Of course I have to add my controversial take on the "new guy on a rotary thing."...
Use wool.
I could do a four page rant on how I love wool, but I'll keep it simple, and with a new guy slant:
Wool is *very* easy to use. It does not get nearly as hot as foam, it doesn't skip as easily, is less sensitive to the amount of product you use, is easily cleaned with a spur and a brush as you go if you do over-do the product application, and is *much safer* for a new guy; the reduced heat gives you a better margin for error on plastic areas, as well as inadvertantly touching adjacent parts with the pad. It aslo cuts quicker. (Yeah, I think that's a safety advantage. Kinda like using a sharp knife). It's also available for every job you'd want to do: compounding, intermediate correction,
final polish and even LSP application. It's also easier to use in hard-to-get-to places.
Lot's of people still say that you'll never finish down as well with wool, and that you'll end up with far more holograms, but I've converted a few peeps to "the dark side", and I'm still working on more.
I'm only a part time guy. I do it cause I love to detail, not for money. I've only corrected a total of about 20 cars this year, but 15 of them have been with wool, and I've achieved the same results finishing with wool as I did with foam.
As
Coupe's signature says, "Wool Rules. Foam Drools."