NEW 2012 Infiniti G37xS removal of DISO and RIDS. MF Kit used!

[Hellspawn]

Ok here are some befores, however I've never taken pictures of swirls but I did read Mike's tutorial about pictures like this, so:









and now:





















Process started out as UP/white, then M205/White, but the swirls and rids simply laughed at it for some reason. I was contemplating an orange pad/205, but on a thought I tried the MF kit, D300/cutting and the swirls and rids simply melted out of sight. I used the same technique as with the prior attempts so I don't know why I could not get anywhere with them and this worked great.

Then came D301/finishing and it did noticeably brighten the surface so there was some hazing I guess as I've read about.

Now that above being said, I'll let the 301 sit there, but going to top it with some DG aquawax for the time being. I am very happy with how it turned out (because I DID IT), this is a month-old car and my heart sank when I saw the condition of the paint in the sun on delivery. I know there are some that could examine it and laugh at it, but I did this and when I was finished I thought 'wow'.

All better for now!

[davey g-force]

Great work!

...Now to just dress the tires


*EDIT*

Is this an after shot?



If so, it looks like you may still have some marring left behind.

Sorry, not having a go, just saying...

[Hellspawn]

Great work!

...Now to just dress the tires


*EDIT*

Is this an after shot?



If so, it looks like you may still have some marring left behind.

Sorry, not having a go, just saying...

Yea this one was just the paint, the tires were done about an hour later. I'll have to check that, wish I could remember which panel that was. Looks pretty noticeable there.

[Michael Stoops]

Process started out as UP/white, then M205/White, but the swirls and rids simply laughed at it for some reason. I was contemplating an orange pad/205, but on a thought I tried the MF kit, D300/cutting and the swirls and rids simply melted out of sight. I used the same technique as with the prior attempts so I don't know why I could not get anywhere with them and this worked great.

You say you used "the same technique as with the prior attempts so I don't know why I could not get anywhere with them" - was that on a different car? If so, that explains everything. You can not expect a product/process combo that worked great on one car to necessarily be as effective on another. UP and M205 are both very mild finishing polishes and neither would be our first choice for real defect removal. Your process was relying more on the cutting ability of the pad to get the job done, and that's usually not enough. Stepping up to D300/DMC5 was a huge step up in aggressiveness - that's fine as it's apparently what this car needed in the first place.

Then came D301/finishing and it did noticeably brighten the surface so there was some hazing I guess as I've read about.

A couple of days ago you had asked on this thread about using the DAMF System on this car and my response laid out a few possible options. I've reposted my response below for the sake of continuity in this thread:

There are two schools of thought on this and the process that works best in your situation is something only you can determine. Nobody can tell you with complete certainty exactly how any process is going to perform on your specific car - there are just too darn many variables. But we can offer the following:

Step 1: Do your correction with D300/DMC5 and then critically evaluate the finish. On some paint the finish will look LSP ready, on others there will be some degree of haze, from very, very light to maybe even more than you really like. The finish you get after D300/DMC5, along with your ultimate goals, will determine what the next step will be.

Step 2, Option a: Following D300/DMC5 there is zero haze, the paint looks fantastic, and you're happy with the result. You can just go straight to D301/DMF5 and call it done. Your end result will be pretty remarkable for a simple two step process.

Step 2, Option b: Following D300/DMC5 there is zero haze, the paint looks fantastic, but you want to try and push it to the max. Put a foam finishing pad on the DA (we'd lean toward the LC red/crimson finishing pad as opposed to the others you mentioned) and apply some M205 at speed 4 with light to moderate pressure. Don't work it too long, and clean the pad very frequently to maximize the efficiency of the M205. Then apply your favorite LSP when done. Your net result should be truly stunning.

Step 2, Option c: Following D300/DMC5 there is a tiny bit of haze, the paint looks really good, but you have some time constraints. Finish off with D301/DMF5 and call it done. This will clear up light hazing and really make the paint look fantastic.

