swirl marks inevitable?

[bobby four]

i looked at the reflection of the sun on my hood the other day and noticed very very light swirl marks. my car is about 8 months old and it gets parked on the street so i have to wash it at the very least once a week. i think i'm pretty good to my car. if i drop an applicator pad (actually, i've moved on to the even coat applicators) on the ground i put them with the "dirty" stuff that i dont use until they go in the washing machine. it might be my washing method. i dont use the 2 bucket method but i make sure to use lots of soap so it's lubed and i dont let the sponge touch the bottom of the container. i squeeze, dunk, then let it soak.

the scratches are lighter and there are much less than the "after" part




like i said, i think i'm pretty good at taking precautions to not cause scratches and swirls but it look like they're still coming.

also, is there any way to get rid of orange peel without getting a new paint job?

thanks guys

[Murr1525]

Re: swirl marks inevitable?

Well, you will get some swirls slowly no matter what. Just regular wear and tear. But you can at least try to keep it to a minimum. 2 bucket method and Grit Guards would certainly help. It sounds like nothing, but you really will see all the sand at the bottom of the bucket with the Grit Guard. And if you use 2 buckets, you will see your rinse bucket with sand in it and the soap bucket with none.

Or like I do, one bucket and a foam gun.

As for orangepeel, you can get into wetsanding, but that is kind of an advanced technique.

[STG]

Re: swirl marks inevitable?

Well, you will get some swirls slowly no matter what. Just regular wear and tear. But you can at least try to keep it to a minimum. 2 bucket method and Grit Guards would certainly help. It sounds like nothing, but you really will see all the sand at the bottom of the bucket with the Grit Guard. And if you use 2 buckets, you will see your rinse bucket with sand in it and the soap bucket with none.

Or like I do, one bucket and a foam gun.

As for orangepeel, you can get into wetsanding, but that is kind of an advanced technique.

After seeing the dirt in the bottom of the rinse bucket, I can't bring myself to use just 1 bucket.

Re: Orange peel

If the colorcoat has orange peel, you'd have to sand through the existing clearcoat to fix it. I've seen some pretty funny stuff under nice, smooth clearcoat.

[Murr1525]

Re: swirl marks inevitable?

After seeing the dirt in the bottom of the rinse bucket, I can't bring myself to use just 1 bucket.

Not sure if that was a question for me or not, but with using the foam gun there is no soapy water bucket, just a rinse water bucket+Grit Guard.

Just spray the soapy water on the section of the car, and a little on the sponge, and wipe away, then rinse off.

[STG]

Re: swirl marks inevitable?

That was a statement. I use two buckets. After seeing the dirt in the rinse bucket, I'll never use just one bucket again.

[RCBuddha]

Re: swirl marks inevitable?

No matter how careful you can possibly be, there will always be a chance of you getting scratches in your paint. You just have to learn to live with a small degree of cobwebbing, and realize that your vehicle will look better than about 90% of the cars out there on the road.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: swirl marks inevitable?

I think the inevitability of swirl marks depends not only on your wash methods, but also the physical nature of the paint. I see from your profile, bobby four, that you drive a Mazda 3. Now I don't know what the paint on the 3 is like, but I do know that my Mazda Miata is much more prone to swirls than my Chrysler PT Cruiser. My PT is driven much more often and so it gets washed much more often. Much more!! Both are garaged, and I only the drive the Miata 2500 - 3000 miles a year, but it gets swirls in very easily while the PT has virtually none and it's been a full year since it's had a complete machine polishing.

Some cars are just more prone to light marring than others.

[imacarnut]

Re: swirl marks inevitable?

No matter how careful you can possibly be, there will always be a chance of you getting scratches in your paint. You just have to learn to live with a small degree of cobwebbing, and realize that your vehicle will look better than about 90% of the cars out there on the road.

agreed craig. anytime you come in contact with the paint, there's always the risk, all we can do is minimize the potential to the very minimal...

[bobby four]

Re: swirl marks inevitable?

argh...

looks like i'll just have to live with it. and from now on, it's the 2 bucket method.

also, i was wondering what you guys use to wash.

mash mitts? sheepskin? sponges? MF wrapped sponges? just a high quality MF towel?

right now i'm just using a bone shaped sponge i got a kragen. could this possible be causing the damage? or does what i use matter less than whether or not i have grit in there.

[Murr1525]

Re: swirl marks inevitable?

Trying to use the best quality things you can get is always good.

I have been using the chenile sponge from Meguiars, but the new MF wash mit has gotten some interest, I'd be interested to hear how one works.

[LiquidBlack]

Re: swirl marks inevitable?

Swirls do happen, I agree. But proper washing methods can definately reduce the rate at which they develop.

I was using a high quality Meguiar's wash mitt for my washing, but I have since switched over to REAL lambs wool mitts, as they are much softer (and slimier with soap and water). They are much slicker when wiping across the paint, thus they are much gentler to the paint. I'd have to say after switching to a real lambs wool mitt that the occurence of swirl marks I put in my car's paint has dropped by half!

If you are looking for one, to check to see if it is real lambs wool, stick your hand inside and see if there is leather on the inside.

[Murr1525]

Re: swirl marks inevitable?

Where did you get your lamswool mit, any speacial care you do to it?

[Slats]

Re: swirl marks inevitable?

i looked at the reflection of the sun on my hood the other day and noticed very very light swirl marks. my car is about 8 months old and it gets parked on the street so i have to wash it at the very least once a week. i think i'm pretty good to my car. if i drop an applicator pad (actually, i've moved on to the even coat applicators) on the ground i put them with the "dirty" stuff that i dont use until they go in the washing machine. it might be my washing method. i dont use the 2 bucket method but i make sure to use lots of soap so it's lubed and i dont let the sponge touch the bottom of the container. i squeeze, dunk, then let it soak.

the scratches are lighter and there are much less than the "after" part




like i said, i think i'm pretty good at taking precautions to not cause scratches and swirls but it look like they're still coming.

also, is there any way to get rid of orange peel without getting a new paint job?

thanks guys

Judging by the picture you have more than swirl marks... looks like a bad buff job maybe. Also, there is a noticable line across the hood about where the sun is hitting - what is that? If you have a D.A. Polisher you may want to try some #83 to clear that area up.

[Ringwraith]

Re: swirl marks inevitable?

I prefer a real lambs wool wash mit over a sponge as well. I picked up a simoniz mitt at Canadian Tire & it's very nice! (I can't find any megs mits/towels etc around here) For clean up, I just throw it in the wash (hot) with my terry towels & hang to dry. I put it inside out to dry both sides good.

Cheers
Sean

[Murr1525]

Re: swirl marks inevitable?

Judging by the picture you have more than swirl marks... looks like a bad buff job maybe. Also, there is a noticable line across the hood about where the sun is hitting - what is that? If you have a D.A. Polisher you may want to try some #83 to clear that area up.

That pic is actualy from a Meguiars detail day, and not the fellows car. Just an example pic, with Mike having worked on the middle part by PC Ibelive.