Looking for something more aggressive

[ben54]

The most aggressive polish I have in my possession is Meg`s Diamond Cut. I recently did several cars that were badly oxidized and found that Meg`s Diamond Cut with a PC and red pad on 6 only took the surface so far. I`m sure that if I took a hundred passes over the surface, eventually it would be to my satisfaction, but I was hoping there was a more aggressive product that would work faster with less passes with a PC. Here are some before, during and after pics my a car that my sister just acquired. I did 3-4 passes on the hood with Diamond Cut, but the surface is not yet to my liking. The hood was like a chalk board when we started and there was no reflection on the hood, just shadows. My sister, on the other hand, was happy as she got the car for a good price, and felt that we added value to her car by just cleaning up the paint. She`s actually considering flipping the car now. I told her to calm down.

[ben54]

I know it`s hard to tell see surface imperfections by pictures, so for comparison, here`s a picture of another hood that is in much better shape. Sorry for all the different angles. I guess I got a little confused.

[Beemerboy]

Is this single stage paint?

If that is the case you need a rotary to get the heat on the paint to get the cut that you are looking for.

Again is this single stage paint?

[ben54]

Is this single stage paint?

If that is the case you need a rotary to get the heat on the paint to get the cut that you are looking for.

Again is this single stage paint?

Don`t think so. I didn`t see paint transfer onto the red pad, but it was hard to tell because the polish I was using is already white. It`s a 97 Camary with what looks like factory paint. I know that Toyota`s black is single stage, but I think the white is 2 stage.

Would using a rotary with what I already have give a significantly different result?

[Beemerboy]

I looked up diamond cut product and its a compound that is body shop safe as well. In answer to your question this has quite a lot of cutting power that I can see from the product discription. I would have to guess that you need a rotary to get the product hot as I suggested above. I`ve not used this product but with any cutting compound that I have used. I have found that a orbital does not get the product hot enough to get the action that you are looking for.

Now talking about clear coated cars of which sounds like you have, I would be careful hammering on the car with a compound and a rotary if you have not done this before. Its going to cut the surface quicklly so no pressure so that you can allow that product to work.

I don`t think that you need a more agressive product just a faster machine to get the results.

Question?
Did you clay the car at any point?

[holland_patrick]

I guees I ask but did you do a second step maybe it the maring from the stuff your using???

[Beemerboy]

Patrick

I got caugh up in the diamond cut and what it was. I forgot to ask that but was thinking about it.

After cutting you should polish to bring back the luster in the clear or paint.

Good call Patrick

[CharlesW]

:wait :wait :wait
Meguiar`s #85, Diamond Cut is a very aggressive product. Actually the most aggressive compound listed in the 2004 Professional Products Catalog.
It is meant to be used with a rotary.
Chances are the Diamond Cut with a PC would induce as many swirls as it would remove.
As mentioned by others and as stated in the Meg`s catalog, it needs a rotary to work correctly.
Keep in mind that even though it isn`t giving you the look you want, it is still removing paint. That might not be a good thing.

Charles

[TraderB]

Yup, looks pretty good to me for an aggressive product, probably just have to work it over with a polish like 3m Perfect It III or the like with a polishing pad. Actually it may take 3 steps... heavy cut - leaves some haze, Meg`s DACP is good to clean up haze, and then 3M PI III or other finish polish to complete.

[sellncars]

Diamond cut with a rotary and a cutting pad would be better. The PC will only do so much. I bought one thinking it would be the miracle machine and it is a good machine for light jobs and cleanup after the rotary. The rotary tends to leave swirl marks and the PC with a less aggressive product all but takes that away. All in all i love the PC, but you will need a rotary for the bigger jobs.

Good luck,
Sellncars

[Boss_429]

As has been said here............... it doen`t get much more aggressive than Diamond Cut........... maybe heavy wet-sanding, and that`s about it. As others have said, you should be using a rotary with Diamond Cut. With a rotary, a wool pad, Diamond Cut, and a high speed setting, you can remove the paint down to the primer in a hurry if you want! :D

Be careful!

[Aliengotpsi]

I would try 3m`s compound very spendy!! also The Porter Cable sucks for cutting!!!

[ben54]

Thanks for the replies. It may be technique and not product.

In answer to the question about the clay, I didn`t clay the surface because it was pretty dull to start off with. Thought that any surface contaminants would be removed by the Diamond Cut, and it seemed like it did.

As for the polish, I Zainoed the car after the Diamond Cut, so I used Z1, which I do not consider a polish, more like a cleaner. I used the Diamond Cut on another car in better shape and the Diamond Cut seemed to breakdown quicky and to a finer polish. However, perhaps using a "real" polish after Diamond Cut would improve the finish some.

If all else fails, it may be time to get the rotary.

Found another picture which shows the condition of the hood before. Kinda looks like single stage, but I gotta look again up close.