What`s the Toughest protection against swirl marks?

[st7677]

Hi,

I am writing this from India, the climate here is hot and dusty, and that creates nightmares in maintaining my car.



Bought a Hebanaro Red color Honda last year. The car is a daily driver, is parked outside under a tree. The environment here is very hot and dusty and requires daily cleaning of the car. Unfortunately the car cleaner cleans around 5-6 cars with a bucket of dirty water/cloth. These tough conditions have left the paint to be heavily abused and full of swirl marks / spider webs.

:sadpace:



I have been reading posts on Autopia for a while now but I am very confused on what products to choose. Unfortunately most products discussed here are not available here. So I will have to select the process and required products and import them from US.



There are not many knowledgeable detailers around, so I am left on my own for a DIY. Hence need help from fellow Autopians...



I need to

1. Get rid of the swirl marks, lots of them...



2. Put the toughest and most durable protection available so that environment elements are handled and the swirl marks are resisted/delayed...



3. Finish the surface so that I can get that wet, deep, rich look...



And I need to do all this by hand. Please advice... :secret

[gmblack3]

Proper washing is your best protection against swirl marks.

[stiffdogg06]

I never saw how you were going to handle the swirls. Whether its going to be by PC, UDM, Flex, Rotary.



Either way, I`d use Menzerna Super Intensive Polish for the heavy stuff, and then Menzerna po85rd for the lighter stuff.



After removing all the swirls you want durable protection. I would recommend something by Collinite. Like 845 or 476s. I honestly also like Zaino 5. Lasts a good while and gives amazing looks. But your best bet would be the Collinite.



It`s going to be hard to get A LOT of durability and a wet/deep look out of the same product. I think Zaino does that pretty damn well. Collinite will protect longer but lack that deep/wet look...



Good luck!

[Scottwax]

Proper washing is your best protection against swirl marks.



1st reply and absolutely the correct answer. :)

[st7677]

Woa!!! what a wonderful forum, So many responses in such a short time :)

Thanks to all of you!




Originally Posted by gmblack3a

Proper washing is your best protection against swirl marks.



Yeah, I understand after going thru the forum that proper washing is the key. I am going to either change the washer or find out time to do it myself.



But before that I need to restore my finish, so I need to

1. Get rid of the swirl marks, lots of them...



2. Put the toughest and most durable protection available so that environment elements are handled and the swirl marks are resisted/delayed...



3. Finish the surface so that I can get that wet, deep, rich look...



Since I do not have option to try out mutiple products, what are the best products that I can import for this?

[imported_hockeyplaya13]

Well to get rid of the swirl marks you are going to need a PC/UDM/Flex and and abrasive polishes, probably 2 (cutting polish and finishing polish).



Most durable protection would be Collinite 845 or 476s. It`s looks aren`t great, but you could throw down a glaze (Danse Wet Glaze, but IDK if he ships to India) and then put the Collinite over that.

[Accumulator]

st7677- Welcome to Autopia!



For the polish, *especially* if you`re working by hand (no machine), I`d recommend 1Z brand Paint Polish. It`s user-friendly and effective as is my absolute #1 choice for newbies (and I use it myself even though I have Menzerna/Hi-Temp/3M/etc. on the shelf).



For the wax, my (equally emphatic) recommendation is Collinite, either their 845 Insulator Wax or their 476S paste (my preference; the 885 paste is the same stuff in a larger can).



The Collinite is tough, good protection against bird bombs/etc. It lasts a long time and fills minor imperfections. And perhaps most importantly it sheds dirt easily so there`s less chance of marring during the wash.



No LSP (Last Step Product, i.e., "wax") is gonna really protect against marring/swirls. The abrasives that scratch the paint are too tough for wax/sealant to resist. I`ve only had *one* instance that I can recall where the marring didn`t penetrate the LSP...and that`s in over 30 years of doing this stuff.



I`ve recommended the 1Z/Collinite combo countless times and I`ve never had any negative feedback. I have it on one of my vehicles and it looks great. How`s that for a hard-sell ;)



Oh, and there`s no need for a glaze with 1Z polishes, they leave glaze-like stuff behind on their own.

[silkstone]

Collinite #845 for protection.



I just laid down 3 coats in 3 days on my daily driver. You can feel the extra coat of protection,

plus it has a blazing look...

[Greg Nichols]

The above info is sound advice.



Welcome to the Forum!

[st7677]

I was thinking of manually filling the swirl marks with a filler like

Autoglym Super Resin Polish and add a protective sealant over it.

http://autopia.org/forum/hall-fame/77859-test-swirl-removal-hand.html

(http://autopia.org/forum/hall-fame/77859-test-swirl-removal-hand.html)



One challenge here is that it`s pretty hot and dusty so will the wax tend to melt/break, attract dirt, and be difficult to clean?



