[KaiserCO]

OKay so my order from detailed image came in today but unfortunately I only had time to wash the car then clay/polish the hood. But during the polishing process many questions came to mind that had not been addressed in the DIY guides I've read so here they are!

1. How much polish do you use in order to do your whole car(3 series or similar size) It seemed like I would put the polish on, spread it then after two passes with the polisher almost all of the polish was simply gone.

2. I have orange, white, blue and black pads from detailed image along with Menzerna final polish II and intensive polish. What combination/sequence of pads/polishes do you suggest for taking out some pretty good swirls without having to polish the whole car 15 times? (I'll have pictures later to show exactly how bad the swirls are if that helps)

3. How do you get the dried polish off without making more swirls? Once I'm done polishing a section and try and wipe off the dried polish it hardly takes anything off unless I really press hard which I know probably isn't good. The only thing I've come up with that works is a little quick detailer to loosen up the polish but at this rate I'm gonna need a few bottles of the stuff to finish just my car.


4. I noticed in some pictures and videos of other people detailing cars that lots of times people tape lots of edges and stuff on the car and I can't for the life of me figure out what the purpose of this is, It seems like this would just leave an area on the outside of each panel that still has swirls. Anyone care to explain?

Thanks again for all help, Pics on the way!

Kaiser

[tintivilus]

First off, tape anything that's not supposed to be shiny -- like your matte trim. Also tape off anything you don't want to clean polish residue out of.

You probably won't need the blue or black pads unless you *really* don't want to apply sealant by hand for some reason.

If the polish residue doesn't just wipe right off, then you're not breaking it down. The polish should be chalky/dusty when you move on; just wipe it off with a cloth. Some alcohol+H20 will help with the stubborn bits before you apply sealant.

[picus]

Originally Posted by KaiserCO

OKay so my order from detailed image came in today but unfortunately I only had time to wash the car then clay/polish the hood. But during the polishing process many questions came to mind that had not been addressed in the DIY guides I've read so here they are!

1. How much polish do you use in order to do your whole car(3 series or similar size) It seemed like I would put the polish on, spread it then after two passes with the polisher almost all of the polish was simply gone.

2. I have orange, white, blue and black pads from detailed image along with Menzerna final polish II and intensive polish. What combination/sequence of pads/polishes do you suggest for taking out some pretty good swirls without having to polish the whole car 15 times? (I'll have pictures later to show exactly how bad the swirls are if that helps)

3. How do you get the dried polish off without making more swirls? Once I'm done polishing a section and try and wipe off the dried polish it hardly takes anything off unless I really press hard which I know probably isn't good. The only thing I've come up with that works is a little quick detailer to loosen up the polish but at this rate I'm gonna need a few bottles of the stuff to finish just my car.


4. I noticed in some pictures and videos of other people detailing cars that lots of times people tape lots of edges and stuff on the car and I can't for the life of me figure out what the purpose of this is, It seems like this would just leave an area on the outside of each panel that still has swirls. Anyone care to explain?

Thanks again for all help, Pics on the way!

Kaiser

1) Which polish? With IP put on a couple dabs the size of quarters for the first pass, then after that go to nickel sized dabs. Remember, your pad will bog down after a few panels, so either wash it or grab another.

2) Sounds like it'll likely go IP/orange, IP/white, FPII/white or black. You MAY be able to go IP/orange to FPII/white and finish clean, but I doubt it.

3) it shouldn't get that dry. Either you're using a bogged pad or you're working it way too long. IP and FPII should wipe off easily. Hit youtube and watch some PC how to videos; in most cases max work time is 30-45 seconds or so, if that.

4) Tape is to keep the pad from hitting areas that will stain, like your mirror bases. Either that or to keep dust out of crevices. I wash when I'm done polishing so I don't worry about dust, but I do tape mouldings.

[KaiserCO]

Based on your responses seems like this video is a terrible example to follow?(Although it's not what I followed anyway) It says work each section for several minutes.

[haper]

you already have some good replies, but i'll add mine also:

Originally Posted by KaiserCO

1. How much polish do you use in order to do your whole car(3 series or similar size) It seemed like I would put the polish on, spread it then after two passes with the polisher almost all of the polish was simply gone.

you should only need three pea size drops of polish for each 12 x 12 inch section. to get better correction work a smaller section, but don't go larger then 12 x 12.

Originally Posted by KaiserCO

2. I have orange, white, blue and black pads from detailed image along with Menzerna final polish II and intensive polish. What combination/sequence of pads/polishes do you suggest for taking out some pretty good swirls without having to polish the whole car 15 times? (I'll have pictures later to show exactly how bad the swirls are if that helps)

as already mentioned, you'll probably want to use IP w/ orange then follow it w/ FPII w/ white. remember that orange and white are polishing pads used for correction. the blue and black pads are finishing pads for wax / sealants. some ppl use FPII w/ a black pad when they aren't looking for any correction but looking to get the extra bit of gloss.

if you have medium to bad swirling there is a chance your most aggressive combination (IP w/ orange) is not aggressive enough to do the job. you might have to step up to SIP w/ orange or even SIP w/ yellow. b4 doing the entire car you're better off running a few tests on a small section w/ different polishes and pads - also using different techniques. if you don't see the results you want from IP w/ orange then get yourself some SIP.

w/r/t technique, work 12 x 12 or 8 x 8 sections, more 1 inch per second overlapping passes by 50%. it usually takes 3 - 5 mins for the polish to break down using this method.

what pad size are you using and what machine? the PC has trouble w/ the larger 6.5 inch pads. you'll get better correction w/ the 5.5 inch pads or even 4 inch pads.

Originally Posted by KaiserCO

3. How do you get the dried polish off without making more swirls? Once I'm done polishing a section and try and wipe off the dried polish it hardly takes anything off unless I really press hard which I know probably isn't good. The only thing I've come up with that works is a little quick detailer to loosen up the polish but at this rate I'm gonna need a few bottles of the stuff to finish just my car.

this really shouldn't be happening and it sounds like you are not working the polish enough for it to break down. continue until the polish is almost translucent, as if it isn't there anymore. then wiping it off isn't a problem.