Using DA for applying LSP

Fishing

Fishing

Member
For those of you that use your machine to apply your wax or sealants. Do you use the same number of pads for applying the wax/sealant as when you polish the same car ? Thnx for any help.
 
Fishing said:
For those of you that use your machine to apply your wax or sealants. Do you use the same number of pads for applying the wax/sealant as when you polish the same car ? Thnx for any help.
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Not at all. Only one pad should be needed, or one of each size you want to use. Applying LSP doesn’t saturate the pad and even if it does, you’re not looking for performance, just a light slathering of product.
 
acuRAS82 said:
Not at all. Only one pad should be needed, or one of each size you want to use..
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Same here, and I always suspect that most people use *MUCH* more product than is necessary, resulting in not only waste but also potentially compromising their results (or at least the experience, making it harder than it needs to be).

Don`t overwork the LSP during (by-machine) application, as it can be a *bear* to buff off.
 
Agree. I only one one, soft, pad.

One of the reasons you swap out pads when polishing is they get saturated with product and/or too hot. When applying an LSP you shouldn`t be using much product and speeds should be really low, so heat isn`t a problem. On my HF DA I apply an LSP on speed 2.
 
Thank you all for the great info, guess I can cut back on the number of pads. The pads did clean up rather easy so I guess there isn`t much buildup in them. LOL I didn`t think of that. Ill try a little less LSP and see how that works, Thanks for the help, Im ready to give it a try..
 
Fishing said:
Thank you all for the great info, guess I can cut back on the number of pads. The pads did clean up rather easy so I guess there isn`t much buildup in them. LOL I didn`t think of that. Ill try a little less LSP and see how that works, Thanks for the help, Im ready to give it a try..
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When you`re applying an LSP you really don`t need much and can apply it thinner than you realize.

wannafbody said:
I don`t see the purpose unless it`s an AIO type of product.
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Using a DA speeds up the application process significantly and helps to thinly and evenly apply the product far better than you can do by hand.
 
Some more sorta-random thoughts follow:

- By machine, some paste waxes like M16 (the "paste wax that turns liquid") do turn out just a tiny bit better, as evidenced by significantly different beading/water behavior which I can`t duplicate by hand- the tiniest, most spherical beads I`ve ever had with those products

- Using *the right* QD with a machine-applied paste wax can give a pseudo-spitshine effect that further improves things, but again, if you [botch] it up you`ll regret it

- Moving a polisher across a surface is a very different action than applying LSP manually; when I had shoulder issues, I could *easily* do most anything via machine, but could`ve have manually LSPed a large panel to save my life

- Perhaps related to how I like to "melt" M16 via machine application, I do my machine LSPing at a higher speed than most, usually ~3. Note that might explain how things go so sideways if I do something wrong. Actually, I do the vast majority of this via Cyclo, and mine are the older single-speed model that are faster than a PC at 3 by a pretty wide margin

- When you think the pad "needs more product", try wiping it across a piece of chrome or a lens and see if it doesn`t still have more LSP in it that you thought ;) If, at the end of the job, you`re squeezing LSP out of the pad, that`s a clue you used way too much

- Per usual, I like a firmer pad than many others would use; I use the firmest pad that 1) imparts zero cut, 2) conforms to the panel contours. Very "tight" pads that`re extremely soft, load up with product in ways I don`t like and make it tougher for me to move the polisher across the panels. I never had a problem using the Cyclo green polishing pads for LSPing back before they came out with the softer white ones (and before others offered 4" pads), and that was back in the days of relatively soft ss lacquer

- Buffing (flashed/dried) LSPs off via machine can work great too. I`ve done OK with the plush Cobra bonnets, but don`t recommend them for very soft paint (never been a problem for me, but still..), the no-nap suede-style ones (zero margin for error if there`s contamination on there), and the plush ones that Meguiar`s used to sell (dunno if they still do)

- I generally prefer a foam cutting pad as a bonnet-backer, but *sometimes* find that a wool pad works better, seems to depend on the bonnet/backing plate

- I do *NOT* like applying LSPs via MF bonnets, in part because of how the MF loads up with product and getting matted down. Stick with foam

EDIT: gee, after posting about this I`m thinking how I really oughta do Fk1000P by machine some time..probably when I have a new tin that`s not almost empty (I`m *still* using the same first tin of the stuff, and that`s after countless coats on some very big vehicles over many years.
 
