Noob Question On Swirl Removal

[viOlaziOne]

hi all .. been detailing for a few years on my own car and have just upgraded to machine polishing .. I currently have the PC7424XP but am going to be purchasing a GG and a Flex 3401 .. now, me having a DA equated to a lot less of a scare with paint burn through and what not so I`m asking this now in preparation to avoid disaster .. since my goal is to use a rotary eventually and taping off edges is pretty much a necessity I`m just curious about a few things ..

1. when I tape off an edge and finish polishing the panel to perfection (or my standard of it) .. am I going to hand polish as close to the edge as possible to ensure that the finish is perfect where the tape was covering ?? I worry with someone else`s car about messing anything up

2. my car lacks any and all badges but I plan on detailing cars in my family and we have quite a large fleet and an even larger variety of makes and models .. when dealing with badges do I polish in between them with a Q-Tip or something similar ??

3. what hand applicators do you all recommend to handle swirls by hand with regards to tight areas and dealing with edges ?? I have the CCS euro hand applicators and also have meguiar`s and pinnacle foam applicator pads .. would they be enough to take care these areas ??

4. also, and a little off topic .. what do you all use for microfiber when wiping off polish ?? when I polished my G35 a few months ago I wiped the polish off with Gold Cobra MF towels .. I seemed to notice were small almost lint looking specs on the paint .. I recently purchased PakShak and will be placing orders in the near future for: AG super soft deluxe blue rolled edge and poorboy`s DMT .. suggestions ??

any recommendations and suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated .. I someday plan on detailing on the side since this "hobby" does nothing but bring me great joy and, even when breaking a sweat, I am at total peace .. thanks in advance !!

[Todd@RUPES]

hi all .. been detailing for a few years on my own car and have just upgraded to machine polishing .. I currently have the PC7424XP but am going to be purchasing a GG and a Flex 3401 .. now, me having a DA equated to a lot less of a scare with paint burn through and what not so I`m asking this now in preparation to avoid disaster .. since my goal is to use a rotary eventually and taping off edges is pretty much a necessity I`m just curious about a few things ..

Thank you for posting this to the forum! Let`s take it from the top!

1. when I tape off an edge and finish polishing the panel to perfection (or my standard of it) .. am I going to hand polish as close to the edge as possible to ensure that the finish is perfect where the tape was covering ?? I worry with someone else`s car about messing anything up

Are you referring to polishing with a rotary polisher or a DA?

In either case I rarely tape up an edge. It is okay to buff up to (and over!) and edge but you never want to buff an edge directly. The only time I tape an edge is if two body panels are miss aligned and one is sticking our higher/further than the adjacent panel. In this case I will run a piece of tape over the higher side because the pad will want to dig directly into the edge of this piece.

When polishing over an edge with a rotary you want to till the machine so that the pad is floating off the edge vs. digging in. Lets say you are polishing the sharp edge of the trunk and standing directly behind it. Looking down at your rotary you will notice that it spins clock-wise.

If you were to push down on the tail of the rotary or twist it slightly to the left the pad would have pressure where it is entering the edge and this can quickly burn the edge.

If you were to lift up on the tail slightly and twist the rotary to the right the pressure will before focus on the body panel right before the pad flows off of the edge. This prevents digging and focuses the energy of the machine away from the thin spot.

2. my car lacks any and all badges but I plan on detailing cars in my family and we have quite a large fleet and an even larger variety of makes and models .. when dealing with badges do I polish in between them with a Q-Tip or something similar ??

Some badges are easy to remove, some are glued or bonded on. If you can remove them easily, then this is always the best option. On some badges you can get in there with a microfiber towel, a piece of foam pad cut up, or a q-tip. In some areas we can only do the best we can do.

3. what hand applicators do you all recommend to handle swirls by hand with regards to tight areas and dealing with edges ?? I have the CCS euro hand applicators and also have meguiar`s and pinnacle foam applicator pads .. would they be enough to take care these areas ??

It sounds like you have everything you need!

4. also, and a little off topic .. what do you all use for microfiber when wiping off polish ?? when I polished my G35 a few months ago I wiped the polish off with Gold Cobra MF towels .. I seemed to notice were small almost lint looking specs on the paint .. I recently purchased PakShak and will be placing orders in the near future for: AG super soft deluxe blue rolled edge and poorboy`s DMT .. suggestions ??

Sometimes the oil from a polish can pull loose fibers out of the towel. Did you wash these first?

To me the Cobra Supreme 530 towels do a great job of removing wax and polish with out scratching and with very little linting.

any recommendations and suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated .. I someday plan on detailing on the side since this "hobby" does nothing but bring me great joy and, even when breaking a sweat, I am at total peace .. thanks in advance !!

Your welcome and we share your passion!

