Menzerna Polishes - Any Good?

[dz63]

I just finished polishing my "new" 2002 silver Camry with some swirls and thousands of tiny surface rust spots. I used a PC7424XP dual action polisher with one of these three Menzerna polishes.

a) Menzerna Powergloss S34A (highest cut)
b) Mezerna Intensive Polish P091E (medium cut)
c) Menzerna Final Polish P085U (low cut)

This is my first time doing paint correction and boy was it ever a lot of work. I spent a good 8-10 hours polishing and waxing my car. I don't have any experience with other products or polishers, so I do not have anything to compare with. But, I do have some burning questions for those of you who have the experience and are willing to share it....

1) With all three of the above polishes, I found that they dried out very quickly (typically within 30-60 seconds) after I started polishing. I primed the pad with Pinnacle XMT Polishing Foam Pad Conditioner prior to applying the polish on the pad, and I even "spritzed" the pad every couple of minutes, but it didn't seem to make a lot of difference. Within less than 2 minutes, I observed fine white power all over the place, and could barely see any polish left on location I was polishing. Is this normal? I was expecting to be able to polish for like 4-5 minutes in one spot.

2) Is the clear coat on a Toyota Camry considered a "soft" clear coat or a "hard" clear coat? The reason I ask is that one spot on the hood about 5" in diamter had some minor swirling and it took me 4-5 applications of Powergloss with the most aggressive LC, yellow CCS pad to get rid of most of the swirls. There were still a few remaining swirls that I gave up on. I was expecting much faster paint correction with the Powergloss / yellow pad than that. Is this normal?

3) Even though the Powergloss had a fairly high "cut" rating on the bottle, it seemed to finish up perfectly smooth and shiny for me. I tried following up with the Intensive polish and then the Final polish, but I could not see any visible difference after either of the subsequent applications. Is this normal? I was expecting the Powergloss to leave the finish dull looking and then use the other two lower "cut" polishes to shine things up. But it seemed to me that I could use Powergloss on it's own without the Intensive or Final Finish. What gives?

Thanks in advance! I am very interested to hear of other's experience with any of the above Menzerna polishes.

Don

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

This is my first time doing paint correction and boy was it ever a lot of work. I spent a good 8-10 hours polishing and waxing my car.

That's about right... the first time take the longest because you're removing the defects, the next time it should go faster assuming you don't put the swirls and scratches back into the paint.

1) With all three of the above polishes, I found that they dried out very quickly? (typically within 30-60 seconds)

How large an area were you working?

Anytime you run into problems machine polishing one thing you can try is to shrink down the size of your work area.

2) Is the clear coat on a Toyota Camry considered a "soft" clear coat or a "hard" clear coat?

People make generalizations over this topic but the only way to know is to have experience working on a wide range of paints that include lots of soft paints, lots of hard paints and everything in-between.

If you're able to remove defects using a DA Polisher than the good news is at least the paint is "workable". At the end of the day that's all that matters.

The reason I ask is that one spot on the hood about 5" in diameter had some minor swirling and it took me 4-5 applications of Powergloss with the most aggressive LC, yellow CCS pad to get rid of most of the swirls. There were still a few remaining swirls that I gave up on. I was expecting much faster paint correction with the Powergloss / yellow pad than that. Is this normal?

If they are not removing as fast as the scratches surrounding them then it's likely they were deeper and if that's the case then that would be normal.

3) Even though the Powergloss had a fairly high "cut" rating on the bottle, it seemed to finish up perfectly smooth and shiny for me.

That's a sign of good abrasive technology. It wasn't always like this when it came to products for clear coat paints.

I tried following up with the Intensive polish and then the Final polish, but I could not see any visible difference after either of the subsequent applications. Is this normal?

What color of paint are you working on? If you're working on a light color or a light metallic finish there's probably an improvement but it will be difficult to gauge on light colored cars.

