I feel like I wasted a whole evening. :(

[GLOCKer]

Products used: Ultimate Compound, Buff and Shine orange pad, HF DA buffer.

I spent about 3 hours compounding my car, which was already in beautiful shape but just needed cleaned up a touch, and there was no improvement. It's still covered in micromarring. I've had better results using the DA Power System. I only have two evenings left to work on the car, so I'm pretty much screwed! I don't have time to compound the car again and I'm pretty sure if compound didn't get it out, polish isn't going to do a damn thing. I'm so frustrated.

[Don]

Re: I feel like I wasted a whole evening.

Chill, before you blow a gasket

Two major points in your process need to be looked at, your arm speed (how fast you move the buffer across the surface) and arm pressure (how much down force you put on the buffer).

If you move too fast, then the buffer doesn't have time to work and if you have too much (or not enough) pressure on the buffer, it can't do it's work either. So at least in this case, hard and fast isn't a good thing.

Pressure is relatively easy to measure, enough to where the buffing pad can 'get a grip' on the paint, but not so much that the pad stops spinning and only 'jiggles.' Arm SPEED is more difficult to judge, it takes practice. Maybe someone else can explain that one a bit better.

[Top Gear]

Re: I feel like I wasted a whole evening.

I agree with Don. The way you feel is pretty much the same way I've felt after many hours of compounding with foam and UC, and even MF and UC, because UC/M105 is just not very aggressive when the paint is on the harder side, dark or black, or if the defects are wide-spread, deep, etc. Sounds like you've got all three, just like I did. A non-aggressive combo will technically work, for the most part, but it can take a very, very long time to correct one small area, and then you see the whole car needs that much attention and it's overwhelming. Been there.

There are two ways to look at the bright side right now: First, with that combo (and assuming the usual precautions) you probably cannot do any damage to the paint if you tried, and so you've got a great way to learn how all these variables work for you on your car, especially on defects that do respond; Second, you will nevertheless wind up with a baby-smooth surface that's at least mostly swirl-free, and it will certainly be show-ready, because you'll do a few passes of polish after the compounding and then put on a good wax layer or two. It will look awesome, and I'm sure you will be the only one who sees anything but perfection. Later, you can test more aggressive combos, say with MF pads, M100 or M101, a Porter Cable, wet-sanding, etc.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: I feel like I wasted a whole evening.

I spent about 3 hours compounding my car, which was already in beautiful shape but just needed cleaned up a touch, and there was no improvement. It's still covered in micromarring.

Just throwing this out there to start: If the car was "already in beautiful shape" why did you feel the need to compound it? It may very well be that the paint is touch sensitive enough (ie, prone to DA hazing) that what you really needed was just a mild polish to bring it up to the high level you desire. It is very common that virtually any compounding step, regardless the liquid/pad/tool combo, will create some level of micromarring, unless the paint is extremely hard. With really hard paints, while the major defects may be slow to come out, the paint finish looks spectacular even after compounding. In fact, these can look so good after compounding that you can often go straight to wax. Other paints respond quite differently to that same input and some light micromarring, as you've described, is the end result. That micromarring is then usually cleaned up pretty easily with a finishing polish (Ultimate Polish or M205) on either a polishing or finishing pad.

The good news for you here is that a light polishing step generally goes a lot quicker than a dedicated, defect removing, compound step.

[The Guz]

Re: I feel like I wasted a whole evening.

I would have to agree with Mike. I would also add that this is why so many of us preach about a test spot with the least aggressive combination.

[GLOCKer]

Re: I feel like I wasted a whole evening.

Thanks guys. I'm going to press on this evening with UP and then tomorrow with ULW.

I thing I noticed when I was taking the product off was that there was a squeaking noise and it felt like the microfibers weren't gliding across the surface like there were when I was using quick detailer on the car to knock the dust off to apply the UC. Could I have introduced the micromarring by wiping the UC off the panel?

[Top Gear]

Re: I feel like I wasted a whole evening.

