How to see swirls on very light paint?

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willowcat11

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I have a very Light Tan car and it is very difficult to see any swirls at all. I know it has them, because it's a 2001 and really wasn't taken care of before. So I compounded some today and could not see any swirls on either the compounded or non-compounded side,

What I could see, was better clarity of reflections. Is it normal to not being able to swirls on very light colored cars?


Thankyou all!


Ray
 
Hello Ray - as a general rule of thumb, yes, it is harder to see swirls on lighter colored cars than darker colored cars. That said, I've seen silver cars just scream swirls. Can you post any pics?
 
On light colored cars try to shine the light across the paint at about 140-160 degrees reflecting into your eyes rather than on dark paint it works shining straight into the paint. Also you may need a brighter light. a 26w LED spot light works wonders.
 
@willowcat11 - I'm presuming you did not notice swirls while looking at your car under sun light...?
 
The big reason why I am asking is, because I can't tell when to stop compounding or not. I'll wipe off, and still can't tell the difference between the compounded area, and the non-compounded area.

I checked in full sun, and also again during a lower sun.

This is a really difficult color to tell on. The only reason I could tell it needed it was, because of how dull it was. Otherwise you can't see any visual swirls on it.
 
On Silver, I use a Brinkmann and look at what I would call the secondary reflection of the light.

Not the bright spot, but the less bright reflection above the bright spot.

Sometimes, you can take a photo with an iPhone using flash and then zoom in on the image after you take it. It sometimes reveals things that your naked eye won't see. Not sure why.


.
 
AGO, thankyou man! That is a great tip. I totally forgot when doing my Dad's red PT Cruizer, that I took a flash photo of the hood, and that showed way more detailed swirls than I could see by eye. Thanks for bringing that up. That's what I am going to do.

Peace!


Ray
 
Silver is tough no matter what, that and pearl white.

Sometimes even plain old white is easier to see.

But silver and pearl white, hide some of the most knarly defects, you can rarely see a difference in polishing as well.

If it wasn't for a very very sunny day or a inspection light you wouldn't be able to tell much of a difference.

That's why polishing a silver car of a pearl white is not that gratifying or rewarding.

Nothing like taking a swirled out black mess or a red swirled car and making it look rich and deep filled with clarity.

The answer to your question is proper lighting and different lighting.

Try halogen bright led low led.

Light bulb shop lights.

Differences in lights are your friend.
 
NextLevelDtail said:
Silver is tough no matter what, that and pearl white.

Sometimes even plain old white is easier to see.

But silver and pearl white, hide some of the most knarly defects, you can rarely see a difference in polishing as well.

If it wasn't for a very very sunny day or a inspection light you wouldn't be able to tell much of a difference.

That's why polishing a silver car of a pearl white is not that gratifying or rewarding.

Nothing like taking a swirled out black mess or a red swirled car and making it look rich and deep filled with clarity.

The answer to your question is proper lighting and different lighting.

Try halogen bright led low led.

Light bulb shop lights.

Differences in lights are your friend.
Click to expand...

hUh?
Are you meaning to say use a bright halogen or low light LED? no sarcasm intended
 
KB in MD said:
hUh?
Are you meaning to say use a bright halogen or low light LED? no sarcasm intended
Click to expand...

My apologies, I hate this auto correct on my phone.

I meant halogen, bright led, lower lumen led, different light sources. Different light sources, can illuminate different defects.
 
Cool, I try different lights out. For some reason I am thinking my car being in my Dad's garage with lights off, THEN using a flashlight might show some stuff.

I think the sun, lights up just way too much of the paint around it that the glare is preventing me from seeing anything. In a dark garage with a flashlight, the only thing I will see is what is directly around that flashlight beam.
 
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