Rotary Practice

drumset11 · 06-11-08, 07:46

Hello Everyone,

I'd like to start out by introducing myself as this is my first post on these forums. My name is Justin, and I have been browsing this site for about a year now. I bought a UDM a year ago and came across the desire for something more, so I purchased a Dewalt 849 rotary. My local salvage yard had a half price sale on panels so I went out and purchased a hood. Here is what it looked like after a wash and clay.

and under the halogens...

This was my first time with the rotary. The process went as follows:

Megs 84 via megs yellow solo wool pad
Megs 83 via megs yellow solo polishing pad
megs 80 via megs black solo polishing pad

I worked all polishes the same, starting out at 1000 rpms, working at 1400 rpms, and finishing back at 1000 rpms. I was a little short on time so I only had time for one application of each polish. Here are the results...

and back in the sun...

Really my lack of camera skills makes me look better than I actually am. I tried my best to showcase the remaining marring which consisted of minor halograms and swirles. There is, however, great improvement, and I will continue working on this trying to refine my technique. Thanks for looking everyone.

cushdrive · 06-12-08, 02:10

Definite improvement. That hood was pretty bad. It still has a way to go, but more to go means more experience and that never hurts. It'd be a great time to learn how to wetsand. Welcome to autopia!

ktorres1120 · 06-13-08, 10:57

Wow good idea on picking up the hood! And it looks pretty good so far!

Denzil · 06-13-08, 11:30

Thanks for sharing and it looks pretty good for being your first time. Since it's a spare hood, you should try burning the paint so you know what it takes to get there.

drumset11 · 07-07-08, 11:42

Hey everybody,

Just thought I would show what I have been up to with this hood. I have polished it through three times now ( I.E. swirled it up and started over) and these are the results of the most recent attempt. It should be noted that only the middle section is finished, the sides I havnt gotten to on this last attempt. These pics were taken after finishing with megs #82 on a black LC CCS pad.

There is only very mild hologramming at the areas where I was not able to keep the pad flat on the panel. This last pic shows it as I had to work around a piece of molding. The story is the same on the opposite side of the hood.

For that area where I had to tilt the pad. I have three inch pads available but I really wanted to be able to do it without having to switch backing plates and pads. If someone could give me some pointers on how to finish without holograms while using the tilt method it would be greatly appreciated.

Next pic is a pic of one of my PFW pads.

This was taken after three consecutive trips through the universal pad washer. There doesnt seem to be any product left but more that the fibers are stained. Is this a sign that the life of the PFW is at its end. If not, can someone tell me how to know when to discard a PFW?

And then a last pic of my car just for giggles. A 2006 potiac vibe in metallic silver. It was polished and topped with Z2Pro X 3 over four months ago.

Thanks for looking,

Justin