Baby BMW Forum banner

3) Polishing your Paintwork

24K views 39 replies 17 participants last post by  Steeldrews 
#1 ·
So lets re-cap..

If you've followed the cleaning regime so far, you have:

Pre Washed
Snow Foamed
Washed
Rinsed
Dried
De-Tar'd
De-Contaminated
Clayed

Now we start the finishing cycle..polishing your paint to revitalise your cars finish.

Lets make sure you are drying the car properly first. Drying Towels are usually big Microfibre Towels, with thicker fibers on one side, and the idea is to dry your paintwork without putting any pressure on the paint. If your towel has any nylon tags, or sharp edges, its worth either cutting the tags off, or folding the edges in to avoid scratching your paint..

There a few ways of using these towels to dry the car - laying the towel flat, then dragging it over the paint is one way:


Folding the towel into a square, then 'patting' down the paintwork is another. Once dry, you are ready to crack on with the polish.

Polish comes in liquid form, and is designed with enhancing your paintwork to give it the best look in mind. Most polishes have some form of micro-abrasives (designed to remove fine swirls) Filling capability (fills slightly deeper swirls and or scratches) and the ability (with hard work!) to remove oxidisation on paintwork (where bright paint - like red - has gone pink)

At this stage - its worth mentioning that how you apply your polish can actually affect the finish you are trying to achieve.

I USED to use a microfibre cloth to apply polish and waxes, purely because I didn't know any difference. However, looking back, the polish (Autoglym SRP) would usually 'grab' to the cloth, and I use the same one for the whole car. Oblivious to me at the time, I was actually inflicting more swirls on the car as I was doing this, because the edges and the labels were also getting bashed about over the surface too :cry:

When I started really looking into serious detailing, I discovered foam applicators, and foam tri-core pads, both of which eliminate inflicting swirls, and are far easier to use on cars when applying polishes.

Foam Applicator:




Tri-Core Applicator:


They hold the product in the foam, spreading it further and giving you the ability to apply some pressure too, and really get the polish working for you. The reason the pads are dirty in colour, is because good polishes actually pull dirt from the paint as they go.. :cool:

A good polish will turn flat paint (this is due to dirt being present in the paint) into a clean, smooth preparation for a good wax or sealant to sit on.

Below is an example of what I mean - the BMW here is 17 years old, and has had some polishing work done in the past, but due to work, the owner never spends any time cleaning it anymore. The black is flat, and lifeless. When paint is like this, you will still get good results from most polishes, but I went for a deep paint cleaning and rejuvenating specific polish - Auto Finesse Rejuvenate.

Before:


After: (This has got a final coat of HD wax on too)


The difference is huge! Despite the HD Wax adding a little gloss, the work was done by Rejuvenate in the first place. (preparation is always key for the best finishes)

Dependent on the look you are going for, more advanced polishes (Auto Finesse Tripple) have arrived on the market - they have added glazes too.

Now glazes are oily based polishes, that are designed to help give a show finish after you have polished your paint, before adding a Wax on top to seal in the finish. They not only give gloss to your paintwork, but they also contain masses of filling properties, and so are ideal for black or dark cars if you have swirls on your car. Unfortunately they offer very little in the way of protection on their own, so a wax needs to be applied to seal in the work you have done. Sealants do not work well with glazes, as the oils in them stop the sealants from bonding to your paint.

This is an example of a polish>glaze>wax combo on a black RS4 off to a show:



I use Auto Finesse Tripple for most of my work, as its one of the best polishes in the market - purely because its VERY easy on / off, very versatile (can be used on Interior sills and chrome works) and also because the finish it delivers is amazing when topped with a good wax:



DoDo Juice Supernatural Hybrid wax is used on these pics on this Estoril Blue BMW M135i - it all comes up stunningly! :cool:

To some up - don't scrimp on your polish work, take your time, apply it well, a panel at a time (not too thick or thin!)- let it haze for 5, and make sure you buff it off using clean microfibres.

Finally..... top them with a good wax or sealant, to protect your hard work :D :cool:
 
See less See more
1
#27 ·
Blackroc said:
Harvey321 said:
do you use both autofinesse rejuvenate and tripple or can i get away with just using tripple and then a wax?
One or the other fella.

Rejuvenate is designed to clean give gloss (similar to AutoGlym SRP) Tripple has much more masking properties (covering swirls) with an element of protection too.

It leaves a better finish than Rejuvenate and SRP, but affects the performance of a liquid sealant when applied on top because it doesn't bond as well.

If you are using a wax it's not as much an issue :)
That's a great description of the difference between the 2 as I was reading the Auto Finesse website last night trying to get it clear in my head. So if my car has no swirls (or nothing obvious to my untrained eyes) I'd be better using Rejuvinate is that correct? I'll continue with the dodo juice SNH as a wax afterwards
 
#29 ·
Blackroc said:
... they're just plastic but

Yup - you can clay, decontaminate and use a machine polisher on them too to remove swirls.

Also helps the rear stay a bit cleaner when waxed / sealed through winter :)
Do take extra care using a rotary on your bumpers or any other painted plastics,

The plastics wil heat up quicker from a rotary and you could quite easily burn the paint,

Start the rotary on the slowest speed and take your time, be careful on edges or creases as the paint and clear coat will be thinner. Do not apply too much pressure.

A DAP will produce less heat because of the dual action rotation, but same applies, start on a low speed, mind edges and not too much pressure.it is very easily burnt if you don't pay attention.

Keep checking your paints temperature.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#31 ·
Iv got a white car and love how easy tripple is to use.

Should I top with tough coat or autoglym HD wax for the best finish?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#34 ·
Blackroc said:
BMWJMR said:
Iv got a white car and love how easy tripple is to use.

Should I top with tough coat or autoglym HD wax for the best finish?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I'd stay sealant based on white. HD Wax is better on warm (reds, blues, greys etc..) cars

Is Tough Coat your only choice?
Tough coat is all I have atm. Will be looking to get Ti-22 when I'm out of tough coat.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#36 ·
When the weather picks up I'll be getting into contact for a proper do anyway. The paint is pretty good no swirls so just needs a protect anyway.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#37 ·
Hi got a few questions, where can I find a decent clay bar? And which of these is best for applying the polish:

" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Or is someone able to recommend something different which they use?
Also what is a good wax to use after polishing?

Thanks

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top