What would you do?

[Sick_Mustang]

I have a 12' white GT. Has been hand washed maybe 10 times, touchless wash the rest of the time. Vehicle has small scratches, hardly noticeable even up close, overall the paint is 9/10. It needs to be clayed for sure, especially the rear bumper as there is quite a bit of contamination.


I recently purchased the following.

- Porter Cable 7424xp w/ white,green,gray,red lake county pads
- Meg 205
- Wolfgang deep gloss paint sealant 3.0
- Pinnacle souveran paste wax
- pinnacle clay
- Wolfgang trim sealant
- Sonus der wonder micro fiber pads

and a few other things.



Should I dawn,clay,dawn, Meg white pad, seal, wax?

Does anyone strip after polish? Alcohol? Dawn? I have read so many different opinions and articles regarding this subject on autogeek........

 

[Merlinii]

Sounds good...I'd add a few things...

M205 may not give you enough cut to remove the scratches (try it).
and yes, after machine polishing clean your paint with Carpro Eraser.
This strips off polish residue and polishing oils after polishing the paint.

As I'm polishing I use ONR to clean off the polish and check my work.
I also use ONR for a clay lube. It makes it easy. I just buy one product.

For clay I like the Speedy Prep Sponge (FINE GRADE) for lots of reasons.

IMHO Pinnacle Souveran looks great but only last a very short time.
If you're looking for a Saturday night out or "car show" then PS is great.

For Towels I've become a Microfiber Madness convert...
Dry-Me-Crazy, BOA Super Soft Plush, Yellow Fellow 2.0 and Crazy Pile

 

[SON1C]

m205 cuts pretty well on these paints with the right pad

Sure your method is fine, I use IPA typically to remove polishing oils and residue as I go and then go straight into the LSP stage, which of course should be SON1C Wax lol

 

[SON1C]

Sounds good...I'd add a few things...

M205 may not give you enough cut to remove the scratches (try it).
and yes, after machine polishing clean your paint with Carpro Eraser.
This strips off polish residue and polishing oils after polishing the paint.

As I'm polishing I use ONR to clean off the polish and check my work.
I also use ONR for a clay lube. It makes it easy. I just buy one product.

For clay I like the Speedy Prep Sponge (FINE GRADE) for lots of reasons.

IMHO Pinnacle Souveran looks great but only last a very short time.
If you're looking for a Saturday night out or "car show" then PS is great.

For Towels I've become a Microfiber Madness convert...
Dry-Me-Crazy, BOA Super Soft Plush, Yellow Fellow 2.0 and Crazy Pile

good input onr is really versatile

Here's my recent review on ONR OP if you're interested

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7LiR1l9ZVk

 

[Sick_Mustang]

M205 has done excellent so far, I shouldn't have used the word scratches. They are more of a very light fine swirl. I have removed 99.9 percent of the imperfections. However there are a few spots here and there.

Should I use a more aggressive pad with 205? Or just keep on with the white pad and maybe some 101? Least aggressive would be 205 with a more abrasive pad, correct? I have a feeling that will do the trick on the few stubborn spots.

Here are my results so far, 205 only no wax or sealant yet;

Garage reflection on 1/4 panel:

 

[Merlinii]

Nice work. It's coming out great!

Swirls, although they look circular, are actually fine straight scratches that refracts light circularly.

A word of caution...Do yourself a favor...don't chase Random Independent Deep Scratches (RIDS).
Your OEM factory clear coat is very thin. It's thinner than the wrapper on a pack of cigarettes.

You could try an LC orange pad with M205 or you may wish to give Megs Ultimate Compound a try.
Megs UC can be purchased at Wally-Mart or your local auto-parts store. It's more bite than M205.

 

[Merlinii]

I'd suggest removing the handle on the PC. This allows you to cup your hand over the black cap and gives you a better feel and greater control.
This mod (for me) requires a trip to your local Ace hardware to purchase a replacement screw to keep the top cover attached to the machine.

_____________

Merlin

 

[Sick_Mustang]

Thanks. I'll give that a shot.

Haha I took the handle off, after the first couple passes it's got very annoying.

 

[Merlinii]

Thanks. I'll give that a shot.

Haha I took the handle off, after the first couple passes it's got very annoying.

You'll be glad you did...If you don't put a screw in it, it'll go from very annoying to VERY surprising!

 

[Electrokid]

I believe that is only with an older gen of PC's Merlinii. I never installed my handle, and my top cap has never come off after a couple hundred hours of use.

