Car specific polish questions? Also, pad purchase question for PC & Rotary

R

Robbo

New member
Hello all,

I have a question on pad purchasing. I have both a Porter Cable and a Rotary and wanted to make sure I have my bases covered for any polishing project.

Being a beginner, I won't be using the rotary right away, but frankly I'm addicted to buying gadgets so figured since I was getting into car detailing (on a hobby level) it was a good excuse to buy new tools haha... so I'd like to have the range of pads available for use as I'm learning and experiencing new detailing challenges. Can you give me some suggestions as far as rotary pads go? I've read about wool, foamed wool (think that's right) and then know there are foam pads for them too.

For the porter cable I bought some lake country pads (white, black, red and yellow) to have as needed. Any others I might end up needing?

As to polishes, I have a 2005 Black Corvette, and a 2006 White Trailblazer SS (wife's). With these in mind are there any suggestions as to products? I've got some Menzerna that is probably out of date, (Backstory... bought the PC and a bunch of products in 05 but kind of got bummed out on the detailing before I used them because due to a house fire I had to get rid of my vette I had at the time, and got busy trying to get a new house etc and so the PC and menzerna sat in a closet until now), and have read it's a good choice for the vettes hard clear. Being black are there any other product advice over going straight down the Menzerna line from polish to LSP?

What about a white vehicle?

OK, lots of questions in here and since it's 2am I'm starting to babble... thanks for helping out the newb :D

Rob
 
Thanks okay Robbo, it is 3 am my time and I have to leave for work in 2 and half hours!!! Another sleepless night!

I will have a thread up shortly that will hopefully answer your questions better by the end of this week, but until then it would be my honor to offer some advice. Since you sticking to your porter cable for know I will stick mostly this machine for my advice. When you are ready to try the rotary out let us know and we will help as well!

Corvette's, specifically C5 and C6 models have a pretty 'hard' clear coat. It can be very resistant to polishing. This doesn't mean that the older Menzerna polishes, such as Intensive Polish and Final Polish II will not work, they may not work as quickly and be more sensitive to improper technique. The more popular Menzerna polishes for harder clear coats, specifically for harder paint systems, is Menzerna 'Super' Intensive Polish and Menzerna 106fa. As a company we do not necessarily recommend using a yellow pad for polishing with a Porter Cable, because it can leave a slight haze in the paint after application, requiring an additional step of polishing.

I would recommend getting an Orange Power Pad, light cutting foam pad for Lake Country for use with the Menzerna SIP, if you go that route. It should work much better on the Corvette's paint system. Consider this your most aggressive combination, and you may have to make several applications to get the swirls out to your liking. After correcting the paint, I would switch to 106fa on a White Polishing pad. One application across the Corvette should refine out any light micro marring from the previous step and really increase the gloss!

If you would like to stick in the Menzerna line for your LSP, I would recommend Full Molecular Jacket. It is a acrylic sealant filled with German polymers, and is well respected for its ease of use and great slickness. Also, Menzerna High Gloss Acrylic Shield is a spray sealant, formulated with the same German acrylic polymers, that is a great detail spray and sealant booster, and really keeps the shine of FMJ at is best between applications.

While FMJ looks great on both white and black vehicles, I think you might enjoy the look of the Blackfire Wet Ice over Fire kit more, especially on a black vehicle like your Corvette. The combination of a scientifically engineer sealant and high percentage carnauba paste will provide a high gloss, slick, wet and super deep look that will look like a deep black pool.

Here are some pictures of cars I have detailed using the Wet Ice over Fire kit.

Either choice would be excellent on a white car as well!

As far as pad choice, provided you have the right backing plate, the pads are interchangable between a rotary and a porter cable.

Thanks for the joining up, I hope I helped!!!

Todd
 
Thanks for the search tip TOGWT.

And thank YOU for the advice Todd. The honor is mine. I appreciate you taking the time to write that out. After looking at those pictures, I'm going to order some of the Wet Fire over Ice.

Cheers,
Rob
 
th0001 said:
Thanks okay Robbo, it is 3 am my time and I have to leave for work in 2 and half hours!!! Another sleepless night!

I will have a thread up shortly that will hopefully answer your questions better by the end of this week, but until then it would be my honor to offer some advice. Since you sticking to your porter cable for know I will stick mostly this machine for my advice. When you are ready to try the rotary out let us know and we will help as well!

