The goss on gloss for a perfect finish

Matthew Gibb of Dream Machines Re-finishing begins a series of articles to help shops achieve the perfect finish.

Polishing vehicle paint finishes within the detailing industry is my lifelong passion and something I take very seriously. It’s also an art form and a science which takes time to master. However there are some basic keys to success within polishing that are easy to perform and will make your work easier.

Prepare and prime your pads

Wash new wool pads thoroughly in a bucket of warm water or in the sink. Get all of the fuzzy hairs out of them so that when polishing, there are none to splatter the car and cover the workshop floor. If you don't, you will be cleaning up cars and the workshop floor for days or weeks until the pad wears in.

Don't use foam pads dry. Put a 10 cent piece blob on the 9 and 3 o'clock positions of the pad and rub into the foam well to lubricate the pad. Also, spray some pad lubricant or at the least, some water (one tiny spritz) onto the pad to prime and season and you will not dry buff.

Keep your pads clean

This is the most important of all. Some shops I’ve visited have their pads sitting around saturated in dried up polish and removed clear coat from previous work, sometimes a lot of them. Then they pick them up and continue to use them on a different car as if there is nothing wrong with the pads. I see this with wool pads most often.

Clear coat becomes our enemy when a pad is coated in enough of it and micro scratches/marring can be induced if a pad is used on too much area

I find that doing one panel per pad is best. Doing two panels with one pad without cleaning it is likely to cause damage that you will have to fix by repolishing again

When polishing paint, we are removing clear coat and it mixes in with the polish, taking away the cutting power of the polish and pad. A clean pad means a superior cut and greater finish.

You can clean foam and wool pads while you work by turning on the rotary machine to speed 4 or 5 and blowing the pad with compressed air. When cleaning wool, initially clean at speed 4 or 5 and then back at 1 or 2 to turn the pad back to a like new fluffiness

Slow down your rpm speed

The industry standard speed for polishing with a rotary is 1000 to 1500rpm.

Some still use 1800rpm but I find that unnecessary with today's superior abrasive technology and because new paints are often softer than older paint systems.

For decades, most technicians used the one speed then stop technique. This still works well, but for a better finish and no holograms, I work use the zenith point technique which means buffing at my desired speed, usually 1250 rpm and once I’ve removed the sanding marks and other paint damage (swirl marks, scratches etc), I slow down the rpm to 1000, then 900 and sometimes, 750 then 600 rpm. At that point, I remove the product residue and inspect the area. This can take longer than the one speed but there are advantages.

Every time we polish paint, we are removing paint damage but inflicting some of our own. By slowing down the speed and even adding a tiny pea-sized drop on the pad and buffing at 900 pm and then back to 600 after working at 1000 to 1500, we take out all the damage and jewel the paint to a crisper. glossier flawless finish - with less work required to complete the job.

Use water-based single polish systems

Solvent based polishes have many flaws and health risks. The residue sticks to the paint and can be hard to remove. The products contain many heavy oils that mask scratches and swirl marks, rather than removing them  

Other flaws are increased risk of burning paint and worst of all, a lot of these products contain carcinogenic cancer-causing solvents and crystalline silica abrasive that can cause silicosis, especially those who sand and polish paint with it for years

By switching to a water based single polish system – one product from start to finish – your shop saves money and eliminates cross contamination between products and pads. The slower drying formula of water based products make them easier to work with and there are no nasty fumes to effect your eyes, skin and respiratory system.

Many finishing polishes and foam pad glaze product contain various fillers which simply hide paint defects and wash off a few weeks later. This does not impress customers

The best reason for using a water based polish is that it keeps your foam pads stain free (there are many products that contain solvent based dyes that stain) and they can be washed after use with water alone.

Your business can also save a bundle each year by buying one product instead of three or four. I use the single polish systems of Xpert Ultra 1000 and Xpert High Tech 1500.

Dream Machines Re-finishing is a polishing consultant to some of SA's best smash and restoration shops: dreammc@tpg.com.au