Swirls and scratches

[Eppler]

I just bought a 2009 Nissan Altima that was abused by the dealership. It has swirls and scratches all over it. I tried doing the full treatment so hers what I did.
Clayed the whole car. (biggest improvement)
Used Swirl X on the whole car
Polished with #7
Sealed with #21
The car looked great but the swirls and scratches where only covered. I tried using scratch X, Ultimate compound and it did not seem to do much. I used a buffer/polisher from the auto store and tried by hand in a few spots. I guess they are too deep and/or need more aggressive compound and a better buffer. I am not too crazy about removing clear coat but then I am not fond of swirls either. Any suggestions or tips would be welcome.

[akimel]

Re: Swirls and scratches

I bet the buffer you bought from the auto store is an orbital polisher: see these pics and compare yours to them. Orbitals are fine for the application and removal of waxes. They are useless for the removal of swirls. If hand polishing is not working on your car, then you will need to invest in a dual action polisher like the G110: Rotary vs DA Polisher vs Traditional Orbital Buffer. The only way to remove swirls is to remove a microthin layer of clearcoat, and for that task you need both the right tool and the right abrasive polishes.

But before giving up on improving the paint finish through hand polishing, do read these articles. You may find that you need to refine your technique:

What it Means to Remove a Scratch

How To Remove Swirls By Hand

How to correctly apply ScratchX to remove swirls and scratches

Tips for removing swirls by hand with SMA Technology

Help with Swirls ...

Good luck!

Cheers,
Al