the origin of swirl marks

jason rawls

Weekend Warrior
It seems like 95% of the cars on the road have swirl marks.

What's the deal here? I know that they are caused by improper buffing/polishing methods but what else causes them. I'm not talking about hairline scratches that come from imroper washing and drying techniques, I'm talking about patterned swirl marks.

Are they coming from used car dealers who use detailers that have no idea what they are doing, or from local "car washes" who use those huge wool pad orbital buffers to apply wax?

Do automatic car washes cause them?
 
many come straight from the factory...especially those large perfect spiderwebs...I've seen them on Ferarri's and Porsche's right off the boat:nono ...what a shame:( my GMC van came with a few too and I know the dealer never touched it....
 
I think most of them come from those automated car wash. Alot of those places use brooms on your paint when your car first enters the wash and at the other end they use the sames towels over and ovr again to dry your car.
 
Superior Shine said:
Your confusing buffer induced swirl marks with micro marring caused by improper wiping and/or washing of the vehicle.

Exactly! Very few vehciles on the road have "buffer swirls", as not many vehicles ever see a buffer. The "spider web" marks that are visible on most vehicles, are a result of improper regular paint maintenance, and the tools used to perform that maintenance.................. cheap towels and/or wash mitts, dirty towels and/or wash mitts, wrong towels and/or wash mitts, dirty applicators, improper washing/drying technique............. Etc.

Of course, using the wrong/dirty applicators/towels during the polishing/waxing/Qd'ing process can contribute to the spider web marks. As a matter of fact, improper QD'ing is one of the biggest culprits.
 
Osama Bin Laden had a baby with one of Saddam's wives and they named it "Swirl Al Mark" or swirls for short...
:lmfao
 
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