Help with HD line up vs. 2008 Audi Brilliant Black

T

tdowns187

New member
Hello-


 


Just purchased 2008 Audi S4 in brilliant black.  I've read a fair amount on this paint and appreciated how difficult it can be to work with.  Had a PPI done beforehand that among other things showed the paint to be uniform, consistent with factory paint and no repaints.  Initially I thought the paint was moderate defect but after a wash and inspection under the brinkman, I'd say it's worse then that.


 


I washed and clayed the car.  Would have used iron x prior to the clay but it was too windy out and I didn't wanna risk it drying. 


 


Before I got started I made a real effort to minimize the amount of product used.  I've posted prior and was told I was using too much product, thanks for the feedback!  So I used 3 pea sized dabs to prime then 2 for every section, cleaning with terry cloth and pad brush after every 2x2 section 


 


<u>Equipment Used</u>


Griots DA polisher - correction took place at 4 to 6 on the speed dial 


HD UNO


HD polish


HD Pads - 5 inch green initially then orange for the UNO.  Then blue pad for the HD polish


 


Pictures are limited due to upload size restrictions and that they're from an iPhone.  


Here is a pre correction picture of the trunk shot with iPhone and brinkman in the dark


[attachment=9917:prephoto.png]


 


Here are two 50/50's following single pass with 5 inch HD green pad and HD UNO


[attachment=9918:50 :50.png]


[attachment=9919:50-50.png]


 


In an attempt to get a bit more correction I tried HD orange pad with UNO and noticed a bit of improvement, but most of the deeper defects that were present after UNO still persisted.  I then moved onto HD polish on a 5 inch blue pad.  The polish made things a little better/ deeper removed a little marring, but deeper RIDS remained similar.  The <u>photos look better</u> then the area looks in person.  


 


On the opposite side of the trunk I tried HD cut with orange pads followed by Polish on a blue pad.  I honestly think the UNO did a better job with the swirls, no real improvement with respect to RIDS on the left compared to UNO on the right.   


 


Overall it's an obvious improvement but still far from perfect or even 90%.  I realize it can be a challenge to offer advice while not seeing better images but I wondered what you guys had in mind to further correct things.


 


The hood is another story.  I don't have any images but I'd say its a bit worse then the trunk deck.  Lots of swirls and RIDS.  I used the HD orange pad and UNO again but the level of correction wasn't as good as the trunk.  Made another few passes, no improvement.  Stepped up to HD cut with orange, no better, then finally HD cut with yellow.  Tried these combos with 4 inch pad as well, which didnt make much of a difference. 


 


I know this paint would be a challenge but I'm feeling a bit defeated right now.  I was hoping to get some ideas from you guys.  I'd consider maybe some MF pads, but don't want to invest in a rotary at this point.  A few of these could be just too deep to correct without wet sanding, which I don't want to explore (unless I brought it to a pro).


 


So any feedback or questions would be appreciated...


 


Thanks!


Tony
 

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Hmmm, hard to say without doing a test spot but this would be my advice.


 


Skip the yellow and try HD Cut with an Orange pad. Do NOT prime the pad, just do 6-8 small dots to begin, 3-4 per pass following.


 


Clean the pad after EVERY pass. Nylon brush should work fine after each pass then fully clean afterwards.


 


Work the Cut until defects have been removed. Don't worry about hazing, Polish will clean that up.


 


Use a blue pad for polish. Use this combo until the finish is refined to your satisfaction.
 
IHA Mark said:
Hmmm, hard to say without doing a test spot but this would be my advice.


 


Skip the yellow and try HD Cut with an Orange pad. Do NOT prime the pad, just do 6-8 small dots to begin, 3-4 per pass following.


 


Clean the pad after EVERY pass. Nylon brush should work fine after each pass then fully clean afterwards.


 


Work the Cut until defects have been removed. Don't worry about hazing, Polish will clean that up.


 


Use a blue pad for polish. Use this combo until the finish is refined to your satisfaction.
Click to expand...


 


Thanks-


 


With other products people have recommended white pads for final polish on this paint.  I may try that again.  Wouldn't you guys agree that a DA just may not be able to get this job done?  
 
In addition to Mark's suggestions, I would say use speed 6 on the Griots with very slow arm speed with firm pressure.  I'm in the same boat with my VW clear and use speed 6 all the time but primarily with HD Polish for light marring.


 


Perhaps you'll have to move up to MF pads.  Here's a quote today from Junebug down in the machine polishing section "Go with the B&S pads, Megs "may" in the right hands and under perfect conditions, may cut a little faster but it would be as significant as a fart in a F5 tornado. Now, B&S are much thicker, and much tougher, just clean whichever you decide on with compressed air between panels"


 


Perhaps Accumulator will chime in here as he has a couple of Audi's.
 
pwaug said:
In addition to Mark's suggestions, I would say use speed 6 on the Griots with very slow arm speed with firm pressure. 
Click to expand...


