First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

[Selectchoice]

Re: First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

Ok, so I got the same #7 polish and did it by hand.



The lesson learned is that no one should use a machine until they do it by hand.
When doing by hand, it

I'd also mention that M07 has a lot of polishing oils. In the pic you posted above, it's more than likely just the oils filling in the swirls. You will need a compound, namely Ultimate Compound, to remove the marks you have from the drill used previously.

[Jarhead0754]

From those pics I would say its safe to say its the powerball. I really don't think those are ment for the whole car but just spot cleaning. Like everyone else says a da is really the way to go. U can do so much from compound to polish to wax. The meguiars power system is also a good alternative and as they all said u can still get great results with that cuz it's very similar to a da. The powerball just doesn't sit well with me unless I'm gonna shine my rims, even then meguiars has something for that.

Bottom line is it definitely caused by the powerball in some way.

[davey g-force]

Re: First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

I don't know anything about the Mothers Powerball for paint. The only ones I've seen have been for uncoated metal surfaces.

Same here! I just found out there actually is such a thing, and they call it Mothers Powerball 4Paint. Perhaps it's new.

OP, care to clarify whether you used the Powerball 4Paint, or just the normal one which is designed for wheels etc?

[The Guz]

Re: First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

I'd also mention that M07 has a lot of polishing oils. In the pic you posted above, it's more than likely just the oils filling in the swirls. You will need a compound, namely Ultimate Compound, to remove the marks you have from the drill used previously.

Exactly this. M7 is just filling in those swirls. Give it a couple weeks before you see them again. Those swirls require some compounding.

From those pics I would say its safe to say its the powerball. I really don't think those are ment for the whole car but just spot cleaning. Like everyone else says a da is really the way to go. U can do so much from compound to polish to wax. The meguiars power system is also a good alternative and as they all said u can still get great results with that cuz it's very similar to a da. The powerball just doesn't sit well with me unless I'm gonna shine my rims, even then meguiars has something for that.

Bottom line is it definitely caused by the powerball in some way.

Mothers offers 2 powerballs. One for paint and one for wheels. Mothers also offers a power cone for wheels.

Same here! I just found out there actually is such a thing, and they call it Mothers Powerball 4Paint. Perhaps it's new.

OP, care to clarify whether you used the Powerball 4Paint, or just the normal one which is designed for wheels etc?

Curious to see which one was used.

[Selectchoice]

Re: First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

There's an instructional video on the Mothers website showing how to correctly use the PowerBall 4Paint. It's fairly clear on the use of a slow speed when using the drill.

From re-reading some of the OP's earlier posts, it seems that the product (M07) was applied, allowed to haze then buffed dry with the PowerBall. That dry buffing motion would also contribute to adding more swirls/buffing holograms.

Seems like a few simple 'beginner's errors' however everyone has to begin somewhere. Hopefully we can help get the paint gleaming and swirl free asap!

[LastStep]

Re: First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

To clarify, this is the #7 I used both to create the swirls (with powerball) and to remove them, by hand


I got a lot of the swirls out, but some still remain.
I probably just need to go over it once more with the right tools and technique.
So, it

[LastStep]

Re: First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

The lesson I learned by doing it by hand is that no one should use a machine until they do it by hand.
When doing it by hand, it

[cfilly]

Re: First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

I guess everyone thought you were using Meg's #7, which I was guilty of as well. I went back and read your original post and it said this...

"I used the classic #7 polishing compound and Mother's synthetic wax.
I used that small foam ball with drill on MAX speed."

It makes ALOT more sense now why you have the issues that you are having. Before I got my DA, I used the Meg's DA Power System that attached to a drill, and it worked pretty good. If you can't get a DA right now, the power system should fix your issues, if you use the correct products and technique. I would also throw that good ol No. 7 in the trash...good luck!

[LastStep]

Re: First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

Why are all my posts being edited down to 1-2 sentences? I typed a 4 paragraph response, but it keeps getting edited down to the first sentence only! Is my account restricted?

[LastStep]

Re: First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

The lesson I learned by doing it by hand is that no one should use a machine until they do it by hand.
When doing it by hand it’s much more obvious how much product to use
(barely any just enough to create a film haze and maintain some friction)
You have much more control going slowly. You don't overspray product into the crevices.

When you feel the haze and resistance with your hands you understand you’re actually trying to accomplish.
Just a mild scrubbing not some crazy drill going 60 000 RPM.
Now if I use a DA I will have a much better sense of what I am trying to accomplish with the tool.

