NeilScarrott Posted September 17, 2005 Report Share Posted September 17, 2005 Summary Ok used my PC for the very first time today, the weather was just perfect, a bit chilly bit a gorgeous day. I thought i'd start out on a small area and get used to my new toy so I decided to have a go on the rear bumper of my 3 year old Audi A4. I got the car a few months ago and the condition is very good, it has some light swirling which seems to suggest it spent it's early years in a car wash (my next task!). It also had some, what I would describe as 'clouding' in the paint of the rear bumper plus some small scratches which I can't remove with the PC. The pictures show before and after, my photography skills aren't great, but I think you can see the clouding in the first few photos (lower part of bumper). All in all I was very pleased with the result, the clouding was removed and I can see a big improvement. Products I used PB SSR 2.5 on SFX1 Yellow spot pad PB SSR 1 on SFX2 White spot pad Clearkote RMG on SFX3 Blue spot pad PB EX-P on SFX3 Blue spot pad Collinite Marque D'Elegance on LC Black Finishing spot pad My Experience I found the clouding wouldn't budge unless I switched to the Yellow spot pad after trying SSR 2.5 with the white spot pad, I had to go right up to speed 6 with several passes to get a good result. I think this caused some slight micro marring on the paintwork, very tiny small scratches, is this typical? I am not sure I totally eliminated this, but I thought I would try SSR 2.5 on a slower speed and follow up with SSR 1, does anybody else have any advice/tips? I wasn't too sure on how much product to apply, I generally went with four pea sized amounts of products on the pads, after a few iterations I found the pads starting to cake so let off on the application of product, any tips on how much to apply? I wasn't particularly sure about application of RMG, EX-P and Collinite wax, what speed works best? I went down to speed 4 with light pressure on the pad, is this the way to go? I found application of wax a bit tricky in terms of judging how much to apply to the pad, being used to hand application I found I could clearly see where the wax was. However the PC applies it so thinly I'm no longer sure. Before the pics, just to thank everybody for the help in getting this far! Pics Before, Hazing in the lower part of the bumper (not as clear as I would have liked, poor photography!) And now the after shots!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danksy Posted September 17, 2005 Report Share Posted September 17, 2005 I can't tell the difference the car looks great in both pics By the way when you talk about using a PC, what is it, some type of polisher I guess? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brazo Posted September 17, 2005 Report Share Posted September 17, 2005 My Experience I found the clouding wouldn't budge unless I switched to the Yellow spot pad after trying SSR 2.5 with the white spot pad, I had to go right up to speed 6 with several passes to get a good result. Good pad and polish choice. Personally I tend to find speed 5 allows you to work the product for longer w/o gumming up the pad. I think this caused some slight micro marring on the paintwork, very tiny small scratches, is this typical? Yes especially on darker colour cars, you would need to follow up with say ssr1 - just like you did ;-) I am not sure I totally eliminated this, but I thought I would try SSR 2.5 on a slower speed and follow up with SSR 1, does anybody else have any advice/tips? You could try the ssr2.5 on a white polishing pad or a lighter polish - again as you did! I wasn't too sure on how much product to apply, I generally went with four pea sized amounts of products on the pads, after a few iterations I found the pads starting to cake so let off on the application of product, any tips on how much to apply? With the pb range I find that more is better, the residue is extremly easy to remove I wasn't particularly sure about application of RMG, EX-P and Collinite wax, what speed works best? I went down to speed 4 with light pressure on the pad, is this the way to go? Yes apply RMG at speed 3-4, remember you are 'applying'/Glazing rtaher than polishing so multi passes/high speeds not required. Also with waxes I would 'max' out at speed 3, again you are applying rather than polishing with them. Too fast a speed and the wax will start to have a very slight cleaning action which may remove some/all of the RMG. I found application of wax a bit tricky in terms of judging how much to apply to the pad, being used to hand application I found I could clearly see where the wax was. However the PC applies it so thinly I'm no longer sure. Sounds like you were applying the wax too thickly!! Seriously though that sounds right. Bearing in mind the layer of wax is so thin, like half a gnats cok if you can see it then you are wasting some in its removal. The pc is an easy tool to pick up and use but as far as swirl removal goes it takes some practice. However it sounds like your 99% their! Great pics BTW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rustynuts Posted September 18, 2005 Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 [ QUOTE ] By the way when you talk about using a PC, what is it, some type of polisher I guess? [/ QUOTE ] Porter Cable. Link. