Optimum MF Correcting Pads

Yea, the problem is 1. if I peel it off while its wet, then there is also a chance that the glue could separate... and 2. if you dont dry it out by spinning it at a higher speed, you're going to fling water and product everywhere. Ive never had a problem with any other pad - the MG MF included - with spinning it at a high speed to help dry it out.
 
Also, are you suggesting that if the pad still has a small amount of moisture - that the pad will heat up more so than if it was dry? If you think about it, the pad is going to get moist regardless because the product has moisture in it - or at least the products Ive used...
 
Thank you for the details. They will help to determine if there is an issue or if this is an isolated incident. To date we've not had another breakdown in testing or from sales. Feel free to contact me about replacement or exchange for another Optimum item.
 
Cmich325i said:
...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...
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Most pad cleaners are highly concetrated APC's so that may be our culprit. We recommend machine washing with mild detergent. Because they failed shortly after the cleaning...I'd bet the mix was too strong. MF is a fabric and is much easier to clean than porous foam.

Thank you for the details. They will help to determine if there is an issue or if this is an isolated incident. To date we've not had another breakdown in testing or from sales. Feel free to contact me about replacement or exchange for another Optimum item.

opie_7afe said:
i think we found our problem, its hard to get every last bit of water out of a pad after washing it especially microfiber. i know with the hydrotech pads if you have alittle bit of water in them they heat up the pad alot more and are more prone to failure, so it would have been better to switch pads and let the one you washed dry out, or it could have been using the makita to spin dry it. as we don't use the highest speed on a makita ever to polish a car so that high amount of centrifugal force could have weakened the glue or something of that nature, wait until chris@optimum chimes in again. my guess is it was from the pad having some moisture in it or the high speed drying after washing it....i would never spin dry any pad at the highest speed i would spin dry at 1000-1500 rpm, remember the best washing machines out spin dry at 1000 rpm. when a pad is spinning at a high rpm it can stretch out and exceed its limits, give the pads another try and don't exceed manufacturers recommended rpm range for anything you do.
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Our foam is open cell while Meg's is closed cell so they should expel water better and dry faster...I'm not sure if that's an issue, but I would try and avoid full submersion as per the GG washer's instruction, use lower speeds to wash and dry, and use a mild detergent as MF cleans up easier than foam.
 
is the griots garage microfiber and foam pad cleaner safe to use for this pad? Not sure if it's the same as other pad cleaners being highly concentrated APC.
 
armorrig said:
is the griots garage microfiber and foam pad cleaner safe to use for this pad? Not sure if it's the same as other pad cleaners being highly concentrated APC.
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I haven't tested it personally, but what you would want to avoid is an APC that has the properties of an adhesive remover. I personally just toss them into the clothes washer with the same detergent I use on my clothes and I have had zero incident with beta and public released pads.

I'm also not familiar with the LC backing plate the OP used, but I have had two LC yellow flexible backing plate overheat and come apart on me in the past...so I'm not sure where to start diagnosing this issue. I can only suggest changing the plate and the detergent one at a time to see if the issue is related to the pad or the process. Because the first pad failed after cleaning and the second pad failed shortly after with no cleaning...I'm thinking the plate may be transfering too much heat to the pad. I'm sure the OP doesn't want to spend $18 on a test, but I'd love to know if the same thing would happen by keeping all things the same except using our backing plate?
 
Excellent follow up Chris :props: I never wash my pads in the middle of a detail but not everyone has this luxury which is why I'm watching threads like this, just in case I decide to do it and something bad happens I won't send Chris a pm in a panic asking wtf?. It's unfortunate for this customer but will help a lot of people in the future. So in a way some good will still be had.

@Richy, I bet you weren't expecting this much feedback in your thread huh? :D
 
CEE DOG said:
Looking forward to it Chris! I will wait

Why can't I get the 6" optimum foam rotary backing plate though? on this one I don't think I will be able to wait much longer and will purchase a competitors product as much as I would rather buy yours. Is there a reason they aren't available yet?
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Chris@Optimum said:
I was told by our supplier that the 5" was ideal for both the 5.25" and the 6.25"...I told him I ( and others ) would prefer a 6" so I'm hoping to still get them in.
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Hey Corey,

Look what I have:

90bbc2e8.jpg

23ac0ce9.jpg

We're getting a six inch after all! Whoot!
1ecd5339.jpg

This is the non-velcroed edge that allows you to get a firm grip on the pad from behind so that you minimze pulling the pad apart when removing:
440ae74f.jpg
 
Chris@Optimum said:
Hey Corey,

Look what I have:

90bbc2e8.jpg

23ac0ce9.jpg

We're getting a six inch after all! Whoot!
1ecd5339.jpg

This is the non-velcroed edge that allows you to get a firm grip on the pad from behind so that you minimze pulling the pad apart when removing:
440ae74f.jpg
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Nice to see these Chris....but when can the rest of us expect to be able to get our hands on these!
 
3" and 5" are available...6" coming very soon. These are our recommendation for our Microfiber Pads.
 
