Is this a function of soft clearcoat, or something else?

[efnfast]

I was polishing my g35 (infiniti, black paint, known soft clearcoat) and observed that when I wiped it with my microfiber towel, I didn`t leave behind any marks, but if I applied a medium amount of pressure to the towel (not much, just a little force), it left behind swirl marks/scratches.



Is this a function of



- really soft clear coat

- really crappy microfiber towel (Meguiars)

- not being waxed yet

- completely normal if you apply some force with a microfiber towel



Or something else I`m completely missing?

[motobuild]

1st or second option.



OR, you`re either using a polish that has some sort of filler in it OR not fully wiping away the oils in the polish.



Have you tried using a 50/50 Alky/water mixture spray while doing the wipe-down?



You may not be getting at the swirls as well as you may think.

[Caprice270]

- Nothing wrong with Megs MF towels - you`re cleaning process may need to be refined?;

- wax has nothing to do with it;

- a small amount of pressure should not matter;

- I assume you`re able to tell the difference between uncovering hidden defects and creating new ones.



That leaves your first option - really soft clear coat - as the most likely reason. Although I`ve not worked with G35s, I`m intimately familiar with 350Z paint, and even though the paint on those is soft, I`ve never had issues like you describe.



What polish are you using?

[Autogeek]

Have you tried the CD test? Take a blank CD, and try rubbing the microfiber towel against the surface...if it swirls, it is most likely your towel. Have you tried using other towels to see if the results differ?

[dbesins]

I have the same problem with my 06 evo (only the hood) but it has been repainted, it sux impossible to finish down perfectly and swirls so easily.

I figured it out by wiping polish off using first vertival motion it left vertical sweirls, then repolish and wip off with horizontal motion and it left horizontal swirls.

A feloow autopia member had the same problem and advise me to try the following:

polish, don`t wipe wash the car using CG CWS as a paint cleaner (I think 2oz for a galon).

But has your car been repainted? It sounds weird from OEM paint...

[imported_JoshVette]

What polishes are you using??



I know quite a few polishes tend to leave a residue behind that you can wipe that may look like marks are being put back in the clear when it`s really just in the invisible residue.....



Try a brand new clear MF towel and when you`re done polishing you should rewash your car to remove any potential lubricants left behind by the polish and then wax it.



Josh

[efnfast]

I`m using Meguiar`s 83 followed by 80. I`ll try the cd test.

[BuffMe]

Been there, done that with a newer BMW triple black paint. Took PFW/SIP to remove the swirls, but scratched with a super plush MF removing a QD. :nixweiss

[efnfast]

Well this is really weird - for some reason the polishes were hazing in the paint (paint looked fine in normal lighting, but as soon as I shined fluorescent on it, I could see the haze from the polish right away), so what I was seeing was the streaks in the haze.



I tried several rounds of 83 and 80 and they kept hazing - I missed this yesterday because haze has never been a problem before.



I went to the store and bought some Meguiar`s #1 Step - Paint Cleaner, and it removed all the haze and swirls and everything. Then I tried some 80, and it once again hazed. Right now the only thing not hazing and giving me aperfect finish is the Meguiar`s Paint Cleaner.



The only thing I can think of (as i even tried it with brand new pads and cloths) is it has something to do with the fact I waxed the vehicle 3 weeks ago?



Normally I claybar and polish (and wax) just once a year. However, this year was my first year with the cyclo, so I clay`d and polished and wax`d back in March, and it came out 95%. Then 3 weeks ago I re-waxed it. Then yesterday I was studying it and decided now that my skill was increased, to re-polish (no clay bar) it to get it from 95% to 99%.



Unfortunately, as I said above, when I use my traditional 83/80 step I go from 95% to 50%. Then I used the paint Cleaner and went to 99%.



Is it likely that some oils or whatever that are in the wax (pinnacle sovereign w/ polycharger) are causing the 83 and 80 to haze and not do their job, as this has never been a problem before (but then again, I`ve never tried not-claying and polishing 3weeks after applying wax either)

[Caprice270]

Stripping wax is a must before proceeding to the polish step.



I had hazing issues with Pinnacle Souveran spray wax. I picked up on it the first night I applied a second coat. The hazing was revealed under a street light.

[efnfast]

Yea, I guess that`s where my problem was - not stripping the wax with a claybar (or dish wash soap). No matter how hard I tried I kept getting funny hazing and swirls and everything, and just ended up wasting a few hours. *sigh* I`ll try again in a week or two with the proper prep this time.

[Accumulator]

efnfast- Eh...if the cleaner is working OK I`d just stick with that.



I can`t quite figure out if the "hazing" your`e experiencing is a) micro marring from abrasion (the #80, the MF, both), note that some paints are simply too soft to finish out great with #80, or b) some smearing/etc. of the #80s Trade Secret Oils/etc. (the stuff #80 leaves behind). Or yeah, it could be something going on with residual wax from the last time.



Heh heh, I`m tempted to remark about repolishing a well-waxed vehicle and caring about that last 5%, but then again this *is* Autopia and I voice my heresies often enough as it is

[efnfast]

I ended up re-claying it, doing a pass with orange/83 and green/80 - came out absolutely spectacular.



First (and last, hehe!) time I polish mroe than once a year though ; however, I have a good excuse - the previous attempt was my first use with a machine ever, so of course I have to make it perfect now that I`m more skilled :waxing:

[fergnation]

I can tell you that there are clears out there that are so soft that even the best MF`s can cause swirls. Aston`s and Bentley`s have extremely soft clear coats. Black paints show these marrings. I have polished a Vanquish before and wipped it down only to see the MF left marring. Also when I wipe dust off of these cars I ahve to be very carefull not to cause marring. I might add that I have spent hundreds on MF`s and have the nicest towels on the market. Some clears are jsut that soft. NOw if it wasn`t black, I wouldn`t even be typing this.