White paint is looking great! Like you said, just use a more aggressive pad with the 205 for a little more cut.

 

[spitin venom]

Looks great so far. I just did my GT500 and used a LC orange pad and 205. I had a bunch of swirls on the paint as well but they were not bad enough to step up to 105. I always go with the least abrasive combo that will get the job done.

 

[Merlinii]

KBM - Kevin Brown Method
Removing Paint Defects via Meguiar's® M205 Ultra Finishing Polish


Alternative Polishing Procedures - Thought you'de like this. (M205)

 

[Sick_Mustang]

This heat has been ridiculous! I caught sunburn in my garage lmfao.

Anyways, I absolutely hate this Wolfgang deep gloss 3.0, well sort of. Application is ehhh, removal is a pain, although I will admit I put it on heavy in some areas because I thought I was putting it on too light. Results are amazing, I wonder how long it will last.

Here is only sealant applied. Please excuse my IPhone camera. Lol

Wax next. What do you guys like as far as a durable glossy wax?

I also would like to try a new sealant next time. Any suggestions? Someone was telling me about opti something, I forget the name.

 

[Sick_Mustang]

KBM - Kevin Brown Method
Removing Paint Defects via Meguiar's® M205 Ultra Finishing Polish


Alternative Polishing Procedures - Thought you'de like this. (M205)

Thanks for the link. I skimmed through it on my phone, seems very informative. I will read it all when I get a chance on y
Computer.

 

[Merlinii]

There are a few articles

Pad Priming and Supplemental Wetting Agents
A Common Sense Approach to Efficient Paint Polishing

and

The Random Orbital
Machine Stroke - How It Affects Sanding and Polishing Performance

They are all excellent

 

[Merlinii]

Wax next. What do you guys like as far as a durable glossy wax?

I also would like to try a new sealant next time. Any suggestions? Someone was telling me about opti something, I forget the name.

That would be Opti-Coat or possibly CQuartz or CQuartz UK. These are pərmənənt or semi-pərmənənt coatings.
I like to play, and a "coating" pretty much brings the Wax on/Wax off (WOWO) to a halt until itis removed.
IMHO Top coat waxes give you a "look". For white and light colors I prefer something bright and shiny.
There are a few products that come to mind. For a sealant I like Zaino Z-2 with the ZFX Accelerator.
For a wax I like Collinite 845. It is bright and shiny and (if applied thin) fairly easy to apply & remove.
I recently tried Sonus ION Coating. I think of it like a very durable sealant. VERY easy on/Easy Off.
Sonus ION Paint Coating has a very distinct clear, crisp, bright and glossy "wet-looking" shine.

 

[Sick_Mustang]

^ thanks for the info.


Well I laid on the Souveran. Not really impressed. The wgdgp left the car very shiny with a very SOFT slick feel, I can't even explain really how it felt if I had to choose a word "phenomenal". The Souveran left the car about as glossy, not very slick or soft feeling though. Either way they are about even "looks wise". Maybe on a different color I would have seen the difference as I believe white doesn't allow you to see it.


Overall the car looks amazing. There are a few RIDs that are on my last nerve, left them alone for now. Only I would see them because I have OCD over stuff like that, and they are hardly noticeable with a microscope LOL.

I am going to try and have a buddy take professional pictures.


My old lady's mom wants me to do her Nissan Versa, 2007 20k miles and looks well, rough LOL. DD that sits out doors and ran through a carwash one a year.

I was thinking of XMT 360 all in one, as I believe that will do a great job for what she wants to pay me. I don't think an all out correction would be worth my time. Input?

 

[hoamskilet]

If that's how she's going to maintain the vehicle I wouldn't do much more than that either, unless she wants to pay you well....then I'd do whatever she wanted

 

[Sick_Mustang]

iPhone shot, poor quality/lighting.

 

[Merlinii]

Well I laid on the Souveran. Not really impressed. The wgdgp left the car very shiny with a very SOFT slick feel, I can't even explain really how it felt if I had to choose a word "phenomenal". The Souveran left the car about as glossy, not very slick or soft feeling though. Either way they are about even "looks wise". Maybe on a different color I would have seen the difference as I believe white doesn't allow you to see it.

You're right...white is not the best color for Souveran.

For white I like a bright and shiny sparkle! That's not PS.

IMHO PS "looks" best on dark colors and especially black.