I was expecting the Powergloss to leave the finish dull looking and then use the other two lower "cut" polishes to shine things up. But it seemed to me that I could use Powergloss on it's own without the Intensive or Final Finish. What gives?

Again, that's the sign of good abrasive technology.

 

[ScottB]

Menzerna offers some of the best polishing products available.

 

[Marc08EX]

Menzerna offers some of the best polishing products available.

I can't agree with this more. It remove swirls effectly and polishes it nicely at the same time! I love Menzerna products and I won't go back. You won't be disappointed.

 

[arkus]

Is SIP a good one step Menzerna polish ?

 

[Lasthope05]

Is SIP a good one step Menzerna polish ?

It all depends upon the paint you are working with, but on hard and medium paints it will finish up really good as a single step.

 

[Rsurfer]

Sounds like the OP was working too large of an area. Do an 18"X18" section.

 

[ScottB]

Is SIP a good one step Menzerna polish ?

SIP finishes down quite well, and some might suggest you "could" use it alone but I find using Nano or 085rd (or both) really amps up gloss and reflection.

 

[soonermike]

Is SIP a good one step Menzerna polish ?

Several times I've used SIP and then started to use Nano and couldn't tell a difference. It's that good. I love Menzerna!

 

[dz63]

Mike - thank you for your comprehensive response. Much appreciated.

How large an area were you working?

I was working roughly a 2' x 2' area or maybe slightly larger. How much Menzerna polish (Powergloss, Intensive Polish or Final Polish) do you recommend on a 2'x2' area? I started with 4 pea size drops applied to the pad and when I saw how fast it dried out, I graduated to 8-10 pea size drops, but it didn't really seem to help much. Is this too little or too much polish for a 2' x 2' area? Have you personally used any of these three Menzerna products and if so, how much polish did you apply for a 2' x 2' area? Is 3-4 minutes of polishing excessive for a 2'x2' area? Maybe I am spending too much time in one area?

What color of paint are you working on? If you're working on a light color or a light metallic finish there's probably an improvement but it will be difficult to gauge on light colored cars.

Bingo! My Camry is a metallic silver. I had to angle my 500W halogen light at just the right angle to see any swirls and even then, I had a hard time finding any. I think the guy I bought the car from must have never washed it. My 2 year old Metallic grey Corolla has more swirls and paint chips than this eight year old car. I can't believe how little damage there is to the paint. There was lots of minute rust spots which easily buffed off on the first pass. There was, however, one really bad scratched up spot on the hood that I had to work 4-5 times with the Powergloss and yellow pad. However this spot was clearly visible even without the halogen light.

I love Menzerna products and I won't go back. You won't be disappointed.

Marc - Have you personally used the Powergloss, Intensive Polish or the Final Polish yet? If so, did you find that these products dry out quickly and leaves a layer of white, very fine dust all of the windshield and rest of the car? I found the same dusting occuring with all three products. I am trying to understand if this is normal or if I need to change my technique. Unfortunately, I have "0" experience with any other polishes, so I have nothing to compare with at this point. Your thoughts?


One more observation ...

I used the yellow pad with the Powergloss, the orange pad with the Intensive Polish, and the white pad with the Final Polish. The yellow pad was beginning to get a bit caked up by the time I was done the car (ie. very thin layer of white gunk on the pad - thick enough that it was actually hiding the yellow colour of the pad), whereas the orange and white pads did not seem to exhibit any of this behaviour. How do you determine when it is necerssary to clean a pad? I used all three pads from the beginning until I finished the car. Is this normal or do guys you clean your pads part way through polishing a car?

Thanks in advance for sharing your experience!

Don

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

Wow!

I just typed out a detailed reply and my browser crashed...

Sorry about that but now you get the nutshell version...

I was working roughly a 2' x 2' area or maybe slightly larger.

2' by 2' is too big if you're trying to remove swirls. It doesn't matter if you applying a finishing wax or sealant but anytime you're trying to remove defects that's too big.

