New with Compounds and polishing!

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freestyletrev

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I was wondering what the correct products and order in applying them. Also, Im doing everything by hand. I Have a white grand am gt that has some swirls and light scratches. I already own some Meguiars Ultimate Compound and im using Meguiers NXT wax. So if someone could point me in the right direction. i was thinking..

Ultimate compound --> Swirl remover or some type--->meguiears #205 OR meguiars finishing polish--> meguiars show car glaze #5--> NXT wax

So any recomendations are great, other brands are fine too! But try to keep it on the cheaper side..

Thanks in advance!!
 
It all depends on how much time, how OCD you are and how much you want to spend.If the car is in good shape, you can get great results going straight from the Ultimate compound to the NXT - with maybe a swirl remover in between them if you have that [problem. I'd read here on what pads to use but a light polishing CCS LC pad will work followed by a wax application pad. Good luck...
 
the best piece of advice I can give you is to get a machine
 
It does have some swirls, i Tried some UC on a panel and it did help a lot, but there was still some swirls.. and is there not a need for a polish or glaze?
 
freestyletrev said:
I was wondering what the correct products and order in applying them. Also, Im doing everything by hand. I Have a white grand am gt that has some swirls and light scratches. I already own some Meguiars Ultimate Compound and im using Meguiers NXT wax. So if someone could point me in the right direction. i was thinking..

Ultimate compound --> Swirl remover or some type--->meguiears #205 OR meguiars finishing polish--> meguiars show car glaze #5--> NXT wax

So any recomendations are great, other brands are fine too! But try to keep it on the cheaper side..

Thanks in advance!!
Click to expand...

For most cars, if you're working by hand and using Meguiar's,

Ultimate Compound
Ultimate Polish
Wax of your choice


As stated, much faster to do the work by machine plus much better results but you can do all your work by hand, the key is to REALLY do a GREAT job for the first step as it is the major correction step, (by hand or machine), that will determine the end-results.

See these to articles,


How to use a hand applied abrasive polish or paint cleaner by hand

Note this list item in the above article,

Mike Phillips said:
Work a small area at a time, about 8" to 10" squarish or so...
Click to expand...


Man versus Machine



:)
 
to remove swirls and scratches by hand is going to take a long while, most would go with ultimate compound, then m205 or ultimate polish,in all honesty i would live with the swirls since it is white(harder to see them) then save up for a dual action polisher, guessing you missed the good christmas deals on polishers. have to remember 98% of the work you see posted here is done by machine, and it even takes someone with a machine some time to remove swirls. and there will always be a need for a polish, just depends on the type of polish. there are abrasive polishes that remove slight paint defects while bringing up the quality of the paint, then theres pure polishes which just bring up the gloss. now glazes are around to fill in imperfections, but dont last long. most dealerships/body shops use glazes as they use a heavy cutting compound to remove sanding scratches then fill in the rotary buffer trails/swirls with a glaze instead of doing another polishing step to remove the buffer trails. i would read alot and just save up for a machine, you will be glad you did and you can potentially use the same machine for other projects.
 
Thanks guys! i will save and but a a buffer..probably the porter cable one. I own a few porter cable brand tools and they do great work! I will take my time and try to work the compound in well! thanks for the advice, im sure ill keep learning!

one more question, is it better to use just a polish, or polish then glaze?
 
freestyletrev said:
one more question, is it better to use just a polish, or polish then glaze?
Click to expand...


Great question, but it leads into an age-old issue with the "words" used to describe products.


The glaze you listed, Meguiar's #5 New Car Glaze, was for "New Cars" back in 1950 when this product came out. Back then cars were painted with acrylic lacquer or acrylic enamel, not basecoat/clearcoat paint systems.

So the name is kind of misleading. It would be good if you have a brand new car built in the 1950's and 1960's. :D

The other thing is that while M05 is a great product for the right car/paint, (I used it a lot on my first Blazer, a 1969 CST with single stage enamel paint), but for a modern clear coat it isn't going to add much that you won't already achieve using a premium quality polish.


I listed a very good combination for you in my first reply to this thread if you're doing all your work by hand.

See this article,

Word Definitions - Compounds, Polishes, Glazes, Paint Cleaners and Waxes


The above is in my article list and you can find the link in my Sig Line...


:xyxthumbs:
 
thanks mike! that helps a lot!! i might buy a cheap buffer to start out with!
 
freestyletrev said:
thanks mike! that helps a lot!! i might buy a cheap buffer to start out with!
Click to expand...

I suggest not buying a "cheap" one - you'll quickly realize it won't do what you want, and you'll end up buying a "real" one....save up and buy a PC7424, Griot's or similar...you won't regret it.
 
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