I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

[MortalDays]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

Mortaldays. The before picture looks like it has more gloss. I cannot tell if this is the camera angle or not.

It's partly due to the camera angle; another reason would be I didn't apply any wax after UC on the paint just yet... I am waiting until next weekend... I only sprayed some Meguiar's Quik Wax temporary but not fully waxed it w/ Gold Class Liquid Wax yet.

[gmitch23]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

Thanks everyone for your advice, yes i jumped to conclusions about swirlx but i was hot tired and fustrated when i wrote this lol. By hand is way too much work. i will have to invest in the dual action polisher. Does plasticx need a da to work properly?

[gmitch23]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

My buffer looks a lot like WEN Orbital Polisher
So yea you guys probably think im an idoit but hey, i'm learning all of this on my own and my passion for great looking cars is as deep as yours.

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

Not really. You can use plast-x by hand. Either way you can achieve great results.

[gmitch23]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

Now to be clear, show car glaze (MO7) contains zero abrasives and can be used as much as desired??

[akimel]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

My buffer looks a lot like WEN Orbital Polisher So yea you guys probably think im an idoit but hey, i'm learning all of this on my own and my passion for great looking cars is as deep as yours.

You ain't the first person to use an orbital to polish out swirls and you won't be the last. Trust me on that.

Now to be clear, show car glaze (MO7) contains zero abrasives and can be used as much as desired??

That's the word. But really, a mild polish like SwirlX can also be used as much as you like (within reason), and it enjoys the advantage of actually cleaning the paint. Those us who work by hand or DA really don't need to worry a lot about removing too much clearcoat.

Have you read yet Michael Stoops's article "Meguiar's 5-Step Paint Care Cycle"?

[Fly Bye]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

read through those links, and it will show you that a traditional orbital and a d/a are "the same" but drastically different at the same time.....now, do i know what type of machine was actually being used? no.

The "traditional" (if you will) orbitals, are very much "drastically" differen't from the PC orbital. You are correct in that they are differen't. The concept/idea between a Chamberlain Waxmaster and a Porter Cable machine is identical, exactly the same, meaning they function the same way. They both can be called an orbital.

If you are referring to a Waxmaster, you are referring to an orbital. If you are referring to a Porter Cable, you are also reffering to an orbital. I know this because I still have my Waxmaster I bought over 10 years ago. They operate in the same exact concept, but are differen't, in that the PC is more powerful.

The Waxmaster does not have a replaceable backing plate. The backing plate on the Waxmaster (my Waxmaster) is 9 inches in diameter, and has no velcro. It is designed for wax applicating bonnets and terry cloth bonnets. It is essentially designed for applying and removing wax.

The fact that the Waxmaster has a 9" diameter plate, it has a much greater inertia. That means that the plate can be more easily bogged down. In comparison, if you put a 3 1/2" velcro backing plate on the more powerfull PC with a 4" orange cutting pad on a speed of 6, you will have a hell of a lot more cut. I'm sure if you could put a smaller plate on the Waxmaster, the plate would have less inertia, making it less prone to bogging. The other difference in the Waxmaster is that instead of the bearing being located on the oscillating arm/hub, (it's called an Eccentric HSC in the PC parts catalog) the bearing is built into the plate itself.

Even though the Waxmaster and the PC have considerable differences, they both operate on the same concept/idea. They are both orbitals. I do not consider either of them "true dual action" polishers, because the rotational aspect of these machines is based solely on centrifugal force, or actually momentum of oscillation due to a bearing on the eccentric piece (PC) that the backing plate screws into. I would consider a flex, a "true" dual action machine.

but most of the time if someone is using a d/a they wont call it an orbital buffer.

I have always referred to my PC as an orbital.

[Fly Bye]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

most of the time if someone is using a d/a they wont call it an orbital buffer.

"Whats in a name"

[fzr confused]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

Ok, but the orbital used by the OP will not be powerful enough to remove swirls.

[Fly Bye]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X


Yup.

