Need some detailing advice

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r_egan

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Just purchased a used metallic black BMW (2011 model) that has some acid rain spotting visible in the clear coat under fluorescent lighting. In addition to the spots there are swirls in the paint as it appears to have been detailed using a polisher at some point in time.

I have never used a machine polisher and am looking at purchasing a Flex XC3401 to address these issues, however, I don't know where to start in terms of the pads and products (swirl remover, polishes, waxes, etc.). I obviously want to go with the least aggressive option that will correct the problem. The paint is in great shape (it is only a year old) and has a nice shine but you can feel some grit when running your hand across the surface. I have used a clay bar and applied P21S but the surface still doesn't feel real smooth.

Recommendations/advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
Firstly welcome to AGO! :welcome:

You have came to the right place.
For being new to machine polishing, you will want to pick up a Dual Action Polisher. Using a machine like the Porter Cable 7424XP, Griot's Garage ROP, or Meguiar's G110v2 you can remove swirls without any damage to the paint. Now for swirl removal, I would definitely look into getting the Meguiar's Microfiber System. It only has 4 products in the system. The Correction Compound which you use with the Microfiber Cutting disc, and the Finishing Wax with the Finishing disc. It is a very simple system to use for a beginner to machine polishing. Seeing your car is black, and black cars can look absolutely amazing when jeweled. Jeweling is using a finishing pad with the finest polish to really amp up the gloss. It is an optional step but I believe doing this will just make the black on the car look deep and wet.

All this is probably a little confusing, so if you have any more questions, don't be afraid to ask. :xyxthumbs:
 
I certainly agree with Rider. I bought a Porter Cable first and it did fine work for me. Unfortunately, the sickness took over and I got a Flex 6 months later. In my opinion, you probably won't need anything stiffer than a white pad for correcting your nearly new paint. You will need more than one though and that goes for each grade (color). They work best when clean so you car rinse one and allow it to dry while switching to the other. I like the 5.5 low profile pads on my Flex. Most of the polishes will give you a pad range and you can work withing those suggestions.

Any of the Menzena or Wolfgang polishes work well for me. The Optimum Polymer spray polishes work great and have a long work time with almost no dust. Just start with the least aggressive and work up until you get the results you want. Clear can't be replaced except with a re-paint so save as much as you can while still getting the results you want. Unless your time is worth $500 and hour, I think it is best to work a less aggressive polish longer than just tearing into it with something coarse to save time.

With the level of expertise on this forum, you can rule the world! There are lots of pros and serious hobby folks here who can turn painted cars into art.

Your new car is going to look so good you will contract the sickness I mentioned earlier. Within a year you'll be giving the advise and you will find yourself speaking in acronyms. Then you think; it's a shame to have all this cools stuff and just do my car. That's how it starts.
Welcome!
 
Welcome !

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Welcome Regan!

The 3401 is a wonderful machine and the one I favor. Since you said you want to start with little aggression pick up some tangerine hydrotech pads and try them with WG TSR or Megs 205. The new optimum polishes are supposed to be pretty hot right now but I haven't tried them yet myself.

You are going to want to finish that paint down after you polish so look at some PO85RD on a crimson HT pad.

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After doing a small 2'x2 test spot as described above you may realize more aggression is needed. You may decide to step up to the cyan HT pads with the previously mentioned WG total swirl remover. You may also consider the optimum microfiber cutting discs with their prescribed polish for cutting. If you end up needing to cut which I am betting you might then you will most likely have to come back after using these more aggressive pads or polishes to finish the paint down (especially since you have black) with a less aggressive polish like 205 or 85RD on a tangerine or crimson pad. Basically work on one test spot at a time with some different pads and polishes I mentioned here and once you get a feel for it and find the one that works best for you then replicate the success of your test spot across the rest of the car.
 
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