Frustrated with inability to remove swirls!

L

lakid042

New member
As an intro, I've been an avid "amateur" detailer since my Dad first taught me the "right" way to wash a car when I was a child and I've been enjoying detailing since then. That being said, I've never been 100% happy with my results (I always seem to have some swirls no matter how much I polish) and thought I would ask the experts for some advice.



My wife bought me a PC7424 a few years ago for my birthday and I've been exclusively using it ever since. I've tried various waxes (Zymol, Meguiars, Zaino, P21S, etc...) over the years and am currently using Griot's "Best in Show" along with their Machine Polishes.



I purchased a Brilliant Red Audi S5 back in January and have either washed it myself or had the detail shop in my building wash it. That being said, it does have the usual minor swirls and I took a day off recently to spend some QT getting it back to showroom conditions. Steps taken were:



1. Wash

2. Clay (Griot's - by hand)

3. Griot's Machine Polish #3 with a setting of 4 to 5 using a 6.5" Meguiar's SoftBuff yellow pad



I realized that the #3 wasn't removing the swirls so I moved to #2 and then #1 but with no luck. These were not what I would call "heavy" swirls so I'm mystified that they couldn't be removed.



Frustrated, I decided to use #2 on the entire car and finish with #4. I then burnished two layers of Griot's Best in Show with the PC before removing.



Pics can be found here:



Swedespeed Forums: And the Replacement for My Totalled R Is...



Good shine and decent depth but again, I still have light swirls!



I read a variety of the detail guides on this (great!) site after the fact and realize that the following might be the issues:



a. Mismatching of pad-type & polish

b. Too much pressure on the PC (e.g. it wasn't always spinning 1-2 revolutions per second)

c. Not working the polish enough (I usually do a total of 6-8 series of top-to-bottom and then side-to-side over the polishing area)

d. Should be using a 4" backing plate & pad



Other than that, any suggestions? If it is indeed "a" above, suggestions for pads to use to match the various Griot's polishes or should I simply try a different product?



TIA!!!



Regards,



Derek
 
lakid042- Welcome to Autopia!



Nice car, I'm an Audi nut myself and I have enough experience with Griot's stuff to appreciate your frustration.



Griot's Machine Polishes, *especially* by PC with ~5-6" pads, are simply way too mild for the Audi clear. They work better with machines like the Cyclo, so they'll also work better with smaller pads on the PC. 4" pads utterly change the PC's abilities, you'll be amazed.



The Griot's pads are *VERY* gentle, and that, combined with their larger size, makes them simply too gentle, let alone when used with the quite mild Machine Polishes.





No, you don't *need* a rotary to correct Audis, it just makes the job go a lot faster. I've removed RIDS (Random Isolated Deep Scratches) from Audis via PC innumerable times. I've even removed fingernail scratches from behind Audi door handles *by hand* (yeah, it took a long, long time), so correction can be done using methods less effective/efficient than a rotary.



Still, I wonder if the Machine Polishes will have the required cut :think:



Get a small backing plate and some 4" pads. Get orange light cut pads (important note: these are *VERY* different from the orange Griot's pads!) instead of yellow cutting pads. Get some polishing pads too. No need for finishing pads as you can use the larger Griot's orange/red ones for gentle work.



Try those pads with the Machine Polishes, and I'd start with MP#1 on the orange light cut pad. I really dunno if that'll work on the Audi clear but it probably will with numerous applications (then follow up with #2 with a 4" polishing pad and *maybe* #3 also with a 4" polishing pad). IF it (the #1) doesn't work there are stronger products you can try next, but I'd see if simply changing the pad size is enough. Then give it the final burnishing with the MP#3/#4 on the Griot's pad for a nice final finish, but stick with the smaller pads until you have the marring corrected to your satisfaction; you're simply wasting time/effort with the larger Griot's pads.



Sorry I can't say for sure about the MP#1 and 4" pad combo being enough for the Audis, I retired my Griot's stuff before I ever got it to work well on that paint (always preferred other products on Audis).



Using 4" pads: I find the 4" pads work best for me at speed 5 (as opposed to speed 6 which I'd use with larger pads). You can apply plenty of pressure with the 4" pads (much more than with larger ones), so don't overdo it..you can actually do damage if you get carried away with the small pads (no, not likely enough to worry about, just pay attention).



Oh, while I'm bashing Griot's (not really, I like Richard and have done business with him since he was answering the phone himself...they have some really good stuff and my shop looks like a Griot's ad), their clay/SpeedShine combo is awfully mild for cleaning serious contamination, and for lighter work, I greatly prefer the Sonus Green Ultra-Fine clay. The green Sonus stuff is so gentle it's easy to clean you wax with it without stripping said wax, and I'm a lot happier with it than with the Griot's (which I used for years, ever since the original version in the early '90s).



Just to show I'm not all negative on Griot's, I *do* like the SpeedShine after washes on vehicles I use wax (as opposed to sealants) on. SpeedShine is good stuff. I can't stand BOS though, I thought it was simply lousy.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top