Ok,
As far as prepping the car - the car was clay barred with ziano prior to drying and taping up.
I started buffing it with 1500 and a brand new Optimum MF pad. There was very little correction that needed to be done. The reason I started with this step is because the car has already been cut with a wool pad before the car came in so thats why I chose to start with the mf polishing pad.
I used the makita buffer with LC-43-125WH Rotary 4 ¾ inch Flexible Backing Plate
I can show pics of the car, there really are no sharp corners that you have to dig into - I didn't have any problem with any of the thick foam pads I was using snagging any corners. Its almost like polishing a huge box. I had to paint the trim along the top of the car so I steered clear of the trim seeing as how I didnt want to have to re-do it.
The roof is where the pad came apart on the flat edge of the passengers side rear. I was not digging the pad into the ridges running down the roof of the car. On the drivers side (which I managed to finish before the pad failed) I passed right over the ridges without even hitting them with the mf pad bc I planned on getting them on the next step with the flex and the thicker lake country foam pad.
I did not have any problems with snagging the pad. I was fluffing it with the air hose every time I finished a small section. What I noticed is - If i wasn't constantly fluffing the pad, it was very hard to control the buffer.
Otherwise, as far as cleaning the pad - I spritzed it with a pad cleaner and used a small brush (bought from autogeek - a vinyl/leather brush with short bristles) to lightly agitate the fibers before I washed it in the grit guard pad washer. I washed it for about 25-30 seconds on slow speed and I did put a little pressure on the edges because after buffing for a while, it seemed as though the fibers would get matted together with a mixture of caramelized polish residue and perhaps whatever small amount of clear was being removed by the buffing process. I resorted to washing the pad because the build-up had gotten to the point where fluffing the pad was just not giving me enough time to finish a small section.
I did not peel the first pad off the backing plate until it failed. I know that this can be a problem if you are constantly putting the pad on and taking it off, but this was not the case.
The pad failed shortly after it was washed - within 2 sections. I washed it with a foam pad cleaner - the same one Ive been using for years on all my foam pads and never had a problem with. In fact I washed the MG MF pad with the same product and much more often (the maroon cutting disk).
After I washed the pad, I spun it dry first inside the pad washer by lifting it up off the washing grate. Then I took it out and ran it up to the highest speed on the makita, and then I felt it with my hand to make sure it was fairly dry to the touch and then I fluffed it up with the high compressed air.
Its not my first time buffing a car - Ive been buffing cars for a few months shy of 20 years.
