PADS,newbie ?? help please,please look.

[schybrid]

I`m starting out with my own detailing project for family / friends for free, because i like doing it on my spare time,and i religiously clean my car all the time.



My question is : I plan on purchasing the FLEX, and I`m considering getting one of teh package deals with the pads included. I have the option to choose which pads i want, 10 pads total. What would bee the best pads to get ? I dont think I`ll use the yellow pad,blue or gray. I dont think I`ll need the yellow because its a "heavy" cutting pad, and the blue & grey ones are for wax ,correct, and people say to apply the wax "by hand". So I would rather get all the pads i would actually use the most, (orange,white,etc..)



help me out here.

also, what types of polish should i buy ?



brand name and cut ? Do i just need a moderate cutting polish & a finish polish ?



thanks for lookin & helpin`:getdown

[snowskate]

I`m no authority, but just some regurgitation from what I`ve seen as standard combos here on the forum....



some good compounds:

Meguiar`s M105 - finishes down pretty far but may need 1 or two more finer polishes to refine the paint

3M Extra Cut Compound

Menzerna Power Gloss - weaker of the lot

polishes:

Menzerna IP for softer clears / Menzerna SIP for harder clears

Menzerna 106ff or the new 106fa

finishing polishes:

3M Ultrafina

Glazes:

Danase Wet Glaze

Red Moose Glaze



Pads:

purple foamed wool (compounding)

yellow (compounding + heavy cut polish)

orange (heavy cut polish + polish)

white (lighter polish - haze and swirl removal)

grey (swirl removal - marring removal)

blue (glaze application and Ultarfina application)

red (glazes and LSPs) in various sizes (6.5" / 5.5" / or 4")



This is just for a starting point....and I`m sure some of the pros here could add on and correct my advice.



I saw a fantastic summary of pads by BigAl3, but it was a while ago and I can`t find it in a search.



I find that here on Autopia you can`t rush things....

meaning some questions are really big questions and just take time for things to line up and make sense.

You joined recently, so just hang in there, read posts every day and you`ll get your bearings.

[miahman98]

I think you should learn how to use the machine first before you start compounding. So maybe start with a aio and a orange or white pad. Once you are confident working with that you could bump it up to Menzerna IP and 106ff/fa. And once you have that mastered you will be able tell for yourself what to move up to next. I myself have had good luck with Meguiars Diamond Cut 2.0 ( #85 ) for compound, with wool pad. I think the Meguiars dusts more than they claim but still works well.



Good luck.

[schybrid]

you guys are saying "compound". is this the heaviest cutting ??? All the cars i plan to work on are pretty new, 2006 and newer, so there is not alot of real heavy swirls, so do you think using a moderate swirl polish and orange pad , then finish polish with white pad would be enough ?

also, whats the last pad most guys end up using for the "last" finish stage, white ? and does everybody use the same finish polissh for white pad , then grey/blue ?:heelclick

[imported_Ivan Rajic]

you guys are saying "compound". is this the heaviest cutting ??? All the cars i plan to work on are pretty new, 2006 and newer, so there is not alot of real heavy swirls, so do you think using a moderate swirl polish and orange pad , then finish polish with white pad would be enough ?

also, whats the last pad most guys end up using for the "last" finish stage, white ? and does everybody use the same finish polissh for white pad , then grey/blue ?:heelclick

haha that`s funny... there are 5-6 finishing polishes I can think of off the top of my head that people use... anywhere from Optimum polish to Menzerna 106ff, 85rd, Meg`s 82, 3, 1Z etc. etc... you`re just going to have to pick a few polishes to play with at first, and try others as your budget allows... I personally use Meguiar`s and Menzerna polishes, but any quality brand will have good polishes, you just have to find something that fits you well... I think Meg`s is great for starters as it`s the most user friendly product I`ve used...



As for compounding, yes that means heavier polishing/cutting... car age doesn`t matter when it comes to polishing because some new cars come in horrible shape from the dealer and the ones that do, will be harder to correct than you think, especially if they have harder paint... ALWAYS start off with the most mild method you can think of and move up on the aggressive scale... two reasons for this... 1. it`s very obvious, you don`t want to remove more paint than you have to, even if it`s such a small amount... why use something like SIP/yellow when you can get rid of swirls with SIP/orange, or even white, and 2. you`ll learn how each pad/polish combo behaves, what it can do on that specific paint, and you`ll know for future about where you should start... also, from experience, it`s better and easier to see what you can do with a less aggressive two step as opposed to a pretty aggressive cutting step then a finishing step... for example, you`ll be better off using Meg`s #80 on a white pad 2x instead of using Meg`s #83, which is noticeably more aggressive, then following it with #80 to finish... this again goes with using the least aggressive method



Hope this makes sense and helps..