polishing out scratchs

[Richoson Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Richoson]

what product do you use?

hmmm, any reason why you choose MOvember?

I use the Meguires range, they have a series of products that you use in order, it is a big job as it takes around half a day from start to finish, as for MOvember, even seen my MO

See yo on the tracks, Richo.

[MidLifeCrisis Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close MidLifeCrisis]

yep... x3
My biggest scratch after backing into the letterbox would have to be one of the more embarrassing war stories
Be hard to polish out as well seeing it went to bare metal :evil:

x4, my rig would just look stupid with panel work (accidental) and perfect paint. Besides when you fix it all back to new you lose bragging rights.

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

so too much polish actually rubs the paint off?...interesting

Certainly does, its virtually unoticeable on white but get red, blue, green, and check out the rag each time you polish it, the colour will be present on the cloth, now obviously this colour is coming from some where, yep the paint from the car. I polish mine twice a year (6 monthly, wax once a year) pulls out any marks and keeps the water beading up on it which is generally a good indication of when a polish is due, if it doesnt bead up after you wash and rinse it, its time for some elbow grease. It also does stop a few light scratches when well polished/waxed. I also would not use a buff on a vehicle unless you know how to use one, you can burn and totally destroy the paint work then its a respray. Generally white is the best colour for not seeing scratches but if you really want to see some scratches then park your car under fluro lights, will show up really well and imperfections/scratches on paint work. I have worked at a smash repairs for a few years and some people really do some damage to there vehicles from over polishing and using an electric buff. I was also Pre Delivery manager for a Toyota dealership in Sydney so have seen some terrible detailing/polishing/smash repair work.......Cheers Steve

[Richoson Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Richoson]

The other reason I polish mine (that's the car) in November is we usually head off to Nth Straddie each Xmas for a couple of weeks and the polish keeps the salt from sticking, we are fortunate enough to have access to a hose so each time we get back from the beach a quick hose down and it's all good.

See ya on the tracks, Richo.

[croozza Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close croozza]

so too much polish actually rubs the paint off?...interesting

No, too much cutting compound will.

If you were to look at the paint on your vehicle under a microscope, it would look like a mountains and valleys, the polish fills in the valleys so that it is a flat surface, giving a high gloss finish to the paint, if you touch your paint before you polish, it will feel grippy, due to the valleys, and after you polish it, it will feel smooth and slippery.
I have found, that if you polish your vehicle before 4wding, you will reduce the chance of scratches by a massive amount, my mates doubted me untill they tried it, and now they do the same, cause it works.

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

Never used cutting compound on any of my cars, my green suzuki I had would give you a green cloth every time.. Or did I read it wrong and you are sujesting that noraml polishes have cutting compund in them ?? I presume they would have that is how they get the scratches out (well some of them anyway) ??? Cheers steve

[pjorek Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close pjorek]

so how would i know what I'm buying then...i've got wax which is fair enough, dont think it damages/reduces paint so waxing even once a month if you have time is ok (correct me if i'm wrong here)

but how would i distinguish cutting compound from normal polish, btw my car is white so if you can suggest brand/type of polish+wax to use that would be great.

not interested in cutting compound (by the sounds of it) until it's time to sell

btw. to all gurus of car detailing:

1. What's wax used for and do i use it before polishing
2. what's polish used for and see above
3. whats cutting compound used for what order do i use it in?

[Jeffers Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Jeffers]

so how would i know what I'm buying then...i've got wax which is fair enough, dont think it damages/reduces paint so waxing even once a month if you have time is ok (correct me if i'm wrong here)

but how would i distinguish cutting compound from normal polish, btw my car is white so if you can suggest brand/type of polish+wax to use that would be great.

not interested in cutting compound (by the sounds of it) until it's time to sell

btw. to all gurus of car detailing:

1. What's wax used for and do i use it before polishing
2. what's polish used for and see above
3. whats cutting compound used for what order do i use it in?

All Polishes have a certain amount of cutting compound otherwise you will never remove any scratches. Every car has a number of layers of clear on top of the actual paint. The clear is what your actually polishing. You would have to polish a car hundreds of times before you reached the actual paint.
Without trying to sound like a wa#ker, I have used Autoglym - Super Resin Polish on all of my cars including Audi's, Porsche's and Alfa's and all have had a beautiful shine and no issues with any paint. There are a number of brands of polish and range in price, so I suggest you stick to the upper price bracket and you wont have any problems.
I have no affiliation with Autoglym, I just think that their products are great. They also have a number of different car cleaning and protection products that I have used without any issue what so ever.