Step 2, Option d: Following D300/DMC5 there is a fair bit of haze, the paint definitely needs some finish work. Skip the D301/DMF5 and go straight to M205, using that red/crimson finishing pad as described in Step 2, Option b. Your end result should be every bit as nice as what Step 2, Option b gave.

Step 2, Option e: Following D300/DMC5 there is a lot of haze, the paint definitely needs some finish work (and you might almost be freaking out a bit!). Do a quick test spot with the red/crimson finishing pad; if that removes all the haze then proceed as described above. If not, step up to the next most aggressive pad and do another test spot. Proceed as described above.

In our experience with Infiniti paint, except for some very rare situations, we would expect that you would fall into one of the first 3 options; any haze that you might get should be very light indeed, and will clean up with ease. From there it's up to you to formulate a plan of attack that will yield the result you're really looking for.

It appears that this car fell into the Step 2,Option d bucket. If you now top the D301 with anything else you may gain a bit of an improvement, but it's going to be a bit fleeting since you'll really just be covering things up. Better to follow this with M205 now as this is exactly what M205 was designed for - that final finish polishing to remove any light marring that the more aggressive defect removal step created, boosting both gloss and clarity at the same time. These cars tend to have really nice paint on them, but sometimes it just needs a little nudge to fully realize the potential. Don't stop now! You've made a massive improvement. Push your skills, and this paint, to the next level.

This is a great line from you:

I am very happy with how it turned out (because I DID IT)

If you were able to get to this point, we have every confidence that you can go that extra mile and make the smile on your face even wider.

[Michael Stoops]

From the main thread on using the DAMF System:

Well, based on sunlight examination I do see a fair amount of swirls, nothing like there was, but I'm not as much satisfied as I was yesterday. I was talking with someone else who details for a living and was told the 'hard clear' takes heavy pressure with the D300 and I simply used light pressure. I think I messed up there and will need to go back on it.

How about we continue this particular discussion about working on this car here, rather than scattering it all around. This has the makings of a great learning thread and we'd like to keep all the info in one place so it's cohesive and easy to follow for everyone else.




We saw your discussion with Rasky on the other thread and feel the need to point something out:

Infiniti's underhood stickers referencing "Hard Clear" and "Special Repair Procedures" are really only applicable to their paint systems relative to each other. Rasky has tons of experience polishing all kinds of paint, so when he says a paint is hard, soft, delicate, middle of the road, etc we're inclined to take his word for it, no questions asked. But keep in mind that his experience is on the cars he has personally worked on, not on your specific car. His specific works were "I'd say it was on the harder side, but not like some of the German cars I've worked on. It required D300 to be worked with heavy pressure, slow arm movement, and smaller section sizes."

There's a definite difference between "on the harder side" and "hard like some German paints" and, quite frankly, we'd be surprised to find that you car had truly hard paint, as most people would define it. And given the progress you've made using just light pressure, that just reinforces that notion for us. With the DAMF System you are almost always going to use at least moderate, if not heavy, pressure (except for the finishing wax step, which uses just light to moderate pressure and fast arm speed).

Now, from that other discussion it appears you're using a Flex 3401 here and not a traditional DA (G110v2, Porter Cable, Griot's, etc), correct? If so, you're best bet is to use that tool at speed 3.5 (give or take a bit) and moderate to heavy pressure with slow arm speed across the paint. But something important to keep in mind here; the potential for hazing the paint is greater when using a forced rotation tool like the Flex than when using a more traditional DA. That means odds are you're going to need to follow up D300/DMC6 with M205 on a finishing pad at slower speed and less pressure to really maximize the finish. This system was really fine tuned for use on a traditional DA but can definitely be used on the Flex, just with that knowledge in mind that it might haze a bit more. And the more delicate the paint, the greater the potential for haze, too. And sometimes Japanese paint can be a bit on the delicate side, even if it is a bit resistant to correction. But again, that's a very broad generalization and may not relate to your paint at all. Only you can tell us that.