I think you're using the term "micro-marring" in a way that's confusing us - or confusing me, anyway. IMO, it usually means little "pigtails" introduced into curves and corners from aggressive DA work. I've done this using the Xtra Cut MF pad pretty aggressively, but they come out the same way sanding marks do, usually fairly easily. I think you're talking about "swirls" and "spiderwebs", which are the result of wiping, basically. They are easy to remove, except when they aren't - that is, from using too weak a combo for the paint.

The difficulty in getting UC off, if I understand you, is because in that area you're using too much liquid, and it kinda sticks onto the super-dry areas of the paint. A quick spin or pass with the same pad usually removes those cloudy areas. There's a balance between using enough liquid to do the work quickly and then using too much. I think Mr. Stoops would probably use less than I would, but it also has a lot to do with humidity in the air. I've learned not to try to clear those areas with anything but the still moist pad I was just using.

Also, I would not do the whole car in one process and then wait for another day to move on to the next step. Test in smaller areas, and then do the full steps on a section, panel, clip or whatever works. For example, you could do the front fenders and hood in one day, such that they are finished, then do the doors or one side, and so forth. This will greatly reduce the amount of wiping and dusting you'll have to do, and you'll have final wax on a panel before nightfall, because the overnight condensation cycle, pollen, etc, are not helping you, even if you have a garage.

Hope all that helps.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: I feel like I wasted a whole evening.

Thanks guys. I'm going to press on this evening with UP and then tomorrow with ULW.

I thing I noticed when I was taking the product off was that there was a squeaking noise and it felt like the microfibers weren't gliding across the surface like there were when I was using quick detailer on the car to knock the dust off to apply the UC. Could I have introduced the micromarring by wiping the UC off the panel?

Again, this is just the compounding step. When you use a quick detail spray you're applying something that is intentionally very slippery and slick feeling. A compound, even one with a bit of silicone in it like UC, is going to wipe the slate clean, so to speak, and leave the surface squeaky clean (no pun intended....well, maybe a little!).

Micromarring, as Top Gear mentioned, is a term normally used to describe a visible, although extremely fine, defect in the paint. Micromarring in and of itself will have no bearing on how the paint feels as you wipe anything off the surface. It's a visual thing, not a tactile one.

[GLOCKer]

Re: I feel like I wasted a whole evening.

So yeah, it seems like I was wigging out about nothing. I got the car finished Thursday evening and finally got it out of the garage today for the first time to see it. It came out great. From here on, instead of doing the car in stages, I'll do panels all the way through.

[Old Bear]

Re: I feel like I wasted a whole evening.

Looks like a nice day and venue for a car show.

[Spazzz]

Re: I feel like I wasted a whole evening.

It looks like the UP got rid of the slight haze from UC and an orange pad.

I love that car

[GLOCKer]

Re: I feel like I wasted a whole evening.

I'm really happy with how the car came out! Someone shot a high-res photo that really shows how the paint popped!

[Michael Stoops]

Re: I feel like I wasted a whole evening.

You gotta love it when things turn out like this!!! Nice job, GLOCKer, the car looks fantastic!!!

[drumdan]

Re: I feel like I wasted a whole evening.

Wow! Looks very good!

How did the process go with Ultimate Polish? What pad did you end up using?

[GLOCKer]

Re: I feel like I wasted a whole evening.

Wow! Looks very good!

How did the process go with Ultimate Polish? What pad did you end up using?

The application of the Ultimate Polish went FAST! I applied it with my Harbor Freight DA on setting 3 with an orange Buff & Shine brand pad and removed with a clean microfiber.

Wax went even quicker! I used Ultimate Liquid Wax applied with the Harbor Freight DA and a black Buff & Shine brand pad on setting 3 and I removed it with a cheapo random orbital buffer I bought a couple of years ago from Wal-Mart with a microfiber bonnet on it.

Is it okay to use the orbital buffer with a microfiber bonnet to remove compound and polish in the future? It sped up the process significantly with the wax!