[BK]

I'll say up front I don't have photos to illustrate this post. I was kind of in a hurry at the time and didn't want to stop to snap photos. Next time!

CLIFF'S NOTES VERSION: Used the Flex and 106FF and it worked well, first time machine polishing. Fuller version follows, or jump down to the bullets for my questions.

I had some light wet sand marks near a paint chip up high on my hood, and Scratch-X would not make them disappear. I don't know what grit the sandpaper was but it was very fine. The marks were only visible at an angle in bright sun, but when I saw them, they drove me nuts.

Last weekend, I broke out the Flex 3401 VRG I got myself for Christmas. I washed the whole car as normal, then clayed, polished, and waxed (just) the hood. I didn't have time for the whole car.

Even for a complete newbie like me, 106FF and a regular flat white pad made the hood look flawless -- and I realize how loaded that word is among people obsessed with keeping their cars clean. The wet sand marks are completely gone under any light. I topped with Natty's Blue and it looks great.

The Flex was easy to use. There was a little more "Whoa! I better keep a good grip or this thing will fly away from me!" than I expected, but in general it was easy.

My process was - spritz the new pad with Z-6, put two thin lines of polish around the pad about an inch from the edge, spread it on the car in a 2'x2' area without turning it on, briefly use speed 3 to spread it around quickly, turn up to speed 5 to polish, moving slowly with medium pressure until the polish broke down (up-down then left-right and repeat until polish is thin and clear), then lighten pressure and move quicker and turn it off. Wipe off the residue and move on to the next 2'x2' area.

All in all, a great experience. My questions/observations:

• If I didn't keep the pad level, it would try to run away from me. I guess that is normal. In any case, it kept me focused on applying even pressure, which I suppose is a good thing.
• I was intimidated away from using speed 6 my first time out based on some posts I've seen, but frankly, I don't think that would be a problem next time. On the other hand, is it really necessary? Speed 5 worked well. What would a higher speed give me, faster polish break-down? The polish seemed to break down a lot quicker than I expected from videos I have seen of the PC, but maybe that is a Flex versus PC thing?
• Going over the "creases" in the hood was not the easiest thing in the world and flung off bits of polish. As a result, I tried to work around the creases in the panel instead of passing over them. How do you guys handle that?
• Eventually I'll do the roof. Do you guys tape over the sunroof felt? Do you polish the sunroof with the same polish as the paint, use a different polish, or avoid it altogether?
• After I was done, I rinsed the pad off using just water. It seemed to get almost all the polish off, but the pad is taking forever to dry. How do you guys wash and dry your pads? Does anyone throw them in the dryer on low heat? I don't want the Velcro to separate.

Finally, thanks to George at Detailed Image for hooking me up with this stuff. It worked great. I am hooked and can't wait until spring to do the whole car!

[JOYRIIDE1113]

Which is why I always say that detailing has a lot to do with trial and error and that just about anyone can do it if they take the time to learn and make mistakes. Good to know you didn't have any this time. I hope you know its gonna get worse before it gets better. I once had just about every product yo can name and each only saw about one or two uses. After a while I realized what I really liked and gave the rest away.

Have FUN!

Joy

Remember to wear a mask when polishing with 106ff. It dust like mad and the dust apparently isn't too good for you.

[ScheerSpeed]

i dry my pads by spinning them on the polisher at a fast speed (in the air, not touching anything)

i avoid the sunroof, no point in polishing it.

its probably a good idea to tape up the sunroof felt

[JOYRIIDE1113]

Yes, you should tape w/e can get stained. I don't believe in NOT polishing the roof. At the very least a light polisihing, but if a customer is paying me for a full swirl removal, I do everything.

Take the time out to tape the edges of rubber and trim. A lot of folks say that they'll just clean it afterwards, but less time can be spent with some simple precaution.

i also cover all glass with newspaper and 3m tape as to not get any splatter or dust on it giving me more work to clean up afterwards.

[BK]

Thanks, guys. I can't say I made no mistakes, though. The hood looks great, but the roof and trunk lid both have new swirls on it, which must be from claying, of all things. I clayed the hood, roof, and trunk, thinking I was going to polish all of them. I only had time to polish the hood. Now the roof and trunk have some marring on them that wasn't there before, and I'm sure it was from racing through the claying, just trying to get to the polishing step. Unfortunately, they'll have to stay that way until I have time to polish again.