Chris@Optimum said:
Hey Corey,

Look what I have:

90bbc2e8.jpg

23ac0ce9.jpg

We're getting a six inch after all! Whoot!
1ecd5339.jpg

This is the non-velcroed edge that allows you to get a firm grip on the pad from behind so that you minimze pulling the pad apart when removing:
440ae74f.jpg
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I want a 6 inch BP. Send me one please ;)
 
The lake country does have the velcro all the way to the edge, but it is very thick so other than the friction caused by the surface contact to the paint, there is no chance that there is heat transferring from the backing plate or buffer onto the pad itself.

By the way, did you get the pads back, Chris?

The pads themselves hang off the edge about one quarter of an inch, if that much.

As far as washing the pad, you get to the point when you're buffing that if you don't wash it, your results will diminish. You could have more than one pad designated for a vehicle and I suppose this would be the best option if you continue to fluff up the fibers as you use it.

If you inspect the second unwashed pad carefully, you will see some diagnal striations as though the surface tension was higher than the foam and glue could support.
 
Yes, I got your package on 1/6. As the pictures clearly show, the adhesive is fully dissolved on one pad due most likely to the cleaning solution. The second pad has a tear along the entire edge as shown in the picture which means that it caught on a sharp edge and it is not a delamination issue by any means:
MFPadDamage.jpg

After seeing the pads, I recommend switching to our backing plate and washing in a clothes washer with regular detergent. Thank you very much for returning the pads to us for inspection. PM me for replacement or exchange info.
 
You know, if it was any other car, id probably understand, but I did not snag the pad on any corners. All the panels on this car are flat. I have three lake county pads that I also used on this same car without the slightest issue and not a single pad caught any corners even though I pushed the lake country pads farther than the microfiber.

The pad cleaner is an apc, I had some smaller bottles of pad cleaner from two other companies and they all appear to be diluted apc from what I can tell. Regardless, these solutions are specifically made for cleaning pads. I can't imagine why the mf pad had no problem with the same cleaners nor does any of the other foam pads.

The pads are advertised to be better. As far as I'm concerned, that should mean more resilient. I wouldn't consider washing the pad with a 1/10 solution of apc abuse especially since the pad needs to be washed during use if you want the best results.
 
I'm pretty excited for these. Do you recommend a certain polish/compound to use with them? The Meguiar's kit obviously comes with the DA Microfiber compound/polish.
 
Cmich325i said:
You know, if it was any other car, id probably understand, but I did not snag the pad on any corners. All the panels on this car are flat. I have three lake county pads that I also used on this same car without the slightest issue and not a single pad caught any corners even though I pushed the lake country pads farther than the microfiber.

The pad cleaner is an apc, I had some smaller bottles of pad cleaner from two other companies and they all appear to be diluted apc from what I can tell. Regardless, these solutions are specifically made for cleaning pads. I can't imagine why the mf pad had no problem with the same cleaners nor does any of the other foam pads.

The pads are advertised to be better. As far as I'm concerned, that should mean more resilient. I wouldn't consider washing the pad with a 1/10 solution of apc abuse especially since the pad needs to be washed during use if you want the best results.
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I'm very sorry that your first experience with this product was not better. The glue completely dissoved on the first one and the entire foam edge of the second being ripped looked like it hit an edge or maybe went into a seam or something along those lines. But, you were there and I wasn't. From all testing and reports, this is the only failure of it's kind and seems to be an isolated incident. Most users go on and on about the durability, so again we apologise that you had a problem. I think Dr. G said he would contact you today about a replacement or exchange for a different Optimum product...and if I can be of further assistance, just PM me.

A note on the APC: with my GG pad washer and the cleaner that came with it there was a warning about fully emersing the pads. When they demoed it at SEMA they were only wetting the front of the face. because the face is glued with MF and the material is so thin, the APC may have had much more contact with the glue than it has with your foam LC pads since the glue is on the back? Because the MF pads a thinner than foam and because they are laminated on the face as well as the back, it may be a good idea to not use the pad washer as you have been. MF fabric can easily be cleaned in the washer as we recommend so there should be no need for stronger measures. I personally just wipe the face off with a water dampened towel, run the pad brush over the face, and blow them off with compressed air between panels. All three steps only take 20-30 seconds and helps me work clean with great results (and no destroyed pads, yet).
 
TS656577 said:
I'm pretty excited for these. Do you recommend a certain polish/compound to use with them? The Meguiar's kit obviously comes with the DA Microfiber compound/polish.
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We recommend our Hyper Compound with the yellow Cutting Pad, and Hyper Polish & GPS with the white Polishing Pad. The sprays really shine with these pads and priming is a breeze. We even tweaked the formulas to make them perform better after testing them with MF. You can certainly use the pads in any combination and I intend to see what GPS and a Cutting Pad looks like real soon.

And, while we recommend the sprays, the pastes seem to do well also.
 
Chris@Optimum said:
We recommend our Hyper Compound with the yellow Cutting Pad, and Hyper Polish & GPS with the white Polishing Pad. The sprays really shine with these pads and priming is a breeze. We even tweaked the formulas to make them perform better after testing them with MF. You can certainly use the pads in any combination and I intend to see what GPS and a Cutting Pad looks like real soon.

And, while we recommend the sprays, the pastes seem to do well also.
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:iagree:

I have used the polishing pads quite a bit with Poliseal and the hyperpolish, and it worked great! I only had a sample of the hyperpolish, but I want to get some more now that I got such great results with this pad.
 
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