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I have a new Mazdaspeed3. The paint is a dark blue-gray color with a lot of flake.
I clayed the car when new and applied some wax which I've had good luck with. The problem is that the car does not give much in the way of reflection and the paint appears rather like wood for a lack of better way to express it.
I used a paint cleaner and re-waxed the car and no change. It does look nice and clean and the paint is very smooth after the clay I did again the second time.
So I went out and bought all of the 2009 Meguiars products
I started with Swirl-x on a small section of the hood I taped off. I did this by hand without too much pressure. I used one of those cute little handles for the foam applicator. After this it looked about the same. For sure the gloss was about the same as the waxed area. But as I looked I noticed some water spotting was still hanging on.
Next I used some Scratch-X 2.0 on a foam pad to tackle the water spots. After working this the spots did not go away or diminish too much (1/3 perhaps). The finish however looked about the same as the swirl-x.
I pulled out the big guns next. Ultimate compound. Again with foam applicator. I worked this 2x. Now the water marks are very faint. I am sure that one or two more times and they would be gone. The finish was near the other 2 but just a little less gloss (maybe). I never used a lot of pressure so I may have been able to work the spots of doing so but I wanted the compounds to do the work.
I reversed my way out of this with scratch-x 2.0 followed by swirl-x and and used NXT 2.0 to top it. I am sure this was overkill but hey it was a lazy Saturday.
Comments and Questions section
I never used a lot of pressure so I may have been able to work the spots off doing so but I wanted the compounds to do the work.
At first I was dissapointed. After removing the tape I did not notice any better gloss. The more I looked however I noticed a difference. If I looked at the surface I had worked on vs the other areas it is clear the other areas have a granular look at the surface while the area I worked was smoothed over and much less grainy looking. I am betting than when the entire car is done it will make a big difference.
So I place an order for a DA today. I don't have enough hours to do the car like this by hand. So I am wondering if I should start back at swirl-x with the DA? How much more removal will the DA accomplish with the lower abrasive compound than it did by hand? I am thinking that the Ultimate may be more than I need with a DA? I do not have any experience with one so I am not sure what they will really do.
As a summary, all of these products finish really nice and did not introduce any scratches or haze. I have a lot more water spotting on the hood and roof to take care of and I am sure these products will work well.
I clayed the car when new and applied some wax which I've had good luck with. The problem is that the car does not give much in the way of reflection and the paint appears rather like wood for a lack of better way to express it.
I used a paint cleaner and re-waxed the car and no change. It does look nice and clean and the paint is very smooth after the clay I did again the second time.
So I went out and bought all of the 2009 Meguiars products
I started with Swirl-x on a small section of the hood I taped off. I did this by hand without too much pressure. I used one of those cute little handles for the foam applicator. After this it looked about the same. For sure the gloss was about the same as the waxed area. But as I looked I noticed some water spotting was still hanging on.
Next I used some Scratch-X 2.0 on a foam pad to tackle the water spots. After working this the spots did not go away or diminish too much (1/3 perhaps). The finish however looked about the same as the swirl-x.
I pulled out the big guns next. Ultimate compound. Again with foam applicator. I worked this 2x. Now the water marks are very faint. I am sure that one or two more times and they would be gone. The finish was near the other 2 but just a little less gloss (maybe). I never used a lot of pressure so I may have been able to work the spots of doing so but I wanted the compounds to do the work.
I reversed my way out of this with scratch-x 2.0 followed by swirl-x and and used NXT 2.0 to top it. I am sure this was overkill but hey it was a lazy Saturday.
Comments and Questions section
I never used a lot of pressure so I may have been able to work the spots off doing so but I wanted the compounds to do the work.
At first I was dissapointed. After removing the tape I did not notice any better gloss. The more I looked however I noticed a difference. If I looked at the surface I had worked on vs the other areas it is clear the other areas have a granular look at the surface while the area I worked was smoothed over and much less grainy looking. I am betting than when the entire car is done it will make a big difference.
So I place an order for a DA today. I don't have enough hours to do the car like this by hand. So I am wondering if I should start back at swirl-x with the DA? How much more removal will the DA accomplish with the lower abrasive compound than it did by hand? I am thinking that the Ultimate may be more than I need with a DA? I do not have any experience with one so I am not sure what they will really do.
As a summary, all of these products finish really nice and did not introduce any scratches or haze. I have a lot more water spotting on the hood and roof to take care of and I am sure these products will work well.
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