This is their website,

http://www.autoglym.com/enGB/product...l.asp?v06VQ=HD

They are a UK product, but are available at Autobarn here in Australia.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

Jeff

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

carnauba wax which is what I use and is 100%, is pretty much like a sealant, you use this after you polish, this I only use once a year on any of my cars, I suppose technically I should reapply it after I polish which is twice a year. My prado had never been polished prior to me buying it so has copped 5 years of sun (was garaged at least and very well looked after interior wise and servicing) but some people just dont think cars need polishing and mine was probably one of them as the original owner had that paint protection put on it which in my opinion is an absolute crock of shit and a waste of money. the car yard sent it to supposidly professional detaliers here in Penrith and was an absolute crap buffing job, hit and miss. I did it all by hand (took me 3 days from start to finish) and is now gleaming top to bottom (till it gos off road lol) but even taking them off I still look after them best I can. I use maquires (spelling) and mothers, and polyglaze for the polish (always have) I have never used a heavy duty cutback as such (feels like sand paper when appling it) this is best applyed by buff but as I said prior if you dont know how to use a buff then dont even use one for polishing let alone cutting back and if you decide to use a cutback make sure its suitable for clear coats (there is a big difference). Polish basically removes the road grime (hence pays to wash car even if it rains) if you ever have bird shit on your paint remove it ASAP as it will eat through clear laquar, sp called paint protection pretty much anything especially bat shit and some bird crap is worse then others, once it eats through your paint is screwed. Basically a good hand polich to remove road grime and crap, then finish off with a wax. Unless its faded extremely bad I wouldnt touch it with cut back or a buff. There are so many polisheswax's on the market to choose from. I get mine from supercheap.........Cheers Steve PS When I get home I will post up the three I have always used, one polish,one wax, the other for faded sufaces which is a bit of a cut back but extremely smooth on the paint which I used on prado,..........

[Jeffers Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Jeffers]

1. What's wax used for and do i use it before polishing
2. what's polish used for and see above
3. whats cutting compound used for what order do i use it in?

Sorry pjorek,

To answer your question,
1. You should wash your car and dry well with a chamois.
2. Apply the polish in small circular motions with a soft cloth. (I recommend that you do small areas of your car at 1 time, e.g. Bonnet, door, front wheel hub.)
3. Using a different dry cloth, wipe the dried polish off. (Again, small areas at a time, Just like Karate Kid - Wax on, Wax off )
4. If required apply a wax or a paint protection product. (I used Autoglym Extra Gloss Protection)

I hope that this helps.

Cheers,

Jeff

[croozza Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close croozza]

Never used cutting compound on any of my cars, my green suzuki I had would give you a green cloth every time.. Or did I read it wrong and you are sujesting that noraml polishes have cutting compund in them ?? I presume they would have that is how they get the scratches out (well some of them anyway) ??? Cheers steve

If your getting colour of the paint on your cloth, then your paint has oxidised, and you need to polish it more often to stop it from happening.

[humphrey Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close humphrey]

Do a search for car detailing forums, there's a few good ones around. Some of the jargon will go over your head but you'll learn plenty. You'll find that most people interested in the higher levels of car cleanliness will steer clear of products sold through supercheap and the like. If your paying 20 bucks a bottle for run of mill stuff, you may as well pay 30 and get something that actually works, but you have to get it from a hand full of suppliers, although all sell online.

You'll also come to find that some "polishers" dont polish at all, they simply fill in the scratch and conceal it for a period of time. I find this a better option in relation to the Prado which receives pin stripping on a regular basis.


Canuba wax is your friend. It's what protects the vehicles paint. Apply it around every three months. You can buy it in either wax form or a liquid which is known as a sealant.

People have mentioned to stay away from buffing machines. This is true, they can quickly turn things pear shapped. It's the radom orbital type machines that yo can use, they are virtually idiot proof.

This is a very simplified version of car detailing. But as I said, search the forums and it'll be a real eye opener.

But be warned, I've found car detailing like metal polishing on bikes, it's a very slippery slope.

[Richoson Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Richoson]

I use Carnubia Wax as the final when I do mine once a year, the intial prep after washing is a "paint cleaner" these are very mild cutting compounds and if only used once a year shouldn't cause you any grief.

An example of looking after your car paint and service wise is when I sold our 1997 90 series Prado (280'000ks) one of the mechanics at the dealership bought it from me at $4000.00 more than the tradein offered (which I considered OK any way).

See ya on the tracks, Richo.

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

"" You'll find that most people interested in the higher levels of car cleanliness will steer clear of products sold through supercheap and the like"" Funny that Brett, supercheap sells both Maquires and Mothers and some other high quality polishes and wax's which are not cheap and some well over $20 a bottle and would be classed as good quality products..........Cheers Steve

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

My 97 Grande was gleaming when I sold it, yes it had striping down the sides but only visible under fluro lights, the bloke that bought it from me at first thought it had been resprayed, all original. My gold 01 T/D grande copped a nice couple of lines down the side of it last year at the GTG, took a bit but got it out prior to selling. Pays to look after them and find it scratches less when its been polished then gets branches up the side of them, except blackberry bush on my hilux, scratched the absolute crap out of it lol, but thats what happens when you take them off road.........Cheers Steve