Meguiar's Soft Buff DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

[Michael Stoops]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

Could someone explain why there are all the sizes? 3" - 6"? What drives your decision to use one over the another?

I have a pneumatic DA sander (a good one with plenty of air to drive it). It came optional with 4", 5" or 6". It has a 5/16" diameter stud so I can use any of new backing plates. I'm now just wondering which size to buy.

We make these new backing plates to fit a variety of needs. A 3" plate/pads on a DA concentrates the energy of the tool into a smaller area which increases cut. But more commonly that combo is used to get into tighter areas where a larger pad simply won't fit. If using a traditional style DA buffer, and most definitely when using our new MT300, the 5" plate and discs are highly recommended. Still, some people like the 6" plate because they have a bunch of existing 6" pads, or they use another tool that requires 6" pads and, rather than have both 5" and 6" inventory, they just run a 6" plate on their secondary tool.

Pneumatic DA sanders, while providing the same motion to the pad as an electric DA tool does, just don't have the sort of torque needed to do heavy correction. They can be fantastic for light polishing and wax application, however. You'd probably want to stick with 5" discs with that tool, so go with the 5" backing plate.

would this backing plate support the new 5" foam discs? (link here)

Yes, it would, in theory. What we don't for sure about that plate is how stiff it is, or isn't. A stiffer plate will better transfer power from the tool through the foam disc and result in better cut. From the description of this plate it sounds as though it's very flexible at the edges which may not be the best thing for defect removal. The other concern is the appearance of the loop material on it as it does not appear to be a micro hook. That can be problematic as a taller hook on a DA can create a lot of heat where the pad and plate come together. This is only made worse when the hook on the plate does not match up with the loop on the pad/disc - heat can become excessive in very short order, and over time it can and will wear out both the hook and loop materials, making engagement of the pad/disc to the plate less secure. If you're looking at this particular plate for budgetary reasons, this may prove to be a false economy. Our plate (this one) is a mere $7 more and ensures that you've got the right size, the right hook, and the correct stiffness for optimum efficiency.

[greymda]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

Mr. Stoops, thank you for reply. will think about plates, but the difference is quite big for me (living abroad, so double the price is smth for me).

another question is, do you recommend 5" or 6" for a Dual Actions polishers?

kind regards

[dbssoccer]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

Thanks Michael,

Yesterday I received my 5" backing plate and 2 each of the burgundy, yellow and black pads. I also have a clay kit for my one car which is rarely washed let alone polished or waxed.
Now all I need is some time. As soon as I get a couple of more posts, I'll post a picture of the wheel on my one car and see if anyone has any ideas, short of buying new wheels, to clean up the mess.

[greymda]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

оkay, so i bought all three DA Foam Discs and the 5" Backing Plate...
the funny thing is i don't have the DA polisher yet delivered, it's coming from Germany on a bus, so it's kinda sporadic and emotional shopping today for me

[greymda]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

i meant Meguiars Backing Plate.

[greymda]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

received today 5" meguiars backing plate and 5" foam discs.
the backing plate in the middle has some of the hooks jammed i hope it will not have any negative effect on its working properties...
foam pads are okay.

[Purple Towel Detailing]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

Are there still no plans for 3" pads to go with the 3" backing plate?

[OhioCarBuff]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

I got a few questions about these new pads. I just went to order some new pads and realized you can't even get the original 9000 series pads anymore!! Ok here are my questions....

• First, I purchased my DA machine from Meguiars way back in 1999, I still have the original backing plate, do I need to get a new backing plate to work with these new pads or will they work with my backing plate that is original from 1999?

• Second, I notice these pads say machine washable. The pads I have used for almost 2 decades have not been machine washable. Do all of you typically wash these with all of your other microfiber towels etc after buffing a car or can they just be cleaned like we always have and reused without washing every buff job?

• Last, I have three cars in my family and have found a system that works perfect, about once every 1-2 years I do a thorough buff job on the whole car with a yellow polishing pad and ultimate compound to knock away swirls and followed up by 205 on a black finishing pad to refine finish. Then every other polish job I just use a cleaner wax and top with a a pure wax like ultimate wax like 3 times a year. Anyways, what I'm trying to understand is the new yellow polishing pad about the same cut as what Im used to with the yellow polishing pads from decades of experience? Do you think with my routine and meticulous maintenance I don't even need to get the red cutting pads? Just how much more cut do the red cutting pads have?

Thanks,
Matt

[davey g-force]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

The new thin yellow foam discs have more cut than the original yellow ones.

So if yellow pads were doing the job previously, they will certainly do so now. No need to by the burgundy cutting pads unless you want to be prepared for the odd deeper scratch, or harder paint (if you ever detail any one else's car).

[The Guz]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

I got a few questions about these new pads. I just went to order some new pads and realized you can't even get the original 9000 series pads anymore!! Ok here are my questions....

• First, I purchased my DA machine from Meguiars way back in 1999, I still have the original backing plate, do I need to get a new backing plate to work with these new pads or will they work with my backing plate that is original from 1999?

• Second, I notice these pads say machine washable. The pads I have used for almost 2 decades have not been machine washable. Do all of you typically wash these with all of your other microfiber towels etc after buffing a car or can they just be cleaned like we always have and reused without washing every buff job?

