Swirl removal

[thebluewhale]

I have a question for the detailing gods out there.

I'm happy with the finish I'm getting on the car. From a distance it looks fantastic.
The problem I have is swirl removal and paint correction. I'm fairly new to detailing and only have a limited arsenal of products.

Which pads and products do you use for light swirl removal?

I detailed what I've used in the other thread but I could do with a more aggresive cutting compound (or more guidance)?

Help

[Dezzy]

I've been playing around my 8 paint and have used Poorboys SSR3 for bigger marks / scratches, it's quite a heavy cut so need to be careful on edges and bulges.

I've gone over the top of that with Megs swerl remover witch i found really good, it's really workable on cool paint.

I've not tried SSR2 or 2.5

Pads i bought were also Meg's, cutting pad, polishing pad and finishing pads. Found the cutting pad a touch hard and used the polishing pad fine for removing the swerls.

Give Gareth a call @ perfectly cleaned.

[thebluewhale]

Thanks Dezzy,

I'll try some SSR3 and a polishing pad and work up from there.

Anyone else have any recommendations?

[The_Laird]

Wait for John (47p2) to come along. He's a detailing guru!

[47p2]

Originally Posted by The_Laird

Wait for John (47p2) to come along. He's a detailing guru!

If only I was that good I would be earning my fortune doing it for a living.


The best thing you can do is practise, practise and practise some more, go to a scrap yard and buy an old bonnet to practise on

You need to start by using a claybar to remove and contaminant on the paintwork, if you don't the contaminant will be picked up by the pad and dragged over the paint marking it worse than what it was before you started.

Course cut compound for scratches and marks, then move to a fine cut compound to remove the coarse cut marks, this will leave a hologram effect. Use a good quality polish to remove the fine cut marks making sure the pad is square onto the paintwork and not running too fast, work the polish well in a small section at a time, make sure you don't keep the pad in the same spot and cause too much heat build-up or you will burn the lacquer. Use the back of your hand to feel the temperature and if it is getting too warm move to the next section and go back once it has cooled off.

Once you have achieved the finish you are happy with you need to give the paintwork two coats of wax, first coat covers 90% and your second coat will hopefully cover the bits you missed first time around.

As for the makes of compounds, polishes and wax, I find it is a personal preference and what I like others don't, buy a small bottle of what you would like to try, then if it works for you then buy a larger bottle next time.

3M do some great compounds and polishes, Chemical Guys do some terrific wax, as mentioned earlier in the thread Megs is ok, heard good reports on Poorboys but not tried it. Collinite wax gets great reviews and I will try some soon.

Hope this is of some help to you.

[David's8]

This guide (all 55 pages) must be the definitive guide to detailing. But pages 7/8 give a guide to what compounds/polishes are out there and what you might need.

[thebluewhale]

Brilliant, Thanks for that.

I've read Dave's detailing sticky but that document is very detailed. It gives me a place to start.

I'll try some Poorboys SSR 2.5, a Megs #84 and a Poorboys SSR2 or Sonus SFX 2 with more various pads.

I might even find a panel to practise on.