Watch these a couple of times...

Show Car Garage Video: How-To do a "Section Pass" when Machine Polishing with a DA Polisher

Show Car Garage Video: How To Remove Swirls, Scratches and Water Spots using a PC 7424XP, Meguiar's G110v2 or Griot's Garage 6" Random Orbital Polisher

Bingo! My Camry is a metallic silver.

I kind of figured...

You're not going to see dramatic differences on light colors, especially metallics but there is a difference. If it were my car I would definitely re-polish with a less aggressive product and then apply the LSP

How do you determine when it is necessary to clean a pad? I used all three pads from the beginning until I finished the car. Is this normal or do guys you clean your pads part way through polishing a car?

A good rule of thumb with ANY electric polisher...

CLEAN YOU PAD OFTEN

It's vital that you always work clean. Either scrape the face of the pad with a nylon brush or How to clean your foam pad on the fly


See my Signature Line for links to more articles and videos...

 

[Marc08EX]

Marc - Have you personally used the Powergloss, Intensive Polish or the Final Polish yet? If so, did you find that these products dry out quickly and leaves a layer of white, very fine dust all of the windshield and rest of the car? I found the same dusting occuring with all three products. I am trying to understand if this is normal or if I need to change my technique. Unfortunately, I have "0" experience with any other polishes, so I have nothing to compare with at this point. Your thoughts?

Don

I only have SIP and nano polish. SIP dusts like crazy while nano polish doesn't. I think that more dust will be generated if the product has more cut.

 

[WRAPT C5Z06]

Even though the Powergloss had a fairly high "cut" rating on the bottle, it seemed to finish up perfectly smooth and shiny for me. What gives?

Try using powergloss on dark paint, your opinion will change. Micro-marring will be very noticeable. It's still there on your silver metallic paint, you just can't see it.

 

[jpegs13]

I've given away loads of stuff to family and friends, I kept all of the Menzerna products. I love them. Easy to work and finish down beautifully.

 

[A4 1.8tqm]

When you work such a large area (2'x2') the polish has a lot of time to dry out by the time you get back to it, then it just powders up and clogs your pad and gets all over the car.

My advice is to work in an area NO LARGER than the size of 4 pads, so if you have 5 1/2" pads work in an 11"x11" area. Do 2/3 overlap passes and move slowly. When you work these polishes with this technique they will be able to break down or "flash" before it drys out. When the polish "flashes" it goes from a white film to almost clear. There should be little to no dusting and you can use an incredibly small amount of product per section. after every couple sections clean the pad "on the fly". I've found that working a small section thoroughly is faster than doing a large area twice. Just using more polish over a larger area does not work out at all because it drys out before the abrasives get broken down (Menz has diminishing abrasives). Once you get a feel for the current paint/pad/polish combo you won't have to stop and check it and go over it again and again. Also your halogens may be heating the panel and drying the polish.

So... Work in SMALL sections and don't expand the work area every pass, slow and steady wins the race, move the halogens back a few feet,

and do this after every couple sections:
[video=youtube_share;M24NiGvBRgQ] - Pad cleaning "On the Fly" w/ Flex 3401[/video]

 

[dz63]

Wow - I am really liking this forum! Lot's of good people willing to share their knowledge...

2' by 2' is too big if you're trying to remove swirls. It doesn't matter if you applying a finishing wax or sealant but anytime you're trying to remove defects that's too big
Watch these a couple of times....

Excellent video. I picked up some good tips, like 6 passes. Wow, do you ever put a lot of polish on the pad. I wasn't using near that much. Maybe that is my problem. In the video you are using a different polish. Do you really recommend that much polish (ie. an X across the full pad) for Menzerna polishes too?

When you work such a large area (2'x2') the polish has a lot of time to dry out by the time you get back to it, then it just powders up and clogs your pad and gets all over the car.

A4 - Yes...This is exactly what was happening to me. The polish dried out and turned to powder, clogged my yellow pad and it got all over the car!

