Purpose of #45 Polish

[beeser]

After cleaning the gelcoat surface I applied #45 Polish using a PC and green foam pad. I didn't see any improvement to the surface. Is it because of the bright white color? What exactly is the purpose for the polish?

[Murr1525]

Re: Purpose of #45 Polish

A pure polish puts oils onto the surface that can absorb into the surface to keep it from drying out.

I also can fill in minor imperfections to increase the gloss/clarity of the surface. However, this effect is easiest to see on darker colors.

Also, depending on what cleaner you used, if it was a cleaner/polish, some polishing oils may already have been on the surface.

[beeser]

Re: Purpose of #45 Polish

A pure polish puts oils onto the surface that can absorb into the surface to keep it from drying out.

I also can fill in minor imperfections to increase the gloss/clarity of the surface. However, this effect is easiest to see on darker colors.

Also, depending on what cleaner you used, if it was a cleaner/polish, some polishing oils may already have been on the surface.

I used #49 Oxidation Remover before the polish. Does that contain any polishing oils?

[Murr1525]

Re: Purpose of #45 Polish

#49 Sounds like mostly a cleaner offhand, but maybe Mike can chime in for sure.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Purpose of #45 Polish

Yes there are polishing oils in the M49

As Matt stated, you're probably not seeing a difference because of the color.

Here's what a pure polish does when applied to a single stage black paint; a gel-coat finish would react the same way. In this example we're using M07 Show Car Glaze, the same principal would apply to using M45 as both of these product are in the same category of products called Pure Polishes. Meguiar's pure polishes are non-abrasive, their purpose is to maximize gloss, richness of color, restore clarity and increase depth, among other things.






After washing the dirt and dust off the top I took a photo to show the dull, dry looking oxidized paint and also applied some painters tape to isolate the two sides for a good before and after shot.




Next I applied some #7 Show Car Glaze to one side and then vigorously wiped the surface off using Meguiar's Supreme Microfiber Shine. As most people know, microfiber polishing cloths are very effective and efficient at removing polishes and waxes off the surface of paint and even trace residues.

Since all the polishing oils were removed off the surface, this means the change in color is a result of the polishing oils that penetrated into the paint. That's how a pure polish works on permeable or porous coatings or materials.




To make sure there is no confusion, the left side I'm pointing to is the side I applied and removed the #7 Show Car Glaze.




The right side is the before side with no polish.


As you can see, the polishing oils have penetrated into the paint. In so doing, they have restored clarity, richness of color, gloss and beauty.

The same thing would happen to the white hard top in the picture except because the color is light/white your eyes will not perceive any change or difference even though there is the same penetrating results.