Some "how to"s; how to use #83, the Menzernas, and how to make the PC do rotary work

[Mosca]

I had an opportunity to help a pal today. Lee, a good guy (hi Lee!) asked me to stop over some day and show him some things about correcting paint defects; he has been considering a PC, but doesn't want to drop the $$ if it doesn't do what everyone says (ie, live up to the hype is a good way to put it, and I mean that honestly).

The subject car is a 2001 Miata in British racing green, a non-metallic clearcoated paint that is really a beautiful color. It has about 35k on the clock, and is garage kept and covered & stored in the winter.

Upon inspection, the car was in pretty good condition. The only problem that needed correction was swirl, "dart", and spiderweb build up.

We started with a thorough claying; the car was clean and the clay picked up very little residual debris. Because of the good condition I decided to leave the cutting pads in the bag.

I'll use a spot on the door as the illustration for this article. I tried to take the pictures from the same angle; a couple times I missed, but overall I think it's accurate enough. Here is the spot to start:



We started with the Meguiar's yellow pad and #83. DACP (as it's commonly called) is the workhorse of my cabinet, the Jerome Bettis. It is a very simple product, a diminishing abrasive, but it has a couple quirks that make it a real PITA if you don't avoid them.

The most common mistake with a wax is that the user uses too much; the reverse is true with a polish. A common mistake with DACP is using too little, or working too large an area (which works out to the same thing). Put a nice sized star of product on the pad, or a nice spiral. Spread it arond, and use speed 4. When you start, it should be about this thick:




Do your side/side, up/down, and diags, until it looks like this:




You'll notice it's gone a little translucent, but it isn't dry yet; that's when you want to remove it. The SECOND most common mistake with DACP is working it too long, until it's dry; then it dusts and the pad itself has no lubrication and will start to mar the paint. The easiest way to remove it is to make LARGE swipes over the entire area, and then mop up the leftover with a second towel. When the first towel gets too damp, toss it in the cleanup pile. As the second towel gets damp with product, promote it to large swipes and start a fresh dry towel for the mop up.

Because a PC is not a rotary, you might need to go over the area more than once. Don't be disgusted. You are trading time and labor for safety, the knowledge that you won't harm the paint. This is the area after two passes with DACP:

[Mosca]

Notice that the major marring is gone, but it's replaced with minor marring, a "fogging". So here we got out two different products: Menzerna Intensive Polish and #80 Speed Glaze. I used a CMA finger pad with the IP, and Lee used a green polishing pad from Excel (hi Patrick!) and the #80. In my opinion, these two products (IP and #80, and the two pads) are essentially equal in polishing ability and action; we used them the same way, and the same way that we used the DACP.

Product to pad:



Product on paint:



Product ready to remove:



After IP (the striations behind the handle are a reflection, not a flaw; compare it to the first picture, they are at a different depth):




We then proceeded to the Menzerna Final Polish. I still have some original FP, so if it's changed, sorry. I love this stuff, though. I call it "beauty mud". I'm sorry I forgot to take pictures of the FP. This one is harder to watch go translucent because it's already that purple/gray color. Work it until it looks to be the consistency of vaseline, and wipe it off as quick as you can. Don't let FP dry, ever. If it does, spray it with a little qd, or water, or water/IPA... but once you get the hang of it, you won't need to.

The reason I love FP is because it has NEVER failed to make my eyes pop out when I use it. After FP:



I got the angle wrong on that picture. The reflected striations are on the handle, you can barely see them. The halogens are out of focus because that's the rear view mirror there.

We finished up with #81. The Meg's glazes are "wipeon/wipeoff", using the same 2 towel method. There's no need to work them beyoud application, and they won't dry; instead they "skin" like pudding. I use big swipes with a soft terry, like a koala towel, then mop up the rest with a mf.

Here are the obligatory reflection shots; one halogen, one flourescent (you can see the striations from the garage insulation better here):






I hope this helps,


Tom

[JDookie]

Tom,

Extremely good writeup. This will help a lot of members tremendously. Thank you!

[Mosca]

By breaking the job into stages, and the products and pads into their different "brackets" of ability, I believe that you can successfully mimic a rotary's job with the PC. Your trade is time. Instead of going around the car in half an hour or an hour, this took about 3.5 hours total, with two people working on a small car. It's your call, of course, whether or not you want to do this. If I were working for money, I wouldn't do it this way, and if I were to do my own car again (it will never need this again though) I'd use the rotary. But, if all you have is a PC and some #83 and #80, you too can get these results.

Tom

[JDookie]

This is the first time I've ever heard anyone of using a finger pad. How do you like it compared to a regular foam pad? Pros, Cons?

[liquidtiger720]

Wow. thanks. Now i know exactly how much product to use and when to stop. I think ive been using a little bit toom much =)

THANK YOU!!

[Mosca]

My experience is that it's not any better or any worse, at all. I wouldn't spring the extra $$ for it again. It's a good pad, but the results are no better. And it's a PITA to clean.


Tom

[JDookie]

Originally posted by Mosca
My experience is that it's not any better or any worse, at all. I wouldn't spring the extra $$ for it again. It's a good pad, but the results are no better. And it's a PITA to clean.


Tom

That's kind of what I was thinking, plus the fact that it's fingered I would think that you wouldn't get the same *bite* as with a regular foam pad, thus making your work even that much longer. Good results, nonetheless. I was just curious. Thanks!

[JBM]

Hmm, nice write up, very helpfull thank you

You ever prime the pad with water or QD ?

[Mosca]

Originally posted by liquidtiger720
Wow. thanks. Now i know exactly how much product to use and when to stop. I think ive been using a little bit toom much =)

THANK YOU!!

Better too much than too little; the amount on that pad is for half a Miata door, or a quarter of a hood, about 3-4 square feet. That's small. The "when to stop" part is important. If you use too little, your product will go translucent before it's done enough work (because it's trying to cover too large an area). If you use too much, then you can work it longer is all. And if you let it dry, it sticks like glue and dusts, and the pad will lightly scour the finish and rub the dust in.

Tom

[Mosca]

Originally posted by JBM

You ever prime the pad with water or QD ?

Nope, never. The product was made to be used at the thickness that it is. If you add wetness, you will cause it to act differently. I tried it that way when I first started using it, and it just adds too many variables in the amount of time you work, in the way it acts, etc; it makes the job unpredictable. If you do it this way, it will do the same thing every time. I've taught this to maybe 20 people so far, and it does the exact same thing every time.

If you prime the pad, you get watery residue running into seams, you get product that has already used itself up (these are diminishing abrasives) but is still wet, and sometimes when it dries it will "flash" dry, all at once, and acts like grout on the paint (hard to get off).


Tom

[Axe]

That is a really helpful tutorial, and personally I can't wait until my menzerna arrives to give that a go, so thanks very much for that.