[Old Pirate]

hi all .. been detailing for a few years on my own car and have just upgraded to machine polishing .. I currently have the PC7424XP but am going to be purchasing a GG and a Flex 3401 .. now, me having a DA equated to a lot less of a scare with paint burn through and what not so I`m asking this now in preparation to avoid disaster .. since my goal is to use a rotary eventually and taping off edges is pretty much a necessity I`m just curious about a few things ..

Welcome to AutopiaForums viOlaziOne


1. when I tape off an edge and finish polishing the panel to perfection (or my standard of it) .. am I going to hand polish as close to the edge as possible to ensure that the finish is perfect where the tape was covering ?? I worry with someone else`s car about messing anything up

Just as my friend Todd has mention, it`s okay to buff up to and over it the edge but you never want to buff an edge directly



2. my car lacks any and all badges but I plan on detailing cars in my family and we have quite a large fleet and an even larger variety of makes and models .. when dealing with badges do I polish in between them with a Q-Tip or something similar ??

I don`t remove them if it`s not necessity ( just use your microfiber towel or a q-tip ), but if you need to just be careful.



3. what hand applicators do you all recommend to handle swirls by hand with regards to tight areas and dealing with edges ?? I have the CCS euro hand applicators and also have meguiar`s and pinnacle foam applicator pads .. would they be enough to take care these areas ??


These are perfect for what your using them for.

4. also, and a little off topic .. what do you all use for microfiber when wiping off polish ?? when I polished my G35 a few months ago I wiped the polish off with Gold Cobra MF towels .. I seemed to notice were small almost lint looking specs on the paint .. I recently purchased PakShak and will be placing orders in the near future for: AG super soft deluxe blue rolled edge and poorboy`s DMT .. suggestions ??

You might want to wash them first if you didn`t yet, and the Cobra Deluxe Jr towels is what I would go for.


any recommendations and suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated .. I someday plan on detailing on the side since this "hobby" does nothing but bring me great joy and, even when breaking a sweat, I am at total peace .. thanks in advance !!

You sure right about detailing, it`s one thing that keeps my mine at ease.

[Stokdgs]

vioLazione -

Welcome to the forum !

I Rotary everything and have never burned the edges, because I control the machine and do not stop on an edge, but just go right over it and thats all it needs.
I never tape edges, but rather, just keep control of the machine and also ease up on pressure if you are going over an edge.

A good solution for cleaning around badges, letters, numbers, on vehicles that are not removable easily is to get some Meguiars 105 and some Qtips,(buy a big pack of them), and use this compound between the areas and it will clean and polish really nicely, If you can get a cotton towel in there and not break or move anything that will work even better. This product on a little cotton towel will do wonders for those nasty fingernail marks you see sometimes behind door handles in the door cup.
I also have all the machines you have and more. Its good to have a choice for different areas, and also to have back up in case one machine decides to die that day.

Dan F

[viOlaziOne]

thank you all for the replies definitely helps out a lot .. my girlfriend laughs at me due to the amount of time I spend reading on this forum but, in all honesty, it pays off big in the end .. my current car is my first dark colored vehicle (all of my other vehicles were white for some odd reason) so I never knew what swirl marks were and how poor my washing and overall car care techniques were .. I do appreciate all of the help and I will keep everything mentioned in mind

as far as using the DA goes, I love it .. I plan on purchasing the GG just to have two machines to make my life easier .. I have a pretty big connection with a local junkyard and he`s currently giving me scrap pieces to practice on (which I feel is a lot better than learning on someone else`s car) .. one last question though

after I purchase the GG and the Flex 3401 .. which rotary would be more beneficial to own (or is this a really subjective question) ?? for a long time I`ve read a LOT about everyone loving the Makita and many a write up has been done with this machine as the star .. however, I`ve been seeing the Flex rotary making a BIG splash and I`m unsure which machine to really take the dive into .. also, the Festool has snuck it`s name into my mind but I don`t really see many people using it on here for some reason ..thanks again everyone !!

[Stokdgs]

viOlaziOne -

You are welcome ! We are glad to help you out !
You mentioned the Flex 3401 which is their Random Orbital (3401VRG) but then you mention the Flex Rotary which is PE-14-2 150,

I have both and they are quality machines that are made to last.

I also have the Makita 9227C Rotary, and it is also a very nice machine that spins faster than the Flex Rotary, and for me, this only important if I am drying foam pads by spinning them. I never use the highest speed for Detail work.
The Makita 9227C is longer and heavier than the Flex Rotary, so if you are interested in building up your upper body especially your arms, then the Makita will help you do that handily.

The Makita might also be less expensive than the Flex however, sometimes both machines are sold in bundle form that includes a bunch of needed stuff, so you may have to look at the numbers, when you get ready.

Lucky for you to be able to practice on panels ! That is so good !

You will be fine when its time to do your dark colored car. Just keep the pad flat as much as possible. Also, your DA/Random Orbital machine can be used at the end of your correction to apply a product, and help smooth anything out if needed.

The guys who have responded to this thread are all Top Detailers in their area !

You are getting great advice !

Good luck !

Dan F