Anything glossier than #26?

[trooper99]

I just did my truck w/ #9, #7 and #26, but it doesn't seem that shinny/glossy. Would #20 provide better results? I'm new to this, and just by chance, bought the #9 about 5 years ago, followed by Liquid class. Part of the problem may have been the #9 was kinda runny, so it may have gone 'bad'. It didn't remove much of the swirls and such as I remember last time I used it. I've used Zaino Z5/Z2 last year and it was very glossy, but I wanted to try all Meguiars chems this time. I also just bought a PC, so this is my first job using it. #9 was w/ 8006 at 4.5 and #7 was w/ 9006 at 4.5. #26 applied by hand. Should I dump the #9 and buy some #80? I won't probably redo the truck right away, it took me a VERY long time to do everything. Partly due to learning the equip
Thanks in advance!

[Mike Phillips]

Hi trooper99,

Welcome to Meguiar's Online!

Just to point out, gloss comes initially from smoothness, you can't create maximum gloss until the surface is as smooth as it can be.

Claying helps as does removing other defects such as swirls, oxidation, scratches, etc...

I'm not sure the condition of you finish right now, but I know a lot of people purchase #9 Swirl Remover because the label says it will remove swirls. They then try to remove swirls by merely wiping the product on and then wiping the product off...

They don't understand this,

What it Means to Remove a Scratch
(Swirls are hundreds of thousands of scratches)

Also note that at least on our most up to date label for #9 it shows a man applying the product using a rotary buffer, the picture of the rotary buffer is an indicator as to how to get best results from this product when removing swirls and scratches, i.e. removing paint.

If you want to remove swirls then go ahead an pick up a bottle of the M80 Speed Glaze and read this,

Recommended Products - G100a Dual Action Polisher

and this,

Using the G-100 to remove swirls with the Professional Line


And these,

How to remove a defect by hand with ScratchX

and especially this one...


How To Remove Swirls By Hand

Look at the before and after pictures in the above thread and understand these swirls were removed by hand and you can do this faster, easier and better using a dual action polisher.

Lastly, if you can get your finish smooth and defect-free, the gloss will for the most part already be there. The picture below was taken After M80 Speed Glaze, there is no wax yet applied.



As for which Meguiar's wax will give you the best gloss? Well as long as you mean gloss and not depth or darkness, or reflectivity, but a smooth shiny surface that looks wet or glossy,

Then any of these Meguiar's waxes will create gloss over a properly prepared finish,

NXT Tech Wax
Gold Class Wax
Deep Crystal Carnauba Wax
M26 Hi Tech Yellow Wax
M21 Synthetic Paint Sealant
M20 Polymer Sealant
M16 Professional Paste Wax

Our other waxes will also create gloss as that is the nature of a well-made wax.

[trooper99]

I forgot to mention, I did clay after initial wash as well. When I first used the #9, it was a big 10" random buffer with a cotton bonnet on it. It turned black from the black car while using it and got rid of almost all of the swirls. When using on my truck, the 8006 pad did not seem to turn red at all so I don't think it was removing much if any paint. I also wasn't hardly applying any pressure, but I didn't with the cotton bonnet either. Does the cotton need less pressure to work or is the paint on my 99 trooper 'harder'? Perhaps this would also explain part of the glossy problem.. I just didn't get enough results from my usage of the product. If it didn't remove all the swirls, then it probably didn't remove much of the oxidation either. It does look much better, but man, last time the black car look awsome. I just didn't get that this time. I've been reading TONS on this site and thought I was ready... Guess there's no substitute for practice.

[Mike Phillips]

Originally posted by trooper99
I forgot to mention, I did clay after initial wash as well. When I first used the #9, it was a big 10" random buffer with a cotton bonnet on it. It turned black from the black car while using it and got rid of almost all of the swirls.

This sounds like you were working on a single stage finish, or non-clear coat finish. Single stage finishes, Generally speaking, tend to be softer and easier to work defects out of than clear coat finishes.

When using on my truck, the 8006 pad did not seem to turn red at all so I don't think it was removing much if any paint.

I'm assuming we're now talking about a different rig that's red and not the black car?

If so, it could be the red truck has a clear coat finish and if this is true than Generally speaking, clear coat pants tend to be harder and more difficult to work defects out of than non-clear coat finishes.


Your questions/musings about the traditional orbital buffer are answered here,
Rotary vs. PC vs. Regular Orbital Buffer


Hope this helps...

[Jeff Smith]

Originally posted by Mike Phillips
I'm not sure the condition of you finish right now, but I know a lot of people purchase #9 Swirl Remover because the label says it will remove swirls. They then try to remove swirls by merely wiping the product on and then wiping the product off...

Phooey, You mean I had to open it? I thought by simply owning it that it would "ward off" swirls. I guess I better write that down.

[trooper99]

Your link seems to indicate the dual-action PC and a random orbital buffer are basically the same. The previous car was a black 95 camry, the current truck is a 99 trooper. True, the camry didn't seem to have much of a clearcoat when I worked on it.. Just dull black paint. Both cars were about 5 years old when I worked on them. Also, the RO buffer had a firmer pad than the 8006 and I used it with the cotton bonnet. I'm wondering If I put the correct 15-20lbs of pressure on the PC if I would get the correct/similar results. Would you recommend using a cotton bonnet on the pads? It seems like alot of the product ends up inside the pads, as opposed to with a cotton bonnet, it gets mostly transferred to the paint surface. I also performed all the work in my garage which is poorly lighted... So I didn't see the lack of polishing until the next morning.

[Pete-FWA]

Originally posted by trooper99
True, the camry didn't seem to have much of a clearcoat when I worked on it.. Just dull black paint.

"Clear coat" isn't just a reference to shine quality. Clear coat refers to the final layer of paint material sprayed on a vehicle's surface. Literally, it is clear paint applied just after the color pigmented base coat.