Nonetheless, using light pressure alone isn't going to cut it for you (no pun intended). Don't go crazy on the pressure, but definitely increase over what you've done (and fairly significantly) while moving slowly and working small areas. You'll get it.

[Hellspawn]

From the main thread on using the DAMF System:



How about we continue this particular discussion about working on this car here, rather than scattering it all around. This has the makings of a great learning thread and we'd like to keep all the info in one place so it's cohesive and easy to follow for everyone else.




We saw your discussion with Rasky on the other thread and feel the need to point something out:

Infiniti's underhood stickers referencing "Hard Clear" and "Special Repair Procedures" are really only applicable to their paint systems relative to each other. Rasky has tons of experience polishing all kinds of paint, so when he says a paint is hard, soft, delicate, middle of the road, etc we're inclined to take his word for it, no questions asked. But keep in mind that his experience is on the cars he has personally worked on, not on your specific car. His specific works were "I'd say it was on the harder side, but not like some of the German cars I've worked on. It required D300 to be worked with heavy pressure, slow arm movement, and smaller section sizes."

There's a definite difference between "on the harder side" and "hard like some German paints" and, quite frankly, we'd be surprised to find that you car had truly hard paint, as most people would define it. And given the progress you've made using just light pressure, that just reinforces that notion for us. With the DAMF System you are almost always going to use at least moderate, if not heavy, pressure (except for the finishing wax step, which uses just light to moderate pressure and fast arm speed).

Now, from that other discussion it appears you're using a Flex 3401 here and not a traditional DA (G110v2, Porter Cable, Griot's, etc), correct? If so, you're best bet is to use that tool at speed 3.5 (give or take a bit) and moderate to heavy pressure with slow arm speed across the paint. But something important to keep in mind here; the potential for hazing the paint is greater when using a forced rotation tool like the Flex than when using a more traditional DA. That means odds are you're going to need to follow up D300/DMC6 with M205 on a finishing pad at slower speed and less pressure to really maximize the finish. This system was really fine tuned for use on a traditional DA but can definitely be used on the Flex, just with that knowledge in mind that it might haze a bit more. And the more delicate the paint, the greater the potential for haze, too. And sometimes Japanese paint can be a bit on the delicate side, even if it is a bit resistant to correction. But again, that's a very broad generalization and may not relate to your paint at all. Only you can tell us that.

Nonetheless, using light pressure alone isn't going to cut it for you (no pun intended). Don't go crazy on the pressure, but definitely increase over what you've done (and fairly significantly) while moving slowly and working small areas. You'll get it.

I've been using the GG 6", but thinking of trying the 3401 this time-around. Sounds as if I might want to stay with the GG at this point. Sorry about posting over there too; just really trying to read/learn as much as I can.

I'm thinking my clear must be on the harder side as some of the swirls lasted through D300/301 and are alive and well.

[Hellspawn]

Also one other thing I read *somewhere* and can't find it now; is that taping off isn't really necessary with the MF kit/d300/d301.. Truth to this? When I read this I couldn't see the reason for it, other than my own assumption that it is non-staining?

[davey g-force]

No, you'd better allow to tape off.

You should tape off for ALL correction work and any waxing where the wax/sealant will stain the trim. I'm not too sure if D301 stains trim or not...

[Hellspawn]

No, you'd better allow to tape off.

You should tape off for ALL correction work and any waxing where the wax/sealant will stain the trim. I'm not too sure if D301 stains trim or not...

Was just watching a video on AG with Mike and the guys from Megs talking about and showing how to use the MF kit the Megs guys seem to think taping off is a thing of the past lol.

thanks for your thoughts however, I'll probably still tape, but interesting.

[davey g-force]

Yes, interesting. Got a link?