Sliding down the slope
Technical Article Contributor
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 10,511
Likes: 10
From: Under the flightpath of old ORD 22R
Don't make it out to be more complex than it really is. If a dope like me can figure it out, anyone can.
You have been doing the same thing for years by hand, now you are just moving to a machine doing it for you, so you gain speed in what you have done in the past. ( and lower the chances of a rotator cuff injury ).
You have a DA that will stall if you put too much pressure on it.
As long as you don't put M105 on a yellow pad, and crank it to 6 letting the pad dance over the paint, you are not going to do any serious damage.
- Even if you do this, M105 on an orange LC pad, then m205 on a white pad, then m205 black pad will bring it back.
You have all the required tools to remove just about any defects.
It will take years to thin the clean coat out.
- Heck RollingRock is just now getting concerned about his clear coat getting too thin on his 2006, and he takes out every defect the day it happens.
There would be concern for creating a mess if you went with a Flex DA or Rotary.
Take your time going at it. If there is a defect you are not sure about going deeper on, glaze ( with a compatible glaze ) before you apply LSP. Next time you polish it will remove a bit more.
You can turn a 4x4 into a 1x2 with 220 grit sandpaper, it just takes time.
- Same thing for defect removal, M205 on a white pad will remove any defect, it is just a matter of how long you work at it ( read months for something you need orange w/ M105 ).
Don't be afraid to go Orange pad w/ M205 then white pad w/ m205 then black pad w/ M205 ( this should be a valid config, I know it is on Optimum & Menz & PB products ).
My 2001, all I started with was white pads. When the Orange pads were intro'd I still used M-81 on the orange, then M-81 on the white.
81- 7 - 26 were all I used for any vehicle for years.
It was a long time before I honed my craft by increasing defect removal speed.
You have been doing the same thing for years by hand, now you are just moving to a machine doing it for you, so you gain speed in what you have done in the past. ( and lower the chances of a rotator cuff injury ).
You have a DA that will stall if you put too much pressure on it.
As long as you don't put M105 on a yellow pad, and crank it to 6 letting the pad dance over the paint, you are not going to do any serious damage.
- Even if you do this, M105 on an orange LC pad, then m205 on a white pad, then m205 black pad will bring it back.
You have all the required tools to remove just about any defects.
It will take years to thin the clean coat out.
- Heck RollingRock is just now getting concerned about his clear coat getting too thin on his 2006, and he takes out every defect the day it happens.
There would be concern for creating a mess if you went with a Flex DA or Rotary.
Take your time going at it. If there is a defect you are not sure about going deeper on, glaze ( with a compatible glaze ) before you apply LSP. Next time you polish it will remove a bit more.
You can turn a 4x4 into a 1x2 with 220 grit sandpaper, it just takes time.
- Same thing for defect removal, M205 on a white pad will remove any defect, it is just a matter of how long you work at it ( read months for something you need orange w/ M105 ).
Don't be afraid to go Orange pad w/ M205 then white pad w/ m205 then black pad w/ M205 ( this should be a valid config, I know it is on Optimum & Menz & PB products ).
My 2001, all I started with was white pads. When the Orange pads were intro'd I still used M-81 on the orange, then M-81 on the white.
81- 7 - 26 were all I used for any vehicle for years.
It was a long time before I honed my craft by increasing defect removal speed.
Senior Member
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 3,248
Likes: 2
From: Rochester, NY, USA
For the most part it has served me ok, but the hand work after claying is tuff on a 60 year old man. So now I'm stepping into the D/A world, both my vehicles are our DD's and I have no visions of them winning any car shows, just want them to look better than average Joe Blow's. I really don't think that either one will need much, if any, of the 105 and it will probably go bad in the bottle before I run out.
And don't let the mind boggling number of products out there bother you either. With practice, you'll find a relatively small number of products that you're comfortable working with and you'll use them over and over. But then again, it is a slippery slope.
And you can always join us over at The Detailer's Cafe if you need some OCD company and more advice!