Polishing sponge and buffing pad for polishing machine

[nixy]

Hello I wish to polish and buff the bodywork to make it shine.

Could you recommend
1) Compound
2) 150mm polishing sponge
3) Buffing pad for applying a wax.

I have a dual action polisher 150mm with hook & loop pad (Velcro). But I don't know what polishing sponge and buffing pads I need to buy?

I will wash
Wash again with clay mitt
Apply polishing compound with polishing sponge
Apply wax (Bilt Hamber+ with buffing pad

 

[nixy]

I should also add. My Merc is black colour if that makes a difference.

 

[V6GBJ]

I bought and used a DA polisher very recently so can only tell you what I used. Being a first timer, I wanted to avoid any damage by using too severe a polish and pad. I looked at specs. and chose Chemical Guys V4 All In One Polish & Sealant with Chemical Guys Hexlogic Green pads. If you are only trying to eliminate swirls then these might do the job. I found these effective and safe for a novice user.

 

[chrisk2010]

Here’s what i done

Wheel arches and MOP ...

also black car

 

[AltonAnt]

I also can recommend Hexlogic pads. There are various colours for correction and polishing.

 

[bigcarpchaser]

Have a watch of Forensicdetailing channel on YouTube. Jon explains things in a very easy to understand way. I just watched his beginners guide to machine polishing as it happens as I was drawn into the YouTube vortex this afternoon.
Very informative stuff he produces.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Dazsw]

After years of detailing I settled on Menzerna polishes and pads.

They worked especially well on German cars.

For a Merc which hasn't paint which is usually in the middle of soft and hard, I used Menzerna 2200 followed by 3800.

If a car was really pad, FG400 worked a treat, followed by 3800 again.

Most of the time I could do it all with the medium pads.

 

[Chrishazle]

Preparation, preparation, preparation is the key to a good result.

Before clay, decontaminate the paintwork with something like IronX then wash then, if needed, a tar spot remover and wash again before claying.

Never used a clay mitt, always used Bilt Hamber clay bar - 1/4 does 1 full car, just keep the surface moist with a water mist (joy of BH clay, does not require QD fluid!).

Then closely examine the paintwork - do you need to paint correct first? Are the swirls etc bad enough that you need about 1200 grit paint correction fluid or will 2000 grit be OK?

After that, for first pass polish before wax I'd recommend 3M Perfect-it which is also a 3000 grit fluid - I've seen it professionally used on some high end cars (Lambo, AM, Bentley, Porsche) by a high end bodyshop in Tunbridge Wells, so decided it was good enough for me too! Has to be machine applied, 3M recommend their blue pad for it.

 

[Deleted member 126251]

Preparation, preparation, preparation is the key to a good result.

Before clay, decontaminate the paintwork with something like IronX then wash then, if needed, a tar spot remover and wash again before claying.

Never used a clay mitt, always used Bilt Hamber clay bar - 1/4 does 1 full car, just keep the surface moist with a water mist (joy of BH clay, does not require QD fluid!).

Then closely examine the paintwork - do you need to paint correct first? Are the swirls etc bad enough that you need about 1200 grit paint correction fluid or will 2000 grit be OK?

After that, for first pass polish before wax I'd recommend 3M Perfect-it which is also a 3000 grit fluid - I've seen it professionally used on some high end cars (Lambo, AM, Bentley, Porsche) by a high end bodyshop in Tunbridge Wells, so decided it was good enough for me too! Has to be machine applied, 3M recommend their blue pad for it.

I recently spoke to a detailer that said my 3 years old car would need to be polished if it is clayed. First time I've heard this.

 

[Dazsw]

You don't have to polish a car after clay, as long as you clay the car carefully and you have prepared it properly beforehand so that there is minimal contamination to remove.

Claying itself even carefully, can induce marring though which can only be cured with polishing.

For heavily contaminated cars it is very difficult to clay and not mar the car.

Personally I would always polish a car after clay, to leave the best possible finish.

 

[ash59fifty-uk]

Some great pads already mentioned but also Lake country pads are decent. Autobrite direct have a polish and pad combo range also which gets good reviews

 

[ToeKnee]

Just curious but do pads from different companies really make much difference?

 

[Dazsw]

Pads vary greatly, it's best to test loads as depending on the polishes/machine/your technique etc some will work for you better than others.

 

[Sicario]

I went with the chem guys hex logic `Orange` to use with Meguiars Ultimate compound, and a Chem guys hex logic `White` to use with Auto Finesse Tripple, im still looking for the best pad to use for finishing with Turtle Wax Hybrid Ceramic for the wet finish

 

[moodi]

Meguiars ultimate compound followed by poorboys black hole and then poorboys blue natty wax is a winning combination for me. Have used this on all my black german cars with much success.

 

[daveenty]

As this thread's still creating a bit of interest I may as well give my answers to the original question as well, just to throw alternatives in to the mix really as we'll never agree on everything.

1) Meguiar's Ultra-Cut Compound (105) followed by their 205 Ultra Finishing Polish
2) Chemical Guys Hex-Logic Quantum Buffing Pad Green
3) I always use a small hand held pad, something like: Chemical Guys - Tricolour Foam Die Cut Pro Applicator Pad for wax, and always remove it with a good microfibre cloth, note the emphasis on good...

All the above products are linked to the sites I tend to use but are currently out of stock on most things so it may be worth shopping around?

Incidentally, the Megs in #1 on your list is not my first choice, I used to always use Blackfire Gloss Enhancing Polish from Polished Bliss. It seems to be no longer available from them though I did find some HERE.

 

[Toobad]

+1 on the Hexlogic pads (buy cheap, buy twice) and the hand application of wax. I too have great faith in Blackfre products, they really do seem to punch above their weight and bring that little bit extra to the party. Here's a photo of my GLC wearing their Wet Diamond paint sealant topped with their Midnight Sun carnauba wax. These 2 products are also sold as a kit called Wet Ice Over Fire.

 

[Sicario]

Now that looks special

 

[peterpython]

Hello I wish to polish and buff the bodywork to make it shine.

Could you recommend
1) Compound
2) 150mm polishing sponge
3) Buffing pad for applying a wax.

I have a dual action polisher 150mm with hook & loop pad (Velcro). But I don't know what polishing sponge and buffing pads I need to buy?

I will wash
Wash again with clay mitt
Apply polishing compound with polishing sponge
Apply wax (Bilt Hamber+ with buffing pad

Just be careful especially with a lambs wool pad which can mark the bodywork. I use orange pad for putting on and blue or black for polishing. Look on You tube for advice from specialists

 

[MrGreedy]

As others have mentioned, preparation.
My tip would be (kindly shared with me by ash59fifty-uk), as well as good washing technique, to use a fallout/iron remover and tar remover on any panel before using a clay bar or polishing. If you leave the iron particle contamination or any tar (likely full of iron particle contamination) on the surface then you will be swirling metallic particles all over the paint as you clay or polish.

If I was not going to prep the panel properly, I wouldn't polishing.
I think the choice is either prep correctly and machine polish, or wash.