David Fermani said:
Kevin is in a completely different world/level then most(rightfully so) in regards to optimal outcomes with polishing paint. I also think most of his best practices revolve around the use of Meguiars liquids/products too. Optimum's polishes and workflow is completely different from Meg's actually. Especially in regards to pad priming. Like UNO for example, Optimum polishing compounds work worse when you prime your pad. Meg's M105/D300 are the opposite. What works the best for one may not work the same for another. Especially when the lubricants and abrasives are different.[/IMG]
Bill D said:
I know some of, but I'm not sure what all of the polishes are that using the KBM with can actually be counterproductive...
Shiny Lil Detlr said:
Right; but I wasn't speaking so much to the pad priming issue as I was about the Optimum backing plate(s) being mandatory -- obviously some experimentation on that front would be needed to see what sort of effect using other plates would have, though. With pad priming you're absolutely right, with Optimum it's a "less is more" approach just like with UNO.
David Fermani said:
There's so many aspects of the KBM to consider that it's much more intense than just pad priming. For example, with UNO; more is not better, but on soft paint applications, the KBM for finishing happens to work great. But, this is totally worthless for a Menzerna polish. Kevin's pad priming technique works great on wool/rotary applications though. You could use a product for years and think you're pretty intimate with its workings and Kevin could try it out just a few times and create a totally different/better way of using it! :bow
Bill D said:
Wow, yeah lots of factors,paint hardness among others, to consider when choosing polishes and KBM or not. The way I would approach my Honda would be different than my old Caddy so Ill always keep on reading and reading some more on techniques.
Thanks to all for contemplating what I might
do or
say regarding how to use buffing liquids and pads other than Meguiar's.
It's no secret that I am a fan of Meguiar's products. As a kid, I grew up around people that used Meguiar's, honed my skills using Meguiar's products, and have even been able to offer my opinion every now and then when some product or idea is in the works at Meguiar's. So, it is reasonable to expect a level of bias when my opinion is asked (or when should I give it without solicitation).
The thing is,
if any one of you were given bottles of buffing liquids without a manufacturer's label
and were told to use buffing pads (also without manufacturer's markings), a good majority of this crowd
could and would figure out how to best use each product, each pad, and the best method in which to use them. Same goes for me, and in fact, that is often how things are done behind the scenes during R&D testing.
If any of you have taken the time to read my long-winded and seemingly endless diatribe of a paper entitled
Pad Priming and Supplemental Wetting Agents, thank you for that. Hopefully, something in the article piqued your interest or benefitted your polishing future. In the article, there are all sorts of attempts to explain how or why I believe something works the way it does. To the point: there are comparisons of primed versus non-primed pads, and what they
do or
don't do well.
For me, Uno 3.0 works just fine via microfiber disc when primed- I just don't use as much product
once it's primed.
It is a very slippery liquid formulation compared to M105, M86, or D300. In addition, I still prep the pad for final polishing by priming and then minimizing the amount of product left on the pad. And yes, there are times when priming for final polishing does not deliver the optimal result.
There's so much about technique that applies to all liquids and pads. The fact that each liquid or pad features different characteristics doesn't mean that the mechanical aspects
don't or
won't apply.
In short, if I want to truly learn how to use a product to its maximum potential, I use it under the premise that it is the only pad or liquid I get to use from now on. This is how I am able to wring so much out of compounds such as M86, M105, D300, and even M101. I am sure there are few folks better at using Uno than Thomas Dekany and Junebug, as they simply love the product.
It seems that most of us have come to accept the fact that the random orbital
can compete in the big leagues when the task at hand is defect removal. Most of the difficulty now seems to be in how to best extract the maximum
finishing potential from these machines. Make no mistake about it- most of the problem is not necessarily the liquids or paste products we are using right now, but rather our procedures while using the products (pad type and size, backing plate rotation, machine OPM setting, applied pressure, amount of product used during polishing, and pad cleanliness.) That's not to say that we have everything we need right now. It means that most of us have room to grow in terms of how to extract maximum performance from what's already available.
Finally, I really have a lot of respect for
Tunch of 3D and
Dr. Ghodoussi of Optimum Polymer Technologies.
Here are two company owners that are also chemists, and take the time to
ask and then
listen to what guys like us want.
What a great time to be a detailer.
