I've always polished with Foam as long as I've had a PC 7424, but with a Rotary coming I want to check out wool. What I don't get about wool though is why there isn't a gamut of abrasive levels like there is for Foam from anyone BUT Edge (which in turn makes the Presta line)? Is there no need to go that 'all out' with wool? Can you polish it down with a white or yellow wool pad from AG (mild/med cut) and then do your glaze/LSP with foam (which is ideal anyway)... I'm a bit confused about this since I'm not familiar with wool.
When you need to correct a problem, wool is the way to go. It does it faster, generates less heat and depending on the product, can finish down pretty nice. You will need to follow up with a less aggressive polish, but you would with a heavy foam too. The big advantages are speed and lack of heat.
Wool Pads: Used to cut or level a paint film surface with an abrasive machine polish (or compound) or to apply a polish to large surface areas. Aggressively removes 1500 - 2000 grit scratches, but will leave hazing, use a foam pad and a finishing polish to eliminate. Wool pads are made from various mixtures of wool and other materials (natural wool, foam and wool, blended wool and synthetic wool) Like foam a wool pads abrasive ability is closely tied to its composition i.e. generally the ‘softer’ the wool the less aggressive the cut Wool pad compositions; •Natural wool- used for final polishing •Foam and wool- these pads are a compromise with the safety of foam and the polishing ability of natural wool; a patented process encapsulates the base of the lamb’s wool fibres with microscopic polyurethane foam particles. Cuts like natural sheepskin but finishes like a foam pad, the foamed fibres resist matting and compression. The foaming process also creates minute air pockets at the base of the fibres, which improves cushioning and retention of compounds and polishes. •Blended wool- a mix of wool and manmade materials, this could be wool and yarn for cutting, wool and polyester for polishing, the more synthetic material content the more abrasive the pad. •Synthetic wool- this material produces heat very rapidly, so be very careful with these pads as they can quickly cause damage to a paint surface and can cause major surface marring a four-ply twisted synthetic wool pad can destroy a clear coat in a very short time. •4 Ply 100% Twisted Wool- each strand of high grade wool fibre is tightly twisted, allowing our pad to stay at a consistent level of aggression for longer periods of operation. Choose 3 inch, 4inch, and 5inch diameters with a 1/2inch or 3/4inch pile height. • Choose shorter pile for your most aggressive compounding and longer pile for aggressive compounding with greater durability. •50/50 Wool Acrylic - a unique fibre combination for light compounding comprised of 50% 4 ply twisted wool and 50% single strand wool/acrylic blend. Allows the operator to accomplish a range of light compounding to heavier polishing tasks depending on the compound or polish used. •Electrified White Sheepskin- the electrification process removes the microscopic barbs from the hairs in the wool resulting in a soft and effective compounding material that does not scratch the painted surface. Choose 3 inch, 4inch, and 5inch diameters with a 1/2inch or 3/4inch pile height. Pros & Cons: Pro- faster cutting generates less heat and therefore leaves the surface cooler. Removes heavy oxidation much more efficiently than a form pad Make certain to spur the wool fibres when it loads up with product. Con- can leave micro marring (buffer trails) Don’t overwork the polish as wool will break diminishing abrasives faster than foam, the surface lubricants will dry up faster and you could end up dry buffing unless you’re careful. General note- a) Cut with wool pads; finish with foam pads, foam produces the most surface friction heat b) Speed, the general rule is; limit speed on wool pads to 1500 RPM The bigger the pad the faster the cut, the coarser the compound, the faster the cut, the more aggressive the pad, the faster the cut Wool cuts faster than lambs wool, foamed wool is next and then foam. You pay the price for polishing too fast with swirl marks caused by the compound and pad combination. c) Compared to foam; wool pads have a larger available cutting surface area per square inch, which is due to the structure of the individual wool fibres compared to that of foam, allowing faster cutting action with less friction heat, utilizing less downward pressure Information Resource- Lake County Manufacturing - Lake Country Mfg., Inc.- Products - Wool Cutting Pad Features © TOGWT ™ Ltd Copyright 2002-2008, all rights reserved [Edit 22.04.08 expanded]
:nod: yes I agree with richy, I purhcased and used the Edge wool pads and wool is great but it takes many years and lots of experiance to finish LSP with wool...I still can't finish LSP with wool..I don't know maybe it's just me but I couldn't finish LSP with the Edge wool pads, the thing is that wool takes great technique to finish LSP with. I know it can be done, I've seen it done and my jaw droped to the floor when I saw it being done. I couldn't beleave it and I was standing watching the guy use wool and he finished SLP...but like I said I haven't had much success finishing LSP with wool. I like using wool for cutting though, wool packs a big punch combined with Menzerna Power Gloss. There are alot of advantages with using wool pads, just like it's been pointed out...but I always follow up with a foam pad to finish the surface..but that's just me. Oh the only thing I don't like about the wool pads available to US/Canada is the size, 8inches is to big for my taste...but I'm glad the Menzerna 6inch wool pads they work great and the size is perfect...well for me that is..others don't mind the 8inch...to each there own :shrug: But either way wool = :wicked:
Well it's not even about getting the paint LSP ready with wool. It's the fact I can't pick but between two levels of abrasiveness from anyone but Edge as far as a 6.5" Hook and Loop pad goes. It's irritating.
Actually I dont think the edge pads make a difference at all with the different levels. I have tried them out and have always gone back to the 3M wool pads and 90% of the time I can get it lsp ready with the wool. I prefer the 8 inch wool pads, probably because I am use to them over the last 20 years. Like what has been said above, it cuts faster and levels the paint quicker but it will take alot of practice before getting the finish lsp ready with wool.
