I am buying my first polisher( PC 7424XP) I was wondering what should I use after I have polished to clean the paint so that I can apply my sealant.
I have a 1990 eagle talon, I want to remove swirl marks and make the paint shine...not sure why else you would polish?
Because some people just want to remove defects such as swirls because the car is their daily driver, while others aim for absolute perfection even though it is a daily driver (or weekend car), and they intend on keeping it that way.
Okay, well, first things first. I'm not too familiar with the paint on eagle talon, but if I have to guess, I'd say the paint should be on the soft side. Is it the original paint? It does make a difference because although I've never came across an eagle talon, I can make an educated guess in saying that the clear is on the softer side of things. Unless, again, it has been repainted. If it hasn't, the clear coat is most likely getting pretty thin (the car is what, at least 21 years old?). I would personally not chase down every single scratch on the car in fear of burning through the clear coat, I'd say get some Menzerna Power Finish or Prima Swirl and some Menzerna PO85RD. Try PF/Swirl with a LC white pad on a test spot and see how you like the result, if the result is not what you are looking for, bump up to LC orange pads, then finish down with PO85RD on either LC white or LC black pads (Again, do a test spot and see which one works better). Would be good to hear input from my fellow detailers who has had experience with oem eagle talon finishes though
Have you ever used a PC? If not, why not start with the Meguiars DA? Works great and easy to use. Just a suggestion.
Both of them are great DA polishers. Just do a wiped own using 50/50 mix of rubbing alcohol and water
If your going to do a "full detail" your going to wanna give the car a good thorough wash with a quality shampoo and then clay or use a pre-wax cleaner to remove old wax and start with a clean slate. You can also use dish detergent or 50/50 IPA wipe down. Then evaluate your paint you may be able to get buy with a medium cut or light cut polish (Megs, Menzerna, etc) and then a sealant or wax as an LSP. Like stated before do a test spot and try the same product with different pads to gauge your results. If the medium or light cut polish doesn't give you desired results then try a compound. If that gives you desired results then after compounding you would want to finish down with a polish and then your LSP wax or sealant. You can add another step after polishing called jeweling which is using a finer polishing/finer polish for more glow or sharpness from the paint. Back in the day, I had a white 89 Plymouth Laser in which I used the Megs 5 step consumer product line process with a store bought buffer and the results were pretty good. Good luck and post some pics when your done.
