Baggie Test after Clay, Polish aggressiveness?

[LS GLIDE]

Hello All, I`ve always gleaned good information here, but it`s time to jump in.
Maintain my own vehicles for years, by hand or PC7224 so I`m not with out some experience.
New vehicle, got it home hand washed it twice in two weeks, baggie test today, feel contaminates, clay it, baggie test, still feel contaminates, there is some smoothness but still "grainy` or sand like roughness to it. Tried some GG Machine polish 3, a little improvement,but not enough. Looking for the usual recommendtions, was thinking Sonax NP 3-6, because I don`t think I`m that far off on correction, but don`t want to take off too much material. Going to invest in the GG G15 with new pads. After this GG Ceramic 3-1 to top it off. Suggestions please.
Mopar paint, Color is Granite Crystal Metallic.
Thanks

[Setec Astronomy]

I would try some fallout remover and see what that gets you.

[noorth]

I wouldn`t worry about taking too much material off with any polish with a foam polishing pad.

I have about half dozen polishes i guess and i usually reach for sonax perfect finish first. But i use all kinds of different polishes on my car with the same pads. I can`t see much difference. But i don`t have lights or anything like that.

[LS GLIDE]

Thanks, Been thinking about the Fallout remover, might do that too. I was concerned that Np 3-6 might be too much just to start.
Preciate the responses.

[Stokdgs]

Hello All, I`ve always gleaned good information here, but it`s time to jump in.
Maintain my own vehicles for years, by hand or PC7224 so I`m not with out some experience.
New vehicle, got it home hand washed it twice in two weeks, baggie test today, feel contaminates, clay it, baggie test, still feel contaminates, there is some smoothness but still "grainy` or sand like roughness to it. Tried some GG Machine polish 3, a little improvement,but not enough. Looking for the usual recommendtions, was thinking Sonax NP 3-6, because I don`t think I`m that far off on correction, but don`t want to take off too much material. Going to invest in the GG G15 with new pads. After this GG Ceramic 3-1 to top it off. Suggestions please.
Mopar paint, Color is Granite Crystal Metallic.
Thanks

Congrats on the new car !!!

Tell us more about your process...

You Clayed it....With what brand clay??? What level clay ??? What was your process??

The reason I ask, is that I have never had an experience where I clayed a vehicle and I still had rough surfaces...

I Never use any plastic, baggie, etc., period... I use my clean, dry fingers on the surfaces and they tell me everything very quickly...
I bet there not ONE Painter in the world that uses a "plastic bag", thing, to feel the work... I have never seen one use this, and I was one...

Tell us your process for this paint correction....Yes, a Porter Cable.... What speed??? Whose pads??? What product?? Your process???

Dan F

[LS GLIDE]

@STOKDGS, Thanks,
I hand wash w/a BHB and blow dry using quality microfiber. I had a half bar of Meguiars blue clay don`t remember the level, but use a speed shine as a lubricant and I use plenty of that, doing small sections of panel, followed with the wipe up of that.
I will say that the surface does feel smooth to the touch and I find no defects doing it that way. I did the baggie test as I thought this was a good way to detect some smaller contaminates.
The PC was an orange pad might be GG or Lake country and the machine no 3 polish was just an experiment just to see what level of improvement (if any),Speed 2-3 working in a line. I also thought this would be a good opportunity to evaluate the paint from baseline and know where I`ll be in the future. Maybe I`m overthinking this but would use the NP 3-6 if needing to go that route.
Thanks again.

[Stokdgs]

@STOKDGS, Thanks,
I hand wash w/a BHB and blow dry using quality microfiber. I had a half bar of Meguiars blue clay don`t remember the level, but use a speed shine as a lubricant and I use plenty of that, doing small sections of panel, followed with the wipe up of that.
I will say that the surface does feel smooth to the touch and I find no defects doing it that way. I did the baggie test as I thought this was a good way to detect some smaller contaminates.
The PC was an orange pad might be GG or Lake country and the machine no 3 polish was just an experiment just to see what level of improvement (if any),Speed 2-3 working in a line. I also thought this would be a good opportunity to evaluate the paint from baseline and know where I`ll be in the future. Maybe I`m overthinking this but would use the NP 3-6 if needing to go that route.
Thanks again.

@ LS Glide -
Thank you for your reply !
I looked at the Autopia Store and they only Meguiars clay bar they sell is not blue, so guess it is not that one...
Anyway,looks like your claybar work must have been good enough using what you did..

I only use Rotary Power to paint correct, but I also have a Flex 3401VRG machine from when they first came out, so I know enough about random orbitals too..

What I would do if I was using any random orbital, especially your Porter Cable machine, is get the compound, polish, etc., acquainted with the area you are going to correct, and then turn it up full speed, press down some on it, not so much that you stop the Pad Rotation, and go over the area like that, until the product is almost gone or gone... You Need Pad Rotation for the best results from both pad and product...

To keep the product from drying too fast, i keep a spray bottle of the foam pad conditioner I use, close by and if I see the product starting to dry, I just wet the surface a little and keep it moist enough to finish its work, before I stop, wipe it down and look at it...
If I don`t see the clarity and feel the smoothness I want, I do it again...

The best product I have used over and over for a few hundred vehicles has always been Optimum Hyper-Polish...

