Now I like a nice shiny car, but the amount of elbow grease and time required means that I rarely do it.
In Halfords [note sp. ;-) ] yesterday I was looking at orbital polishers, either 12v or 24v. Does any one know if they work? As well as manual polishing? How long do the pads (£1.99 each!) last? Can you get in the crevices easily?
The only experience I have with orbital machines is ones fitted with sanders to grind off rust, in the days when grinding rust was required more than polishing!!
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I never use them for general polishing because its all too easy to get polish everywhere, esp on plastics and window rubbers. Polishing a car by hand is only 10-15 mins work tops - never seemed like alot of work to me.
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I polish my car once a month 15-20 minutes job done. If you do the job more often less effort is required.
Not sure about orbital polishers because ive never needed to use them :-)
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The polish does get everywhere, so masking off of all trims, lights etc is advisable
S6 1SW
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Those Eastern Europeans get everywhere, don't they!
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Thanks for the replies.
I had suspected that they might be more trouble than they're worth, and could be filed along with those foot spa baths!
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Masking off trims would take ages, hence its quicker to just do it by hand. As has been said, its easier to do it regular. Of course, if you buy a rubbish polish, that would make hard work.
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Have you tried any of these 'wax it wet' products?
I recently bought some of the Turtle Wax one, and it's actually pretty impressive, comes up with a good shine. All you do, after rinsing the car off (having washed it) is sray a couple of squirts on each body panel, and then chamois it dry.
As I say, I'm quite pleased with it, and the Autoglym version is apparently even better.
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I've got some Turtle Wax Wax-It-Wet, I agree its impressive - so little effort gives a good shine and long-lasting water beading.
But I got that before I got some free Autoglym polish. I now realise that conventional polishing is not as much hard work as I used to think it was. I still cant be bothered to do it very often though; haven't got the time.
;o)
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I thought orbital polishers were the cause of those 'spider web' type circular marks you often see on cars.
I was taught to polish in straight lines. (I'll have to get round to reading that thread on the difference between waxing and polishing).
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I thought orbital polishers were the cause of those 'spider web' type circular marks you
often see on cars.<<
No, that is caused by novices not knowing how to finish the job. It is caused by using compound with an orbital polisher and then failing to refinish the paintwork.
To get rid of those swirl marks is a very simple case of using an appropriate handglaze which removes these marks. A professional knows this, an amateur doesnt.
A customer of mine bought a used 6-series from their BMW dealer which had these swirl marks and the paint was decidely dull all over - it had been compounded to cut back the paint damage from carwashes but had not been finished properly, so even those who should know dont always.
Incidentally, using a normal polish with an orbital shouldnt create swirl marks unless there is dirt on the surface.
Polishing in straight lines or circular makes little difference aslong as the application is even.
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This is the place for advice on polishing your car. Some of the cars shown in the forum are works of art.
www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/index.php
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If you do get one, make sure it's a random orbital polisher so as to cut down on the number of swirl marks.
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If you do get one make sure it's a random orbital polisher so as to cut down on the number of swirl marks.
I don't think you'd get one of them for less than £100 would you?
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I don't think you'd get one of them for less than £100 would you?
I used to have one that I bought from Woolworths. Paid something like £20 for it. Was ok until I dropped it and broke the casing.
I see they still do one. Looks similar to the one I had, but mine was their 'own brand' and not RACs.
www.woolworths.co.uk/web/jsp/product/index.jsp?pid...3
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I've heard a great deal about "Detailers" on this forum. Where do I find them? Car Valeters in the Yellow Pages are normally a bloke with a sponge. How do I find someone who does the kind of job that will make my eyes bleed when I look at my car?
V
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Vin, on the detailing world site there´s a thread where detailers give their UK locations, it should be possible to find a guy near you.
Apparently the polisher to get is the Porter Cable 2434 (I think) but you have to get it imported form the US, change the cable over etc etc. But that´s what the guys at DW use. Many of the guys there display symptoms of obsessive compulsive disorder ;-)
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I thought the spider web type circular marks are where either the polish has too much cut? With the machine polishers you can damage your car quite easily.
I don't know how people polish their cars in 15-20 minutes, it used to take me a couple of hours IIRC, and I didn't even mask much of it. These days I mask everything and do claying and waxing, so it ends up taking over 20 minutes for each panel. Oh I haven't got a machine btw.
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This forum is wonderful for teaching me things that in nearly 59 years I have never known (and, I have to say, survived well enough without knowing...).
A week or so ago I discovered that ACF 50 wasn't an old car registered in Suffolk, and now here was I thinking that an orbital polisher was someone stuck in stationary traffic on the M25 deciding to make good use of his time and get out the Turtle wax.
And there are upmarket orbital polishers it seems - polishers with sanders (free fried chicken with every one), and random orbital polishers (you can do it anywhere on the M25).
We learn something new every day.
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Swirl marks are NOT caused by orbital polishers!
