Am I doing something wrong? Input needed...

[usafcrk]

I'll start by saying I'm fairly new to detailing. That being said, I'm currently detailing a 2003 Mercedes CL 55 AMG. This is the second black Mercedes I've done, and both have been pretty beat up. I've been able to bring back some shine where there was absolutely NONE before. But I can't get these scratches out. Am I doing something wrong? Can this be corrected without wet sanding?
What I've used...
Rotary at 1500 RPM with 7207 Cutting Pad
DA with 7207 Cutting Pad
I've tried M84 and M105 on both.
I'm doing 2-4 passes with moderate pressure, and another 2-4 passes with light pressure.

[usafcrk]

Re: Am I doing something wrong? Input needed...

[usafcrk]

Re: Am I doing something wrong? Input needed...

[usafcrk]

Re: Am I doing something wrong? Input needed...

[Selectchoice]

Re: Am I doing something wrong? Input needed...

For starters it looks like you have done a fairly good job at restoring the harshly swirled finish already.

Are the remaining marks deep enough to catch on your fingernail? If so, you may be out of luck with buffing alone. From the looks of your process though it may just be that the W7207 pad is a little less than what is needed to clear up the remaining marks.

Step up to a wool pad (either W4000 or W5000) and M105. That should be more than enough power to remove the marks. M105 is, in my opinion, the easier product to control the defect removing power as well as leaving the panel more refined.

You will need to follow up with M105 on the W7207 pad, or even M105 and the W8207 pad, or you may be able to drop straight down to M205 to refine the finish and enhance the gloss level, but see how you go.

[rcktpwrd]

Re: Am I doing something wrong? Input needed...

I can't answer your question, but that is a vast improvement over what you started with!