What did I do wrong

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joeyp3021

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I just finished claying my car and didn't have time to break out the polisher but wanted to do a test spot by hand with M205. Now all it did was put way more swirls in the paint and looks like it stained it also. What did I screw up?
 
Did you apply some IPA mix to wipe it off? How much pressure did you use? Lots of variables.
 
I used a cloth applicator pad from autozone that I had left over and really didn't use much pressure at all. It was the first time using the polish and just was curious to see what it would do by hand since I'm planning on using my porter cable for the first time this weekend..now I'm really nervous about screwing up my paint if I use the polish and polisher
 
Is there something wrong with my paint..it's a 95 mustang that I bought in 97 with original paint except on the hood and bumpers..i have hand waxed and washed the car since I bought it and has also never seen rain and is always garaged..I have the pc7424xp and have bought a ton of different pads..is there any combination I should try that will get me the results I have been seeing on this forum for months
 
I have been trying to post a picture but it won't let me do it..should I give the spot another shot with the polisher and see what happens
 
I can try to describe what I'm seeing. First the car is black and does have swirls and some scratching even though I tried my hardest to take care of it. After applying the polish there seems to be even more swirls and hairline scratches
 
a cloth applicator like that with a polish will easily scratch your paint, based on my experience with my car. I cant do anything by hand, as it will only make make my car worse. Seems to me like yours is the same. Is it single stage paint?
 
I would guess 1 of 2 things.
1. Cloth used to apply the polish. Even mf towel can be agressive when you apply pressure.
2. It was already there. Don't know when was the last time you clayed, but it is possible that the recent clay session exposed swirls and scratches that were covered by contaminants.
 
I'm pretty sure 95 mustangs were basecoat clearcoat unless I'm completely wrong..I have used the same products and applicators for the last 5 years and have gotten what I thought were great results till I saw what people on here were achieving so I decided to step up and purchase a polisher and some new products but now I'm wondering if I made a mistake and should have just kept with my old ways
 
There were some swirls after claying but nothing like this and anything I try its getting worse. If anyone can help me get a picture up from my iPhone u can see what I mean
 
M205 doesn't have much cut. I used to have a 97 black mustang myself and vaguely remember it being on the soft side but even at that i doubt m205 alone could have damage the paint. Even m105 would leaving behind marring but not scratches and swirls.

Was the applicator mf or terry towel material?
 
Ok. So hand application of M205.

How where you hold the applicator in you hand?

Did you use your entire four finger for support or did you happen to use your finger tips and apply too much pressure? That can surely cause marring and swirls.
 
It was a terry cloth pad and I did use my finger tips and I would say between light and medium pressure..I wasn't trying to correct anything I was just seeing if I would get any kind of results by hand..I do have a porter cable and all kinds of pads if u guys can give me some suggestions on what to try. I do have a pic but it won't load it..
 
OK here are some photos to best explain what is the proper way to hold the pad.




Now the improper way:




The improper way will induce too much finger point pressure and possible finger marks in the paint.

This is from Mike Phillips when he was over at MOL. Im sure he won't mind!

Finger Marks are a type of scratch pattern imprinted into the paint by your fingertips, (pressure points), at the stop and start points when you're applying too aggressive of a product by hand.

An example would be if you're using an abrasive product like an old-fashioned rubbing compound and rubbing it back and forth on your car's paint. At the end of your stroke, for a brief moment your fingers stop as you change direction of your hand to go the other direction.

It is at these stop points that your finger pressure, together with the product and the applicator, will leave Finger Marks in the paint.

You can also get Finger Marks rubbing in circles by hand with too aggressive of a product on clear coat paints. The direction you move your hand doesn't matter its when you pause or stop your hand and for a brief moment the pressure and abrasives imprint the marks into the paint.


These are extreme Finger Marks
FingerMarks5.jpg
Click to expand...
 
Maybe that's what I did. What's your suggestion on how to fix this if it can be. I do have a polisher and all the different pads I'm just very new at using it. Evan would u mind if I emailed you the picture since I can't post it. Just so u can look at what happen
 
joeyp3021 said:
Maybe that's what I did. What's your suggestion on how to fix this if it can be. I do have a polisher and all the different pads I'm just very new at using it. Evan would u mind if I emailed you the picture since I can't post it. Just so u can look at what happen
Click to expand...

Yea ill pm you
 
joeyp3021 said:
I'm pretty sure 95 mustangs were basecoat clearcoat unless I'm completely wrong..I have used the same products and applicators for the last 5 years and have gotten what I thought were great results till I saw what people on here were achieving so I decided to step up and purchase a polisher and some new products but now I'm wondering if I made a mistake and should have just kept with my old ways
Click to expand...

The "ways" taught here are the right ways to achieve the best results. Just look at all the 50/50 shots posted here. If we can do it, you can do it to. But polishing anything by hand where you can fit a machine is a mistake IMO. Polishing by hand is more skill, but by machine its more technique.

Don't question what you learned here because you tried polishing a car by hand with an Autozone applicator, because I'm pretty sure you didn't learn THAT here. Nobody is polishing anything here by hand, and if you have to do it due to access, you can only use highest quality materials to polish with.

joeyp3021 said:
I just finished claying my car and didn't have time to break out the polisher but wanted to do a test spot by hand with M205. Now all it did was put way more swirls in the paint and looks like it stained it also. What did I screw up?
Click to expand...

1. Any cloth product from Autozone is garbage.

2. Effectively polishing by hand is hit or miss at best, even with the best cloth. Foam is usually a better material to hand polish with in my experience. If the microfiber contact area is not 100% saturated / lubricated with polish on the paint contact surface, your going to inflict "towel marks" into the paint. Polish wont scratch paint, but a MF applicator can.

3. I've never used M205, so I'm not sure of the learning curve, but many have reported M105 can require some patience or learning. Machine polishing puts down uniform pressure consistently over the area being worked, so you can achieve much better results than working by hand.

Polishing by hand is a learned skill, there area my factors where it can go wrong and inflict damage. Machine polishing requires proper technique, but you have much less of a chance inflicting damage or "making it worse" when using a machine due to the fact the downward pressure is equalized and the pad is moving in a consistent motion. Foam pads also are easier to use than microfiber pads for a new user, and have less of a "screw up" factor.
 
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