SSTG

This car is so cool. It was a great pleasure to detail.

Wasn't in to bad of shape all in all. Minor swirls and some deeper rids.






This was the weapon of choice to clean it up, M105 via rotary...




M205 with the D/A to clean up any buffer trails that might have gotten pass me.




During the polishing process. What a mess...






Topped it with Blackfires wet ice over fire. I love this stuff!







The results...











Gummi pfleged the weather stripping...




Wheels were another story...





Cleaned them with Megs wheel brite.



Used DP wheel glaze for protection.



The results...



Exhaust needed a little tlc also...













Hope everyone enjoyed. I tried to add a few more pics this time. Lmk if you guy's liked the write up.

Thanks,Seth.

0zoomzoom mazda5@properautocare.com

Love the great correction work Seth, looks so sweet with BFWD!

blackmachdown

good job! BTW still waiting on YOUR Z06 write up

SSTG

Thanks Angelo.


I posted a teaser pic on DB.

tlc0706

Excellent work and the pics made the thread......

0TH0001@properautocare.com

Great job! I LOVE Z06's and that one looks KILLAH now!

Todd

SSTG

Thanks Todd, means alot coming from you.

03 Z-oh-6

NICE!!

I have an 07 z06 and picked up a new version Griot's random orbital. I used an orange pad and Meguiars ultimate compound and it did not do the trick. I'm beginning to think that you need to use a rotary on Vette's hard clear coat to get excellent results like yours. Do you think the Flex could correct nearly as good as the rotary?

traindude

Nice results!

SSTG

You will definately get better results with a rotary, but the D/A can get satisfactory results. Search the "Kevin Brown method"

J Z06

Polishing is a messy process! Lots of dust, and splatter. But the end result makes it all worth it. Well done!!

ASPHALT ROCKET

Great job Seth.

0TH0001@properautocare.com

FWIW check this thread done by forum member Brian Burnworth who is one of Autoweek's top detailers in the country! He removed acid rain etching with a Porter Cable!

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/car-...-at-night.html

What this shows is that a PC/Griot's/Meg's has enough power to remove super deep defects (and Brian does this in a timely fashion) from even the rock hard clear coat of a Corvette!

To be honest, when I was first polishing I turned my nose up at Random Orbital’s: They where for beginners right?! So, like many, I followed the typical advice on boards, did this and that, and got okay results. But the 'truth' is that Random Orbital Polishers, like Rotaries, require a lot of time to perfect and master, and in some ways are more complex and may take longer to master.

I usually don't have a problem out performing a Flex DA with my Porter Cable in terms of cut (they finish near equal). This is because the Flex is limited to 4800 OPM and 480 RPM at max speed (unloaded) and since it is gear driven, it always creates the same pattern across the paint. The Porter Cable/Griot's/Meg's tops out a 6800 OPM and while the RPM is constantly moving around, it could easily top 300 RPM.

If you are not getting the results you want with your Griot's I would suggest the following before getting rid of it.

Switch to 5.5 inch pads with a FLAT polishing surface. Do not use CCS style pads.

Use a backing plate that will cover most of the pad. Using too small a backing plate greatly reduces the efficiency of a Random Orbital. Use a 6 inch backing plate with a 6.5 inch pad, a 6 inch backing plate with a 5.5 inch pad, etc. Use a pad designed to accommodate the plate size.

I would suggest Meguiar's M105 Ultra Cut Compound as an alternative to Ultimate Compound only because I don't have a lot of experience with the latter so I cannot help in using that.

Then it becomes a matter of technique.

Check out this page on our website about the Kevin Brown Method kit. There are 4 tabs about midway down: Description, Tips, Explained, Accessories. The middle two offer some great advice on PC style polishing with Meguiar's polishes.

http://classic-motoring.stores.yahoo...brmekitw1.html

From the link and tabs abovewith out pics)

General Instructions and Tips

When it comes to using polishes such as Meguiar’s M105 Ultra Cut Compound and Meguiar’s M205 Ultra Finishing Polish, regardless of the machine you choose to use, ProperAutoCare.com recommends starting with the least aggressive method possible. This would be Meguiar's M205 with either a Lake Country Flat 6.5 inch Black Finessing Pad or Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Black Finishing Pad. Meguiar's M205

If this combination does not provide the results necessary, increase the aggressiveness of the technique (longer working time, more pressure, more power) or increase the cut of the product and switch to a medium polishing pad. The next step up would be Meguiar’s M205 Ultra Finishing Polish used with a Lake Country Flat 6.5 inch White Polishing Pad or Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Yellow Polishing Pad.

If this combination does not provide the desired results, increase the aggressiveness of the technique or product selection. The next step would be Meguiar's M105Meguiar's M105 Ultra Cut Compound on a Lake Country Flat 6.5 inch White Polishing Pad or Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Yellow Polishing Pad. Note that polishing with M105 will often require a second, follow-up polishing step with M205 to achieve the highest gloss and clearest, swirl free finish. Never mix polishes on the same pad. Switch to a clean, fresh pad included in the kit. If this combination is still not garnering the results you are looking for, increase the aggressiveness of the technique or the product.

