PC newbie ------ What should I start out with?

I

imported_speedingpenguin

New member
I got a PC 7424 for Christmas and havn't used it yet (Thanks to NewEngland weather)

In fact, I havn't even bought anything for it yet!

I've searched through the forums, read page after page, thread after thread, and cant find the exact answer I'm looking for, so I'm hoping someone can help me out here.



I'm working with a kinda tight budget for right now, between being in college and having a lot of other bills and expenses and not having the greatest paying job, I'm sure you all know where I'm coming from.



What I'm looking for is a good starting point for detailing my own cars as well as doing a little detailing on the side for friends and family and stuff. I'm not necesarily looking for a method to correct any specific paint problem, but your average daily driven nothing too too fancy paint.

I'm thinking that the Dual Action Deluxe Foam Pad Kit might be a good starting point as far as pads go, seems like a good bang for the buck buy... am I on the right track?



Now as far as compunds, polishes, glazes, waxes, etc., what should I be looking at? Whats a good basic yet through routine, and what products would work well with eachother?



Thanks for any help,

-Chris
 
I'm a noob as well but I've really enjoyed using the Optimum Polish and Optimum Compound.



Took care of my scratches and swirls and made my car look great :)
 
SpeedingPenguin...I have looked at that kit too. Most likely the kit that I am going to get. Although the new CCS pads are the other pads that have me confused, trying to make a decision on which one.

I also read somewhere on here that the 6.5 pads can and might bog down the 7424 so thats another reason I am leaning to the 5.25" CCS pads from Danase.

Lake Country Manufacturing CCS Pads
 
speedingpenguin said:
Any other suggestions for products to use?
Click to expand...



I usually recommend 1Z brand polishes for people who are just starting out. They're both effective and user-friendly. Top with wax, not sealants, as they leave some wax and stuff behind (this provides a little filling along with the abrasive/mechanical correction). FWIW I find the 1Z stuff easier to use than Optimum, but then I have a lot more experience with it too.



I agree that large pads tend to bog the PC down a bit too readily (i.e., with minimal pressure being applied) and I almost always need to use 4" pads to do any significant correction.
 
hey accumulator, when you say "bog down" the machine, are you talking about when you put pressure on the PC and it looks as if the pad has stopped moving??



If so, i am having that problem CONSTANTLY with these Sonus DAS Pads that I have.



Jim



Sorry speedypenguin didnt mean to highjack your post, but this might be helpful to know for the both of us, because if thats the case, i would try the 5.5 or 5.25" CCS pads from LC.



I want to place an order but i want to see what Accumulator has to say. I respect his judgment alot!



If its worth anything, the first polishes i bought were Poorboys SSR polishes, they did a really nice job, just dusted alot. Matter of fact, I used my SSR 2.5 on my truck last weekend and it came out really nice. Its worth checking out....



currently im debating between XMT polishes and the Optimum Line.



Jim
 
kleraudio said:
hey accumulator, when you say "bog down" the machine, are you talking about when you put pressure on the PC and it looks as if the pad has stopped moving??



If so, i am having that problem CONSTANTLY with these Sonus DAS Pads that I have.



Jim
Click to expand...



Yep, that's what I'm referring to. Bogging, "merely jiggling", people describe it differently but as best I can tell it's all about the PC not being able to do both of the "dual actions" it's supposed to do: orbiting and rotating.



I once thought it was a matter of the weight of the pads, but the other PC made a very compelling argument that it's a matter of *friction* from the larger surface area and that seems like a good explanation.



The smaller pads don't result in as much friction when you apply pressure, so they don't cause the bogging *nearly* as readily, the PC is better able to do its (entire) "dual action random orbital" thing. You actually need to be a little careful with the 4" pads, the PC is much more effective than with the larger pads and it might take you by surprise.
 
thanks for clearing up yet another problem ive been having!



I have some 4" pads from patrick at excel, but i dont like to go to them too often because it takes me forever using them.



would you recommend then to get the 5.5" low profile pads from LC or the 5.25" ccs pads over the 6.5" ccs pads??



Thanks again!



Jim
 
kleraudio said:
Sorry speedypenguin didnt mean to highjack your post, but this might be helpful to know for the both of us, because if thats the case, i would try the 5.5 or 5.25" CCS pads from LC.
Click to expand...

Dont be sorry at all! I'm interested to hear what other people have to say as well! I'm new to machine detailing so I wanna learn everything I can so I can start out doing the best job I'm capable of!
 
kleraudio- I haven't used those 5.25-5.5" pads so I really can't comment on them. It'd be a (perhaps merely theoretical) step in the right direction but as to the *functional* advantages you would/wouldn't experience I just don't know.



I used ~5.5" pads back in the day (when I first got a PC) and didn't notice any great improvement over the ~6" ones but I dunno if that'll apply here.
 
kleraudio said:
if i bought the 5.25" pads from Danase would you recommend a ~3 or 5" backing plate.



Thanks again Accumulator!!



Jim
Click to expand...



I didnt think about that as another loop hole. As I am about to purchase 5.25 pads from Danase.



Also since we are in the same boat. Accumulator seems to be the man to look for answer:woot:. I have in my shopping cart: The yellow cutting pad, orange light cutting pad, white polishing pad, and the blue finishing pad. There's also the other pads: green heavy cutting and black finessing pads; should I get those too? And what would be an instance that I would use these for?



Supposed to be mid 60's later this week so I wanna get prepared for it:2thumbs: :buffing:
 
yea same here, i also have the BP for the 4" pads, its ~3.5". I dunno which one i want to use. I think ill try the 5" BP and move to the smaller one if need be.



Jim
 
kleraudio said:
if i bought the 5.25" pads from Danase would you recommend a ~3 or 5" backing plate..
Click to expand...



Between the two I'd go with the 5" but then I'm a little used to plates that don't leave a big margin. The smaller plates that I use with the 4" pads are just *so* small...I'd worry about the cookie-cutter effect on the pads and I also wonder if the pad would compress evenly when pressure is applied.



I used a PC brand 5" plate back when was using ~5" pads and it never seemed to be a problem.
 
Monte78Carlo2k1 said:
I didnt think about that as another loop hole. As I am about to purchase 5.25 pads from Danase.



Also since we are in the same boat. Accumulator seems to be the man to look for answer:woot:. I have in my shopping cart: The yellow cutting pad, orange light cutting pad, white polishing pad, and the blue finishing pad. There's also the other pads: green heavy cutting and black finessing pads; should I get those too? And what would be an instance that I would use these for?



Supposed to be mid 60's later this week so I wanna get prepared for it:2thumbs: :buffing:
Click to expand...



I started doing some machine polishing last summer and one of the problems I kept running into was the pads getting caked, glogged, saturated, or whatever you want to call it. I decided this year to have extras of each so I can do sections, replace with a fresh one, and start the cleaning process on the used one.



Think I just got 2 extra yellow, orange, white and blue, so I have at least 3 each of these now. The new ones are the CCS 6.5 inch from AG. The ones from last year are the plain jane LC pads.
 
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