How often can I use abrasives?

[EricDawg]

I have a black Dakota, and am finding that I get a ton of little scratches, water spots, etc. that only come out with Zaino Z-PC Fusion or Meguirs Sractch-X. Both abrasive. I always try clay first, but for my latest challenge (water spots), Z-PC is the only thing that seems to work.



I need to do half the truck. Is this cool? I mean... what else could I do? Z-PC seems to work good on swirlies too. Can I do this like once a year?



:nixweiss

 

[THT]

I use an abrasive only as often as necessary and then, I try to use it on just the spots that need it. I usually give my car a once over w/ ZPC each spring and from there, whenever blemishes pop up.

 

[Accumulator]

David B has posted a good take on the over-use of abrasives, and yeah, it pays to be careful. Twenty-sme years of polishing have taken their toll on my Jag, but it has very soft lacquer paint and I used to polish it all the time.



BUT... occasional polishing of today's b/c paint shouldn't be a big problem. We keep our vehicles a long time and they hold up fine with the polishing that I do. The trick is to keep it *occasional*. If you have to polish the whole thing more than once a year, then something's wrong.



You might consider another way of dealing with water spots. If they're deposits then you might oughta dissolve them away. If they're acid rain-type etching that'd be different..but I'd try to limit the use of abrasives to jobs where you really need to "sand down" the paint, i.e., marring removal.