m103 and m205

[garysalas]

is there a trick to using these products by hand? with both, i put some on and start rubbing and in about 30 to 60 seconds is dried up and so then its hard to keep rubbing. do i need to spray water on it. it doesn't seem like a get a change to work the product. the shine is great but it feels like i'm doing something wrong. thanks for the help

[Murr1525]

How big of an area are you working? How much are you applying? What paint are you working on?

[garysalas]

2 feet by 2 about the size of a quarter, maybe a little more, the paint i dont know, if you mean color, its black, if you mean 1 or 2 stage i don't know about that stuff. i can tell you its an older mercedes. a 1991 Mercedes 560 sec coupe. anything else i can tell just let me know. thanks for the help

[Murr1525]

Yeah... I'm going to say too big of an area... too little product... so that will certainly help it dry out faster.

Does your pad turn dark black?

[garysalas]

yes, pad turns black i'm thinking i'll have to use numerous pads. i did clay the car before starting all of this.

[Murr1525]

Sounds like single stage paint if it is turning black.

Old single stage paint could be dried out some, so also helping dry out the product faster.

Are you getting good results after using the two products?

[garysalas]

ya, looks fine although i havent take the car into the sun or shine any light on it. is there something stronger than m103?

[Murr1525]

No, nothing stronger. And I am guessing you mean #105?

Something like Ult. Compound will have a little longer working time. And #80 (mild cleaner/polish) and #7 (pure polish) have always been popular on single stage paints.

But if you want to stick with what you have already, you'll want a smaller working area and maybe a little more product.

[imz4n]

Hope you are working in a garage or in the shade. The temp of the area being worked on will cause the product to dry as well. Try smaller area as stated above.

[Michael Stoops]

You definitely need to work in a smaller area, no more than about 1' x 1' when working by hand. It's also very important to not create any pressure points with your fingertips otherwise you run the risk of creating "cheetah spots" in the paint. See this thread for more info on working by hand.