Your pad choice sounds good to me, but let me add something. From my experience, unless the car is severely swirled, DACP will work on a polishing pad very well. This often helps eliminate any micro-marring from a cutting pad necessitating follow-up with something milder. This combo is my most used with DACP, as I follow the rule of least aggressive method first. If needed, I can then follow up with Meg's Swirl Free Polish (#82) on a polishing pad, and top with a finishing pad or by hand. The SFP is really a plus, as it does a really great job adding gloss (VM is probably just as effective).
I've found that the VC pads are very easy for me to use, and I don't have any problem with sling. I apply product to the pad, spread it on the surface with the PC off, then start the PC slow to get it evenly distributed. I crank up the speed from there. This eliminates the chance for sling.
Back to pad selection. I have found that my most used type of pad is a polishing pad. I purchased 6 pads for $45 awhile back, and got 2 of each type. If I had to do it again, I'd get 1 cutting, 3 polishing, and 2 finishing. If limited to only 2 pads, then you're right with 1 cutting and 1 polishing. But you may find yourself having to wash the polishing pad often if you want to switch products. Or if you find that DACP with a cutting pad is too aggressive, and better/faster results can be had with DACP on a polishing pad. If you could spring for 2 polishing and 1 cutting, I think you'd be really set since you can always apply your last step by hand (like you'd mentioned).
Hope this helps.
Dave