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danksy Posted September 18, 2005 Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 ahhh all is clear Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeilScarrott Posted September 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 Thanks! That is seriously good advice, got a few days off soon, going to go over the entire car to remove the swirls. The pics don't show up an awful lot i'm afraid, when I go about removing the swirls I will be able to post some far better pics, but the cloudiness is quite difficult to photograph! If you look closely on the second before pic, you can notice some cloudiness. One thing I found very alarming when using the yellow pad with SSR2.5 was on a small section when it got pretty hot the paint went opaque, almost in an instant, I immediately stopped thinking I'd burnt the paint, after some buffing it all came out to reveal clear paintwork. Perhaps a stage too far with the PC? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brazo Posted September 18, 2005 Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 A stage too far? I seriously doubt it, especially if it came off fine. I wrote this for the megs forum it may help I know of a lot of new guys here who have a pc and others on various sites who have bought a pc but are struggling to get the best from it so I thought I would share some tips as I'm at a loose end today Firstly there is only so much that a pc can do. It is not a miracle tool but it is the next best thing. On VAG cars your job will be a lot tougher but not impossible. On cars that have cerimaclear (sp) paint some recent audi's and ferraris I personally wouldn't go there. As a very general rule of thumb I have found french (citreon and renault) relativly easy to deal with, Japanese (honda/Toyota) very easy to deal with and german (BMW/AUDI) a lot harder to deal with. What you will need asides from a porter cable polisher A good mixture of pads. I personally prefer the lake country 6.5 inch variable contact pads. IMO these are streets ahead of the sonus das ones as they are very hard to bog down even when a lot of pressure is applied to the pc head. A set of 4 inch pads. These give the pc a new strengh and again I prefer the lake country pads. All available from www.cleanandshiney.co.uk and www.pakshak.com A good set of polishes is also required from the meguiars range #83 and #80 and from the poorboys range the complete SSR line including for heavy swirls ssr3. First up wash and clay the car and then evaluate the paint surface. Try and get a lighting stand these are 15 quid from screwfix direct and they really show up paint defects. I cannot stress how much of a good purchase this stand is especially when its overcast and you can't see swirls in day light. Once the car is ready to polish start by masking off the plastic trim or apply a trim detailer to it which will make any over polish wipe off quite easily. BTW you can't apply trim detailer and then masking tape it doesn't stick I know this is boring but 10 mins taken out now will save you 30 minutes of hard rubbing at the end :shock: Using a low adhesive masking tape tape of a small section of the bonnet say 1 foot square. Use this as yolur test pice. Swirls always show worst on horizontal surfaces so if you can get it right here then you know you will be fine for the rest of the paintwork. Start off with a mild polish (#80 or #82 or ssr 1) and a polishing pad on the pc. Lightly spray the pad with a quick detailer and then apply a ring of product and place buffer on paintwork and smudge around before working the product in for 20 seconds on speed 1. Next step up the speed to 5 aand a light arm pressure, very slowly polish the test piece using the pc and doing the overlapping stroke thing. Your arm speed should be nice and slow. Remove polish with a m/f cloth. Some megs polishes can be harder to remove than the ssr line but by spraying the m/f cloth lightly with quick detailer the process can be facilitated. Next up inspect your work under your newly purchased lighting stand! Any swirls left? If so you may wish to try another 'pass' with the pc or step up to a more agressive combination. FOR REALLY TOUGH SWIRLS <ul type="square">Use a very slow arm speed about an inch a second. Use a lake country yellow cutting pad - these are very good. Use the 4 inch pad set as these generate more heat. Do multiple passes. Apply enough pressure to bog the pc down and then lift slightly until the pad starts to spin - this is the optimum method I have found. Speed 6 isn't always best as this drys the polish out faster. You need maximum work time (polish hang time) for best swirl removal. Try ssr 3 this is very abrasive and should be used with care. Always follow up with a lighter polish as this will haze the paint. I have found that ssr2.5 and #83 will haze on black or dark colours and will need to be followed up with a lighter polish. On lighter colours you can get away w/o a lighter polish. If the above will not remove swirls or paint defects then its time for a rotary I'm afraid! Inspecting for swirls with the screwfix light stand Note the image of the light is better in left side than right Close up of light in red paint confirms its swirl free Left hand side of bonnet polished with mequirs #83 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnnyopolis Posted September 18, 2005 Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 Great Article Brazo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brazo Posted September 18, 2005 Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 Whilst I slate the das pads these are actually very good when used with a rotary! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeilScarrott Posted September 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2005 Very good article Brazo That lighting rig looks good, shall investigate! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runflat Posted September 21, 2005 Report Share Posted September 21, 2005 nice info guys ta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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