tompinney said:
If this hobby is half as addictive as I expect it to be, I'm sure the next order will
FILL A 20 FOOT CONTAINER
Yes, the hobby is that addicting! It is also very peaceful once the body has mastered the necessary skills, because you can "zone out" ane become very relaxed (Note: I did not say inattentive). And satisfying too because you can create something beautiful from something that is not. In fact, you may get so addicted, you will perform your magic for others on their vehicles for merely the cost of materials.
There is one note of caution _I_ must add. I used the PC a lot and with gripping the side handle too tightly while the machine was running, I damaged the tendons of the first 2 fingers of my left hand, resutling in one of them "triggering" - a very painful position for the finger to get into, but even more painful to get out of. Cortisone injections did not resove the contition so 3 weeks ago I had to have surgical intervention. My advice to ANYONE using the PC would be to wrap the side handle with foam and hold it in place with duct tape and ALWAYS were padded gloves (the semi-fingerless kind favored by contruction workers)
Here is the advice I offered my friends in the local Ford Lightning Club, should they decide to "take the plunge" and begin to polish paint:
THE REQUIRED STUFF
Porter Cable 7336 Polisher
6" flexible backing plate (Lake Country's has alignment hole in center) with centering tool
6-7" Lake country variable contact pads:
(i) 3 yellow cutting pads for serious defect removal
(ii) 2 orange medium cut pads for touch-up of medium scratches
(iii) 3 white polishing pads for general maintenance and the "last cut"
(iv) 3 gray finishing pads for burnishing the paint to a high gloss
Polish (many good lines avilable - Meguiars, Einszett, Poorboys). I REALLY like the Menzerna line"
(i) Menzerna Intensive polish for medium to semi-serious defect removal
(ii) Menzerna Final Polish for burnishing paint to high gloss
OR
(iii) Menzerna P085RD for burnishing paint to highest possible gloss
PLEASE NOTE A PORTER CABLE DOES NOT HAVE THE NECESSARY POWER TO REMOVE SERIOUS PAINT DEFECTS AND THIS IS THE REASON I HAVE NOT MENTIONED ANY SERIOUS DEFECT CORRECTION POLISHES.
At least 24 microfiber towels, more is better (I have about 72).
Finish of your choice (Meguiars, Pinnacle, Menzerna, Blackfire, ...) I REALLY like the Klasse twins and occasionally 4 Star Ultimate Paint Protection.
(i) 16 OZ Klasse All In One
(ii) 32 OZ Klasse Selant Glaze
Another series of observations
No single polish line from a given manufacturer will remove every single defect because of varying hardness of paint. I user 4-5 different polish lines and when one does not work, I'll change to another. As your interest grows, you should consider buying a second or third line to cover all the bases.
Don't buy a wool pad, as the Porter Cable doesn't have the power to drive it as necessary. A wool pad is a rotary pad and you DEFINITELY DON'T WANT TO START OUT USING A ROTARY AS YOU CAN BURN AN EDGE OR DIG A HOLE IN A HEARTBEAT IF YOU DON'T HAVE THE ATTENTION SPAN OR EXPERIENCE.
Purchase more pads as you can afford them. They won't last forever, but you can expect one or two years out of a "set", depending on the amount of time used. It seems to be the case, but you will ALWAYS need one or two more pads than you actually have.
When a pad gets "loaded" with product, its effectiveness is reduced - use polish sparingly and change often. If you run out, clean them, wring them out and "spin" them on the polisher to get them as dry as possible before re-use.. Toss it into a bucket of water containing some blue Dawn to soak before cleaning at the end of the job. Never let polish dry out on the pad. Clean pads thoroughly at the end of the job and set them aside to air dry before storing away for the next job.
Hope this helps you to become even more addicted :welcome
and when I got to the checkout, there was a box for coupon codes. Being my first time on there I thought I had better find out if there were any coupon codes I should be aware of before carrying on?
so the 10% took priority. If this hobby is half as addictive as I expect it to be, I'm sure the next order will enable me to take advantage of it tho.