Swirls after first detail - What`s the culprit?

[helicopter34234]

Just did my very first detail on my 2 month old 2009 Civic (Metallic Grey) and found some light swirling if I really look hard at the reflection of the sun in the paint. The car is a daily driver stored outside so I am not planning on becoming obsessed with maintaining it, and the swirls aren`t bad enough to really bother me. But I do want to learn to perfect my technique so I am curious as to what went wrong. Here is what I did:



Wash all MF, sponges, and foam applicators with Micro-Restore



Wash car - Meguiars Gold Class, 2 buckets, grout sponge, start at top, work my way down

Drying - Cobra Guzzler (I tried blowing off with compressed air but that did nothing)

Clay- Mothers California Gold Clay Bar (Plenty of QD lubricant)

-Duragloss Polish & Cleaner (PC) #101, supposed to be like Klasse AIO

-Wipe excess with Cobra Indigo

-Prep with Duragloss Polish Bonding Agent (PBA) #601

-Then Duragloss Total Performance Polish (TPP) # 105 as a paint sealant

-Wipe excess with Cobra Indigo





From what I read, it seems that the swirls are most likely the due to the Clay. Other members with Civics reported similar swirling. Someone told me that I would be suprised how much the clay would remove even on my new car, so I tried it. Maybe I shouldn`t have. I did at times use a lot of pressure when I was drying or buffing to remove streaks. Also, some spots were missed during the wash (bugs or sticky spots) so I used som QD and rubbed with a MF. Is that bad? How much pressure should you be using for the different stages of the detailing?



Do swirls generally come with the territory of detailing or does it indicate that I did something wrong? The car looks great and the swirls aren`t noticeable at all so I am not that upset. However, I am a little annoyed that I spent so much time and money trying to do every correctly and buying the proper equiptment and I still screwed up. I assume very light swirls are easily removed, correct? What should I consider doing to remove the swirls next time I reapply my sealants. Can I do it without an electric buffer?

[Candor]

Of course you can do everything without a machine just takes more time and energy. Were the swirls worse after the detail or about the same. Chances are some hack at the dealer put the swirls in.



Check out



1-Step vs 3-Steps - Auto Geek Online Auto Detailing Forum (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/hot-topics-frequently-asked-questions/20573-1-step-vs-3-steps.html)

[Legacy]

The first mistake you made was not inspecting the paint throughly before preping. The swrils were probably there before you started. Removing defects by hand is a bear. If you don`t want to go the machine route, I would hire a good detailer and then just maintain from there. It seems you have good washing and drying techniques and that`s where most of the marring is from.

[helicopter34234]

You might be right Candor, I didn`t even think about that. I never actually inspected my car for swirls before starting, I just assumed new car = perfect. That would ease my conscious. Although after reading another thread where several other guys with Hondas said that claying caused swirls in their cars, I do suspect that claying was the cause.



The swirls are extremely fine and you really can`t see them unless you catch the sun at the right angle so I assume they should come out pretty easily. I guess I am really just trying to get some feedback to see if getting some degree of swirls is a normal part of detailing, especially on cars with soft clearcoats like Hondas. If so, I can definitely live with the swirls because the Metallic Grey hides them well, and my car otherwise looks fantastic. As long as I am doing everything that I can do to prevent them, I am satisfied. I just want to make sure I am not doing something stupid an aviodable to cause them.



Like I said, I am not uber-obsessed with keeping the car pristine. My main goal in taking up detailing was to learn the proper techniques and to do the essential things from the start which prevent paint problems in the future.

[Candor]

The only way I think clay could scratch or make swirls is if you did not kneed it enough. Or if it was not lubricated enough. Also you go back and forth with clay not in a circle

[efnfast]

10-1 they were rotary induced form the dealership - I`ve yet to see a new car that a dealership monkey hasn`t taken a rotary too and put in some nice....presents...for the new owner :chuckle:



Unless you`re claying in a circle, it won`t cause that



Also, since the car is gray, that`s why you have to tilt your head at all angles to see them. If it were black you`d hav ebeen like :wall :mad::wall the second you picked up the car probably.




