Skip one and go to the other???

B

breakneckvtec

New member
3M's line as me slightly confused, I wanted the abrasiveness order for SMR, machine polish, and fine cut rubbing compound...I thought it went like this from weakest to strongest:

SMR

fine cut

machine polish

Is this right? I ask because some here have recommended to me to skip the fine cut if SMR isnt strong enough and go to the machine polish directly. What do you guys think is right? How much difference is there between the machine polish and fine cut. Trying to get this in order because its warming up and detailing season is right around the corner :bounce
 
Which Machine polish are you referring to? If it's Finesse-It II, then yes, I would just use FI-II followed by SMR. FI-II is pretty similar to Fine Cut when it comes to cutting ability. But I prefer using FI-II for two reasons:



1. FCRC is a bit oily and also tends to "gum-up" a bit on your applicator (at least the soft paste version does), forcing you to change applicators more often. Whereas, FI-II contains very little oil and no fillers. Contrary to most experiences here, I find FI-II a very easy product to work with and does a great job in bringing out the shine on a neglected car.



2. FI-II's abrasives seem to cut more evenly than FCRC's. When using either of these products, you might end up getting some micro-swirls or hazing and I've found that FI-II's hazing is much easier to remove than FCRC's.
 
Well I would be using the liquid form of the perfect it fine cut compound. Does the PI FCC have fillers in it as well? How is it in comparison to the SMR? I have been told its the most abrasive, more than machine polish, but have been told as well that its less than machine polish and falls in between it and SMR being closer to SMR but more abrasive, hope you followed that. Can anyone comment on the PI FCC for swirl removal followed by SMR?
 
Intel486 said:
I've seen that before but have yet to figure out what it means... So, what does it mean?
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"To The Top," meant as a bump to bring a thread which has not been replied to to the top of a forum listing, possibly bringing it exposure to new members in an attempt to net replies. :wavey
 
breakneckvtec said:
Well I would be using the liquid form of the perfect it fine cut compound. Does the PI FCC have fillers in it as well? How is it in comparison to the SMR? I have been told its the most abrasive, more than machine polish, but have been told as well that its less than machine polish and falls in between it and SMR being closer to SMR but more abrasive, hope you followed that. Can anyone comment on the PI FCC for swirl removal followed by SMR?
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FCRC doesn't have too many fillers either, but it's definitely an oilier product than FI-II, which might act as fillers. I don't think you need to worry about the filler content in either product.



It's definitely more abrasive than SMR and also DEFINITELY closer in abrasiveness to FI-II (about the same, IMO). If you already have a bottle of it, perhaps you can give it a shot and let us know how it goes.



You can analyze these various products to death, but since all our cars have the potential to react differently to various products, the only thing you can really do at this point is to experiment and see which methods/products work best on your car. Try not to fall into the "paralysis-by-analysis" trap of comparing opinions all these products without actually trying them out. You'll learn a lot more by getting to work on your car. :xyxthumbs
 
You can analyze these various products to death, but since all our cars have the potential to react differently to various products, the only thing you can really do at this point is to experiment and see which methods/products work best on your car. Try not to fall into the "paralysis-by-analysis" trap of comparing opinions all these products without actually trying them out. You'll learn a lot more by getting to work on your car.
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Oh how true that is. I definetly wont let that happen, once weather here in NJ turns I plan to try everything in my arsenal, those swirlies are going down. But hey, I am analytical by nature so till then I will be a pain in the ***:). You have a civic I see, what have you found to work on light to medium swirls, blemishes?
 
breakneckvtec said:
You have a civic I see, what have you found to work on light to medium swirls, blemishes?
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breakneckvtec, sorry for not getting back to you sooner:



My Civic is silver and less than two years old. With the exception of Klasse AIO & Pinnacle PCL, this car has never been treated with an abrasive product. I have to strain really hard and search for a while under very bright lights (like at night at the gas station) so see anything resembling a scratch, but nothing that a mild cleanser won't take care of. I know for sure that this car has at least some imperfections, it's just that I can't find them. How do I know? Because I also have a black car that I detail MUCH more carefully but will never "look" as scratch-free as my silver car. For my black car, I find that using 3M SMR on a regular basis (every 3-4 months) pretty much keeps the "detail-marring" to a minimum. When I find something more significant than minor marring, I usually "spot-compound" with Finesse-It II first and then move up to something stronger if that doesn't work. Also, I once gave the car a full FI-II treatment and was completely blown away by the results.



Recently, someone put some nasty looking scratches on the trunk of my car (my wife claims innocence). Many of the scratches required touch-up paint leveled with sandpaper. I followed it up with FI-II, then 3M SMR and the surface is back to its original self. I'm a big fan of 3M's polishes and compounds.
 
Thanks, very helpful. I plan to go with 3M SMR and FI II in areas that need more TLC, or maybe all FI II and finish with SMR. We will see, but thanks for the help.
 
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