Hey guys, I was able to take a look at my neighbor's E34 BMW 5 series that she wanted to run by me to save the paint before selling the car. Now, the car is certainly hammered as it sat outside for years and years with little protection but I figured I would do a small test spot to see if the paint was salvagable. My process just to measure progress was just a CG orange hexlogic pad with a small cordless drill (no access to power) and some Menz p203s. The battery was dying but it made a substantial difference. There are still swirls which I can deal with later, but my main goal was to see if the clearcoat was still able to be saved which I believe it can be from the test results. My question: the paint seemed to correct easily, what product and process would you use assuming a finishing pad and polish are not abrasive enough? Thanks in advance for any input!
well that sir depends on how far you want to go. If you are looking for perfection you might have to go as far as M105 and a twisted wool or at the very least a purple foamed wool pad. If you are just looking to clean it up then the process can be changed. The swirls in that thing are horrible but judging by the test spot it appears that the paint is definitely salvageable. Are you looking to order stuff? If not what stuff do you have on hand?
I don't think I will go for perfection as the owners want to sell it but obviously a detail will raise it from a $2000 car to a $4-5,000 car. Right now, I can't find my SIP but have Power Gloss, Power Finish, po87mc, po85rd, XMT #3 and #1, and Megs UC. I think I will try Power Finish with an orange CG pad with my Makita to see how that works, if not I will use XMT #3 as I find it has a bit more cut or maybe Megs UC. I was thinking about ordering some 105 though depending on the input I got here, I have seen people get great results many times over. I was also thinking about some purple foamed wool as well but the orange pad seemed to yield decent results.
Keep in mind that if you are using a rotary, if you go more abrasive than the Power Finish on a green pad, in all likelihood, you will have to follow up with a finishing polish. If thats the route to choose, I'd go Power Finish on Orange to keep the dust to a minimum and then if you need to, your choice of finishing polish on black.
Ken laid out some good advice. If you plan to go 105 it's a guarantee 2-3 step process. Otherwise 203 on a orange pad and then a finishing polish
I need to talk to the owner, but I have a feeling I will be able to convince them into a 2 step to really tackle the deeper defects. The roof and rear quarters are worse than the fender I worked on and will require a bit more work witout a doubt. I guess it is hard for you guys to really help without me testing the worst areas, but thanks for the help, I really appreciate it. I will go and hit the car with a rotary tomorrow to see just how far 203 and an orange CG pad will go.
Ok, so it turns out I will need something more aggressive than Megs UC and an orange CG pad. For heavy cutting, I was thinking about two pads in particular that I thought I would run by everyone here to see what is preffered for heavy cutting jobs: - Purple foamed wool or -Surbuf pads If you have a preference, let me know why it's your favorite please! Thanks again everyone.
Update: I just bought a bunch of purple foamed wool pads from showroom FX along with the highly rated ww towel and Pearl tire dressing. I will pick up Megs 105 locally depending on how the job goes with Power Finish and or Power Gloss to tackle the worst of the clearcoat issues.
Crap, wish I could have got to you a couple days ago. I would've recommended the Yellow Uber pad to cut through that followed by 203S and Green or blue. I personally don't like PFW, their effectiveness seems to die fast then they get some linting, I think they're a PITA. I've only used them on a couple cars though, maybe I used them wrong but I know another guy who sees them as a one and done thing, and just tosses them after the detail. Powergloss has a pretty high cut, and that's gonna leave some pretty bad trails. I would only use Powergloss in a 3 step or higher process. If you're gonna try and 2-step it, I would use M105/Yellow,orange, or green(Whatever works best depending on hardness) and then follow it up with 203S on a lighter pad. Good luck! Let us know how it goes.
They get pretty caked up and annoying after like a panel. I need to start working with my Uber yellow.
Oh man, I knew I should have waited for some input. I have orange flat LC pads as well as one yellow LC pad but my plan was going to be as followed: 1st Step - Power Gloss on an orange flat LC pad, will test with both PC and Makita 2nd Step - Power Finish on a white LC pad, most likely with the rotary. Do you think I should just bite the bullet and grab some 105 at a local detailer's supply shop? I like how Power Gloss cuts fast and really takes a bite out of the worst defects but it does leave something to be desired in ease of use... I normally work it until it starts to dry then spritz it with water to reactivate it. I would then be banking on the fact that 203/white pad will remove the marring, it is such a pickle with all the variables.
Haha, it looks much worse in person because the sun was throwing me off when trying to take a picture with my D3000. Anyway, here are a few before shots to show the extent of the damage and why I need a heavy hitting combination: And some aweful stains on the seats that I will be tackling as well:
