7424 LC white Optimum Polish - fish eyes

I

imported_Brock

New member
Hi guys,



I'm detailing a black Subaru today... very unforgiving.

I'm trying to get light swirl/wash marks the dealer installed.



It looks like the combo of the white LC pad and OP is taking most of the swirls out. Problem is I'm introducing new little "fish eyes". I'm getting little rows of dime size scratches in the paint.

Is it the edge of my pad? Poor technique? I made sure the pad isn't dry. I used a qd spray and smeared the OP around the pad so it's all moist.

I also checked the pad and didn't see any grit in it.



Thanks!

*edited title - they're pigtails and not fish eyes.
 
are these "fish eyes" all over the car or just a couple panels? it maybe a repaint and you have removed enough other flaws to allow these "fish eyes" to finally show. pictures would help
 
It's mostly on the hood and fenders and just a little bit on the doors.

It's a brand new car and I really doubt they repainted it.



I can also tell that the 'chain' of tiny swirls follows the lines I used to polish.

I switched to another pad and still caused the swirls on a couple other panels.
 
like Aero said sounds more like pigtails. you can try to wash you pads very very well or use your car and see if you get same "fish eyes".





as for it being a new car well i have worked at dealerships and a body shop. cars get damaged during shipping and i know of atleast 20 vehicles that are brand new that have panel repainted already
 
Yup, it's pigtails. I just wasn't using the right term.



Is it just caused by grit in the pad? Or could something else cause the problem?

I tried out a fresh pad and still got pigtails... I guess I could have been picking up grit from somewhere.



I left them for now but I'm sure they'll bother me until I fix it... :(
 
I've experienced the same problem using Optimum Polish. Accumulator pointed out that the initial bite of the diminishing abrasives is too great for the broken down or non-diminishing abrasives to refine. Essentially OP is just the wrong polish for the particular paint I was working on. A shame really, OP left such a nice a gloss to the paint...
 
Sounds like the OP might not be the right product for Subaru paint?



Any suggestions on a product/pad combo to remove those pigtails and prevent me from causing more?

At the moment I just have OP and Poli-seal.

OP worked really well on the black BMW I had a couple cars ago so I haven't needed any other products in a long time.



Thanks!
 
System 51 has worked wonders for me too but, it didn't produce as fine a finish as OP. System 51 is, IMO, more of a compound than a polish. Great product, however, and super easy to work with...
 
Brock said:
Hi guys,



I'm detailing a black Subaru today... very unforgiving.

I'm trying to get light swirl/wash marks the dealer installed.



It looks like the combo of the white LC pad and OP is taking most of the swirls out. Problem is I'm introducing new little "fish eyes". I'm getting little rows of dime size scratches in the paint.

Is it the edge of my pad? Poor technique? I made sure the pad isn't dry. I used a qd spray and smeared the OP around the pad so it's all moist.

I also checked the pad and didn't see any grit in it.



Thanks!

*edited title - they're pigtails and not fish eyes.
Click to expand...





I agree with Aero and Keep-It-Clean's comments.



Many new cars have been "touched up" before due to minor skirmishes. These are usually quick jobs, and it's not surprising for the sanding process to leave behind some pig tails. They might just apply some wax to cover it up. Your OP has removed these waxes and REVEALED these pigtails, which I strongly feel, is not caused by your hard work.



Pig tails could be difficult to remove by compounding alone, and since you're compounding, there'll be much more refining work down the road. Pls ensure the car owner is aware, and IMO, you shd charge a higher price.



For localised pig tails, I go straight to dry-sanding with 2000grit and finish up with 4000. After that, it's easy work.

IMO, way better than compounding endlessly and using up lots of compounds.
 
Blinky said:
System 51 has worked wonders for me too but, it didn't produce as fine a finish as OP. System 51 is, IMO, more of a compound than a polish. Great product, however, and super easy to work with...
Click to expand...



It did for me. But it may require an softer pad than the white one.
 
gigondaz said:
I agree with Aero and Keep-It-Clean's comments.



Many new cars have been "touched up" before due to minor skirmishes. These are usually quick jobs, and it's not surprising for the sanding process to leave behind some pig tails. They might just apply some wax to cover it up. Your OP has removed these waxes and REVEALED these pigtails, which I strongly feel, is not caused by your hard work.



Pig tails could be difficult to remove by compounding alone, and since you're compounding, there'll be much more refining work down the road. Pls ensure the car owner is aware, and IMO, you shd charge a higher price.



For localised pig tails, I go straight to dry-sanding with 2000grit and finish up with 4000. After that, it's easy work.

IMO, way better than compounding endlessly and using up lots of compounds.
Click to expand...



Can you tell my wife I need to pay myself more? :D

This is on my personal car.

A little scary to think the dealer already tried some paint correction. :( If timing worked out better I would have prefered to order the car and not let them remove the stickers. Oh well, que sera.



If it comes to sanding I will consult a pro... I've never sanded a car and don't feel comfortable trying it on a brand new car.



I made a couple more passes over the fender with OP on orange pad and it did lessen the pigtails. I might do a small area test of something stronger like the System 51 and see if that gets the results I want.



I still think I caused the pigtails... I washed with dawn beforehand and the swirls and scratches from washing were really visible... I suppose they could have used a filler at the dealer that only hides the deeper stuff.
 
I used to have problems with pigtails, but once I was taught to keep the pad spinning and also to keep the pad clean, I have stopped leaving them.



My PC was not able to turn a 6" pad with any kind of pressure, especially on curved surfaces, and would just jiggle pigtails into the paint. I now use 4" pads, and get better results, too. Also, it helps not to apply polish across the middle of the pad.



It turns out you can do a lot of damage to paint with a DA...I sought professional help to undo the damage I did, and while I still see some pigtailing, they are light and polish out.
 
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