• Last, I have three cars in my family and have found a system that works perfect, about once every 1-2 years I do a thorough buff job on the whole car with a yellow polishing pad and ultimate compound to knock away swirls and followed up by 205 on a black finishing pad to refine finish. Then every other polish job I just use a cleaner wax and top with a a pure wax like ultimate wax like 3 times a year. Anyways, what I'm trying to understand is the new yellow polishing pad about the same cut as what Im used to with the yellow polishing pads from decades of experience? Do you think with my routine and meticulous maintenance I don't even need to get the red cutting pads? Just how much more cut do the red cutting pads have?

Thanks,
Matt

The new pads are great. I would consider the 5" pads and the 5" backing plate. It will transfer the power better from your machine.

I wash mine by hand.

The thinner pad will have more cut as it is thinner and transferring the tools power more effectively than a thicker foam pad. I would pick up a couple burgundy cutting pads. You never know when you may need them.

Have you considered just using M205 instead of a cleaner wax. M205 will clean the paint and correct it better than cleaner wax. You will only have to do this once or twice a year depending on which sealant you use. These are sealants: ultimate wax, M21, NXT or paint protect 365. Paint Protect 365 will offer the longest protection of these. Save the cleaner wax for when you need to do a quick detail. Maybe even upgrade to white wax as it has more correcting and cleaning ability than the maroon cleaner wax.

[OhioCarBuff]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

The Guz,

I sure have used 205 in lieu of a cleaner wax, but have found that it just added an extra step because the cleaner wax takes care of the cleaning-polishing and first coat of wax. I take care of the cars in my family so well that the swirls only need knocked down about once a year topps, other then that I just do the cleaner wax followed up by Ultimate Wax, a really fast and effective two step punch. When I use the cleaner wax it's usually applied in a very non aggressive way and to a finish that is already almost perfect and swirl free, I just want to clean the surface well and get rid of contaminants so the wax will adhere well. I did try the white wax but most of the time that level of aggressiveness is just not needed so believe it or not most of the time I use the humble red bottle consumer cleaner wax and then follow up with Ultimate Wax or NXT or on occasion High Tech Yellow. I have not tried black wax yet though, do you all think it would work better for this purpose? I've used the regular humble cleaner wax red bottle for 20 years now for this purpose and in my opinion it's the most underrated product.

Just exactly how powerful is the combo of the new red cutting pads with Ultimate Compound with the DA? I'm only curious because on a rare occasion I have a friend or family member that has a very neglected car that I buff for a favor. Is it so aggressive that you actually need to be careful not to burn through the clear coat, or is the DA with the red pad and Ultiamte Compound still a pretty safe, meaning nothing like the damage a rotary could potentially cause really quick.

[DasBurninator]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

...most of the time I use the humble red bottle consumer cleaner wax and then follow up with Ultimate Wax or NXT or on occasion High Tech Yellow.

Food for thought on this: Using something like Ultimate Polish or M205 instead of Cleaner wax will leave Ultimate wax or NXT a clean surface to bond to.

Sealants like Ultimate Wax or NXT bond better to bare paint vs a wax, which will cause the sealant to fail sooner.

Further, if you are worried about level of cut, Ultimate Polish has less cut than M205, and you can also adjust things based off of your pad choice.

Just exactly how powerful is the combo of the new red cutting pads with Ultimate Compound with the DA? I'm only curious because on a rare occasion I have a friend or family member that has a very neglected car that I buff for a favor. Is it so aggressive that you actually need to be careful not to burn through the clear coat, or is the DA with the red pad and Ultiamte Compound still a pretty safe, meaning nothing like the damage a rotary could potentially cause really quick.

Ultimate compound with the burgundy pad is pretty safe on a DA. One would have to be sitting in one spot using decent amount of pressure for a while or buffing on an edge or body line to strike through the clear. Obviously this is also subject to how much paint is left on the car depending on how neglected it is.

Either way it is worlds safer than using a rotary for the average user.

[Selectchoice]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

OhioCarBuff, you've found a product and pad combo that you really like. No reason to change anything if it's working as well for you as you mention. Why change and possibly add steps to your workload if you're happy?

As for the thin pad, Michael Stoops has mentioned in the very first post on this thread that:

"This is the exact same yellow foam used in our Soft Buff 2.0 pads, but in this thin disc configuration you can expect an increase in cutting ability with your favorite compound or cleaner."

Basically the foam is exactly the same, with the thinning of the pad's height allowing more power from the DA tool to be transferred to the paint. You can adjust this extra potential power being generated as per normal with speed (of both the DA and your arm movements) and downward pressure. This means you can dial in the same process you've used on the older spec pads on these new pads and in all likelihood have an easier user experience to boot!

As for the new cutting pad: the new cutting pads are DA friendly, meaning they aren't as likely to leave hazing or DA marks (ticks) behind as older spec cutting pads did. If you were able to correct your friend's occasional 'more work required' paintwork with the older spec yellow pad, chances are you'll be able to do it with the newer spec yellow pad. Just faster and with less effort than before.

[szladob]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

I have just received the new yellow and black discs
Is there any adjustment needed to technique (compared to the old 7 inch ones)? Also after using D300 on microfiber cutting disc, should I used the new yellow or black disc for M205 (Audi phantom black paint)? Many thanks!

[DasBurninator]

Re: NEW! DA Foam Discs and Backing Plates

I have just received the new yellow and black discs
Is there any adjustment needed to technique (compared to the old 7 inch ones)? Also after using D300 on microfiber cutting disc, should I used the new yellow or black disc for M205 (Audi phantom black paint)? Many thanks!

You can get away with a bit lighter pressure on your polishing step with the thinner, smaller diameter pads.

On the Audi I would suggest the yellow pad with M205. Save the black finishing pads for applying your LSP on the Audi since it has harder paint.