Corvette's, specifically C5 and C6 models have a pretty 'hard' clear coat. It can be very resistant to polishing. This doesn't mean that the older Menzerna polishes, such as Intensive Polish and Final Polish II will not work, they may not work as quickly and be more sensitive to improper technique. The more popular Menzerna polishes for harder clear coats, specifically for harder paint systems, is Menzerna 'Super' Intensive Polish and Menzerna 106fa. As a company we do not necessarily recommend using a yellow pad for polishing with a Porter Cable, because it can leave a slight haze in the paint after application, requiring an additional step of polishing.

I would recommend getting an Orange Power Pad, light cutting foam pad for Lake Country for use with the Menzerna SIP, if you go that route. It should work much better on the Corvette's paint system. Consider this your most aggressive combination, and you may have to make several applications to get the swirls out to your liking. After correcting the paint, I would switch to 106fa on a White Polishing pad. One application across the Corvette should refine out any light micro marring from the previous step and really increase the gloss!

If you would like to stick in the Menzerna line for your LSP, I would recommend Full Molecular Jacket. It is a acrylic sealant filled with German polymers, and is well respected for its ease of use and great slickness. Also, Menzerna High Gloss Acrylic Shield is a spray sealant, formulated with the same German acrylic polymers, that is a great detail spray and sealant booster, and really keeps the shine of FMJ at is best between applications.

While FMJ looks great on both white and black vehicles, I think you might enjoy the look of the Blackfire Wet Ice over Fire kit more, especially on a black vehicle like your Corvette. The combination of a scientifically engineer sealant and high percentage carnauba paste will provide a high gloss, slick, wet and super deep look that will look like a deep black pool.

Here are some pictures of cars I have detailed using the Wet Ice over Fire kit.

Either choice would be excellent on a white car as well!

As far as pad choice, provided you have the right backing plate, the pads are interchangable between a rotary and a porter cable.

Thanks for the joining up, I hope I helped!!!

Todd
Click to expand...

exactly the system i'll be using on my wife's black bimmer. i'll post pics when i get it right....
 
Dear, th0001 or any one.....

I have a black Mercedes that has slight swirl marks and has never been polish before by machine...just the normal yearly wax job that I have been doing by hand.
Since it is 10 years now, and I would like to take it to the next level and using a PC 7424 buffer and bring the black paint back and hopefully remove the swirls in the process. So far I had my mind on using Menzerna Intensive Polish and then finish it off with the Menzerna Final Polish.
Then I read about the Blackfire/ice product...which one would be better in my case? Will the PC and the proper polish will remove the swirls?
 
Asphalt Rocket said:
I would like pictures of the Vette myself.;)
Click to expand...

No problemo! Looking at your avatar, you picked the right color!! :D

Since these pictures were taken, I've tinted the windows and my next mod is to get the rotors coated so you can't see the rusty edges.

I'll do a writeup when I detail it. It's a DD so it has plenty of opportunities for polishing out defects. There's a spot on the nose where a piece of road debris dinged the clear, and a few spots on the side where someone gave me a parking lot gift... :)

Rob

DSC00443.jpg


DSC00465.jpg


DSC05677.jpg
 
Robbo said:
No problemo! Looking at your avatar, you picked the right color!! :D

Since these pictures were taken, I've tinted the windows and my next mod is to get the rotors coated so you can't see the rusty edges.

I'll do a writeup when I detail it. It's a DD so it has plenty of opportunities for polishing out defects. There's a spot on the nose where a piece of road debris dinged the clear, and a few spots on the side where someone gave me a parking lot gift... :)

Rob

DSC00443.jpg


DSC00465.jpg


DSC05677.jpg
Click to expand...

We sure did pick the right color, the only color a Vette should come in. Looks great and it will look even better once you polish it. If you need any help just pm, luckily mine just sits in the garage and is used on nice days.
 
mrtonyn said:
I have a black Mercedes that has slight swirl marks and has never been polish before by machine...just the normal yearly wax job that I have been doing by hand.
Since it is 10 years now, and I would like to take it to the next level and using a PC 7424 buffer and bring the black paint back and hopefully remove the swirls in the process. So far I had my mind on using Menzerna Intensive Polish and then finish it off with the Menzerna Final Polish.
Then I read about the Blackfire/ice product...which one would be better in my case? Will the PC and the proper polish will remove the swirls?
Click to expand...