My advice is to work in an area NO LARGER than the size of 4 pads, so if you have 5 1/2" pads work in an 11"x11" area. Do 2/3 overlap passes and move slowly. When you work these polishes with this technique they will be able to break down or "flash" before it drys out. When the polish "flashes" it goes from a white film to almost clear. There should be little to no dusting and you can use an incredibly small amount of product per section. after every couple sections clean the pad "on the fly". I've found that working a small section thoroughly is faster than doing a large area twice. Just using more polish over a larger area does not work out at all because it drys out before the abrasives get broken down (Menz has diminishing abrasives). Once you get a feel for the current paint/pad/polish combo you won't have to stop and check it and go over it again and again. Also your halogens may be heating the panel and drying the polish.

Thank you for the detailed advice! It sounds like you have some good experience with Menzerna polishes? If so, how much polish do you typically use on a 5.5" pad?

I only have SIP and nano polish. SIP dusts like crazy while nano polish doesn't. I think that more dust will be generated if the product has more cut.

Marc - what is SIP polish? Is it the same as Mezerna Intensive Polish P091E? That is the "medium cut" polish that I have.

Try using powergloss on dark paint, your opinion will change. Micro-marring will be very noticeable. It's still there on your silver metallic paint, you just can't see it.

07 - Very interesting and good to know. It sounds like my metallic silver paint is very forgiving and hides a lot. I will give the Powergloss a try on my dark metallic grey Corolla next and see how it looks and report back.

Don

 

[A4 1.8tqm]

Wow - I am really liking this forum! Lot's of good people willing to share their knowledge...

:iagree: Great people here, really helped me learn the "proper methods".

Excellent video. I picked up some good tips, like 6 passes. Wow, do you ever put a lot of polish on the pad. I wasn't using near that much. Maybe that is my problem. In the video you are using a different polish. Do you really recommend that much polish (ie. an X across the full pad) for Menzerna polishes too?

Generally, for the first pass you may want to use more polish to get the pad "wet" with polish so you don't dry buff. I prefer not to use a lot, rather use the "little dabs technique" I describe below.

Thank you for the detailed advice! It sounds like you have some good experience with Menzerna polishes? If so, how much polish do you typically use on a 5.5" pad?

Your welcome! I have used a bit of Final Polish II, Intensive Polish and Power Gloss. I like to put like 15 TINY little dabs of polish on the pad then press the pad on the car in the four sections so the car has like 60 little spots of polish. Then spread that out on a low speed, bump it up to 6 until it flashes, then clean the pad and repeat. The hardest part for me is staying in the work area, I always want to just polish the whole panel in one go... small sections!

Marc - what is SIP polish? Is it the same as Mezerna Intensive Polish P091E? That is the "medium cut" polish that I have.

Autogeek Menzerna Compounds Comparison Chart

07 - Very interesting and good to know. It sounds like my metallic silver paint is very forgiving and hides a lot. I will give the Powergloss a try on my dark metallic grey Corolla next and see how it looks and report back.

Don

In my experience Menz PG can finish perfectly, even on dark paint, but only on the first pass with a fresh pad. After that it leaves light marring, clear coat build-up in the pad I guess?

 

[WRAPT C5Z06]

In my experience Menz PG can finish perfectly, even on dark paint, but only on the first pass with a fresh pad. After that it leaves light marring, clear coat build-up in the pad I guess?

Generally speaking, M105 finishes much better than Powergloss.

 

[Da Fats]

Try priming the pad before you start by spreading 3-4 pea sized drops across the entire face of the pad. This helps engage the entire pad face in your polishing effort. Just don't overload it right off the start.

I stole this from KBM and liked the consistency i obtained

Also Pressure is king with the XP make sure you marked your backing plate and apply enough pressure that it slows down but still spins while your polishing. I made this mistake starting off and it took forever to correct anything.

Always lighten up the pressure with you last pass or 2.