How long should I work the product?

[Slow Eddie]

I'm using the G110V2 with 7" soft buff 2.0 polishing and finishing pads. I plan on ordering a few 4 inch pads when the wife allows it... LOL

Product is Ultimate Polish and Ultimate Compound. I think I may not be working the product long enough, since it seems like it takes as much effort to remove the residual as it does to apply the product. What is a good visual indicator of when to stop?

So far so good, still working on my technique. It doesn't help that my vehicle is black with metal flakes. I still have swirl marks but they are definitely not as harsh as they were initially when I started. Maybe I'm moving too fast? Also what is the recomended speed for the compound and the polish? The DA polisher has recomendations on the handle, but I've seen contradicing posts.

Thank you.

Eddie

[Wukin2k2]

Re: How long should I work the product?

UC and UP are SMAT which no need to wait for them to break down like DATs do. You can stop polishing anytime you please with the result. In general use 5-6 for compounding and 4-5 for polishing. Slow movement, keep the pad flat and lots pressure but not bog down the machine. I think pc polisher recommend to use 5" pads

[Michael Stoops]

Re: How long should I work the product?

While the abrasives don't break down in the sense that a diminishing abrasive does, the product itself will be worked to a much thinner state on the paint surface as you use it. Keeping your work area down to no more than 2' x 2' and then moving the buffer slowly from side to side, then up and down, then repeating both directions through that area should allow for easy wipe off of the product. You can buff a bit longer if need be, but you never want to go the point of a dry buff - the surface you've just moved the buffer away from should always remain wet, even if the product is now very thin.

By the way, the speed settings on the buffer are starting point guidelines. Since paint surfaces and the defects in them can vary dramatically, it's up to you as the tool operator and detailer to read that paint and make some adjustments accordingly. Of course, that's knowledge that only comes with experience, so feel free to experiment a bit as you're working on the paint. For example, if you have two cars at home the paint could be very different between them, and one may correct very easily and quickly while the other one will force you to be more aggressive. This is part of the reason why we always recommend doing a test spot the first time you work on any car. You just don't know for certain how that paint is going to react until you start working on it.

[Slow Eddie]

Re: How long should I work the product?

Thank you both for the replies.

[imz4n]

Re: How long should I work the product?

The only product that should dry on the paint is a sealer or wax. If you do not get what you want after the first pass of the 2x2 area do the same area again and perhaps use more pressure or a higher speed. $0.02