Why are the edges of my pad drying out?

[bobbyt]

I was polishing with 106FA on my 6.5" LC Grey pad and a 5" backing plate on speed 4 - 4.5 this weekend and the outer inch of the pad kept forming a hard crust. I saw some minor holograms in the end. What would be causing this?



The part the backing plate covers was wet. I assumed I needed a bigger backing plate but it says 5" backing plate is meant for 6.5" pads.

 

[Accumulator]

I was polishing with 106FA on my 6.5" LC Grey pad and a 5" backing plate on speed 4 - 4.5 this weekend and the outer inch of the pad kept forming a hard crust...

The outer portion of the pad moves faster/farther (just like a record player, or a disk drive, or racers going around a track), so the polish will dry out faster in that area than, say, in the middle of the pad. Need to stop and clean the pad/add product before that happens.



IMO a 6.5" pad, on a PC, at speed 4-4.5 is simply not appropriate. Way too mild/slow. Let alone on a finishing pad. I wouldn't expect anything much to come of that combo even on pretty soft clear.

I saw some minor holograms in the end. What would be causing this?

Thoughts:

the big pad, slow speed could'nt break down the (admittedly mild) abrasives. The carrier agenes/lube in the polish dried out and the undiminished abrasives (that dried crust) scoured the paint.



You need a smaller pad, more speed, and you need to stop and clean/reload the pad a *LOT* more often. There should never be any dried product on the pad like that.

The part the backing plate covers was wet. I assumed I needed a bigger backing plate but it says 5" backing plate is meant for 6.5" pads.

Sounds like you used too much product (all at once, oughta use a small amount but reapply frequently, to a *clean* pad).



The plate is too small for the pad. 5" plate = 5"-5.5" pad; 6" plate = 6"-6.5" pad.



And again, ditch that 6.5" pad approach with the PC, it just doesn't work well no matter what vendors say.

 

[bobbyt]

Appreciate the input.

If I picked up 5.5" pads, what would a good working speed be for this particular polish? and how long is the average working time?

 

[Accumulator]

Appreciate the input.

If I picked up 5.5" pads, what would a good working speed be for this particular polish?

Might oughta ask somebody with more Menzerna experience, I've only used their old version of Final Polish and whatever 106 variant is sold under the BlackFire name.



But that said, I use speed 4.5-5 with 4" pads and speed 6 with larger ones (with *any* polish or compound).

and how long is the average working time?

I'm never much help with work times as it somehow just doesn't register with me but I'd work it until it's *almost* dry but not quite. But of course how it's acting on the paint might not be exactly the same as how it's acting on your pad (sheesh this stuff can get complicated, huh?).



Keep the pad clean and free of dried product though, and don't use too much product all at once. Eh...now I'm just repeating myself.

 

[Bunky]

With Menzera, speed and some pressure are the key to breaking down properly.



As said above, keep the pad clean (otherwise it will not break down like it should) and use just enough polish to match your work area. You can add several dabs, spread, and if it is not enough then add a dab more. You will need to change pads after several cleaning to keep up the optimum results.