Help With Megs D300

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AdamZ

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Hello Autogeek community! I'm having some issues using Meguiars D300, perhaps you could shed some light on the situation...

Car: 2007 BMW 335i Sedan - Monaco blue metallic
Polisher: PC7424 with LC 5" backing plate
Pads: Meguiars MF cutting pads

I spent yesterday cleaning and prepping my car for the winter months, after a much neglected spring and summer. My intent was to use HD Speed on a Meguiars thin foam finishing disk (which worked wonderfully!) except in the rougher areas which I planned on using D300 on the MF cutting pad. However, when I went to test out that combination, it was quite difficult to wipe off the D300. I had to use ONR in a spray bottle to loosen it up to wipe clean. I tried to follow combinations with similar results:

primed the pad and went to work at speed 5 for 4 overlapping passes, tried again at speed 6. This was repeated trying 6 passes in case I wasn't working in the D300 enough. Same results

didnt prime the pad, used 5 pea sized drops, and worked in a similar pattern described above. Similar results.

For fun, I tried using a LC flat orange pad primed, and worked at speed 5 with 4 passes and it worked great! It wiped off easily and had enough correction for my desired finish.

I played close lose attention to arm speed and downward pressure, never stalled the polisher, etc. I'm certain it has to do with how I'm using the product, and not the product itself. Could anyone provide some insight to my issue?

Thanks!
 
D300 is one of the easiest wipe off compounds/polish you can get, I use it as my shop production compound, and I never had any issues with it being hard to wipe off.

Are you working outside? What kinda temp and humidity?

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Guz: Now that you say that, I think I remember hearing to slow it down. I'll check out the link and maybe try a spot on another vehicle.

Joe: I was outside, temperature was about 55* F and 35% humidity.
 
They're both right. 55 is OK to work at, and I never go beyond speed 4; slow movements with moderate pressure so the pad doesn't stop, over a 2'X2' space in a crosshatch pattern, letting up on the pressure on the last pass. I always prime the pad and put the drops on the outside edge of the pad because they work their way toward the center. Also don't forget to take the excess off the pad every so often. D300 is good stuff.
 
Definitely sounds like user error, I'm working it too fast! I have a few more opportunities to practice, really appreciate your feedback!
 
Sounds like you wren't cleaning the pads enough and so the abraded paint residue and spent product was sticking into the pores of the paint. If you clean your pads out with compressed air while you work then you won't get this problem.

Microfiber pads hold onto a TON of abraded paint residue, much more than foam pads do. Think about how microfiber towels pick up everything easily when you wipe them over a surface. Microfiber pads are the same way so thoroughly cleaning them out in between each section is absolutely critical to achieving the best results. On hard/dense paint systems I can get D300 on a microfiber cutting disc to finish out basically LSP ready just by constantly working with clean pads.
 
This issue was seen on fresh pads. I have compressed air, so the pads were blown out after two attempted sections, but always good to be reminded! My wife's SUV is in dire need of correction, so I'm hoping that I'll have a chance to try again soon, slowing down my machine, and cleaning the pad often.
 
There are a million different reasons this could happened that are directly correlated with user error. But as someone who works on a wide variety of paint systems both lacquers and enamel I have had D300, M205, and M100 (which are all well known for their effortless removal) become a nightmare to remove. I think humidity is the biggest factor but also some paint just does not respond well to the famous trade secret oils Meguiar's utilizes. This is why it's important to have a variety. I've found when M205 is a nightmare to work with, HD Polish+ is even easier to remove than normal. Or if I can tell the residual oils in D300 are sticking to the paint, FG400 seems is easier than ever. It's really bizarre how Megs polishes remove effortlessly some days and are a impossible others.

I also polish lots of golf carts and for some reason even M205 will become like cement after a single pass. I've found HD Polish+ to be the best polish for plastics.
 
I agree, i have had m205 cement to aircraft paint and hd polish remove easier than a light wax on the same surface.

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Hello again, thought I would provide a quick update:

I had a chance to work in my step father's 2014 (I think) Honda Accord which is an olive green color... not sure of the official name. We did a similar approach as my 335i and did a one step with HD Speed on Megs foam finishing disks, which once again proved to be a phenomenal combination. However, there were several "teacher induced scratches" as my mother apparently dragged some school supplies across the car! These defects were a bit too much for the pad and product mention above, so it was time to try D300 on a 3in MF cutting pad on my Griots 3in polisher.

The pad was sufficiently primed and per earlier suggestions, I went one click above 4 and worked the small sections with deeper scratches. This cleared up the scratches with ease, and wiped away with no troubles whatsoever! The was little to no hazing from the spot corrections, but I followed up with Speed for added clarity and protection. We were both very satisfied with the end product, and I was quite happy to succeed with D300 this time.

Thanks to all who commented, your experience helped my success this go around!
 
Hi, first post on this forum!
I've been having issues with wiping off d300 after polishing. I live in Japan, so currently the humidity in my workspace is about 60%, ambient temps of about 27-30 degrees celcius. Would this be the reason why I'm finding it so hard to wipe off?
I usually resort to just polishing with d300 first, then when I finish off with the d301 finishing wax, it comes off no problem, I guess taking the d300 residue with it.
Any advice welcome.
Mike
 
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