Surface gets grey after some hours

[_G-DoG_]

Hey guys.
After I finally got my #83 and #82 I was very happy. It's doing a good job on my VW Golf mk4 in black magic. A lot of swirls dissappear.
But I have a big problem. I polished my hood yesterday with #83. When i came back today and used some #82 i noticed that the areas done with #82 are more black than the others. It is like a grey layer on my hood. If I use some #82 or #83 the surface gets as black as it was on yesterday. What does this come from??
And does it dissappear if I put some wax on? Or do I have to polish again directly before waxing? ( At the moment I'm doing the roof, due to the need of ~4 times using #83 to remove the swirls it will take some days till I'll have done the whole car)

I hope you understand what I mean and can help me. Sorry for my bad English


Greets
Markus

[Zet]

Hm, that's strange. What kind of machine do you use for applying the #83? It may be that the #83 is causing some micro marring in the paint, which makes it look grey, or not as black. #83 should almost always be followed by a milder product like #82 or #80.

Also do you thoroughly wipe of all of the excess product after using #83? It could also be that you left a thin layer on the paint, which has dried up overnight. Can you wipe of the grey layer with a microfiber cloth?

It would really help out if you were able to take a picture of this problem. But please describe what you use for applying, which pad, and so on.

[_G-DoG_]

I don't think that this comes from #83 because because the surface gets grey after the use of #82 as well. And if I go over the surface with some #83 it gets black again, but only for perhaps some hours
I'm wiping of all the excess product with a Cobra Superplush Deluxe microfiber.
To work the product I use an orbital from (I think) TitanTec. I'm not using a Meguiar's Pad.
As I remember I was not able to wipe of the grey layer with a towell. I'll try to make some pics today, but I just awoke

Thanks for your help so far!

Markus

[Mike Phillips]

Cleaner/polishes like the ones you're using are not the last step and should be followed with a wax otherwise you're leaving your finish unprotected. The wax will take the results your prep product achieve to an even higher level and lock it in.

An extreme analogy of what you're describing would be when a person compounds their car with a cutting compound and a cutting pad with a rotary buffer and then thinks their finish should look like it's been waxed... it's not going to happen because the prep steps are not the end of the process.

Polishing paint is a process and the products you're using are a part of a multiple step process that is finished after the application of wax.

[_G-DoG_]

If I get you right Mike a wax will make my paint black again, right?
Of course I will use a sealant and a wax on my car, but I just wanted to know if I can use it on this grey surface.
By the way, do you know why my surface gets grey or have you seen this effect already?

[Mike Phillips]

Originally posted by _G-DoG_
If I get you right Mike a wax will make my paint black again, right?
Of course I will use a sealant and a wax on my car, but I just wanted to know if I can use it on this grey surface.
By the way, do you know why my surface gets grey or have you seen this effect already?

Yes I've seen the effect before and it could be for a number of different reasons, you have to remember M83 is a fairly aggressive cleaner/polish and on some paint systems it's a good idea to re-polish each panel with a less aggressive cleaner/polish to bring the finish up to a higher level.