Clearly, a drill and powerball were the wrong tool for a first timer.
Just not enough control. Honestly I will only polish my car once or twice a year.
For now I prefer to just do it by hand. Only takes an hour or two and one less tool to store.
Waxing is much easier and that's can be done in 15-30 mins a few times a year by hand also.

Also it's crazy how one crumb of a leaf will screw your panel up with scratching.
This work needs to be done indoors under bright lights to see the glare with no dust or dirt flying around.
I made sure to constantly make sure the rags and applicator pads were free of dirt and debris.

[davey g-force]

Re: First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

To clarify, this is the #7 I used both to create the swirls (with powerball) and to remove them, by hand

That explains a lot.

So you didn't use Meguiars M7, as we all thought. That stuff says it's a compound... using that with the Powerball and a direct drive drill on max speed is what caused the swirls / holograms.

Which Powerball did you use? The one for paint or the normal one?

[LastStep]

Re: First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

Both products use the word "compound"
There is "polishing" and there is "rubbing"
So, I am pretty sure the white cream is polish.

[LastStep]

Re: First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

I used this smaller powerball.

[Randmill]

Re: First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

All of the other guys who have "weighed in" here are right on target. Sure, you made some mistakes but everything you did is correctable. We all started out at some point knowing nothing (or very little) about how to properly care for our paint. The good thing is that you have come to the right place to get help and suggestions from a lot of people with a lot of experience that will help you advance quickly to a level of care that you will be satisfied with and will stun your friends and neighbors.

First though, you will never be able to get the same level of correction by hand that you will be able to achieve with a good dual action polisher - plus, the correction process will go much quicker with a DA. The Harbor Freight tool is an OK DA polisher and many people use them with great success and like them very much, especially for the price. But if you can justify a little more expense for a higher quality tool, there are several available at reasonable prices, such as the Meguiar's G110v2, Porter Cable 7424XP and the Griot's Garage 6". I have the Griot's (about $140) and love it.

In my case, I have a 7 year old black Toyota Tundra with 100K miles on it that has never been garaged and "lives" in the Southern California sun. For years, I washed incorrectly and ran through MANY commercial car washes. So even though I waxed it fairly regularly, my paint was in pretty poor shape with LOTS of swirls, scratches, surface contaminants, etc. First process - wash well (and correctly - MANY posts on this site related to proper washing techniques). Then, clay bar the vehicle to get rid of the surface contaminants bonded to the paint.

As someone else stated in an earlier post, getting into the DA polisher can require a fairly significant initial expense for good backing plates, pads and products to correct and maintain your paint. However, Meguiar's has a very good system for correction that will have everything you need to get started and get your paint looking good... the DA Microfiber Correction System. This kit has 2 microfiber correction pads, 2 microfiber polishing pads, a 16 ounce bottle of D300 Correction Compound, a 16 ounce bottle of D301 Final Polish and a really nice black shop apron with embroidered Meguiar's logo. The only other thing you need to get started (other than good washing materials and possibly clay bar) are GOOD quality microfiber towels. The entire kit, minus the DA polisher, can be purchased through Amazon for about $62. This is a great deal, as the retail price for this kit runs somewhere around $100. Search Amazon for DMCKIT5.

When I first used this kit, I made a lot of mistakes - the biggest mistake was that I didn't read the thread in the forums that explains the proper use and techniques to properly employ this system - I just jumped in and started to work. Even with my mistakes, I achieved unbelievable results and now have a 7 year old black truck that looks almost new; maybe even better than when I first bought it. I live close to Meguiar's headquarters in Irvine, CA, so I took it to the Thursday Night Open Garage to have Michael Stoops critique my results. I told him everything I did wrong and he was amazed at how good it looked. This is a testament to how foolproof the system is, even when you make some mistakes. So for starters, should you decide to use this kit, read this thread first...

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?47855-Using-Meguiar-s-D-A-Microfiber-Correction-System&highlight=microfiber+correction+kit

All of the other guys here have their favorite "go to" products that work well for them and have made suggestions accordingly; all good suggestions. All of the mentioned products work well and achieve spectacular results, so my suggestion is based on what worked well for me and may be a very cost effective solution for you to get started and get your paint back to a maintainable finish. Every paint is different and therefore reacts differently with the various products, so what works well on one car may not necessarily achieve the same result on a different car. Ultimately, you will have to judge for yourself as you learn and try different things - just rest assured, that you CAN get your paint looking excellent again.

I hope this has been helpful. Good luck and above all, make this a fun project and NOT a stressful project!

[allenk4]

Re: First polish/wax attempt was a disaster. Terrible results. Postmortem.

When pulling my legs....please alternate or one will end up longer than the other