Yes, I have also used the Meguiar`s twins - M105 and 205, that are now a little different numbers, all the wonderful Menzerna line, 3M products, and the Optimum products, and finally settled on Optimum Hyper-Polish with a Lake Country Hydro-Tech Cyan (Blue) 5" Pad and a smaller one if needed, with an extension on the machine to allow me to get it into tighter places if necessary..

Lake Country also makes a Hydro-Tech Tangerine (Orange) pad that is finer and perhaps finishes even better than the Cyan pad does...

These 2 pads or even just one of them is all I need to paint correct (with the right correction product), and finish it really nice, clear, glossy, and flat, every time...

They are made of a foam that does not absorb liquids very fast, so they can go a long way before you have to change them out...
I always take a white cotton towel, and wipe down the pad after each of the several passes made on a section, and almost all or all of the product has been used up and is gone, and wipe the pad surface clean of all the dead product, paint, etc., that is now on it, so I can start off clean again on the next section...

My process is to paint correct and polish the best I can do one time if possible, and then keep moving all the way down the vehicle, until it`s done, and all I need to do now, is wipe it down again, carefully, and apply whatever the LSP is going to be, wax, sealant, coating, etc...

Of course, really good overhead and lighting from the side is important to see how the process is going on that section, and help me know when it`s time to spritz some liquid on that section if it`s drying too fast...

And cannot say enough about Pad Rotation... You have to have it to break down the product as it works against the paintwork...

Even on my Makita Rotary, I never get the rpm past 1,200 or so, because I don`t see any advantage to higher rpm, which just makes everything dry up faster, when it Could stick around longer and help the paint correct process ...

Hope you can get that beautiful Mopar paint looking great !! They have really good paint on them...Awesome, fast, loud cars for sure !!!!

Dan F

[LS GLIDE]

@Stokdgs, It`s very possible that the blue clay came from somewhere else and I put in in that container.
But, I`ve got a fresh bar and think I`m going to spot test a couple areas just out of curiosity and satisfaction, while my new products come in. As this test goes on I`m also refining my techniques through knowledge and practice.
I appreciate your advice and information on the pads. I honestly don`t think I`ll need one that cuts too much, the paint is not that far off, and my lighting hasn`t indicated any swirls yet. Like you did, I`m trying to get it right the first time.
Thanks again for taking the time.
Brad

[Stokdgs]

@Stokdgs, It`s very possible that the blue clay came from somewhere else and I put in in that container.
But, I`ve got a fresh bar and think I`m going to spot test a couple areas just out of curiosity and satisfaction, while my new products come in. As this test goes on I`m also refining my techniques through knowledge and practice.
I appreciate your advice and information on the pads. I honestly don`t think I`ll need one that cuts too much, the paint is not that far off, and my lighting hasn`t indicated any swirls yet. Like you did, I`m trying to get it right the first time.
Thanks again for taking the time.
Brad

Hey Brad !
Tks for the reply !
Regarding the pads I mentioned - Lake Country Hydro Tech, Cyan and Tangerine colors... Neither of these pad colors are aggressive at the start, but are more like a medium pad, that can really clean up paint damage and still finish down really nicely...

It all depends on the product/s you use with them that determines what these pads are going to do... And they still finish down really nice, glossy, and flat finishes...

I usually use around 6 or more of these 5" foam pads, bigger vehicles use more pads, of course...

So, I have lots of them, to be able to go through a few vehicles before I have to start washing and drying them, for next time...

Clean pads really make a big difference in how any paintwork responds and is able to finish down really clear and glossy...
And of course, technique makes this work really good, not so good, or not good at all...

Good luck with your new Mopar !!!
Dan F

[LS GLIDE]

Hi Dan,
Wow 6 pads!! I guess I underestimated that by a couple, but have enough to cover it. what you said make sense given the large vehicle.
Thanks again.
Brad

[Stokdgs]

Hi Dan,
Wow 6 pads!! I guess I underestimated that by a couple, but have enough to cover it. what you said make sense given the large vehicle.
Thanks again.
Brad

Hey Brad !
Yeah, I use a lot of pads, because depending on the amount of correction needed to get a nice finish, it just sometimes takes a lot more..

After they start picking up too much moisture, and the white towel wipedowns are not enough, they stop working as good and I need to change them out..

Speaking of pads - you need a good cleaner that is not too foamy/soapy/impossible to rinse out, product, and the only I have ever used successfully is this one ----- Snappy Clean Pad Cleaning Powder 3 Pack

This product cleans the foam really well, does not disturb the material on top of the pad, and has never harmed the foam...

I get a lot of them in a bucket of water with this product soaking as I use them, and then at the end, take them to the sink, rub them up some more to help get all the dead paint, product, out, and then rinse them really well, until I see no more soap coming from them while rinsing, and set them on edge on one of my carts to dry...

Depending on how good you squeezed all the rinse water out, they can take 24+ hours to be completely dry and ready to use again...

Yes, there are probably other ways to do this, but his process has been really great for me...

Good luck with your project !
Dan F

[LS GLIDE]

Hi Dan,
Sorry for the delay,
I do have the snappy clean Pad stuff, I`ll pay attention to thre rinse process, I`m usually OCD about that stuff, but that`s why we`re all here too!
Brad