I just bought a Porter Cable 7424 And I get a set of pads and a backing plate from Sonus(highly recommended. I have been reading a lot about it but still can't get a grasp on what exactly I need to do. I have avery few slight swirl marks. What I used to do was all Zaino:
1. Wash in dawn
2. Dry
3. Zaino Clay bar
4. Dry
5. Z-5
6. Z-8
7. Z-2
8. Z-8
9. Z-2
I did this at the start of every spring with a few more waxes here and there throughout the summer.
So now what exactly do I do with the porter cable? Like what pads should I use for my situation, would Z-5 be fine to use on the first stage(polishing out the siwrls?) I bought dftowel.com microfiber bonnets for the finishing stage...which pad do I use for that? I kind of want a step by step because I am scared to death about damaging the paint. It is an '05 and I can't afford a new paint job lol. Any help would be appreciated.

 

Didn't realize there was a detail section, could I get this moved? I apoligize for the mistake.

 

I hate to break it to you, but you wasted your money buying the PC. There's really no advantage to using a PC when applying or removing Zaino. A power polisher is great when you have to "work" the product, but Zaino is designed to be wipe on/wipe off.

Zaino goes on so thin, you'd waste too much on the pad to get it loaded up. It comes off so easy, the PC would be overkill for removal.

Z-5 doesn't remove swirls, it only helps to hide them. You need a true abrasive polish like the 3M Swirl Mark Remover to actually get rid of them.

Also, you probably ought to use Z-6 between layers of Zaino, not Z-8. Z-8 is great for the final top finish, it's overkill to put it on every time.

If you do want to hide the swirls, try starting with Z-5, Z-5, Z-2 rather than Z-5, Z-2, Z-2.

If you really insist in doing it, the following sites will teach you the basics to PC polishing:
http://forums.roadfly.com/forums/det...1430487&page=1
http://autopia.org/forum/showthread.php?t=14421
http://www.roadfly.com/magazine/7/po..._buffer.1.html

 

dayum. hate hearing somethin like that after buyin a PP. O well, u can still use it to get da bomb finish i guess..

 

porter and cable is good for polishign and waxing...

 

I made a mistake with the Z-8...the Z-6 is what I use in between, sorry. And I was told that this is the way to go when trying to remove swirls. All the EXTREMEMLY nice cars that I see all tell me they use a Porter Cable. Can you recomend something for me to use to get the swirls out? I am **** about my car and how i clean it, but I just can't avoid the swirls.

 

You are correct that the PC is the way to go for swirl removal, but Zaino Z-5 is not the product to use there. Zaino has released their own Polisher/Cleaner for swirl removal. It's called Z-PC. I have not tried it yet but from what I hear it's a very good product.

I have used the 3M Swirl Mark Remover with the PC and it works great. Get either the Z-PC or some 3M SMR and follow the instructions at the links I posted earlier.

If you have doubts about doing this, you can always practice on another car first (assuming you have one). Otherwise, go by a junk yar and buy a hood or trunk lid and practice on that.

 

I have a winter car that would be perfect to test on. Thanks a lot for the help. I have heard a lot of good stuff about the 3M so I will probably go with that because I haven't seen any reviews on the Z-PC stuff.

 

If you're using all Zaino, I would go with the Z-PC (with a white pad on your Porter Cable) after claying. It will get rid of slight swirls; if they're still there, drop down to a yellow pad with the Z-PC. You can then go directly thereafter to the other Zaino products to begin your buildup of sealants/protectants.

Finish with Z8, which is amazing! Incredible shine and the slickest stuff you can ever put on your car.

 

i hate to break it to you, but you are wrong. Applying zaino via the pc is great, i'll never go back to doing it by hand again. You dont waste too much on the pad unless you do not know what you are doing. I apply zaino via pc and use less than a 1/4 oz on the entire car. Because i put it on so thin, its even easier to wipe off afterwards.

 

Get some z-pc if your swirls are very minor, otherwise go with something else. I found z-pc did nothing to the swirls on my sb. I'm using menzerna polishes now and couldnt be happier with the results. Dont be afraid to use the pc on your car, it is extremely easy to use.

 

Yes, you've already told me how you are the one (and probably only) person that does this.

 

www.autopia.org
make a thread and ask how many people apply zaino via pc. Dont knock something until you've tried it, my results were better with the machine than i ever got by hand. Faster, easier, and uses less zaino.

 

Thanks for all the help guys. I will probably go with the Z-PC stuff just because they all work together(zaino products). Appreciate the help.

 

+1

Z-PC did nothing to my very fine dealer supplied swirls - NOTHING. I'm using 3M swirl remover with my porter-cable now and no luck yet. Next up is some 80 grit sand paper ... that'll git' 'er done.

Next I'll try a product from prowax.com - starting off with their medium action swirl remover. You wouldn't be able to see these things on any other color other than super black and if the light isn't right I can't see them either. I recently intalled five compact florscent lights above the Z for detailing work.

Super Black is such a pain in the ****!

 

Well that's disheartening. 3M swirl remover didn't help out, so I bought some ZPC to use next week. Oh the agony of Super Black!

 

Z-PC doesn't have the cutting action that 3M SMR does. If SMR didn't take out the swirls, then Z-PC probably won't and there is likely something else going on.

What kind of pads are you using? Remember that some are more aggressive than others. If you're using a pad that's designed for the final finish, then it may never remove the swirls/scratches. With SMR, you need a medium polishing pad, for example a Lake Country Green or White. It could also be a case of not working the SMR long enough.

 

If you are using a medium cut pad (like a yellow pad) and Z-PC isn't doing the trick, try SMR. If that doesn't work, try either Menzerna or Poorboy 2.5. One of those will get rid of the swirls.

Remember the rule, tho: Use the least abrasive pad/polish first, and gradually move to the more abrasive pads; if still not satisfactory, switch to the next more abrasive polish and again use the least abrasive pad first. Do it step by step until you have the least abrasive polish and least abrasive pad that gets rid of the swirls.

 

I've got Sonus Pads: Blue, Orange, and Green. I think I also have a bottle of the 3M Perfect It II.

 

The Perfect-It family of products has a bunch of different compounds and polishes (along with SMR). What's the product number, something like 39000, 39001, 39002?