Circular or Back & Forth Motion?

[Beemerboy]

I was at my local car care place this AM and we where talking about how to apply SMR and other products. He said that to avoid swirl marks to use a back and forth motion. I've not heard of this except with Zainos products.
Anyone heard this or use this method.

 

[Poorboy]

Dave that's all I ever do ...never circles....all it takes is one small piece of grit to cause hours of extra work...

I also usually follow air flow....

Back and forth can also include both directions while working out deep problems, but last polish or any step is always back and forth....

yes some people will say there's a little oval to back and forth and that's true..it's almost impossible to be perfectly straight...but go as straight as you can...

now one exception to that might be glazes that fill...
to fill in deep swirls or burn marks from a bad detailer...sometimes following the circles will fill them better...

 

[ACE]

I've always worked in straight lines, but now I feel I can get the product worked in a bit better if I - lightly on a very clean surface with a new applicator, initially work the product in with a circular motion followed by long back and forth strokes. I'm talking about a hand application of say, UPP over a completely PC-polished surface with a fresh foam applicator where I know there are no contaminants on the surface.

 

[Tassadar]

That depends on what I am doing, when I get my PC soon when I compound I will do something similar to this:

1. Across (left-right)
2. Up and down
3.Diagonal from right to left
4. Diagonal from left to right

That pattern should result in a nearly 100% coverage of the area, as well as a very well worked product.

As for polishes and waxes, I am VERY guilty of not following airflow, I just get lazy, and work it how I feel to work it.