[artdiefenbach]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

I had the same issues. SwirlX just isn't aggressive enough for your problem. The next more aggressive product is ScratchX 2.0 and then Ultimate Compound. Those didn't work for me either. Go for the gusto and get M105 Ultra-Cut Compound. It's the most aggressive product you can apply with a Dual Action Polisher. But it works wonderfully. And it's not so aggressive that its going to remove all of your paint. Now it may leave some haze. So it's best to follow-up with the companion product M205 Ultra Finishing Polish. These two products cure almost any paint problem. Worked wonders for me. Then finish up with whatever wax you like.

When you get your DA Polisher get separate pads for each product. Use the Polishing Pad for M105 and M205 and the Finishing Pad for M205 second pass (optional step, but I think helps a lot) and wax. Personally, I switched to Lake Country Pads available from AutoGeek.net or ProperAutoCare.com. They are available in wider variety of abrasion. So I used the Orange Pad on M105, White and then Black on M205, Red on NXT Tech Was and Gold on Gold Class Carnauba Wax. I also like the Polishin' Pal system for hand application available from AutoGeek.net. It's a really nice hard foam handle that holds 4" applicator pads that are held on with velcro. It works great for those times you don't feel like getting out the power equipment. After you get the swirls out you should only need to wax the car. But once in a while you may need to correct a certain area of the car, so you'll be ready for that situation when it arises.

Finally, use Ultimate Quik Wax after every wash, at least on the hood and trunk (most visible surfaces). It goes on and comes off easily and gives a great shine for the just waxed look.

[cristi]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

I give up on removing swirls. I concentrated on a small area by hand and by orbital buffer using swirlx and it did nothing! Foam applicator, wiped off with micorfiber and nothing! Only thing i may have done wrong was that i was not in the shade. I might have even added more scratches. I used it on my wife's white eclipse and i tried to take pictures of it but the cobwebs will not show up in the pictures. I dont know how you guys do it but its impossible. I must say i am dissapointed in the product. I love the rest of Meguiars but swirl x is useless. Makes me hesitant to buy plasticx.

i tried this product in last weekend, and worked! I use in sunshine (in Romania it's verry hot weather, 35-38 C degree) and...look this pics and don't give up!



after treatment ( buffing aprox. 5 min with Sonus SFX pad by hand)



Ok, my question it is: this product contain filler? I have testet next weekend by Top Inspection if appear the scratches or not...

[Michael Stoops]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

SwirlX may or may not be strong enough to remove all the swirls/cobwebs in a given paint system, but it also might be. Certainly working with a D/A buffer as opposed to hand application changes things dramatically. If SwirlX is not working for you by hand, don't just assume that it won't work on a D/A either. You are changing the game in a big way when adding the tool to the mix.

SwirlX did an outstanding job via D/A on my sister's car, but on one of mine it's just not powerful enough. But jumping straight into M105 is a pretty huge leap! Ultimate Compound is much, much more user friendly on a D/A than M105 is (and it's far easier to find in stores, and quite a bit less expensive too) and unless you've got crazy hard paint it should be more than adequate to get the job done. We use it in our Saturday classes and have pulled out all sorts of defects from a huge variety of paints - Acuras, Cadillacs, BMWs, Audis, etc - just look at the picture threads from our Saturday classes!

gmitch23, since you're working on a Japanese built car we would recommend at least giving SwirlX a shot on a D/A before going to something else. You already have a bottle of it on hand so there's nothing to lose. Just do a test spot first and see where it gets you. If you need to step up then go with Ultimate Compound. We'd be very surprised if you were not able to correct the defects on this car with UC, a W8207 pad and a D/A buffer.

[Megafast13]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

An orbital and a dual action polisher are the same thing. I've corrected plenty with a PC, which is an orbital, that also spins due to centrifugal force.

No, an Orbital Polisher is not the same as a DA Polisher. That's what makes the G110 so good.

TC:

Make sure you:
Work with Patience
Small sections at a time
shake well before use


If you still aren't happy with the results, than upgrade to Ultimate Compound. You won't get 100% by hand, you may need machine correction with a DA or Rotary.

[Fly Bye]

Re: I give up! On Swirls and Swirl X

No, an Orbital Polisher is not the same as a DA Polisher. That's what makes the G110 so good.

I meant to say "PC".

The G100 is not a "true" Dual Action machine. The traditional orbital and a PC operate based on the exact same principle.



It's outlined here




Fixed.

An orbital and a PC polisher are the same thing.