why do ppl polish/wax in circular motions?

hondaguy2582

hondaguy2582

New member
It seems that i talk to other ppl about how they wax their car and stuff, and they always seem to tell me they wax in a circular motion. I even seen on the mother's commercials that they are applying the stuff in a circular motion. What im trying to say is are the so called professionals trying to bs us? When i told my dad about applying in a back and forth or side to side motion, he even was told to do it in a circular motion. PRetty screwed up if you ask me!!!
 
Its not that you are supossed to apply anything in a circular motion. For me, and most people it seems to just come naturally. But the reason people say that is because it ensures proper coverage for the novice. Side to side or in circles... it dosent really matter as long as the product hits the car.



BTW: the reason some products tell you only to apply in a back and forth motion is so the possibility of swirling is minimal.



:xyxthumbs
 
For years I applied polish and waxes in a circular motion because that's what the instructions on the container said to do. Many products still suggest circular motion application. Several years back, I read an article in some detailing book that suggested back and forth motions. Front to back on horizontals, up & down on vertcals. I tried that for quite some time. Now I just use whatever motion I feel comfortable with. Sometimes back & forth, sometimes circular. I really can't say that I see any difference.

Removal, I definitely do the back & forth thing, no circles. Removal and washing seem to be the places I am most likely to cause swirls.



Charles
 
Karate Kid was my first instructional video. Wax on ... wax off.



Really, Turtle wax suggests that it is OK. Here are their wax application directions.



"Always wax car in small sections, literally draw a box with the polish. By boxing a section (prior to filling the box with circular or straight overlapping application strokes) you will keep the product from getting into seams and jambs which would make your final detail very time consuming."



Prior to becoming an Autotopian, I followed the directions on the bottle.
 
Well, I don't think it really matters as long as you use the correct applicator, etc. I mean, some people say to use straight back and forth motions to minimize swirling but then they pull out their orbital buffers and go to work polishing. You think that makes a nice back and forth motion?



Use foam applicators and make sure you check it often for dirt. I have seen the results of incorrect polishing even when they used back and forth motions. One car I did had straigh back and forth swirls all over the car. Owner wanted me to remove them saying they showed up after they tried to use a polish on the car by hand. I asked what they used to apply it and they said a washcloth...
 
Intel486 said:
Well, I don't think it really matters as long as you use the correct applicator, etc.



Use foam applicators and make sure you check it often for dirt.



I asked what they used to apply it and they said a washcloth...
Click to expand...

The sad part is, they were probably using terry cloth to apply just as it probably said on the product.

Your comment about dirt really hits on one of the biggest mistakes most people make. Dirt is bad, period. If your car is dirty, wash it, if your wash water gets dirty while you are washing, change it, if your applicator is dirty, get a clean one, when your MF towel is dirty or loaded with removed product, get another one.

Don't use dirty stuff.



Charles
 
Kinda rehashing what's been said before, but as even Forrest from Mothers said once, the "circular motions" is just so that Joe Sixpack can get good results. Even then, there's no guarantee as the terry cloth thing has shown (it never says to use a high quality non-cheapo cloth I bet).



The theory behind working in straight lines is that you assume you are causing scratches, and so that when you do make a scratch, it is less visible. Horizontal scratches are less visible back and forth, while vertical scratches are less visible up and down. I break the rule sometimes too, but try to stick to it when I can just because it's a good practice.
 
2 reasons I can think of:



1) to get overlapping coverage of an area, so spots aren't missed.



2) with cleaner/polishes of the abrasive sort, circular motions will allow the abrasive to work from a variety of angles, cleaning the sharp edges off the mark, making it less visible. If you rubbed an abrasive in the same direction as a mark, it wouldn't do a very good job on it, versus going at it from angles, crosshatch, or diagonals.
 
Even 3M products have labels that says circular...



I'm with Intel on his points... as long as the paint is clean, the applicator is clean and you remove using straigt lines, it doesn't matter whether you APPLY non abrasive products in linear or circular.



I still find the "fish scale" pattern when applying carnauba the easiest and most even way to apply...
 
CharlesW said:
Dirt is bad, period. If your car is dirty, wash it, if your wash water gets dirty while you are washing, change it, if your applicator is dirty, get a clean one, when your MF towel is dirty or loaded with removed product, get another one.

Don't use dirty stuff.



Charles
Click to expand...



Amen. that's why I always apply a clay bar before polishing, glazing, or using a machine in any capacity.



I hadn't thought about it, but I apply in a circular motion and remove with straight ones as well. Tried straight applications of waxes and spots would be missed.
 
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