mrtonyn, it should work on your MB, I would start with Menzernz SIP then follow up with 106FA, from there get 3M Ultrafina http://www.properautocare.com/3mpeulmapo.html You will need 2 orange pads, maybe 3-4 white pads and 2 black pads in size 5.5 too, On the Blackfire products , I would go with this one:http://www.properautocare.com/weovfishkit.html, let me know what you thing of this................Angelo
 
I am wondering if I should start off with the 106ff first

zoomzoom mazda5 said:
mrtonyn, it should work on your MB, I would start with Menzernz SIP then follow up with 106FA, from there get 3M Ultrafina http://www.properautocare.com/3mpeulmapo.html You will need 2 orange pads, maybe 3-4 white pads and 2 black pads in size 5.5 too, On the Blackfire products , I would go with this one:http://www.properautocare.com/weovfishkit.html, let me know what you thing of this................Angelo
Click to expand...

instead of the SIP, which may be too strong. So you think the PC will take care of my swirls with either polish (106ff or SIP)? I know the Blackfire is good stuff but is it necessary to stick to one brand name ? meaning if I use Menzerna , then I should try and stay with all Menzerna products?
Thanks Angelo.
 
mrtonyn said:
instead of the SIP, which may be too strong. So you think the PC will take care of my swirls with either polish (106ff or SIP)? I know the Blackfire is good stuff but is it necessary to stick to one brand name ? meaning if I use Menzerna , then I should try and stay with all Menzerna products?
Thanks Angelo.
Click to expand...

One thing *most* good detailers recommend is using the least agressive method first. I agree with Angelo, that you will probably end up needing the SIP combo mentioned above.

But...this is a great opportunity for you to learn about polishing and product selection. Do a 18"x18" test spot with the 106ff and a white pad (less agressive combo), then inspect. If you are satisfied, then that is the winner. If it didn't really remove any defects, do another test spot next to it, stepping up to the SIP, and inspect. For beginners (and sometimes for pros), you can spend an hour easily dialing in the best method. BUT, REMEMBER THIS...always do a test spot, because if you can't polish an 18" x18" square to your satisfaction, there is no point in wasting your time and product to polish the whole car.

Regarding your question about brands...if you use Menzerna for polishing, you can use anything you want for the LSP (wax/sealant). There is no problem using Blackfire, Meguiar's, Menzerna, etc... after using these particular polishes. GET CREATIVE!!!
 
i do love me a nice corvette... nothing like the brute power they have. I'm extremely happy with my Lake Country pads. I have the Kompressor line and they've been great. definitely look into them at PAC. But, you will definitely want to wait for Todd's write-up, he truly is a master.
 
COOL...thanks for the input.

weekendwarrior said:
One thing *most* good detailers recommend is using the least agressive method first. I agree with Angelo, that you will probably end up needing the SIP combo mentioned above.

But...this is a great opportunity for you to learn about polishing and product selection. Do a 18"x18" test spot with the 106ff and a white pad (less agressive combo), then inspect. If you are satisfied, then that is the winner. If it didn't really remove any defects, do another test spot next to it, stepping up to the SIP, and inspect. For beginners (and sometimes for pros), you can spend an hour easily dialing in the best method. BUT, REMEMBER THIS...always do a test spot, because if you can't polish an 18" x18" square to your satisfaction, there is no point in wasting your time and product to polish the whole car.

Regarding your question about brands...if you use Menzerna for polishing, you can use anything you want for the LSP (wax/sealant). There is no problem using Blackfire, Meguiar's, Menzerna, etc... after using these particular polishes. GET CREATIVE!!!
Click to expand...

Good to know that mixing and matching different brands in the process is OK.
 
That's great advice Todd, only thing I'd add is that on the PC, 4" pads work so much faster for correction. Maybe 5.5" for polishing (white). And on the PC, take that damn handle and toss it, get a bolt and washer to screw into one of the mounting holes and the plastic housing won't vibrate to high Heaven anymore!
 
Thanks David for the write-up and artofdetail you are welcome to stop by PAC and I'll give you the 10 cent tour...........
 
i'll have to take you up on that... i dont have any time off during the week scheduled until April 23rd. I have a flight leaving at 2:45pm that day so maybe i could drop by for a couple hours in the morning. I'd love the 10cent tour
 
Let me know when you are coming and so I can see how much your going to drool during the tour............:D
 
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