What is your goof proof pad/machine/polish combo for soft paint?

[Junebug]

Silva - try a Carquest "Paint" store - check their web site and search under paint stores.

[twentyone]

can someone elaborate on what makes a paint soft or hard?



also, is there a place on here that is kinda like a dictionary for terms? clarity..... gumming.... want to know what some of the terminology means if i`m going to try and make the transition from decent car cleaner to great detailer.

[Rickrack]

I`m not sure what exactly makes paint hard or soft, but all paints are different. Some factory paints are extremely soft and others are extremely hard. Some of the newer clearcoats even have ceramiclear, or scratch resistant clear, which is very hard and are best corrected with a polish specifically designed for these modern clearcoats.



You may want to check out the "secret decoder ring" to learn some of the terminology used often on this site.



Clarity, in terms of paint, is when the paint looks nice and clear. Usually after compounding, the paint will appear cloudy/hazy/foggy. A good polish will improve the clarity and remove the haziness leaving the paint looking very clear.



Gumming, in detailing terms, is basically when a product "clogs up" or packs together usually making it hard to spread or work. For example, when the motor in your car gets gummed up, it will usually bog down and not run properly.



Hopefully this makes sense?

[AP2TUDE]

I really liked that video as a demonstration, but I was upset about the practices that they are supporting for sanding.



I was annoyed at how they recommended their sanding, but not for removing orange peel. The more new cars that I work on, the more upset I get about the commonplace acceptance of orange peel on everything.



Working on older cars, you find that orange peel wasn`t something that was accepted 15 years ago. All the german luxury cars were hand color sanded from the factory, and had finishes that were far superior to those that we see today; regardless of the increases in technology that we see in the modern painting and finishing process.



It is just bothersome that finishing programs don`t even really support complete orange peel removal anymore, they are happy and complacent in simply removing sanding scratches instead.



Not to detract from the Ultrafina in any way, it is an amazing product. I just found it annoying that 3M seemed to be so supportive of what should seriously be seen as substandard paint finishing in its sanding process.