SSR2.5 marred my paint

[imported_Guido]

Now that the nice weather is rolling around I pulled my car out of the garage and decided to strip off all the old zaino with some dish soap and apply new. I`m a zaino fanatic but know that prep is 95% of what your car looks like. I washed it three times with dish soap and then went to go over it with poorboys ssr2.5, followed up with Z5/ZFX and Z2pro. I just washed my towels (100% cotton, made in usa) and buffing pads this weekend with pine sol in the presoak and laundry soap. As I`m putting the SSR2.5 I notice that it looks like i`m scratching into the clear coat. I do both front fenders, hood and bumper before I noticed and thought maybe it was a residue of some sort. I grabbed a microfiber towel (from the same wash) and went over the car with z6 detailer, nothing. Went over the car with dish soap, nothing. At this point I started getting frustrated and figured I`d ask you guys but throw on a coat of Z5 just to hold me over. After I did the car I noticed that it seems as if there is residue over the whole car, in parts where I just went over it with Z5. Could it be a coincidence? Are my towels shot? Are you supposed to go over the car with SSR1 after you go over it with SSR2.5? I did a search and saw that a few people have marred their paint with this stuff. Would going over it with ZPC on a PC help?



thanks,

mike

[imported_bigfoot]

First of all, did you really cleaned the pads with Pine Sol? Were the towels you were using MicroFiber? Anyways, The 2.5 is better off a polishing pad, not a cutting pad, unless the swirls are heavy. If you have marring, then you should try SSR1 with a finishing pad, maybe what it`ll need is some finer polish to get it all out.

[BobD]

Just a tip about stripping the Zaino...you didn`t need to wash it 3 times with Dawn, the polish would of taken care of it.



What pads and color pads are you using? What speed on the Pc are you using?

[SuperBee364]

I`m thinking it`s left over pine sol from your laundry process. No need to get too fancy with the wash process for your towels. Just wash them with regular laundry soap, no fabric softener, an extra rinse cycle if you can and the fastest spin setting. Adding more soaps and/or laundry products just isn`t worth the potential problems. Pine sol hazes when it is mixed with water or when it is left on a surface and dries. It`s a bugger to rinse off, to. It just seems to keep getting diluted, but never goes away. You`ll probably never be able to get it out of your towels.

[imported_Guido]

my mother and gf went to the laundrymat and I gave them my bag of towels and told them just to use soap and not get fancy. My mother through in the pine sol on the presoak. :(

I didn`t apply it with the PC because I`m not a big fan of using machines on a moderate job which can be done by hand. The only reason I washed the car three times was because I was trying to get it prepped as much as possible. I was cleaning every crack and crevice on the *****.

I used 100% Cotton towels for the wash and SSR2.5. After that I used a microfiber towel with the detailer and Z5.

[kleraudio]

bigfoot are you referring to a pc or a rotary when you say white pad/2.5??



Thanks



Jim

[BigJimZ28]

I didn`t apply it with the PC because I`m not a big fan of using machines on a moderate job which can be done by hand.





if you used 2.5 by hand that is your problem

[joshtpa]

^^^^

I agree, 2.5 by hand is your problem. Try Vanilla Moose or an AIO by hand. Or Scratch X

[kleraudio]

2.5 should not be used by hand even though the bottle says it can be used by hand. (I dont know why it says that...)



You really need a PC to work 2.5.



Like Josh says, CK VM, or any AIO for that matter should work nice. Scratch X if you need a *little* more cut.



Jim

[ron231]

2.5 has diminishing abrasives, as do most polishes, they get finer as they are worked by a machine.



If you do not break down these abrasives, they will not leave a gloss because you are only getting the harsh and not the light finishing action.



Imagine it as sandpaper, lets say ssr2.5 would start out at ,grit, and as you broke it down it would get to 30,000 grit, get the idea now?





By the way those numbers mean nothing, just to illustrate a point.

[imported_Guido]

went over it with some klasse AIO and most of the swirls came out. Gonna hit it with another coat before I try something stronger like scratch x or zpc. When applying abrasives, do you normally have to go from stronger product to weaker before putting on wax/polish?



thanks again fellas

[kleraudio]

Yes thats the general rule of thumb. You go from strong to weak to improve surface gloss with every step. You finish with a "finishing" polish which should leave your paint super deep and wet, then you seal that look in.



Jim

[imported_bigfoot]

bigfoot are you referring to a pc or a rotary when you say white pad/2.5??



Thanks



Jim



PC, Only *if* the swirls were minimal... Other than that, LC or Edge yellow

[JasonD]

went over it with some klasse AIO and most of the swirls came out. Gonna hit it with another coat before I try something stronger like scratch x or zpc. When applying abrasives, do you normally have to go from stronger product to weaker before putting on wax/polish?



thanks again fellas





Before you get into this even deeper, please understand something. You don`t *apply* polishes. Is this what you are doing? Wax-on, wax-off type method? If so, this is why you aren`t seeing the results you are hoping for. Polishes are meant to be worked in, just like shoe polish or any other kind of polish.



Basically, you should use your pc and polish together, and *work* your polish until it starts to disappear or dust (depends on what polish you are using). After that, wipe off the area you just polished with a mf towel, and inspect your work. If you still see defects, work the area again, and repeat this as many times as necessary until you are happy with the results.



After some practice, you will eventually know exactly what your polishes are capable of, and will be able to just look at a car and know what polish(es) to grab for that particular task, but, for now, try a small area at a time, and always use the least aggressive method possible to gain the results you are looking for. This will save your clearcoat by not being overly aggressive.



Remember, the process is the key, not the product. Hope this helps.

[imported_Blake]

Using heavy polish by hand is like using sandpaper. You can possibly get away with SSR1 by hand but even then your better with the "moose" gang.