Holograms

[AeroCleanse]

So does a rotary cause holograms by itself or is it a function of the wool pad on a rotary?

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Holograms

Swirls, as in Rotary Buffer Swirls also called Holograms and Buffer Trails, are merely circular scratches in the paint.

What causes swirls are a number of things,

Buffing pads - Both foam and fiber type pads can instill a swirl aka a scratch into the paint.

Abrasives - Both diminishing and non-diminishing abrasives can instill a swirl aka a scratch into the paint.

Technique - Holding the pad at an angle, applying too much pressure.

Cleanliness - Paint surface must be clean at ail times and buffing process, both pad and chemicals need to be clean, that is contaminant free.

Helps to work in a clean shop.

You can instill swirls by hand or machine. When you use a rotary buffer the direct rotating action of the drive unit creates circular swirls that usually show up in some type of zig-zag pattern depending upon how the person using the RB moved the RB over the paint.

In this example the person moved the rotary buffer from front to back, that is from the front of the car hood to the back of the car hood where it meets the windshield.

Before


After




Any time you touch car paint, by hand or machine the potential exists to instill a swirl or scratch. It is your job to reduce the potential by using the best,

Pads
Chemicals
Techniques

If you use the right pad with the right chemical with the right technique it's possible to produce a swirl-free finish on 'some' paints using a rotary buffer but not all paints as some paints buff better than others.

This means sometimes it doesn't matter how good 'you' are because it's not about you, it's about the paint.

In most cases, most people will want to follow any rotary buffer cleaning and polishing steps with a follow-up step where they switch to a machine that oscillates, not just rotates.

Makes sense?

[yalerd]

Re: Holograms

It depends on the your skill level, the technique, the combination of product / pad you use. Another thing that you should consider is the hardness of the paint or how sensitive it is to something aggressive.

To get a perfect finish you'll need a machine like the G110 that you would use once you've finished removing all the defects the paint has. Using the G110 with M09 or M82 and re-polish the surface will remove those light swirls or holograms.

[yalerd]

Re: Holograms

Mike, how many times have you responded to this question?
I saw this and started to think/type and when posted you already were resting!

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Holograms

Mike, how many times have you responded to this question?
I saw this and started to think/type and when posted you already were resting!

Don't know off-hand but there's at least 2-4 "classic" threads in the "Hot Topics" forum that address buffer swirls and holograms.

There might even be a thread with a list of all the buffer swirl and hologram threads?

[AeroCleanse]

Re: Holograms

Well this is the FAQ area

I always follow up my rotary with the Porter Cable DA, just happened to catch a hologram before I started.

Clean shop, must be nice for some people, others have to work outside.

[mini44]

Re: Holograms

I thought I was getting hologram free with the rotary, I mean it looked absolutely perfect in the bright sun. I used w7006 and 83 to take out some sanding marks then followed with 82 and a w8006 pad all rotary. One week later when the filler oils or whatever disappeared ... buffer trails. Thank goodness it was my husbands truck and not one that someone paid for. I re did the hood with the PC and 80 and it looks amazing. The correction is amazingly fast with the tool but I think I'll finish with the PC for a long time yet.