Need Help With Product & Procedure

[vtec92civic]

I'm a noob. Been reading a lot of things on the forums here and learning a lot. Surprisingly i have been detailing cars for a few years, use to work as a detailer for BMW, but i have learned and seen a lot of new things on the forums that i have never seen or heard of before. Anyways . . . .

So i arrived at my job today to do a 1999 Mercedes Benz. Owner didn't take to good of care of the car it had fall out all over the place, really bad in some areas, paint and clear coat was still in good shape accept for the fall out, swirl marks, and a little marring. I just had gotten my order of products in 2 days ago, and decided to try out some of the stuff everyone here uses:

Megs 105
Menz 106
Pinnacle Souveran
2 Orange LC CCS
1 Green LC CCS
2 White LC CCS
2 Black LC CCS
1 LC Foamed Wool

(my menz sip hasn't come in yet)

also took my:
Porter Cable
Makita 9224

I just swapped backing plates on my makita last night to the 6" LC High Speed Polisher Molded Urethane plate.

I'm running 6.5" Pads on both the PC & Makita.

I tried the PC with the LC foamed wool+ megs 105
then tried the makita with the LC foamed wool+ megs 105

tried PC with megs 105+ orange LC CCS pad
tried Makita with megs 105+ orange LC CCS pad

tried menz 106 on PC with Green LC CCS pad
tried menz 106 on Makita with Green LC CCS pad

tried menz 106 on PC with Black LC CCS pad


after that don't get me wrong the car looked a lot better then it initially did, and me being a noob to some of this stuff i was just hoping for better results. Am i missing a step or missing a product. There are still swirls that remain that i would like to get out.

We ran into some issues on the owners end so we didn't get to finish, so i have time to get some opinions from all the Autogeeker's before i head back on Monday to finish the job.

Here are some pics. Sorry for the long message.

Paint prior to washing and claying with fall out:

After claying:

Another After Claying Shot:

Top part i ran both PC & Makita with various pads, on the bottom there is still some swirls that didn't seem to like me much.

After a few passes with Megs 105 & Menz 106:

Another Picture of After:

Last shot before we had to pack up and go:

Still some light swirling that i would like to correct. Sorry the pictures are not the best. Any help or suggestions is appreciated and welcome.

Thanks in advance for the help Feed back please

 

[Gadgetech]

WOW!!!!!

Before clay and after clay is a HUGE difference.

You = :buffing:

 

[vtec92civic]

WOW!!!!!

Before clay and after clay is a HUGE difference.

You = :buffing:

Thanks . . . . i am no pro i still need some help on how to perfect the art of the gear i have. I agree big difference, i still need to man handle those swirls though.

 

[vtec92civic]

anyone? 74 views and only 1 response?

 

[sal329]

6.5" pads are too big for use with PC to get any correction. I would use the rotary with a wool pad and 105 see how that works, then use 105 with foam pad and rotary then a milder abbrassive like Meg 83 with foam pad and rotary. For the PC I would get 4" pads and you can use that for final polishing or even right after the wool and rotary.

 

[vtec92civic]

6.5" pads are too big for use with PC to get any correction. I would use the rotary with a wool pad and 105 see how that works, then use 105 with foam pad and rotary then a milder abbrassive like Meg 83 with foam pad and rotary. For the PC I would get 4" pads and you can use that for final polishing or even right after the wool and rotary.

thanks. i will def. give that a try. i appreciate your thoughts. So megs # 83 would come after 105, correct?

 

[ASPHALT ROCKET]

With what you have I would go M105/wool pad, 83/white pad, then final polish 106/blue pad. Use all these steps with your rotary and you should be straight.

 

[vtec92civic]

With what you have I would go M105/wool pad, 83/white pad, then final polish 106/blue pad. Use all these steps with your rotary and you should be straight.

thanks for the help. One quick thing though . . . right now i don't have megs 83, and i also don't have a blue pad. Would i be able to use a black or white pad?

So after i re wash the car on monday i would need to do the rest of the car with those steps starting with the wool and moving forward?

 

[ASPHALT ROCKET]

With what you have I would go M105/wool pad, 106/green pad, then finish with 106/black pad. You might want to look into getting some SIP for your middle polish.

 

[vtec92civic]

With what you have I would go M105/wool pad, 106/green pad, then finish with 106/black pad. You might want to look into getting some SIP for your middle polish.

correct me if im wrong . . . . i thought the 106 was a polish. As for SIP that has been ordered thanks to AG. It should be in any time now most likely tomorrow. Thanks again, appreciate athe help.

 

[ASPHALT ROCKET]

It is a final polish, I was only suggested using it since you didn't have SIP as your middle polish. 106 should be used as a final polish with a finishing pad,if it is used with any other pad it should always be followed up with a finishing pad.

 

[vtec92civic]

It is a final polish, I was only suggested using it since you didn't have SIP as your middle polish. 106 should be used as a final polish with a finishing pad,if it is used with any other pad it should always be followed up with a finishing pad.

perfect. i'll give that a shot tomorrow and see how things turn out. Thanks again for taking the time to respond.