Great idea on the newspaper for the glass. I got some polish splatter on the lower part of the windshield and wipers. Not much, but enough that it was a PITA to have to clean it again right after I'd washed the car.

Spinning the pad to help dry it is a terrific idea! Can't believe I didn't think of that.

[Queenskid24]

Originally Posted by BK

Thanks, guys. I can't say I made no mistakes, though. The hood looks great, but the roof and trunk lid both have new swirls on it, which must be from claying, of all things. I clayed the hood, roof, and trunk, thinking I was going to polish all of them. I only had time to polish the hood. Now the roof and trunk have some marring on them that wasn't there before, and I'm sure it was from racing through the claying, just trying to get to the polishing step. Unfortunately, they'll have to stay that way until I have time to polish again.

Great idea on the newspaper for the glass. I got some polish splatter on the lower part of the windshield and wipers. Not much, but enough that it was a PITA to have to clean it again right after I'd washed the car.

Spinning the pad to help dry it is a terrific idea! Can't believe I didn't think of that.

to avoid splatter, work in the product at a very low speed after spreading it on the area, and then proceed to the polishing. That should help, but then again youll get the annoying dusting sometimes which is an even bigger pain haha, good luck, im glad to hear your first polishing detail was a pleasant one.

[Detailed Image]

Originally Posted by BK

All in all, a great experience. My questions/observations:

• If I didn't keep the pad level, it would try to run away from me. I guess that is normal. In any case, it kept me focused on applying even pressure, which I suppose is a good thing. Since the Flex has more power than other random orbitals, like a PC, UDM, etc. it is important to maintain a solid grip with both hands and to be focused 100% of the time. With the PC, I can maneuver the unit with 1 hand with little worry.
• I was intimidated away from using speed 6 my first time out based on some posts I've seen, but frankly, I don't think that would be a problem next time. On the other hand, is it really necessary? Speed 5 worked well. What would a higher speed give me, faster polish break-down? The polish seemed to break down a lot quicker than I expected from videos I have seen of the PC, but maybe that is a Flex versus PC thing? I've been telling our Flex customers to start around speed 4 and move up if deeper correction is needed. If you have the right polish and pad combination for the imperfections in your paint, you'll just experience faster polish break down as you said. Time = money for many detailers, so most will crank it right up to 6. Yes the Flex breaks polish down in about half the time, if not faster, than the PC / UDM.
• Going over the "creases" in the hood was not the easiest thing in the world and flung off bits of polish. As a result, I tried to work around the creases in the panel instead of passing over them. How do you guys handle that? One of the first things I noticed with your post, it seems as if you used too much polish per panel. I personally use 3 pea sized drops per 18" x 18" area. Many detailers, especially first time users of the buffer, over apply the polish, which means it takes longer to break down, your pad becomes saturated with product quicker and you have more product to dust, gather in cracks and crevices, etc. Next time around, try using a lot less polish and see how it goes, I think you'll be pleased. I move the buffer over the creases, but often let up on speed and / or pressure as I do so.
• Eventually I'll do the roof. Do you guys tape over the sunroof felt? Do you polish the sunroof with the same polish as the paint, use a different polish, or avoid it altogether? I'd suggest taping off anything that can stain as Joy mentioned.
• After I was done, I rinsed the pad off using just water. It seemed to get almost all the polish off, but the pad is taking forever to dry. How do you guys wash and dry your pads? Does anyone throw them in the dryer on low heat? I don't want the Velcro to separate. I throw my pads on the highest speed of my rotary buffer to get a majority of the water out of the pad. After that, I let them air dry on top of a towel or newspaper to absorb more water. I know some detailers use the washer and dryer, but I don't have any suggestions on what to recommend.

Finally, thanks to George at Detailed Image for hooking me up with this stuff. It worked great. I am hooked and can't wait until spring to do the whole car!

I'm glad to hear that things turned out as you expected. With the combination of products you picked up, you will be able to achieve results that many other detailers can't. It sounds like you have a great grasp on things and I'm looking forward to seeing some pictures of your results when you get a chance to do your entire vehicle.

Thanks again for your support BK!

George