swirls aren`t really gone

[imported_tuffluck]

this weekend i used #83, #9, and followed up with one coat of nxt. some of the car did real well (the sides), but the hood didn`t do so well. i can tell that there are probably 75% lesser amount of swirls than before, but there are still swirls. and light scratches too. the DACP just couldn`t cut it out. i even did two coats on the hood. i was bearing down REALLY hard. it was a PITA. does it sound like i didn`t do enough work, or does it sound as if my clear coat is in much worse shape than i think? my swirls were worse than this, and in these pics i can`t even see light scratches. i have light scratches ALL in my clear coat and i have swirls as bad and worse than these. here are the pics:



http://www.autopia.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=32419&highlight=dacp



does anyone have any suggestions? the nxt, honestly, doesn`t seem to be doing a damn thing to the finish. after i use #9, it doesn`t seem like the nxt hides anything. do i have a bad bottle of nxt? i don`t really know. a friend of mine has a bottle, and his seems MUCH thicker than mine when you shake the bottle. mine has the near consistency of water...really. what do you think?



i`m also going to get some #16 to put on top of the nxt. does this attempt to hide any swirls and/or light scratches? i`m glad the DACP worked enough for me to notice, but it didn`t rid my car of swirls, and that`s what i`m hoping to do. i am up for any suggestions. thanks.

[scottabir]

try NOT pressing so hard with the PC (I am assuming thats what you used) Try to let the machine spin a little more and create a little more friction. Ummm if by hand you REALLY have to work the product hard to utilize the abrasives in the DACP. I havent used NXT yet so I cant help you out there.

You arent going to "fill in" any more swirls if you put a topper on the NXT wax. *I* say if you are going to hide swirls get a good glaze then add your topper.

[jimmybuffit]

"mine has the near consistency of water...really."



Well, that`s not right! It should be bright white, and the consistency of a hand lotion. Call Meg`s @ 800-347-5700. I`m sure they`ll want to make it right.



Jim

[imported_pugoman]

As jimamary says, there`s something wrong with your bottle of NXT! It should be like a nice thick rich hand lotion consistency. Call Megs or send Mike Phillips a PM. If you got it from a store, just take it back and ask for a replacement.

[imported_tuffluck]

hrmm. that may make a difference. i should try that.



also, i used my hand to buff out the swirls. any other suggestions? for some reason i just have the feeling the nxt isn`t going to be the cure for me, but i don`t know.

[imported_tuffluck]

also, i built up a LOT of friction with the DACP. i even tried one particular spot a third time, and this time i REALLY worked that DACP in. that one spot came out looking like the rest of the car. it didn`t do anymore swirl hiding than the other parts. that seems odd to me - shouldn`t the DACP continue to work? or is there a point where applying more DACP isn`t going to resolve the issues?

[Accumulator]

tuffluck- Heh heh, we aren`t all ScottWaxes, ya know ;) There are *many* things *I* can`t get out without a PC/Cyclo/rotary. DACP is a "real" polish, it`ll work every time you use it. But maybe what you`re dealing with is just too much to do by hand with that product. Three passes isn`t all that many, either. When doing stuff like that with a PC/Cyclo, I`ll sometimes have to spend *hours* working one panel (that`s why I finally got the rotary).



Don`t feel too bad, as I said, we`re not all Scottwax. It`s like saying "plenty of people have run a four minute mile, why can`t I?"

[Anthony O.]

tuffluck........it seems your screen name is has a double meaning:D ........jus kiddin ya



If I am correct, NXT has cleaners in it and it may then be removing the #9.



#9 will fill the light scratches and swirls to a degree but if you are going to top it then use a paste carnauba like, S100, Trade Secret, Pizazz, or #26.



The DACP is a great product but will only do so much when applied with a PC. You need the heat and friction from a high speed rotary to level the paint down to where the swirls/scratches reside.