The only way I think clay could scratch or make swirls is if you did not kneed it enough. Or if it was not lubricated enough. Also you go back and forth with clay not in a circle



I can`t clay softer surfaces without marring them (e.g., g35)

[Kean]

The only way I think clay could scratch or make swirls is if you did not kneed it enough. Or if it was not lubricated enough. Also you go back and forth with clay not in a circle ....if you are inducing maring with improper technique, the only difference direction will make is how the scratches will appear on the finish.

[Candor]

I`ve been lucky then not to detail very soft paint it seems. I marred my first clay session becuase it was 100F out and the liquid kept drying,

[Rcracin]

What polishing pad did you use? Don`t use Gold Class to start prepping a surface to detail. Use Dawn dish soap or Chemical Guys Citrus Wash and Cleaner (or similar). Then go to town on it with the proper claybar technique. A nice finishing polish would`ve done the trick. If you`re looking to get any real light correction and nice finish imo, the AIO`s don`t quite do the trick. Use a nice finishing polish such as Megs 205 or Menz 106FA or PO85RD, then your choice of LSP. You can also do an alcohol wipedown to make sure nothing is left over on your paint from the polish.



Also, a white polishing pad might do the trick to get those little swirls out. Some cars come from dealerships needing an orange and sometimes wool pad with aggressive compounds so I`m guessing that you`ll at least need a white pad. Use the 4" pads on the PC, not the 6.5" if you want the PC to actually work for you.

[helicopter34234]

I`m sorry if I didn`t clarify this better before. The "swirls" I am talking about are actually straight lines. I know swirl generally implies circles, I called them swirls because they were so faint that I didn`t consider them full fledged scratches.



Thanks for all of the feedback! I am not going to worry about them too much for now, I am just going to work on my technique. Maybe some time in the future I will try to smooth them out.

[Accumulator]

I`m sorry if I didn`t clarify this better before. The "swirls" I am talking about are actually straight lines. ..



Welcome to Autopia!

It`s hard to say what caused the marring in question. I`d absolutely assume that some of it was instilled by the dealer during the car`s prep.



As for marring that *you* caused, I usually figure that most marring comes from washes, but it`s certainly possible with claying too.




... I am not going to worry about them too much for now, I am just going to work on my technique. Maybe some time in the future I will try to smooth them out.



That sounds sensible. Don`t bother trying to fix them until they bother *you*.



If they seem to get worse, try to figure out what process is related to the worsening (again, I`d bet on the wash).

[efnfast]

I`m sorry if I didn`t clarify this better before. The "swirls" I am talking about are actually straight lines. I know swirl generally implies circles, I called them swirls because they were so faint that I didn`t consider them full fledged scratches.



Thanks for all of the feedback! I am not going to worry about them too much for now, I am just going to work on my technique. Maybe some time in the future I will try to smooth them out.



Unless you wash in a straight line (I don`t know many people who do), chances it it was from claybarring.



As I said, on soft paints I find it impossible to clay without leaving marring behind.

[Accumulator]

Unless you wash in a straight line (I don`t know many people who do)....



Really? Do you actually know people who wash with non-linear motions?



I woulda thought that was pretty uncommon here at Autopia :think: Even my very-non-autopian friends know better than that.

[efnfast]

Really? Do you actually know people who wash with non-linear motions?



I woulda thought that was pretty uncommon here at Autopia :think: Even my very-non-autopian friends know better than that.



Pretty much everyone I know (non-autopean) washes in a circular motion, even on small items like ??a??-pillars.

[Accumulator]

Pretty much everyone I know (non-autopean) washes in a circular motion, even on small items like ??a??-pillars.



Huh! Just goes to show that the stuff people do never ceases to amaze me :eek: I suppose I`m just used to people I`ve talked to about such stuff.