 


pwaug nailed it.


 


When you think your arm speed is slow... go even slower!


 


There is a post by Barry Theal titled "Abrasive Isolation" ... it has a video so you can see how a slow arm speed can cut like a champ.  A great visual aid with great info from Mr. Theal.


 


I wouldn't give up on the D/A or your products just yet.  


 


Don't feel defeated!  Carry on soldier!
 
Everyone is giving great advice. I 2nd Micro Fiber cutting pads with HD Cut.. Especially for times like these. And work it with very slow arm movement.  Also, I prefer speed 5 over 6 with the GG.


 


Please give us an update.
 
Thank you guys for all your insight!  Had hoped to take another stab at it today but had a surprize snow storm and a bit cold tonight for an ONR wash.  I'l be sure to update this thread when the time comes...


 


PS. Just mounted Nokian WRG3's tires today.  Amazing in the snow / ice / even dry roads


 


 


TD
 
Yeah, three Audis and two of 'em get used pretty hard.


 


Even with MF Cutting Disks, I find Uno and Cut are both a bit gentle for significant correction of Audi clear.  It'll happen, but not quickly.  They do work pretty well with a 3" pneumatic/MF Cutting Disk when doing spot-correction, but it still takes a while.


 


Eh, for serious Audi correction (large areas as opposed to spot-correction) I break out M105 (preferably V1.0) on either a MF Cutting Disk or a Meguiar's burgundy Cutting Pad.  And it can still be slow going with the GG 6" as opposed to my Flex 3401. 


 


[Comments about wetsanding with 4000 grit  DELETED....."don't try that at home, kids!"]
 
Thanks for chiming in Accumulator.  Life is getting in the way of detailing these last few days.  I'll update this thread after my next attempt.
 
tdowns187- Copy that on the "life getting in the way", happens to me all the time!


 


When you do your next attempt, I'd pick a good, representative area to work on, and I'd make that area a lot smaller than the usual 2' x 2'.


 


Rereading your original post, I'm a little surprised that the 4" pad didn't make much of a diff, but maybe it'll work out differently if you work a really small area.  I find that I actually spend less time overall when I do it that way, though it might not seem like it at the time.
 
Accumulator-


 


Regarding the the 4" pad, I used that on the hood, while the bulk of test panel work was done on the trunk lid which had less defect imo compared to the hood.  So, that may have played a role in my observation of "lack of difference".  I'll try working an extra small area next Friday with MF pads...  


 


Small pad + small area + HD products= even less product?  Man, thats going to be the tough part ha.


 


Thanks everyone for your input.  I'll plan to post an update with pics ASAP


 


TD 
 
tdowns187- I'll warn you that HD Cut/3" MF took *FOREVER* to do correction on the A8, and I do mean forever.  I finally decided that next time I was gonna do the initial work with M105, or else use a much mroe aggressive (i.e., wool) pad with the HD. Sorry to be such a bummer...Audi clear is just a PIA when it needs significant correction.


 


But yeah, working small areas *very* slowly really will work out better in the long run.  Seems counter-intuitive but it always works out that way for me.
 
Hello everyone,


 


So here's a brief update.  My 5 1/2 inch buff daddy pads showed up a little early and I had some time so I figured I'd take a stab at the trunk lid that served as my test panel.  I just started out with the orange MF pad along with HD cut.  Again, the results are not flawless, but IMO MUCH improved compared to above results via HD cut on an orange foam pad.


 


I followed up with MF black pad and HD polish.  


 


As David mentioned above, I may try a white foam pad with HD polish as an alternative when I do the rest of the car to see if results differ at all.  


 


I used my GG DA at 5 or 6, firm pressure, minimal product and slow arm speed.


 


Following photos are via iPhone and a Brinkmann.


First photo shows an obvious remaining RID, second photo shows a different part of the trunk deck.  


 





 





 


Over all I am happy with this result for now.  First black car correction, notoriously tough paint to work with.  PO must have frequented shady drive through car washes or shady hand wash places.  This is my DD..


 


More photos next weekend after I do the rest of the car


 


Any other suggestions or comments are welcome.  Thank you all for sharing your opinions and knowledge!


 


Tony


 


 


 
 
Looks like it's finally coming along. Stick with it and don't be hesitant to do additional passes where/when needed. Looking forward to more results. 
 
tdpwns187- Hey, that looks like a huge improvement, and it sounds like it's going better time/efficiency-wise too.


 


I wouldn't bother chasing down every RIDS 100% for now anyway, so I think you're doing great.  While Autopia can get a you all revved up about how nothing but perfection is acceptable, IRL it's the car's overall appearance that really matters.
 
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