George,

I was just curious as to why you don't offer the 5.5" LCC Pads? Is there no real benefit to using the 5.5" LCC Pads? What are your thoughts on 4" vs. 6.5" Pads and their cutting ability? How much difference is there between the 3 sizes? Thanks as always!

 

We plan on stocking the 5.5" pads before the end of the year, so you'll have some options. Basically, when it comes to a random orbital buffer (PC, Flex), the smaller the pad, the more cutting ability you'll get and the more effective you can break down polishing abrasives. The downside is the smaller the pad the less area you can cover, so while you may achieve a better finish and remove more imperfections, it can take longer. 6.5" pads are great for applying glazes, sealants and liquid waxes because you can cover more surface area with each pass. Smaller pads offer more control and can get in tighter areas.

For rotary buffers the complete opposite is true. The outer edges are what spins the fastest so larger pads offer more cutting ability. Smaller pads in a rotary's case are more for control and spot polishing.

Hope this helps clear things up for you. If you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to ask.

George

 

I've had my G since Feb. and it's still kept nice and clean.I just noticed this small scratch earlier this week, and wanted to know if I could fix it?It's very small and minimal but I always remember it's there and it kills me.It's a little old and rusted to me,so I'm trying to find out if I could restore it to the original state.Also, I have a small scratch/ding from someone's car door.It's kind of white and very noticeable everytime I open the driver side door.I took some pictures, but they were on my camera phone.Sorry for the horrible quality.

Pics:

The arrow points the rusty scratch.


Close-up.


The arrow points the white scratch.


Close-up of white scratch.

Thanks for the help,I would love to restore my G to the way it was supposed to be!

 

Quick question about Optimum Hyper compound.

I bought this stuff, and was saving it for some bad paint.

I used it with an orange pad- mediocre results
Same thing happened with a yellow pad.

Yet I put some SIP on an yellow pad and acheived better results than anything I saw with hyper compound.
On the label it suggests a working speed around 1500rpm? I had the flex at the highest speed, and still nothing.
Any suggestions??

 

For the rust area, chances are that was a chip in the paint that oxidized. Your best way to correct that is to clean out the rust area (alcohol and a light wet sand), apply touch up paint, wet sand it down even with the rest of the paint, then polish out with various polishes. It may not come out exactly perfect, but at least you'll stop the chip and rust from spreading.

For your scratch on the handle, it looks as though someone opened their door into it or something. Some of that white appears to be scuff marks, which should be able to be polished out. Some of the deeper areas may require a touch up to be fixed, but you should at least be able to minimize some of it by properly polishing the handle.

Here's a link to our polishing guide for reference as well as product / pad suggestions.

The Optimum polishes have much longer work times than Menzerna polishes. Chances are you just have to work it longer to see better results. The Menzerna polishes work quickly and finish down nice, but can dust pretty easily.

Did you shake the polish up prior to usage? How much product did you apply and how long and what speed did you work it for? Sometimes different paint reacts better to one polish over another. SIP utilizes abrasives designed for the ceramic clear coats so the cut you get is quick and effective.

Hope this helps.

George

 

Here is a recent scratch I have received.I was wondering if I could fix it,or should I go for a new bumper?


Scratch above rear license plate


Another scratch on the opposite side of first scratch


Inside the compartment where the plate is

Thanks for any help given!

EDIT:Btw can you give me step-by-step instructions on how to detail it?That would be amazing,since I am fairly new to detailing cars.Thanks so much again!

 

It's tough to see enough to give an exact answer, but the scratch in the middle picture looks like it would need to be touched up to properly correct. The other ones you may be able to buff out with the right tools and polishes.

Here's a link to our step-by-step guide which will certainly start you off in the right direction when it comes to detailing. I'd also recommend looking over some of our professional detailer articles as well for lots of visual guides and helpful tips.

Let me know if there's anything else I can help with.

Cheers,

George

 

I shook the polish yes for about 2 minutes prior to using it
I applied a small bead across my 6.5'' LC pad
I made 4 different passes, followed by one pass with no pressure all at the highest speed the flex can work at.

Ill try working the polish for a longer amount of time and see what I get.

 

I have a few questions,if I may ask.

1. What sandpaper should I use? (i.e. 1500 grit)
2. Do I use a buffer or should I hand-polish?
3. What polish is best for these scratches?

 

Sounds like you are operating the buffer correctly. I'd aim for making around 8 passes, apply pressure on most of the passes (ease up on the last 1 or 2), and work the buffer no faster than about 1-2" per second. Hopefully that yields some more correction for you.

Always start with the least aggressive abrasive that will get the job done, I usually start around 2000 grit when I wet sand.

You'll get the best results with a quality buffer, such as the Porter Cable 7424 or Flex XC3401VRG. You can only do so much by hand.

I typically use the Menzerna polishes, Super Intensive Polish or Power Finish are great starting points to remove a majority of imperfections.

Let me know if there's any thing else I can help with.

George

 

George,

This is a very basic question that I should have asked long ago but I honestly don't know the answer. I know that different polishes have different work times but how do you know how long that work time is? I don't want to be too short in working the polish and not get results nor keep going and waste time and effort. I am using the Menzerna IP (orange pad) and PO106FF (white pad) purchased from you. I don't have a lot of extra time to work on my car so I want to make sure it's correct the first time! One more question while I'm at it....other than time/effort is there any advantage to applying glaze and sealant with a random orbital as far as results are concerned? Thanks for your help.

 

You can really only cause more harm if you under work a polish, so the key is to work it long enough. Under working a polish will leave the abrasive particles larger and can create marring. Say for example, you only make 1 quick pass of Menzerna IP on an orange pad, apply some pressure, stop and remove. Chances are you'll have a significant amount of hazing or marring in your finish. You need to give the polishes time to effectively break down and work it's magic. I usually make between 6 to 8 passes over a given 18" x 18" working area. Try not to go larger than that because the further you stretch the polish, the shorter the work time you'll get. If the polish begins to dust like mad, chances are you've reached the point of it being over worked, a little dust is to be expected however.

Between the two polishes you mentioned, PO106FF will have a longer work time than the IP.

Regarding applying the glaze or sealant via the buffer, there's no added benefit by applying it with the buffer vs hand application other than preference. I personally apply those last steps by hand, I'm sick of using the buffer after some long polishing sessions!

Let me know if there's anything else I can help with.

George

 

Hi George,

Along the lines of polishes & work time, are you familiar with Gloss It Pad Prime for extending polish work time? If so, what are your thoughts on using it, especially for novice detailers just starting to use the PC or Flex? Would a spritz or 2 of plain water on the pad, instead of this, also work?

Here's a description of the product for anyone interested:

 

I'm not a big fan of pad conditioners, but I know some people are. It boils down to the users preference, their technique and the products being used. We offer a pad conditioner from Chemical Guys and don't usually recommend it to my customers. Certain polishes may react differently when another product is introduced and can potentially alter how a polish reacts. If you follow the proper polishing techniques, using the right amount of product, small work areas, etc. you shouldn't run into work time problems. Worse case, apply a couple more pea sized drops of polish on the pad and continue polishing.

Hope this helps.

George

 

hey i just bought the pbs pc724xp kit i recived it ive never used one lol kinda noisey lol anyways. i have a few scratches and i used the ssr2.5 with like 2 passes alot came out but not all of it iwas told to get m105 and to polish it with ssr1. but long story short i used the 2.5 and made a few passes wasnt happy with the result so i decided to wetsand ima noob at but this is my practice car i used p400 wet/dry sand paper from walmart and it didnt all come out with the 2.5 so i wanted to see if i can use the 3m rubing compund i got from walmart with the pc if so what color pad should i use and then can i follow the compund with the ssr2.5 then to the ssr1 followed by the lsp nattys blue. sorry for the long write up ima newbie