I used carnuba based turtle wax for some time but results were very short lived - a week to 10 days!!!



I have been reading up on multiple products, how are following products rated on Durability (in hot environment), Protection, Show (on a hebanaro red color), and Clean-ability (the more it attracts dust, the quicker the swirl marks will return)



Zaino

Collinite

Glare

Matrix Micro Coating - Hypergloss & Hyperseal

[JustinDetail]

845 recommender here as well. I have 2 coats on my 350Z, and it beads like crazy! and does shed dirt very well during a mild wash, or even a ONR rinseless wash.

[Accumulator]

I was thinking of manually filling the swirl marks with a filler like

Autoglym Super Resin Polish and add a protective sealant over it...



I`m a big fan of the SRP, and using it under Collinite is something I used to do on almost all the friends/family quickie details I did. It`s a viable option but since I tried the 1Z I haven`t used the SRP very often. Guess I`m just in favor of doing more mechanical/abrasive (real) correction via the 1Z. IME the SRP doesn`t *really* hide all that much in real life, and mild marring that *would* be hidden isn`t all that hard to remove, even by hand, with the 1Z.




One challenge here is that it`s pretty hot and dusty so will the wax tend to melt/break, attract dirt, and be difficult to clean?



I used carnuba based turtle wax for some time but results were very short lived - a week to 10 days!!!



I have been reading up on multiple products..



Of the suff you`ve mentioned, I`ve only used the Collinite. It *WILL* hold up fine in hot/etc. conditions. After polishing my Blazer (with 1Z ;) ) I applied one coat of Collinite 845 and then four coats of 476S. That was still beading great eight (yeah, eight) months later, after a very tough winter. Collinite sheds dirts incredibly well and *IME* protects better against environmental hazards (birds, etc.) than sealants.



Used over SRP or 1Z (the 1Z will come out better, but OK, I`ll quit the hard-sell) you won`t be dissatisfied with the Collinite. And it`ll hide any little flaws a *LOT* better than any sealant will. IMO sealants only look good over a basically perfect finish and I just can`t imagine somebody getting a vehicle good enough for Zaino without using a polisher (and even then *keeping* it perfect is a mighty tall order). I use sealants on two of our vehicles, and getting/keeping those utterly marring-free takes some doing.

[pampos]

Here in Cyprus we have similar climate conditions. Very hot and a lot of dust,Because of the dust i have to wash my car every 2 days to keep it clean.As i have been told,Honda paint is very soft so it is too easy even by hand washing(wool mitt for wash and microfiber towels for drying ) to create light swirl marks.I also tried for months different methods and products by hand without having the best possible results (maybe it was my bad technique).I was afraid to use a polishing machine until i bought UDM.I don`t know if i get the best possible results but i think that the difference is huge.you can see some picture of my car on the Autopia Car Detailing Forum > DETAILING & FINISH CARE

Professional Detailers-opinion needed thread,and see the results.I also don`t know what i have to do to avoid the swirls and also because of polishing to often with different polishes i don`t know what is the level of clear coat.Some professionals told me to wash it every 2 weeks(i can`t see my car dirty for so long period) and use an extremely light polish,just not to remove too much paint,or using a sealant to hide them and polishing it every six months. I hope that will help a little bit and if you find the way to avoid them and keep your car clean at the same time,please let me now : )

[superstring]

But before that I need to restore my finish, so I need to

1. Get rid of the swirl marks, lots of them...



2. Put the toughest and most durable protection available so that environment elements are handled and the swirl marks are resisted/delayed...



3. Finish the surface so that I can get that wet, deep, rich look...



Since I do not have option to try out mutiple products, what are the best products that I can import for this?



st7677, I just came across something I think may be of interest to you. You mentioned the thread entitled "Test - Swirl Removal By Hand" by member Dave KG here on Autopia. The "same" thread appears on Detailing World - that`s Dave KG`s "home forum". Anyhow Dave just responded with a post that mentions a product called Bilt-Hamber Auto Balm. I think this *may* be just what you`re looking for. Here`s the link to the DW thread and the Bilt-Hamber website in the UK.



** Swirl Removal By Hand - Test ** - Page 8 - Detailing World (http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?p=720263#post720263)



Bilt-Hamber Laboratories - Polish and Wax - Auto-balm (http://www.bilthamber.com/autobalm.html)



Good luck and, if you decide to go this route, don`t forget to share your experience here on Autopia! :)

[st7677]

It`s so confusing to decide on the LSP, the more you read the more you get confused ;)



Now there is a new product in evaluation list - Ultima PGP...