IMO, what new guys should get nowadays...

[SuperBee364]

Meguairs and Kevin Brown have ushered in a new era when it comes to personal car detailing, and even pro car detailing for that matter.



PC`s/DA buffers were always considered second fiddle to the rotary for correction ability and the ability to finish down to a very fine level. While I still think that *overall*, the rotary still wins the competition, the new Meguairs products used with KB`s method takes the PC/DA to an entirely new level.



Autopia has always/will always have a ton of new guys asking, "what should I get to go with my PC?" threads/posts. The following is just my take on it, and of course I`d love to hear others opinions as well.



1. Get yourself a PC, UDM, G110, Flex DA (pick one as your budget will allow)



2. Buy six inch foam pads (or smaller), with the appropriate backing plate. I`d recommend nothing more aggressive than a medium cutting pad (like Lake Country Orange foam), because DA/PC type buffers can leave nasty, NASTY polishing marks when used with aggressive cutting foam pads. Get several no bite foam pads, too (LC red, blue, grey, black, etc.)



3. Buy a bottle of Meguairs M105, and read up on Meguairs web site on how to use it with a DA buffer. It`s time well-spent, and will save you much more time than it takes to read up about it.



4. Buy a bottle of Meguairs M205 and do the same thing as in 3.



5. Wash your car with whatever your prefered car wash soap is.



6. Clay your car



7. Use your DA style buffer with M105 and your medium cutting foam pad as per Meguair`s instructions.



8. User your DA style buffer with M205 with your no bite foam pad as per Meguair`s instructions.



9. Apply whatever LSP (Last Step Product) sealant or wax you happen to like.



10. Go relax... it`s been a long day.

[imported_Ivan Rajic]

I agree and would HIGHLY recommend the 5.5" pads from autogeek... nothing, yes nothing, works better on the G110/PC!



CCS foam buffing pads,foam polishing pads,lake country foam pads,foam polisher pads,buffer pads,lake county pads,porter cable pads,pads for air sander (http://autogeek.net/ccs-5-5inch-foam-buffing-pads.html)

[Accumulator]

SuperBee364- Good post :xyxthumbs That`s one of those concise summaries that could save a lot of time (for a lot of different people ;) ).



My $0.02 would be to stick with 4" pads when doing correction via PC, even with stuff like M105, but that`s just me. Any comments from the other side of the fence about why the 6" pads might be more suitable with M105/m205 than with other products? I.e, are the sharp abrasives in M105 enough for it to work with hardly any pressure, and if so how much does/can the light cut pad contribute functionally speaking?



Note that I haven`t *tried* the larger pads with M105 and I`m just knee-jerking based on my experience with the PC in general.



Now a few of us need to try M105/M205 via Cyclo some time....

[the walrus]

Looks good, even further simplified for my simple mind:



1. Wash

2. Clay

3. Polish M105

4. Polish M205

5. Wax



We could call it the Supe method!



I`m gonna give this a shot on the wife`s car when get my UDM and supplies next week.



Justin



BTW Supe I am also from Utah. Born in SLC and moved out to Cali when I was 10. Most of my family is in Mapelton area. I`ll move back someday.

[frito]

Thank you for the post. From a guy with little experience - it is useful information. My only question is if it 105/205 should be the go to. Meg. would certainly agree with your post but from what I read on the Meg. forum M. Phillips would replace the 105/205 with UC/Swirl-x for common folk like me.



I do not know why they would be easier to work via DA but even with the 105/205 DA endorsment - they talk of this as a rotary product for skilled pros.



BTW I am using the UC/Swirl-x combo and it is GREEAATT

[Bostonsfavson]

Can not WAIT for Mr. Brown`s paper. Good post SuperBee.

[SuperBee364]

I agree and would HIGHLY recommend the 5.5" pads from autogeek... nothing, yes nothing, works better on the G110/PC!



CCS foam buffing pads,foam polishing pads,lake country foam pads,foam polisher pads,buffer pads,lake county pads,porter cable pads,pads for air sander (http://autogeek.net/ccs-5-5inch-foam-buffing-pads.html)



Those are the exact pads I used, Lecchilo, and they worked very well.




SuperBee364- Good post :xyxthumbs That`s one of those concise summaries that could save a lot of time (for a lot of different people ;) ).



My $0.02 would be to stick with 4" pads when doing correction via PC, even with stuff like M105, but that`s just me. Any comments from the other side of the fence about why the 6" pads might be more suitable with M105/m205 than with other products? I.e, are the sharp abrasives in M105 enough for it to work with hardly any pressure, and if so how much does/can the light cut pad contribute functionally speaking?



Note that I haven`t *tried* the larger pads with M105 and I`m just knee-jerking based on my experience with the PC in general.



Now a few of us need to try M105/M205 via Cyclo some time....



Yeah, I kinda thought the smaller pads would be the way to go, too, but Todd and company have suggested using the larger ones, so I gave it a shot. I was shocked and amazed that the bigger pads corrected just as well as the small 4.5" ones did. You can get stuff done faster with the larger pads with 105 without affecting it`s overall correcting ability.. which was a real surprise to me. But yes, with any other products, I would stick by your recommendation of using smaller pads with the PC.