 

[ASPHALT ROCKET]

Anytime, just let me know how you make out.

 

[vtec92civic]

Anytime, just let me know how you make out.

For sure. Now not to get off subject, but do you see a need for a PC. I was thinking of keeping my Rotary, selling the PC and getting a Flex would that be a wise move? If so what size pads run good with the flex?

 

[ASPHALT ROCKET]

I still use my pc for paint cleaning, the rotary is to much for that type of polish. No need to buy a flex when you have a rotary, then you can just use the pc for real small areas or for what I use it for. To me you are covered with what you have and since I have had both machines for over 20 years I haven't had the need for anything else.

 

[vtec92civic]

I still use my pc for paint cleaning, the rotary is to much for that type of polish. No need to buy a flex when you have a rotary, then you can just use the pc for real small areas or for what I use it for. To me you are covered with what you have and since I have had both machines for over 20 years I haven't had the need for anything else.

I guess that is some food for thought. Maybe i just need to keep buying product so i have choices for stuff and to make sure i have what would be needed for the job. Practice makes perfect. I have just heard really good things about the Flex, but i will have to really think about that. Might just need to order the backing plate for the PC with the smaller pads. I seen someone in some videos using the makita that i have with small pads that looked like 4" pads. So the CCS pads should be fine with the rotary then? I noticed that the foamed wool by LC seemed to suck up the product more then getting it on the paint.

 

[ASPHALT ROCKET]

I would invest in stuff like pads, backing plates and product. You really don't need to many different products. If you read info on all the forums you can get an idea what is the better of the products and figure out who actually knows what they are doing. Get yourself some smaller pads and backing plates for the rotary and pc. I use a 4 inch pad on my rotary when needed for smaller areas so to me that is more important than needing another machine that really isnt needed at this time. Like I said get yourself an assortment of pad sizes and backing plates and a few more polishes and you will be set. Almost forgot, yes the CCS pads work great with the rotary and pc. I either use those or some of the 3M foam pads and I only use the 3M wool pads when using wool. I am not a big fan of the foamed wool pad, but some people are getting good results with them so try it out and see if it will work for you.

 

[ScottB]

if you keep the PC, consider the carpet and fabric brushes. Might help with the decision to keep.

 

[vtec92civic]

I would invest in stuff like pads, backing plates and product. You really don't need to many different products. If you read info on all the forums you can get an idea what is the better of the products and figure out who actually knows what they are doing. Get yourself some smaller pads and backing plates for the rotary and pc. I use a 4 inch pad on my rotary when needed for smaller areas so to me that is more important than needing another machine that really isnt needed at this time. Like I said get yourself an assortment of pad sizes and backing plates and a few more polishes and you will be set. Almost forgot, yes the CCS pads work great with the rotary and pc. I either use those or some of the 3M foam pads and I only use the 3M wool pads when using wool. I am not a big fan of the foamed wool pad, but some people are getting good results with them so try it out and see if it will work for you.

I guess you could be right in terms of investing in product and pads. Man i guess another thing would be to invest in a shop LoL. Today was brutal. It hasn't been this hot for a while. I mean granted it is Hawaii but it is usually windy. So you would suggest me switching over to a smaller back plate and smaller pads, or it's good to have along with the bigger pads? I just got in today my Menz SIP . . . so now that i have that in where would that be?

Megs 105
Menz 106
Menz SIP

then finish it off with a wax or sealant, correct? There is just so many different types of product and so many different pads it's crazy. I seen one person on here who had really good results with the Foamed Wool, i tried it but didn't have that good of a turn out. Could be that i just need practice, and i need to get a feel for what product to use with what pad, and how much product to use and when the product breaks down etc . . . it's a art to buff.

However on a better note, i was very pleased with the results today from the steps you suggested i take. Very nice end result. It wasn't perfect, and the customer only wanted some wax put on, but i knew i couldn't just wax over the car as you seen the before pictures, i figure i take the proper steps and all and all it came out great. Now i have to do it to his other Mercedes tomorrow.

How much product do i really need to use, and what speeds would be good? I'm only going to maybe speed 2 1/2 on my makita which yields about 1200 rpm's.

Sorry im still learning and adjusting to the new products. i am no where near a pro, and there are still some marks that i couldn't get out but as long as the owner and i are happy i guess that is what matters. I'm def. looking forward to much more practice and much more learning.

Thanks to all that helped.

if you keep the PC, consider the carpet and fabric brushes. Might help with the decision to keep.

I'll have to look into that for sure. Do they sell that here at AG?

 

[ASPHALT ROCKET]

The sip will be inbetween M105 and 106FF. I use the 5.5 pads all the time on the rotary and the 4 inch pads in tight areas. I do not use anything bigger than 5.5 on the pc, its just a waste of time with anything bigger than a 5.5 on a pc is a waste of time. I would do a 50/50 wipe down after polishing to make sure you removed all the defects-50/50=IPA/water. Then when you are done with your final polishing go to your wax or sealant. I would practice a little more with the foamed wool. You do not need to use alot with the products you have. A few peasize dabs of the Menzerna and M105 is all you need. Once again you just need to practice a little more and you should be good.