Have PC and Products... Will these products work well together?

[sillystanger]

Ok, I`ve purchased the PC and products and thought I`d ask for any comments/suggestions for my specific situation before I do this for the first time:



Car: 98 Neon - Cherry Red (with decals down the sides) which has been abused (never seen a wax or polish and is full of swirls and a few significant scratches).

Pads: Sonus DAS

Polishes: Sonus SFX-1 and Zaino Z-PC



I still need to read more about proper PC use, but here`s what I`m planning on. Do the entire surface with the more abrasive SFX-1 and the orange pad maybe taking an extra pass or two on the scratches until they disappear. Then hit the entire car again with Z-PC and a green pad to essentially level out and clean up what`s left from the rougher SFX-1. I imagine I`ll have to take care to avoid the decals down the side. Hopefully, it won`t look too dull around the decals. I`m thinking that those dull areas might just blend in. After polishing I`ll be applying the Zaino line of protectants (Z2/Z5 with Z8 in-between).



Does this sound reasonable? Do you think SFX-1 and Z-PC work well in combination?

[oversteer]

My only concern is that the gap between SFX-1, a fairly aggressive compound, and Z-PC, a very gentle polish, would be too great. If that happens, try using a moistened orange pad with the Z-PC. I wouldn`t be too worried about the decals. What material are they made of? If they`re stuck-on like a sticker would be, using a PC on it should be fine.

[Lowejackson]

I would get some SFX-2 to remove any marring left by SFX-1.

[sillystanger]

I was concerned about the gap between SFX-1 and Z-PC but was hoping that I could just work the Z-PC a little longer with the green pad to clean up after SFX-1. I guess I should be smart and just order up the SFX-2 (it`s the waiting another week part for it to get delivered that I want to bypass). If you guys had the same products in hand would you give it a shot or order up SFX-2 and wait? Can you recommend a similar SFX-2 coarseness polish that I could possibly find locally? Do I need two different orang pads if I were to give oversteer`s idea above a try or could I use the same orange pad for SFX-1 and Z-PC?

[sillystanger]

To be safe, I just ordered the SFX-2 and another green pad. So, I`ll be using Z-PC (green pad), SFX-2(green pad), and SFX-1(orange pad). I`m sure I`ll be finding out soon, but are these polishes any good? Anyone have experience with any of them? I still feel a bit nervous using SFX-1 on the entire paint but since this 98 neon has never been polished I guess it can stand to lose a layer of dull paint.