Polish removal bonnets for PC?

vaca222 · 04-10-08, 10:29

I'm trying to get a pipline of customers this year, but one of the things that makes detailing so very hard for me is the time I spend manually removing products such as FP, AIO and SG.

Has anyone ever used the PC to remove these products using some kind of buffing bonnet? If so, where can I get them?

Thanks!

SuperBee364 · 04-10-08, 10:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by vaca222

I'm trying to get a pipline of customers this year, but one of the things that makes detailing so very hard for me is the time I spend manually removing products such as FP, AIO and SG.

Has anyone ever used the PC to remove these products using some kind of buffing bonnet? If so, where can I get them?

Thanks!

Dual Action Microfiber Bonnet Kit

They're great for removing easily-removed LSP's like Zaino, but on tougher carnaubas, they don't really work very well. Make sure you change the bonnet often for best results. Also, don't use the included lambswool pad by itself. The only reason they include it is for a MF bonnet holder. Using the lambswool by itself will really screw your paint up bad.

You can take a layer of sealant residue off of a car in no time with these.

vaca222 · 04-10-08, 11:57

Thank you!!!!

Accumulator · 04-10-08, 01:25

I do almost all my LSP removal by machine, but I do a quick by-hand follow up to make sure I don't leave some 1% behind. I do this with *every* LSP I use, including Collinite wax, and as long as I don't apply the stuff goofy-thick it works great for me.

I recently buffed a coat of #16 off the A8 using *one* set of suede-style MF bonnets on the Cyclo, and that's not a small car

But until you get the hang of the whole thing I'd recommend a few bonnets as they *will* load up.

For the PC, the Meg's MF bonnets seem to work very well. I don't recommend the Cobra brand ones as theirs that *I* have tried can micromar very soft paint. The others I like are off the market so I'd lean towards the Meg's or the DFTowel "natural microfiber" ones.

I find polish removal by machine to be tricky as many polishes should be buffed off before they're completely dry. Not to hard to do if you have two machines with one dedicated to just the removal, but not too easy if you only have *one* machine. Polishes such as the 1Z consumer line, that break down into nonabrasive cleaner-wax-type residue work fine for one-machine approaches, but those products sure dust a lot/load up bonnets, so have plenty on hand.

AIO-type products buff off very well for me by machine but again, they can load up your bonnets in a hurry.

I don't turn the bonnets inside-out to use the "other side" as I don't want to contaminate my backing pads. I use foam backing pads (cutting pads, they grip the MF best so it doesn't slip around) instead of wool as the foam doesn't compress down over time (resulting in diminished cushioning) the way the wool ones do.

vaca222 · 04-11-08, 08:16

Great, thanks for the help guys.

Buffing off by hand after IP, FP, AOI and SG is just a killer for me. Not only is it very time-consuming but it also wrecks me physically. If have some people lined up that want their cars done but if I don't find a quicker and easier way to do it, it'll take me a whole day just for 1 car.

I might invest in another PC just for buffing!

Accumulator · 04-11-08, 12:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by vaca222

..Buffing off by hand after IP, FP, AOI and SG is just a killer for me. Not only is it very time-consuming but it also wrecks me physically...I might invest in another PC just for buffing!

Yeah, I sympathize. I started with the as-much-as-possible-by-machine approach when I had shoulder issues, it was the only way I could detail.

One of the reasons I have two PCs and Cyclos is so that one can apply and the other remove.

Oh, and fogging the surface of the panels with your breath before buffing off can make it go a whole lot easier.

qbmurderer13 · 12-12-08, 11:55

Bumping this thread instead of starting another one. Is there any downside to removing sealant this way? At what speeds do you guys use to remove it? And also how many bonnets do you think it would take to do an entire average sized car?

backwoods_lex · 12-13-08, 06:07

It's off topic, but I once tried using a dry white low profile LC pad (it was older, worn, and pretty soft) to remove wax residue. I noticed the next day that my freshly deswirled paint had little micromarring spots everywhere. Bad idea.

Accumulator · 12-13-08, 09:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by qbmurderer13

Bumping this thread instead of starting another one. Is there any downside to removing sealant this way?

None that I've ever noticed, but you gotta use good bonnets and keep them clean. Make sure the bonnets are soft enough for your paint; some of the early Cobra MF bonnets weren't soft enough for very soft paint and could cause micromarring. Also make sure they don't pick up a speck of something abrasive or get loaded with product residue.

Quote:

At what speeds do you guys use to remove it?

I use 4-5 by PC.

Quote:

And also how many bonnets do you think it would take to do an entire average sized car?

Depends how thick/think you apply the LSP. I usually use two sets on the Cyclo or two-three on the PC, but I can imagine others needing a lot more than that (I apply my LSPs very thin). And I'm also doing a final pass by hand, so I use a few regular MF towels too.