Swirl marks are caused by bad wah technique and automatic car washes, they are infact lots of tiny scratches in every direction, when light reflects off the surface of the car you only see the scratches that have been highlighted by the concentration of the light source, and so they appear to be circular scratches.
Does that make sense?
To remove these from a cars paint work requires much more than a quick 15 minute wipe over, those tyes of products just cover the marks rather than removing them.
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I've often wondered whether I could just modify my electric sander to do the same job.
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Swirl marks are NOT caused by orbital polishers!<<
Yes they are. I worked on site with a Rolls-Royce approved bodyshop who taught me to use orbital polishers properly and the techniques for refinishing the paint after compounding using a polisher, which is what causes swirl marks.
Swirl marks are caused by bad wah technique and automatic car washes they are infact
lots of tiny scratches in every direction when light reflects off the surface of the car you only see the scratches that have been highlighted by the concentration of the
light source and so they appear to be circular scratches.<<
Those type of tiny scratches are present even on new cars, often only visable under flourescent lights. These are not the same as swirl marks caused by careless use of orbital polishers. Only a freshly painted panel which hasnt been polished since painting is free from such tiny scratches.
To remove these from a cars paint work requires much more than a quick 15 minute wipe over those tyes of products just cover the marks rather than removing them.<<
Dont give up the day job.
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>> Swirl marks are NOT caused by orbital polishers!<< Yes they are. I worked on site with a Rolls-Royce approved bodyshop who taught me to use orbital polishers properly and the techniques for refinishing the paint after compounding using a polisher which is what causes swirl marks.
Those aren't swirl marks, they are hollograms, there smeary type marks you see when the sun hits a panel at a sharp angle.>> Swirl marks are caused by bad wah technique and automatic car washes they are infact lots of tiny scratches in every direction when light reflects off the surface of the car you only see the scratches that have been highlighted by the concentration of the light source and so they appear to be circular scratches.<< Those type of tiny scratches are present even on new cars often only visable under flourescent lights. These are not the same as swirl marks caused by careless use of orbital polishers. Only a freshly painted panel which hasnt been polished since painting is free from such tiny scratches.
Exactly, poor washing and cleaning causes tiny sratches, these build up over time to lots of tiny scratches which when viewed under strong lighting appear circular - SWIRL MARKS>> To remove these from a cars paint work requires much more than a quick 15 minute wipe over those tyes of products just cover the marks rather than removing them.<< Dont give up the day job.
Don't worry I haven't, it's just a hobby for me. But I do know what my respnce would be to someone who's day job it was to polish cars was claiming to REMOVE swirl marks in 15 minutes!!
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Orbital polishers cause swirl marks (the fine curved scratches) by dragging the abrasive particles round and round in the same circle. I have seen cars that have been 'polished' like this and you can clearly see the swirling, like the grooves on an LP record. One of the reasons for using a 'random' polisher is to throw the particles off the same circle and reduce the likelihood of this swirling.
The glaze polish dont' really remove the swirl marks, it 'fills' them and makes them look much less obvious.
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>> The glaze polish dont' really remove the swirl marks it 'fills' them and makes them
look much less obvious. <<
Depends on which glaze you use really, some are better than others. Besides, if you cant see it, it doesnt exist right? I agree its more of a filling process, but at the end of the day, if you cant see the marks anymore in normal light, problem is solved yes?
I think the poster who disagrees with us on the swirl marks is unaware that the type of marks we are talking about are different from those caused by using automated car washes etc, which are visually somewhat different although can be rectified in much the same way.
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I agree its more of a filling process but at the end of the day if you cant see the marks anymore in normal light problem is solved yes?
Can't argue with that.
The stuff I use (the Concept 'resin' stuff from Brown Brothers) does a great job and is very cheap (IIRC about £10 for a gallon). I can't believe the price of some the stuff that's sold retail - you get 1/10th as much for double the price.
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I confess to being a regular (amateur) on 'Detailing World'...!
If you just want to give your car its usual wax, don't buy a polishing machine. It's not worth it.
If you really want to make a difference, ie 'paintwork correction' with removal of swirls and minor scratches, then get a polisher. The Porter Cable 7424 is THE one, but it costs and runs off 110V. It's a quality bit of kit, though. It's a random orbital polisher, which makes it easier/safer to use. The 'pros' often use rotaries.
'Polishes' are cutting compounds of various severities; they remove the swirls etc. You need to follow up polish with a sealant, either a good wax or a synthetic (maybe followed by a good wax). A glaze on after the polish can make a difference too. But start with a proper wash and then claying if need be.
See DW for some amazing results. And also advice and an insight into the range of products available!
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I use some stuff by 3M that they used in the bodyshop I was taught at. I figured if it was good enough on a Rolls, it was good enough for me. I bought 24 bottles and ive only gone through 4 in 5 years! It seems to last well too.
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Just 25 more years to go then :-).
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