Meguiar's M105 Ultra Cut Compound used with a Lake Country Flat 6.5 inch Orange Power Pad or Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Burgundy Cutting Pad is an aggressive combination and is capable of “leveling out” most paint defects in one or two applications. If using Meguiar’s M105 Ultra Cut Compound is necessary, follow up with Meguiar’s M205 Ultra Finishing Polish to remove any light polishing haze and restore full clarity and a swirl free finish to the paint. Always test your combination on a test spot, and inspect in good lighting before proceeding to copy that combination over the entire vehicle. Lake Country 6.5 inch Black Finishing Pad

Least to most aggressive:

M205 used with a “Finishing Pad”: Will remove very light defects and result in a high gloss, swirl free finish.

Lake Country 6.5 inch White Polishing PadM205 used with a “Polishing Pad”: Will remove moderate to light defects and compounding marks, and results in a high gloss, swirl free finish on most paints.

M105 used with a “Polishing Pad”: Will remove moderate to heavy defects and will often require follow up polishing with M205.Lake Country 6.5 inch Orange Power Pad

M105 used with a “Power” or ”Cutting Pad”: Will remove moderate to heavy defects on most paints and will often require follow up polishing with M205.

Pad Priming: The new micro non-diminishing abrasives from Meguiar's require that the pores of the pad are evenly primed with product for fastest cutting and highest gloss. It is recommended to "prime" a fresh, dry pad one of three ways:

1.

The Kevin Brown Method (KBM): Apply a liberal amount of polish on the surface of the pad and massage the product into the pores with your fingers until the surface is covered in a fine film of polish. Remove excess polish from the pad, so that it feels slightly damp, by lightly pressing a cotton terry or microfiber cloth against the pad while it spins. Meguiar's M34 Final Inspection

2.

Meguiar's M34: Meguiar's recommends misting the dry pad with M34 Final Inspection, then drawing two lines of product, in an X fashion, across the diameter of the pad. M34 will help the polish spread across the pad during the initial polishing application.

3.

Hybrid: ProperAutoCare.com recommends using a hybrid pad priming system to save on material costs and increase ease of use. Mist the dry pad with M34 Final Inspection then draw an X across the pad. Quickly massage the polishing with your fingers into the pad and cover as much surface as possible.

Regardless of the priming method you choose, once the pad has been primed, apply a small amount of polish to the pad between sections. Three “dime sized” amounts, applied to the outer 1/3 of the pad are sufficient.

Polish one small section at a time, two feet by two feet, per application. Start by placing the pad on the paint and spreading the polish out, then turn the polisher on. Using firm pressure and overlapping left to right, right to left strokes cover the area to be polished.


Polish first going left to right.

Make a second pass over the working area using overlapping “up to down, down to up” strokes. M105 and M205 do not require a typical “buffing cycle” to break down the abrasives. Repeat this cross hatch pattern until the defects are removed or the polish begins to dry. Then reduce pressure and make a few more passes over the area to ensure a high gloss finish.


Create cross-hatch pattern going up & down.

Machine speed has much to do with your confidence level as you learn to use these polishes. We recommend using speed 5 on the PC 7424 or Meguiar’s G-110 and a speed of 3.5-4 on the Flex XC3401VRG Dual-Action Polisher. Overlap your strokes, using a “slow arm speed” while applying firm pressure. We have found success moving the polisher one to three inches per second allows the polish to correct most blemishes.

The amount of “work” or “cut” accomplished with a non-diminishing abrasive is dependent on the pressure applied to the polisher. For maximum cutting action with the Flex XC3401VRG Dual-Action Polisher, apply 15-20 pounds of pressure on the face of the machine. When using the Porter Cable 7424 or Meguiar’s G110 random orbital polishers, use enough pressure to slow, but not stall the rotation of the pad. On your final passes over the work area, reduce the pressure and lightly move the machine over the surface to allow the abrasives to jewel away any micro marring left from your polishing.

After polishing a section, remove residue immediately with a high quality microfiber cloth such as our Dragon Fiber Perfect Shine Buffing Cloth.

Because Meguiar's M105 Ultra Cut Compound and Meguiar's M205 Ultra Finishing Polishes' abrasives do not breakdown in the traditional sense, the polishes can be sensitive to contamination. During the polishing process, a trace amount of paint is removed, this can cause the non-diminishing abrasives to “clump” together with the spent paint particles. This can increase the polishing haze left on the paint from heavy polishing, effecting the finish left behind.

ProperAutoCare.com recommends cleaning your pads often by pressing a cotton terry or microfiber cloth against the pad while it spins on the machine. To completely wash the pads use Snappy Clean Pad Cleaning Powder.

