Ultimate Compound Working?

[Ear Wax]

I just bought a bottle of Ultimate Compound and decided to test it on an old (no longer used) motorcycle helmet that came painted from the factory and is now quite scratched up.
I started off by applying a dime sized amount of UC to a microfiber applicator. I then smeared it onto the area I was planning to clean up, and went to town on this thing. I noticed the UC turned almost clear in no time at all, but I kept polishing with a good amount of pressure in both circular and back and forth motions. I wasn't sure when I should stop. When I finally did stop and wiped away whatever was left, it really didn't seem to do much.
I tried to find a video online of using UC by hand from start to finish in a demo or even real use but only found some clips where it was being applied by PC. That brings me to a few questions:

1. How am I supposed to know when I should stop trying to polish and start to wipe away excess before re-applying?
2. What is typical working time required for a 1'X1' area?
3. Shouldn't the UC stay cloudy rather than turning clear or am I missing something?

Any help is greatly appreciated! I'm looking forward to be able to use UC correctly especially after seeing some others' great results.

[Maserati Mario]

Re: Ultimate Compound Working?

1. I would use more product
UC has Super Micro Abrasive Technology, SMAT
These abrasives are Super Small!
The good thing about SMAT is you can stop when you've accomplished what you wanted to do, make sense?

2. Working time will depend on how you want it to look.
All paint is different and you just can't put a blanket term/time on it

3. Using more product should do what you want.

[Underdawg736]

Re: Ultimate Compound Working?

I believe you should work it in for close to a minute....45 sec to a minute if I'm not mistaken.
How scratch/swirled is the helmet?
By hand it usually takes more then 1 pass. I work by hand until I have enough for a DA. With 3 passes at about a minute each my wifes severely scratched and swirled car looks a whole lot better. Not perfect by any means but a lot better.
Play with it alittle and you'll find your method!

The UC in my case started turning clear after I worked it in. It wiped off with no problems turning most of my defects faint and eventually going away all together with the following passes.

I hope this helped you some, I'm learning too!

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Ultimate Compound Working?

Do you know if any other car polishing product works on the helmet?

Could it be than the reason UC isn't doing anything is because the finish on the helmet is past the point of no return?

What color is it? White? If it's white you might not see a dramatic before and after difference.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Ultimate Compound Working?

As to your questions,

1. How am I supposed to know when I should stop trying to polish and start to wipe away excess before re-applying?

First, you don't want to ever rub to a dry buff, so that means there should always be at least a wet film on the surface. For a section about a foot squared, you would use a teaspoon to a tablespoon of product and work the area thoroughly for about a minute.

Remember, when you first start out with a dry applicator pad some of the product is going to seep into your applicator pad, as you continue to work with the same applicator pad and it becomes damp with product you'll find you don't have to use as much product to work a new section of paint.
(Just want to point out the little details just in case)


2. What is typical working time required for a 1'X1' area?

About a minute assuming you start by first spreading the product out over the area to be worked and then immediately go to work working the product. I've had lots of people actually time me at the Saturday class and most the time without any ques from the audience I stop working the product right at about a minute.



Applying Ultimate Compound and SwirlX by hand... - (Last Weekend's Class)





3. Shouldn't the UC stay cloudy rather than turning clear or am I missing something?

When you first start out the film you've spread out will be opaque/whitish i color but as you work it the film will become clear.

[Ear Wax]

Re: Ultimate Compound Working?

Thanks for all the advice. It seems like I need to use more product, that's for sure. I am not sure if any other products will work on the helmet, I have not tried. The metallic red helmet has a lot of RIDS which I didn't expect UC to touch, but also very minor scratches that I can't grab with my fingernail. I will try again later on with more UC. Thanks again!
Mike, do you happen to have a video clip of you using UC by hand from your class?

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Ultimate Compound Working?

Thanks for all the advice. It seems like I need to use more product, that's for sure. I am not sure if any other products will work on the helmet, I have not tried. The metallic red helmet has a lot of RIDS which I didn't expect UC to touch, but also very minor scratches that I can't grab with my fingernail. I will try again later on with more UC.

Besides removing swirls and scratches, how about the overall clarity of the finish, did it improve gloss and clarity?

Mike, do you happen to have a video clip of you using UC by hand from your class?

Nope. Sorry, we don't have a video program for any of our classes.

[Ear Wax]

Re: Ultimate Compound Working?

Besides removing swirls and scratches, how about the overall clarity of the finish, did it improve gloss and clarity

Yes it did improve the clarity. I just got done doing two more passes with much more UC and that is when it started to show its real abilities. There are still a number of scratches, but quite a difference. I feel that with more passes I could get it close to being as smooth as ever.
Given that about a tablespoon is used for a 1'x1' area with one pass, is doing an entire vehicle with UC practical? Either way, I like this stuff

[Hawkfanatic]

Re: Ultimate Compound Working?

Mike, what is the consistency of UC supposed to be? The bottle I bought was the thickness of water and made it very difficult to use...