVER wash your car with the same bucket that you use for washing you wheels.
Most importantly... have fun.
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