Hologram-M205 & pads selections

[mohebmhanna]

Hello,
if you notice hologram ( no swirls or scratches) on a dark color car (soft paint ) and you would like to remove it using M205 or UP using a soft finishing pad ; is that mean the abrasive powder in the product will compromise the paint thickness (about 1 micron from clear coat) but the hologram will be removed from the surface. In Meguiar's pro line what product (no abrasive) you recommend to clear hologram. Please advice. Thanks to all.

[greg0303]

Re: Hologram-M205 & pads selections

Holograms (also called buffer trails/ buffer swirls) require paint removal, they're in paint defects, so abrasive products have to be used.

Aggressivenes would be based on hologram's depth and paint hardness. Definitely M205 Ultra Finishing Polish, M83 Dual Action Cleaner/ Polish, SwirlX, ScratchX and Ultimate Compound are all suitable for this job. Ultimate Polish is the least aggressive one for the task so if they are deep it may struggle.

You won't remove big amount of a clear coat while correcting holograms. Meguiar's always recommend the least aggressive approach first and to do test spot(s).

[Murr1525]

Re: Hologram-M205 & pads selections

Well, few things going on here:

if you notice hologram ( no swirls or scratches)

Swirls, scratches, holograms, cobwebbing, buffer trails, etching, etc are all the exact same thing. They are low spots in the paint, and the paint surrounding the low spot needs removed in order to even out the surface. Some are just more severe than others, easier or harder to remove, etc. A hologram will usually be from rotary buffing, but still the same problem of low spots.

on a dark color car (soft paint ) and you would like to remove it using M205 or UP using a soft finishing pad;

That combo could work... Or may need a polishing pad, or still may need a stronger product first. Just have to do a mild test spot and see, and bump things up if needed.

is that mean the abrasive powder in the product will compromise the paint thickness (about 1 micron from clear coat) but the hologram will be removed from the surface.

Since you would have to remove paint to level the area, yes, it will make the paint thinner. Luckily, most of these things are very minor at the surface, but just make a big reflection. So not much paint is removed.

But if the previous work was done by someone inexperienced, you never know how much paint they may have removed already. So if you will find yourself working on older cars, or fixing others problems, you may want a paint thickness gauge to check with before working on it.

In Meguiar's pro line what product (no abrasive) you recommend to clear hologram.

Well, as noted above, to remove low spots, you would need something with some abrasiveness to remove the paint. Usually get best results if able to use a mild pad, and let the product do the work. So I would say that #205 is still a good starting point, unless you had some really soft paint, and then a cleaner/wax type product may be needed.

[mohebmhanna]

Re: Hologram-M205 & pads selections

Do you know who is selling inexpensive paint thickness gauge!!

[greg0303]

Re: Hologram-M205 & pads selections

This one works pretty well and its price is on the budget:
http://highlinemeter.com/

You could also check Amazon and eBay.

[mohebmhanna]

Re: Hologram-M205 & pads selections

Thanks for help.