I had an opportunity to help a pal today. Lee, a good guy (hi Lee!) asked me to stop over some day and show him some things about correcting paint defects; he has been considering a PC, but doesn't want to drop the $$ if it doesn't do what everyone says (ie, live up to the hype is a good way to put it, and I mean that honestly).
The subject car is a 2001 Miata in British racing green, a non-metallic clearcoated paint that is really a beautiful color. It has about 35k on the clock, and is garage kept and covered & stored in the winter.
Upon inspection, the car was in pretty good condition. The only problem that needed correction was swirl, "dart", and spiderweb build up.
We started with a thorough claying; the car was clean and the clay picked up very little residual debris. Because of the good condition I decided to leave the cutting pads in the bag.
I'll use a spot on the door as the illustration for this article. I tried to take the pictures from the same angle; a couple times I missed, but overall I think it's accurate enough. Here is the spot to start:
We started with the Meguiar's yellow pad and #83. DACP (as it's commonly called) is the workhorse of my cabinet, the Jerome Bettis. It is a very simple product, a diminishing abrasive, but it has a couple quirks that make it a real PITA if you don't avoid them.
The most common mistake with a wax is that the user uses too much; the reverse is true with a polish. A common mistake with DACP is using too little, or working too large an area (which works out to the same thing). Put a nice sized star of product on the pad, or a nice spiral. Spread it arond, and use speed 4. When you start, it should be about this thick:
Do your side/side, up/down, and diags,
until it looks like this:
You'll notice it's gone a little translucent, but it isn't dry yet; that's when you want to remove it. The SECOND most common mistake with DACP is working it too long, until it's dry; then it dusts and the pad itself has no lubrication and will start to mar the paint. The easiest way to remove it is to make LARGE swipes over the entire area, and then mop up the leftover with a second towel. When the first towel gets too damp, toss it in the cleanup pile. As the second towel gets damp with product, promote it to large swipes and start a fresh dry towel for the mop up.
Because a PC is not a rotary, you might need to go over the area more than once. Don't be disgusted. You are trading time and labor for safety, the knowledge that you won't harm the paint. This is the area after two passes with DACP:
