How to tell when polish is broken down on white vehicles

MobolWerks

MobolWerks

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Mike,

When using diminishing abrasives on white paint ("Nano" on Toyota Sequoia for instance), what is the easiest way of explaining what you would see visually, when the polish has broken down completely??

On dark colors you can see that it has become translucent, but on white it seems to be a little more subtle... What is your best tip on this matter???

Feed back please
 
Grab some yellow lens sunglasses and work while wearing them, it makes it easier to tell if the abrasives have broken down. Especially on white and silver, this is a good idea. You will notice that the color of the polish pops out at you a little off the paint.
 
Call me crazy, but I can typically feel when a diminishing abrasive polish has broken down. It seems to get real slick. The easiest way to get that feel down is to use the polish on a darker vehicle so you can see and feel the difference - and it is definitely easier with a rotary because the action is smoother.

Maybe I'm just nuts though.

DLB
 
Mike.Phillips@Autogeek said:
Experience?

Practice, practice practice, error on the side of caution.

:props:
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That is what I was going to say. It is a time thing for me. I'm pretty familiar with the products I use and I know how long it takes before the polish is completely broken down. So for me it is just an internal clock that tells me when it is done. If that fails, then watch what happens to the polish after awhile. When most polishes are all used up, they start to clump and spit out of the pad all over the place. That is when the polish is spent. I like to stop just before that point so there is less to clean up, but you'll have to figure out what that means to you with your process and style.

And of course, there is always the process of just checking your work frequently. :) When the swirls are gone, it doesn't matter if the polish is totally broken down. If the surface is clear, then you are done. Have your lights handy and check your work often on a white car.

I had a white car for years and I enjoyed the challenge of making it look its best, but I've learned that most people don't have the eye for detail that it requires to spot swirls on white for the most part. If you can see the swirls with 500watt halogens, but just barely, then you are good enough. They will never show up outside of the garage. The key to detailing white without going insane is to learn when you have gotten it 'good enough'. It really can drive you insane trying to get every mark out of white since they are so hard to find.
 
Any other senior members feel their experienced sense of touch works as well as an experienced visual inspection?.
A change in resistance versus translucence? Any tips for visually challenged newbs?

(For some of us over 50....vision seems to be the second thing to go)
 
Jossy92 said:
Any other senior members feel their experienced sense of touch works as well as an experienced visual inspection?.
A change in resistance versus translucence? Any tips for visually challenged newbs?

(For some of us over 50....vision seems to be the second thing to go)
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I don't think a sense of touch works as well as visual, and I posted that. It is just an aid when working on white specifically.

What OC Details posted above about learning how long the polish takes and such is as good as anything. Of course, mileage may vary, so you have to keep and eye, and hand, and ear, and nose out for the finish (the sense of taste isn't very necessary in detailing). :D

DLB
 
DLB said:
Of course, mileage may vary, so you have to keep and eye, and hand, and ear, and nose out for the finish (the sense of taste isn't very necessary in detailing). :D

DLB
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:drool: I think taste is one of the most important parts of detailing, if the paint tastes good it probably looks good too. lol
 
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