Looks good, even further simplified for my simple mind:



1. Wash

2. Clay

3. Polish M105

4. Polish M205

5. Wax



We could call it the Supe method!



I`m gonna give this a shot on the wife`s car when get my UDM and supplies next week.



Justin



BTW Supe I am also from Utah. Born in SLC and moved out to Cali when I was 10. Most of my family is in Mapelton area. I`ll move back someday.



Very cool! Yup, I`m a local boy.. born and raised. Moved away for a while, but found myself back home again.




Thank you for the post. From a guy with little experience - it is useful information. My only question is if it 105/205 should be the go to. Meg. would certainly agree with your post but from what I read on the Meg. forum M. Phillips would replace the 105/205 with UC/Swirl-x for common folk like me.



I do not know why they would be easier to work via DA but even with the 105/205 DA endorsment - they talk of this as a rotary product for skilled pros.



BTW I am using the UC/Swirl-x combo and it is GREEAATT



That`s a great point... If Mike Phillips is recommending UC/Swirl-X 2.0 over 105/205, I would certainly go with him. I just kinda posted after I had used the 105 with the PC with such good results.




Can not WAIT for Mr. Brown`s paper. Good post SuperBee.



Me too, man... me too. :)

[Kevin Brown]

The other thing to consider is the total surface area of the buffing pads:



3.0" = 7.07 square inches



4.0" = 12.56 square inches (77% more surface area compared to a 3.0" pad)



5.5" = 23.75 square inches (89% more surface area compared to a 4.0" pad)



6.5" = 33.18 square inches (40% more surface area compared to a 5.5" pad)



7.0" = 38.48 square inches (16% more surface area compared to a 6.5" pad)





The smaller the pad, the more rapidly it loads with abraded paint residue.

This can cause an increase in installed defects and a decrease in cutting power.



The pad velocity is also substantially increased with a larger diameter pad.

The increase in speed can increase cutting power at the the outer edge of the pad.



Some pads (such as the Surbuf) do not need additional downward pressure to cut paint efficiently.

When finishing, a large pad can help to distribute downward pressure evenly yet mildly.



I agree that 4.0" pads have definite advantages over larger pads, but the bigger pads work well, too!

It just depends on what you are trying to accomplish.

[SuperBee364]

Kevin, thanks for that.



I think it`s important to note what frito said about using Meguiar`s Ultimate Compound instead of M105, and Swirl X instead of M205... Personally, I haven`t used UC or SwirlX, but Meguiars is marketing those products toward the enthusiast detailer, so they gotta be both good *and* easy to use.



OK, I have to admit... I just went down to the local Autozone to buy some UC and Swirl X. They still don`t have them in. The only updated Meg`s product they had was Scratch X 2.0. I didn`t buy the Scratch X 2.0, `cause M105 (both old and new) works so well by hand, Scratch X just isn`t needed anymore.

[gmblack3]

Did you say UDM? :bolt

[BigJimZ28]

Did you say UDM? :bolt



yea why?

you do know that the UDM in now made by Porter Cable

[Lumadar]

Kevin, thanks for that.



I think it`s important to note what frito said about using Meguiar`s Ultimate Compound instead of M105, and Swirl X instead of M205... Personally, I haven`t used UC or SwirlX, but Meguiars is marketing those products toward the enthusiast detailer, so they gotta be both good *and* easy to use.



OK, I have to admit... I just went down to the local Autozone to buy some UC and Swirl X. They still don`t have them in. The only updated Meg`s product they had was Scratch X 2.0. I didn`t buy the Scratch X 2.0, `cause M105 (both old and new) works so well by hand, Scratch X just isn`t needed anymore.



Being as that I spend a fair amount of time on MOL ;) I can tell you that Mike still suggests M105 and M205 a LOT. In fact, if I were to guess, I would say that it would be close to 50/50 with the consumer products- but Mike always finds out what type of defects are being chased, and who is doing the chasing before he recommends a product.



Ultimate Compound IMO is a bit easier to work with than M105, but M205 and SwirlX are both very comparable in terms of how well they work, and how easy they are to work with...but I would give the nod to M205.



It`s also a different combo in how it works because the M105/M205 combo has more initial cut and less final cut, where as UC and SX has less initial and more final cut. Just something to keep in mind when using the combos. :think2

[akimel]

It`s also a different combo in how it works because the M105/M205 combo has more initial cut and less final cut, where as UC and SX has less initial and more final cut. Just something to keep in mind when using the combos. :think2



What do you think about the UC/205 combo?

[imported_Luster]

Good thread... possible sticky!



This will answer a lot of the new guys (and old guys!) questions about:



"What should I use..............?"

"What should I do..............?"

"Which machine............?"

"What polish...........?"

"What pads.............?"

"Please Help!...........!"



:cool::cool::cool::cool::cool::cool::cool::cool::c ool::cool::cool::cool::cool:



My fav pads are the LC 5.5" orange. I probably have 20 orange, 5 yellow, 5 white. Good stuff...;)

[wannafbody]

4 inch pads and 5.5 or 6.5 inch pads

Megs Ultimate Compound

polish FP2, ZPC or M205

AIO

Spray Wax