Really bad hard water damage

[the walrus]

Hey dudes-
I am polishing out a 2000 Infiniti I30 with really bad hard water spots on the passenger side from being parked next to the sprinklers for several weeks.

I did a trial on the pass fender. With the G110, orange 5.5" pad and Meg's UC, I was able to remove much of the hard water damage and get the clear looking good again. But only after 3 passes with a *lot* of pressure. It is doable but not what I'd call efficient. Kinda like digging a tunnel with a spoon.

Still have the rest of the pass side to do. Would I be better off with a more aggressive compound or perhaps a 4 inch pad and the same compound?


Thanks in advance,
Justin

[Setec Astronomy]

4" pad will help a lot, but of course you're covering less surface area so it will take longer. More aggressive compound might require more refining steps...if you have a 4" pad, go for it...you may get it done in 1 pass which will probably be faster than 3 passes with a larger pad.

[Boston Man]

When you say you applied alot of pressure... is the pad still spinning?

[SuperBee364]

Originally Posted by Boston Man

When you say you applied alot of pressure... is the pad still spinning?

There's pro and con about pushing til the pad stops spinning.. some guys use that as a gauge as to how much pressure to use, others push until the PC starts to bog, others just go by feel. I go by feel. I don't like to use so much pressure that *either* the pad stops turning or the motor bogs. PC''s/DA's are safer than rotaries, but when you push that hard, you're removing much of the safety margin; you'll build heat *very* fast by pushing hard. You'll get the hang of it as you go. Until then, just use your best judgement.

[the walrus]

Originally Posted by Boston Man

When you say you applied alot of pressure... is the pad still spinning?

Yeah the pad was still spinning. I didn't want to put too much pressure on it. But I was trying to get it to cut better.

[the walrus]

Problem solved:

Wetsanding: 1, Hard water spots: 0 Yeah baby!! before & after pics

[Boston Man]

Originally Posted by SuperBee364

There's pro and con about pushing til the pad stops spinning.. some guys use that as a gauge as to how much pressure to use, others push until the PC starts to bog, others just go by feel. I go by feel. I don't like to use so much pressure that *either* the pad stops turning or the motor bogs. PC''s/DA's are safer than rotaries, but when you push that hard, you're removing much of the safety margin; you'll build heat *very* fast by pushing hard. You'll get the hang of it as you go. Until then, just use your best judgement.

I'm still new to the DA (g110). Mike Phillips said to apply pressure until the pad stop spinning, then back off a little so it starts spinning again... or 15-20 lbs.

Originally Posted by the walrus

Problem solved:

Wetsanding: 1, Hard water spots: 0 Yeah baby!! before & after pics

That looks good. I like how you were even able to capture the defects on that color car

[REVNU]

I had really bad hard water spots/stains and some etching that I got out with a G110, LC 3.5" PFW and M105. I was amazed it took it out, because I could not even make a dent with M105 by hand. It was so bad that even Mike Phillips and the rest of the people at the Meguiar's open garage thought it was going to need wet sanding or even a complete repaint of the hood.

I got it out in 1 pass and plenty of pressure - granted my paint is pretty soft, but it was awesome to say the least.