After this is done properly then you do not need #9 to "hide" but instead can use it as a gloss enhancer. I personally would prefer AIO and then either FMJ or UPP to seal, Trade Secret to wax.



I don`t mean to hi-jack your thread but these pictures were lost when the Autopia computer crashed. They are of a red Honda S2000 I did last week. They show some nasty marring in the paint and the results after working them out with a rotary and the right product/pad combinations.

[Anthony O.]

Now AFTER the leveling process, polishing and sealing

[joblo1978]

The polishes you used have fillers that are designed to "hide" the scratches. From what I`ve heard about NXT is that it is a cleaning wax or has some cleaners in it that are probably removing your fillers. Polish should be followed by either a glaze like Klasse SG, which gives GREAT results or a pure carnuba wax like souveran or p21s which I prefer.



Even klasse AIO will remove fillers which I found out the hard way like yourself. My advice would be just to start over, do what you did and apply carnuba or glaze.



Carnuba can be layered over synthetics but no vice versa.

[Pstone]

do i have a bad bottle of nxt? i don`t really know. a friend of mine has a bottle, and his seems MUCH thicker than mine when you shake the bottle. mine has the near consistency of water...really. what do you think?



Sounds like to me someone bought the bottle you had, used some and replaced what was used with water so they could return it. I`d return that bottle to the store and swap for another. I don`t think Megs products come with a seal under the cap, do they?

[imported_tuffluck]

they come with a seal under the cap, but mine did not. i don`t know what happened there. but i`ve used over half the bottle, so returning it would do me no good. they would think i was just trying to scam them like the last guy did. who knows, maybe it did come with a seal and i`m just being dumb about it. it`s not water-like, that was an over-exageration. the bottles at pep boys seem to be a lot thicker than mine though, and i don`t remember the seal underneath.



so the consensus is that i should give the DACP another shot? i worked in round patterns, and really hard up and down patterns. maybe i should go side to side also? maybe diagonal patterns? thanks.

[imported_tuffluck]

Originally posted by joblo1978

Polish should be followed by either a glaze like Klasse SG, which gives GREAT results or a pure carnuba wax like souveran or p21s which I prefer.





what about 3m`s imperial hand glaze? that`s really the only thing i can obtain locally. i like to stick to local products, but if that is crap and doesn`t match well with DACP, #9, and nxt, then i guess i will have to order.



what do you guys recommend? what about scottwax, where is that guy when we need him?!?!?! :)

[imported_tuffluck]

anthony, i need to see an after in-the-sun pic. those swirls in the first pic are VERY minor compared to what i was dealing with on my navy blue metallic car. here are what i like to call mechanical swirls in this pic. my car has two types of swirls - big huge ones (like you`ll see in the pic) that look like grease smears (i call these mechanical) and then it has spider web swirls. i had (before the DACP) so many spider web swirls in my paint that i got arachnophobia just looking at a reflection of the sun/light in a body panel of my car. seriously, it was awful. i have no good in-the-sun pictures (like your first pic) because when i had a digital camera, there is no way i`d take a picture like that - too much of a disgrace.



https://webspace.utexas.edu/talkes/Z28/swirly.JPG



now you guys know the type of paint (and color) that i`m working with. dunno if that helps any...

[imported_Malachi]

Originally posted by Accumulator

tuffluck- Heh heh, we aren`t all ScottWaxes, ya know ;) There are *many* things *I* can`t get out without a PC/Cyclo/rotary. DACP is a "real" polish, it`ll work every time you use it. But maybe what you`re dealing with is just too much to do by hand with that product. Three passes isn`t all that many, either. When doing stuff like that with a PC/Cyclo, I`ll sometimes have to spend *hours* working one panel (that`s why I finally got the rotary).



Don`t feel too bad, as I said, we`re not all Scottwax. It`s like saying "plenty of people have run a four minute mile, why can`t I?"



Accumulator, do you think 1ZEPP is as effective as DACP?