Look up!!

[Concours.John]

I was think while working. (dangerous) I see many repaints/restorations. One of the the things I see the most is swirls on lower panels of vehicles that taper in at the bottom. Many times they may not be noticeable on first inspection due to the angle of light. (a Brinkman helps)

Much of this is caused during compounding and not seen. The following glazing and polishing hides the true condition. It happens mostly due to the position the rotary operator`s arms are put in on these angles. The result tends to be more horizontal marks. I`ve seen this on multiple vehicles. They look good till put up in the air on a lift.

Do yourself a favor and take a towel, lie on your back and use your light to look up the panel. Also look down, left, and right. This could help properly estimate what needs to be done or if you need to finish out more before polish.

I try to work with a vehicle in the air to eliminate this awkward position. Over several years I`ve gotten comfortable with a rotary/pc lying on a roll around or towel if no lift is available. I still always check upwards before polishing.

Hope this helps anyone inspecting or compounding.

[mrclean81]

Great tip John

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[Flannigan]

Great tip! I actually have a yoga mat my wife got me so i don`t have to lay directly on the ground.

[Pats300zx]

I have an old piece of carpet that I roll up for this. Works perfect.

[C. Charles Hahn]

Excellent advice, John.

Another thing I do is keep a fluorescent fixture set up to plug in and place on the ground, shining upward to give me more light when working on rocker panels/etc. Comes in handy.

[Concours.John]

Excellent advice, John.

Another thing I do is keep a fluorescent fixture set up to plug in and place on the ground, shining upward to give me more light when working on rocker panels/etc. Comes in handy.

That`s funny I have a 4ft for the same thing. It has 2 full spectrums in it. At $20 a piece I wasn`t happy when I broke one.

[Todd@RUPES]

I was think while working. (dangerous) I see many repaints/restorations. One of the the things I see the most is swirls on lower panels of vehicles that taper in at the bottom. Many times they may not be noticeable on first inspection due to the angle of light. (a Brinkman helps)

Much of this is caused during compounding and not seen. The following glazing and polishing hides the true condition. It happens mostly due to the position the rotary operator`s arms are put in on these angles. The result tends to be more horizontal marks. I`ve seen this on multiple vehicles. They look good till put up in the air on a lift.

Do yourself a favor and take a towel, lie on your back and use your light to look up the panel. Also look down, left, and right. This could help properly estimate what needs to be done or if you need to finish out more before polish.

I try to work with a vehicle in the air to eliminate this awkward position. Over several years I`ve gotten comfortable with a rotary/pc lying on a roll around or towel if no lift is available. I still always check upwards before polishing.

Hope this helps anyone inspecting or compounding.

Excellent advice John!!!! If the goal is truly make a car `perfect` (ie highest potential) it has to be inspected in multiple light sources from multiple angles. I really appreciate your expertise and the value you bring to our (the member`s) forum!!!!