Kevin Brown Method Explained

Properautocare.com has pulled out all the stops in designing six new paint polishing kits that push the envelope of paint correction with a random orbital or dual-action polisher. Meguiar's M105 Ultra Cut Compound and M205 Ultra Finishing Polish have redefined the level of the results that can be achieved with these oscillating polishers and form the backbone of these kits.

In designing these kits, we consulted with experts in the field including top detailers from around the United States, as featured in the March 23rd. edition of Autoweek Magazine, detailing wizard Kevin Brown, and Lake Country Manufacturing.

Meguiar's M105 Ultra Compound and M205 Ultra Finishing Polish require a slightly different technique to achieve the highest potential. Pad selection and pad type are more important then ever. Six kits, designed by the experts, for the enthusiast and professional alike, only from ProperAutoCare.com.



Each kit includes:

* Meguiar's M105 Ultra Cut Compound 32oz: The unique nature of this phenomenal product allows M105 Ultra Cut Compound to function as both a super cut compound or as a fine cut medium polish. The micro refined abrasives have changed the nature of polishing. There is no timed buffing cycle required to achieve the best finish; simply polish until the defects are removed. Finish with M205 Ultra Finishing Polish for breath taking results. In most cases with a polishing compound, two additional steps are required (medium polishing and final polishing) in order to truly correct the finish and achieve the clearest swirl free finish. M105 Ultra Cut Compound “gently cuts” over time. Light swirls may require only a few passes with the correct pad, while more severe blemishes may require several more passes. The aggressiveness is determined by the amount of time used to work the polish.
* Meguiar's Ultra Finishing Polish 32oz: Until Meguiar's introduced M205 the nature of traditional finishing polishes often required a rotary polisher with a lot of experience to extract the last degree of gloss from the paint. The jiggling action of random orbital and dual-action polishers simply did not break down the abrasives, making a microscopically smooth surface difficult to obtain. M205 Ultra Finishing Polish does not “break down”, it burnishes the paint over time to an amazing gloss, regardless of the machine it is used on. M205 Ultra Finishing Polish, like its more aggressive brother, has a dual nature. By lengthening the polishing time and increasing pressure, M205 Ultra Finishing Polish can do serious paint correction. In our experience, it can outperform many medium polishes used with rotary polishers in terms of correction and finish and sometimes at a faster rate. Because M205 Ultra Finishing Polish is being applied in an oscillating fashion there is little chance of rotary holograms appearing later. M205 Ultra Finishing Polish is also versatile enough to be used as a one-step medium cut polish that finishes to perfection or as a follow up to Meguiar's M105 Ultra Cut Compound to increase gloss and clarity.
* Meguiar's M34 Final Inspection Detail Spray 16oz: Our discussions with Meguiar's leading experts and detailers convinced us that Meguiar’s M34 Final Inspection had to be an integral part of these kits to achieve the highest level of performance. Meguiar’s M34 Final Inspection is a body shop safe detail spray that uses no silicones, polymers, gloss enhancers, or waxes. M34 Final Inspection is the only product Meguiar's recommends for 'priming' a fresh, clean, dry polishing pad before use with M105 or M205. It also leaves no residue on the paint's surface that could contaminate the polishing action, making it ideal for wiping away polishing residue or dust.
* Specific Pad Selection: The non-diminishing abrasives in Meguiar's M105 and M205 are sensitive to pad design. Flatter pad's have a greater surface area or 'contact patch' than more modern designs. The increase in contact area allows more of the non-diminishing abrasives to contact the paint increasing the rate of polishing and delivering a higher quality finish faster. We have teamed up specific pad designs to M105 and M205 for the best results possible. We also offer an optional Lake Country 4 inch Flat Pad kit to increase the action of random orbital polishers and allow polishing in tight spots.

ProperAutoCare.com offers our M105/M205 kits with either Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 seven inch pads or Lake Country’s 6.5" Constant Pressure Flat Pads. Both selections included two cutting pads, two polishing pads, and one finishing pad. Both kits are also available with either a Flex XC3401VRG Dual-Action Polisher or Porter Cable 7424 Random Orbital Polisher, making a total of six kits, each designed to increase your polishing results.

For more information on general M105 and M205 polishing tips please select the General Directions tab on top of this section. For more specific application or kit directions, or to order please select one of the links below.

In the end, before dropping big money on a new machine, a little tweaking of your techniques may yield the results you are looking for, and save you some dough in the process!

Sorry Seth for taking this so far off topic, GREAT WORK AGAIN!

SSTG

No problem Todd, Great info as always. Merry Christmas everybody.

0zoomzoom mazda5@properautocare.com

Great correction as always Seth and nice write there too. Merry Christmas!

03 Z-oh-6

Excellent info, Todd!!!!!!

So you think going from just a CCS 6.5" orange LC pad to a 5.5" FLAT pad will noticeably help with the cut ability? Which brand 5.5" pad would you recommend?

dvilin

Outstanding results.