Paging Scottwax

**mzgloves20** · 09-19-2003, 03:25 AM

Scott,

I have a friend with a new 1500 Intruder (motorcycle). Of course, the dealer prep left it with some fine swirls and clearcoat scuffs. (similar to what a shop rag would do to a black car...)

He saw how anal I am with my car and asked me to detail his bike. "Sure," I said...haha... of course, I did my car with a PC and 3M SMR followed by Zaino... He has a two- tone blue and silver tank with with a pin stripe. Not PC friendly!

You being the hand polishing god, I thought you may have a suggestion as to which SMR would be best to use by hand. Or, maybe a good technique to use when working by hand....

Thanks,

MZ

**Kikkomann** · 09-19-2003, 03:45 AM

I`m not Scott but before I bought my first R.O., I`ve been to a lot of "hand jobs".

Considering that you are detailing a bike (that means much less work than a car), why don`t you try PIII-MG or IHG? I use to buff out PIII-MG by hand on those hard to reach places (or places where my R.O. can`t reach) and it came out pretty well neat.

Just sharing...

**JoshABI** · 09-19-2003, 09:49 AM

Hey MZ...I`ll leave the answering to Scott when he comes around, but you might want to try sending him a PM...that way he`ll get it right away, and won`t have to dig for your question on the forums...

**Jesstzn** · 09-19-2003, 01:37 PM

I would use Menzerna Intensive Polish if the swirls are bad .. if not .. use their Final Polish and a very soft cloth .. but rub in one direction only while polishing and removing. Menzerna has no fillers so what you see is what you get.

**2wheelsx2** · 09-19-2003, 02:08 PM

Personally, I use 3M SMR by hand on my bikes. I don`t try to get out all the swirls. Why? Because a bike is different than a car. Every time you ride it, you have to touch the paint work in some way, like gripping the tank with your knees, getting on the bike, etc.

I use SMR because it is mild and has fillers which hide the swirls. I also use a glaze. This way, it can look good, and I don`t go crazy keeping up with swirls (I ride sportbikes, so there is lots of bodywork, unlike a cruiser).

**Scottwax** · 09-19-2003, 05:40 PM

Originally posted by StickKing1

Hey MZ...you might want to try sending him a PM...that way he`ll get it right away, and won`t have to dig for your question on the forums...

Actually, just PM me the link to the thread. Between here and offtopic.com`s show and shine forum I just cannot answer the same questions over and over individually. I`d spend over an hour some days just answering PMs and e-mails. If you post the question in the forums and link me, I only have to answer one time (especially on ot.com since I mod the forum and can sticky the most popular threads at the top).

To the question. I`ve found that for me, Meguiars DACP and Swirl Free work well by hand provided you have the endurance to work them into the paint until they look nearly clear and dry before buffing off the excess. I`ve also found that folded terry cloth towels work better for rubbing out the paint by hand than foam pads. Make sure you use quality towels and fold them over (1/8ths size works good) to make a thick pad and refold for each section

**chris0626** · 09-19-2003, 09:42 PM

mzgloves20, as others noted: If you want to ask a question of just one person, send him/her a private message via the PM system. No reason to clog up the public forums when you`re just interested in one person`s opinion.

**Scottwax** · 09-19-2003, 10:46 PM

Originally posted by Lynn

mzgloves20, as others noted: If you want to ask a question of just one person, send him/her a private message via the PM system. No reason to clog up the public forums when you`re just interested in one person`s opinion.

If I get sent one, I`ll ask them to start a thread. Otherwise, I spend my first 20-30 minutes on line answering PMs. I just can`t keep on doing that. I don`t mind answering questions, but I`d rather answer them in the proper forum so everyone gets the answer.

Besides, I think others should also give their input. No one here has all the answers by themselves.

**mzgloves20** · 09-20-2003, 11:41 AM

Thanks guys...I value everyone`s opinion, since I am not that experienced. I thought that since Scott does his stuff by hand he may have a little more info in the area.... I thought about the PM after I posted the thread...lol....