What do the detailing gods think? Light Swirls?

[Zac]

Hey Guys. 17 years old and just got my first car. Honda civic, 1992 with an low 100000km on it.

The paint is all there with no dings, big scratches or chips but ...





Yeah, light swirls all over.

So what do you guys reccomend? I don't have a fancy polisher or anything worth more than my car so it must be appliable by hand.

I was thinking Claybar then swirlx. What do you guys think?

Oh, and the car is waxed in that pic.

[yalerd]

Re: What do the detailing gods think? Light Swirls?

Working by hand is a big project but it not something that hasn't been done before, a lot of people work by hand and have great results.
Here are a couple of threads that you might want to read
Meguiar's 5-Step Paint Care Cycle - Updated!
How To Remove Swirls By Hand

SwirlX is a mild product, do a test spot to see if you get the results you are looking for. If not then I would consider starting with Ultimate Compound

Good luck

[Shawn T.]

Re: What do the detailing gods think? Light Swirls?

I can not stress enough that patience is the key when hand polishing a car. Depending on how hard your paint is it could take up to 4 or 5 applications of a product before seeing the results you want.

I would have Ultimate Compound, Scratchx 2.0 and Swirlx in your arsenal when polishing a car by hand.

Read the links above and these ones: http://meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30910

http://meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=43068

I don't mean to give you my own thread but my swirls looked very similar to yours and I removed them without a problem witb Swirlx.

[Murr1525]

Re: What do the detailing gods think? Light Swirls?

Yeah, some SwirlX, UC, and some good applicators and towels.

Just take your time, might get a panel or two done a day, no need ot rush it.

[akimel]

Re: What do the detailing gods think? Light Swirls?

And don't forget: Do a TEST SPOT. We cannot emphasize this strongly enough. A test spot allows you both to determine the appropriate polish for your car and to refine your technique. We've had some disaster stories here on MOL of folks who polished out their entire car with Ultimate Compound, only to discover that they had made things worse.

Check out this article: How to do a Test Spot.

Also: buy foam applicators, even if you have to order them online (and you probably will). The microfiber and terry cloth applicators can mar the paint. Trust me on this. And if you're ordering online, you might as well purchase some Supreme Shine towels, too.

[Zac]

Re: What do the detailing gods think? Light Swirls?

2 more questions.

Do i have to follow any different steps when removing swirls off a single stage paint job?

And since it's single stage i will obviously colour the foam pad red when polishing. Is there a way to use how colourful the foam is getting to gauge weather or not im taking too much paint off?

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: What do the detailing gods think? Light Swirls?

The steps will be the same.

There really is no way of telling by the pad. Just use your head. It should nmot be a problem at all.

Like others have said. take your time. If you only get a panel done a day. That is okay. You are making progress.

Good luck to you. Keep us posted on your progress.

[CieraSL]

Re: What do the detailing gods think? Light Swirls?

I did a faded Ford Mustang by hand once. It was a lot of work, but in the end it was worth it. See my thread here: http://meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=37008. Hope that helps at least somewhat.