FG400 Dusting alot for me.

[dcjredline]

Hey everyone, thanks for taking time to read this.

Hope someone here is experienced with FG400 and can help me. Here is my list of items involved

Flex 3401 speed setting 5
Meguiar`s 6.5" maroon cutting pad
FG400
XMT Pad conditioner
2004 Honda Civic Black metallic paint


Usually I would do this car with HD speed cause the swirls and scratches arent that bad but this is a friends son`s first car. So I decided I would use some FG400 which is known to finish out well. It is finishing out very well as I suspected it would but I seem to get ALOT of dusting. Much much more than ever with HD Speed. Is dusting just a characteristic of compounds?

I thought I was using too much (2 spritz`s of the XMT conditioner, and 3-4 drops almost pea sized but smaller) so I went down to 3 half a pea sized and it still dusts pretty badly. For the smaller areas I am using my GG6 with 4" orange LC flat pad and 3 tiny drops and STILL getting dusting.

The temps have been reasonable here usually in the 45-50 range when I get home to polish, Im sure the humidity is fairly high but not sure on the number. The product wipes off normal when done. Im just at a loss.

HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! lol It`s livable but just want to see if there are any suggestions and its a pain to see my work when it is done, I dont want to have to keep wiping the BLACK paint and cause myself more work possibly.

[jrock645]

Well, comparing any of hd`s polishes to Menzerna is like night and day... HD is all dust free, and fg400 tends to be a little finicky in my limited experience. Keep spritzing pad conditioner or detail spray to lube the pad/paint, and hopefully you`re in friendly temperatures. I found I needed to prime the pad pretty heavily and use 5-6 larger than pea sized drops to keep the product moist. Also, try backing the speed down a little. I remember using my 3401 with fg400, and it did better at a 3.5-4 rather than high speeds.

hope this helps ya out.

[dcjredline]

I will have to give that a shot. I thought I heard with FG that less is more (Then again maybe I am mixing that up with the HD speed!!!)

[jrock645]

With hd`s polishes, you don`t need much at all and you don`t need to prime. I probably use more than they say to with the fg400, but I found it easier to work with when I did it that way. Just my preference.

honestly, after using hd`s polishes, I won`t go back to Menzerna anytime soon.

[WhyteWizard]

Most of that dust is probably build up from other materials and oxidation you`re removing from the paint.

I say this because when I colorsand cars there is a lot less dust than when I detail. Fresh paint where I`m only removing may sandpaper scratch - 2500 or so on my final step - doesn`t require much paint removal so there`s not much dust. On the other hand, if I`m following the work of another detailer, the dust can be significant.


Robert

[Stokdgs]

Is everything really clean before you started ?
Are your pads really clean, no leftover compound in them from the last job ?
Did you wash and clay or clay towel the paintwork really good before you started the correction process?
Was the entire car paintwork really smooth, after you clayed it and of course, still full of defects in the paintwork, that were going to be removed?

What is missing here is your process - what are you doing on that part of the panel exactly, before it starts dusting ?

Any product will dust if its run from its moist start level, to totally dry...

If you are getting great results as you said, and then it gets too dry and causes it to dust, perhaps, you should be stopping a little sooner, so it doesnt dust...

I use a Rotary and I keep the pad moist enough to allow the compound to get its initial cut and finish down until the product is all but gone, and there is little left to wipe off, and never get dusting, because I dont want it to dust and cause more wiping off, especially in door, trunk, hood jambs, hood cowl, etc...

Then, because I am making my pad not only remove the defects and refine the finish, but also clean up all the product off the panel, I keep a clean white small towel there, and after a panel section, look at the pad, and wipe it off in straight lines and see how much stuff came off, what color it is, and then, along with what just happened on that section of the panel, adjust my technique and process, so it keeps doing the work like I want it to...

Things to look for and think about -

At the end of your first run on that spot on the panel, - is the pad evenly coated with product and moisture? If not, you have to adjust for that, so its always that way..

After a few spots on the panel, the next section, etc., is your pad more heavily coated with new and used compound, dirt from the paintwork, etc., and no longer wipes off cleanly enough to keep using that pad ? Is it time to change to another pad now? Does that pad no longer work quickly, but moves around more, and no longer finishes down as good as when you started using it, and you are no longer getting the same level of clarity and gloss as the previous spot ?

Am I running the machine at too high a speed for the amount of work needed to get the desired clarity and gloss ?

Am I running the machine at too much downward pressure for the amount of work needed to get the desired clarity and gloss ?

Am I cleaning the pad face often and when it gets too loaded up with gunk, changing to a new, clean pad ?

Good luck !
Dan F

[JustJesus]

wow, STOKDGS wrote it pretty good.

My own experience with fg400 was on a hard PPG clear coat. I used it with a Megs MF Cut disc and PC. I found it only really dusted when I worked the product for too long. I kept swapping/cleaning the MF pads so it would stay cool and clean along the way. This helped.

[dcjredline]

Im pretty sure I am using too little product. And too high of a speed setting

It would dust before the first section pass was completed. Pads and paint were clean. Paint was extra clayed and the pads were most definitely cleaned and well rinsed

[Detail Impressions]

I would try changing the pads to less aggressive pad.
Fg 400 compound and soft Honda paint.

[wendell jarvis]

Could be several factors.....turn speed down, maybe too much product on pad, clean pad after each panel, over working the product. ...

[Stokdgs]

Im pretty sure I am using too little product. And too high of a speed setting

It would dust before the first section pass was completed. Pads and paint were clean. Paint was extra clayed and the pads were most definitely cleaned and well rinsed

Good, Don !

You figured it out, Im so glad for you !

Certainly, not enough product, and high speeds = heat, will dry up and dust very very quickly..

Great feedback and tips from all !

Regarding priming the pad, etc., this is why Optimum came out about 10 years ago with the Hyper Compound and Hyper Polish (which I love), in the spray bottle, so that one could spray evenly across the entire pad and it would work better - which it actually did..

I personally never really liked the bottle - its too tall, has a narrow base, and wants to fall over, and the spray nozzle will clog and then you have to stop and fix this..

I would rather have a smaller meguiars bottle with a long plastic tip that you can cut to the desired diameter you want, and leave it in the detailing cart, upside down, in a small empty kleenex box.. This holds the bottle upside down so the product is always ready to come out easy, and the kleenex box has a wide base enough so it doesnt fall over.. Everything stays clean; what little product that may leak out of the upside down bottle is not an issue ever..
Dan F