Thnx guys for the more info. Today I did try a little less product. Using Griots Boss Finishing Sealant with a Griots Black Pad, Speed 3 and it went well. ( thnx for this suggestion ).
Pad Question: While I try to make it look as best I can I am from the school of do no harm first. I am using what I would call a thicker pad. I am doing this thinking that the thicker softer pad would be gentler on the corners and edges leading to less of a chance of burning through the clear coat. Is this good thinking or am I wrong ? Thnx for any help.
 
Fishing said:
Pad Question: While I try to make it look as best I can I am from the school of do no harm first. I am using what I would call a thicker pad. I am doing this thinking that the thicker softer pad would be gentler on the corners and edges leading to less of a chance of burning through the clear coat. Is this good thinking or am I wrong ? Thnx for any help.
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At the risk of being a pedantic [twit] again...it`s *NEVER* about "burning through the clear" as the paint will be ruined *LONG* before you take that much off..with today`s thin b/c paint, there are only a few microns to spare before the UV resistance is lost. Anyhow :o ....

If you`re just LSping I wouldn`t worry too much about the edges/corners/etc. unless dealing with something like my `93 Audi or my Jag, cars with paint that`s already severely compromised and very fragile. But even on those, I`ve never felt I need to switch to a thicker pad than I`d use on anything else. It`s just not that much abrasion, even when I`m using the Cyclos for this.

BUT..that GG Finishing Sealant supposedly has some abrasives in it, right? MAYBE they`re aggressive enough that your thought of erring on the side of caution is a good idea. But#2, OTOH... I use 1Z WaxPolishSoft without any such issues, and I`d be surprised if that is all that different abrasiveness-wise (apparently has some, but you sure can`t do correction with it).
 
I think a closed cell foam would work better for applying a LSP. I think the LC white pads are closed cell. I`ve read that the red pad soaks up a lot of product.
 
Accumulator- Thnx for the pad help and sharing your valuable experiences, yes you are correct there are some small abrasives in the GG Boss Sealant.
wannafbody- Thnx for the pad help, Im gonna try one of those LC white pads next time.
 
Fishing- You might also look into the LC Gold LSPig pad. I haven`t tried that..yet..but people I respect (and tend to agree with) all seem to love it.

How do you like that GG Finishing Sealant?
 
Accumulator- The GG Sealant went on nicely all though I may have been using more than needed. It comes off without a problem. Started using it last year and got about 4 months out of it on a car that does not see a garage. I wanted to try topping it with GG Best of Show Wax but it is not currently available, due to new formula being made. So I have to wait for that. Do I like it ?- Yes and will buy it again. Will I try other sealants ? - Yes, just for the fun of trying other products.
I will try that LC Gold pad,, thnx for letting me know about it.
 
Fishing said:
Pad Question: While I try to make it look as best I can I am from the school of do no harm first. I am using what I would call a thicker pad. I am doing this thinking that the thicker softer pad would be gentler on the corners and edges leading to less of a chance of burning through the clear coat. Is this good thinking or am I wrong ? Thnx for any help.
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If you are using a really soft think pad like a black LC Flat Pad covered in a sealant, and running it low on speed 2-ish, you`d have to work REALLY hard to do any damage to the clear coat at all. There is no correction going on a that point.
 
Man, I`d hate to try using a product that contains *any* abrasives with that black LC Pad! Yeah...I did try it ;)

Fishing- Thanks for the info about the GG Finishing Sealant, glad it works so well for you.

Also glad to hear they`re reformulating their BOS wax...I used a lot of it back in the day despite not liking *anything* about it *ONE BIT* (hey, my dad bought it- free LSP for any vehicles I didn`t really care about). That was always weird to me...why I hated that stuff so much, but I simply didn`t like it and never understood why people thought it was OK.
 
Desertnate- thnx for letting me know that, feel a little better about it.
Accumulator - Thnx, Ya I am ready to try the new GG stuff. :)
 
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