Micro-Marring Issue

Talked to a local pro and he suggested a rotary with a wool pad since the car was wet-sanded.

 

Have you tried pairing your 205, firm pressure, on a polishing pad as opposed to a finishing pad? The other thing I noticed is that in one of the pics, the issues seem to look like 105 residue, the kind that IPA just smudges and smears around. What do you have on hand for inspection type QDs?

Have you tried white polishing foam, open celled preferably and a slower DA speed, with slower arms speed with moderate pressure the whole way through?

I just worked on one of these same cars last week.

 

:yikes:

You're trying to finish the car, not go back to square one correcting it. IMO, rotary and wool isn't needed here and would be a HUGE step backward.

 

Did this "local pro" look at the car before suggesting going to a Rotary and wool ?
You didnt mention that the car had been painted, but one of the pics looks like da pigtails, so guess it has been painted, right? How much has been painted? All of the vehicle?
Are you having problems on the re-painted areas and not the original paint areas (if there is such a scenario)??

Frequently, the re-paints will act differently from the Factory paint, so you have to adjust for that too.

Are you getting more pads so you have more than just 1 ?

Dan F

 

This is good advice for finishing with 205. Personally, I've found that you shouldn't work it nearly as long as most other light-duty polishes and you should NOT lighten up on the pressure when finishing with it. Slow down the machine speed like Mike said, but keep some pressure on it relative to the machine's speed. Given that it's a Flex and has forced rotation, don't stand on it like you can at higher speeds but don't use just the machine's weight either. And there will be some cases where the Flex just can't finish down as well as a DA or rotary.

 

If the car has been repainted the could be part of the problem as some repaints don't seem to like the movement of the Flex DA, at least IME.

As far as the M205 goes, I'd follow the advice Mike & Mike posted. Closed cell pads like the LC Hydro's can be great on touchy paints. Also, you need to make sure the pad is kept clean...compressed air works best, otherwise a pad brush and towel should be used after each section. With a clean primed pad, apply 3-4 small drops of M205 and work the section at a speed of 4 using moderate pressure (2-3) passes, then quickly clean the pad and without adding more product make 2 more passes on a speed of 3 using moderate pressure. Wipe off an inspect.

 

Sorry I didn't mention the car had been painted. This may sound weird but I went to inspect the car today and couldn't find the micro-marring I seen last night, could it have been the weather? The local detailer did not see the car for himself and suggested it if I was starting off. The car finished alot better then expected since it arrived in bad shape.