Machine polishing - advice required

[JFReturns]

Hi PH'ers,

I'm after a little bit of advice before I jump in all guns blazing....

I have a few swirls on both my cars, and am tired of getting them out by hand. So, I have brought myself a rotary polisher (Kestrel SIM 180) that comes with the pads and polishes needed:



The polishes seem self explanatory, and I've used Poorboy before. I guess I should start with SSR2, followed by SSR1 then the sealant, only using the SSR3 if the swirls are not coming out. Is this correct?



The pads are made by sonus, and again, seem self explanatory - SFX1 (yellow) for getting rid of the larger swirls moving onto the SFX2 and SFX4 to refine the finish. Again, does this sound reasonable?



The polisher has a variable speed - should I start on a low speed, or high? Any other tips would be greatly appreciated. I was under the impression that I was buying a DA polisher not a rotary (package was lost, replacement sent but originals were not in stock), so am concerned about burning through the paint....

Thanks,

J

[matt will]

With the kit you've got there start with finest polish on softest pad. If that's not working step up the polish but keep the pad and then if that's not working step up the pad and so on and so on. A bit like: polish 1 on pad 1, step up to polish 2 on pad 1, then polish 2 on pad 2 then polish 3 on pad 2 etc etc. Remember if you go up the scale you will need to come back down again to refine your finish if you get to the compounding stage.

[daz4m]

Should you not have bought a PC as you are a beginner and all. I'm in the same boat had my first go last weekend with a PC.

[JFReturns]

Like I said, I originally ordered a DA polisher which is more suitable for the beginner, but it was lost in the post. They replaced it with the one pictured.

[daz4m]

I'm no expert but just make sure you know what your doing as you run the risk of doing damage to your paint with a rotary is what I have been told.

ETA - Just re-read your post, send it back and buy from somewhere else.

Edited by daz4m on Wednesday 2nd February 16:08

[domster]

Rotaries can be perfectly safe as long as you are careful - it is like giving a Mac-10 to someone instead of a 9mm Glock. Both can get the same results, but it's much easier causing more damage than you intend with a Mac-10!

DAs, or rather clutched orbitals as it was probably a DAS-6, are good beginner machines, but the SIM-180 is fine, if not quite heavy and capable of more intensive paint removal.

What is odd is that they replace one type of machine with another - like the insurance co replacing your Land Rover with an Elise. Maybe they ran out of orbitals?

Anyway, don't panic, just read up on machine polishing using a rotary polisher, take your time - maybe invest in a scrap panel from the scrappie as well - and with a bit of care and sense you'll be fine.

[Mattt]

Look on Detailing World - some great guides on there.

[JFReturns]

Thanks for the replies.

I'm not sure whether I'm allowed to link to another forum but Detailing World does indeed have an excellent guide on machine polishing by Rotary Polisher.

I have read quite a few arguments for and against Rotary Polishers, with the majority against saying "they burn through paint" and are "dangerous to use". However, these people have never actually used one, it is all because a mate of mate of a mate heard that someones mate's brother had mucked his paint up.

Everyone who actually owns a rotary sings their praises, being more efficient than the DA. A little common sense and caution is all that is required.

I'll advise how I get on. And if I do burn through my paint, you can all hear it first hand

[rsv gone!]

JFReturns said:

I have read quite a few arguments for and against Rotary Polishers, with the majority against saying "they burn through paint" and are "dangerous to use". However, these people have never actually used one, it is all because a mate of mate of a mate heard that someones mate's brother had mucked his paint up.

I did a 1-day rotary course with someone on DW forum.

We got to practice on their old BMW touring (which was set to get a complete wrap).

The main thing about rotaries is how quickly heat can build up, burning through the paint. We were showed how clumsy you could be on metal panels without ill effect since they dissipate the heat quickly. However, on plastic panels like bumpers, spoilers etc the plastic retains the heat and burn through could occur very quickly if you are clumsy.

[JFReturns]

Thanks RSV, I'll be extra careful on the plastic parts. I think the guide mentioned 3-4 inches per second...

[JulesB]

If you are worried about burning through, I suggest getting a practice panel from your local scrappy, secure it down somewhere then have a practice on that! Dont push down too hard with the polisher and make sure you have some water on hand in a trigger bottle you can spray the area you are polishing to keep it cool. (not too much mind, otherwise you will have polish spit everywhere!) Again dont use too much polish otherwise it will be going everywhere. Be careful when venturing near the edges of a panel aswell, these are the most likely to be ripped up when polishing!

[AbarthChris]

JulesB said:

If you are worried about burning through, I suggest getting a practice panel from your local scrappy, secure it down somewhere then have a practice on that! Dont push down too hard with the polisher and make sure you have some water on hand in a trigger bottle you can spray the area you are polishing to keep it cool. (not too much mind, otherwise you will have polish spit everywhere!) Again dont use too much polish otherwise it will be going everywhere. Be careful when venturing near the edges of a panel aswell, these are the most likely to be ripped up when polishing!

This is good advice! You do have to be very clumsy to burn paint on the flat part of a panel, but the edges are quite tricky.

If you dont get a practice panel, start slowly with the least agressive pad and polish combo, give it a go and then check your results frequently. step up the speed/pad/polish/duration but only one step at a time and keep your eye on it

[JFReturns]

Update time chaps, with mixed results. In terms of the polisher, it was very difficult to use and I struggled at first. It was hopping and bouncing all over the place. I think this was because I had too much polish and needed a quick spray of water to keep it moist.

This helped, and the correction was impressive. I did burn through one part - the plastic scoop - when the edge of the polisher touched it for the briefest of moments



However, this paled into insignificance when I took the masking tape off - it pulled chunks of paint with it! It shouldn't be too much of a bother to repaint but annoying nevertheless. Still, lesson learnt!



As I mentioned, the swirls are greatly reduced now (I only worked on the bonnet) but I will give it another go next weekend to refine the finish.



Just one more thing - the guides indicate that the polish should pretty much disappear, but it never did. I always had to wipe down with a microfiber cloth by hand. Any ideas what I am doing wrong?

[Mattt]

[daz4m]

Sorry to see that I tried to warn you about the risks. Did you not use painters tape?

[PJ S]

JFReturns said:

Just one more thing - the guides indicate that the polish should pretty much disappear, but it never did. I always had to wipe down with a microfiber cloth by hand. Any ideas what I am doing wrong?

Too much polish, not working it long enough - hard to know without knowing what combo you were using, what speed, how long for, what area.
In all honesty, don't touch the car again until you've trained yourself with a scrap panel (scoobies are notoriously thin paint) and/or had a lesson or two from a local pro-detailer.
Either/both would be money better spent than respraying any more of the car than the air scoop!

[JFReturns]

daz4m said:

Sorry to see that I tried to warn you about the risks. Did you not use painters tape?

I did - 3M painters tape which is what most detailers seem to use. I guess the paint around the scoop was just weak.

PJ S said:

JFReturns said:

Just one more thing - the guides indicate that the polish should pretty much disappear, but it never did. I always had to wipe down with a microfiber cloth by hand. Any ideas what I am doing wrong?

Too much polish, not working it long enough - hard to know without knowing what combo you were using, what speed, how long for, what area.
In all honesty, don't touch the car again until you've trained yourself with a scrap panel (scoobies are notoriously thin paint) and/or had a lesson or two from a local pro-detailer.
Either/both would be money better spent than respraying any more of the car than the air scoop!

I think you are right, I'll get on Detailing World to see if anyone is local.

For reference, I was using the Poorboys SSR1 on the yellow pad. Started off on the lowest speed to spread the polish, went up to 1300rpm for two or three passes, then 1500rpm and finally back through the speeds.

[kds keltec]

and your only 7 miles away from us too is that local enough for you



kelly

[JFReturns]

Now you tell me



I don't suppose you do any open day / tutorials?

[TallPaul]

It looks to me like the bonnet scoop has been poorly painted in the past and the paint had an adhesion problem. That could easily have happened to anyone, even a pro could have had the same problem!