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General => Detailing => Topic started by: buddfridge on 18 July 2016, 20:20
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A little help needed, with a few very fine swirls on the pillars and them being gloss shiny black what is the best way to polish these back to new ?
I have tried finishing compound by hand with limited success so need some good advice.
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Guessing everyone's waiting for Ms Booth's ultimate wisdom! :smiley:
Must admit, I will be interested to read what she has to say. That plastic is really easy to mark. Is there any way to make them more resistant to scratching?
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Just ordered this from eBay ...Dodo Juice Buff Daddy DAS-6, Dual Action Orbital Machine Polisher, Waffle Pads, I hope I have done the right thing.
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They mark so easy but luckily the marks polish out so easy with a machine polisher.
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A little help needed, with a few very fine swirls on the pillars and them being gloss shiny black what is the best way to polish these back to new ?
I have tried finishing compound by hand with limited success so need some good advice.
What Stevie (p3asa) said.
The black gloss plastic B pillars mark the most easily of any other area of the car, and much more readily than the paintwork. Adding something like a ceramic coating could help repel swirls but ultimately, over time, they will occur, it's not unexpected for the B pillars to show some swirling, even with the safest of wash techniques. Due to the location and colour of the B pillars, swirls are very noticeable especially when the sun catches them. I’ve also noticed the black plastic trim that edges each side of the rear windscreen also marks easily.
But they are very easy to rectify if you have the right equipment - preferably a DA, pads and polish. You can try polishing them out by hand but it will be an uphill struggle, very hard work and the effects will be limited. Whereas a light DA polish usually banishes them quite easily. I usually use a finishing pad (black) with some light cut polish to correct the swirls and then follow with a finishing polish on finishing pad to refine down the finish. And, as they are plastic you can get away with polishing B pillars more frequently than the paintwork.
DA's are not a cheap initial investment, but worth it in the long run is you value the condition of your paintwork, and don't intend to pay out for pro details. If going down the DA route, something like Sonax Perfect Finish polish or Meguairs 205 polished on a finishing pad, will usually be sufficient to sort B pillar swirls.
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Just ordered this from eBay ...Dodo Juice Buff Daddy DAS-6, Dual Action Orbital Machine Polisher, Waffle Pads, I hope I have done the right thing.
Should be fine. What pads have you got, and what polish?
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It comes with orange white and black pads and I will take your advice on the polish.
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It comes with orange white and black pads and I will take your advice on the polish.
Start with it on the black pad first, then check progress with a good LED light and if more correction required, move up to the white pad. :smiley:
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If you are new to DA polishing, here's a few tips below. Much of it relates to polishing paintwork, B pillars are simpler and some things won't apply but you get the gist of it hopefully.
• Assess the condition of the paintwork first in good light, so you know what level of correction/swirl removal is required
• Prepare the paintwork prior to polishing - tar remover, iron remover, claying etc, to ensure it's free of all bonded contaminants.
• Only polish on a perfectly clean car
• Tape up all trim with low tack masking tape
• Start with the least abrasive pad and polish combo and step up as necessary. Choose your polish first. Then the lease abrasive pad, if more cut is required step up to the next pad. If a more abrasive polish is required use that again starting with the least abrasive pad.....and so on.
• Start with the correction/swirl removal polishing stage first using a cutting/polishing pad then follow with the refining stage using a finishing pad.
• Moisten the pad before applying the polish
• Apply a few dots of polish around the perimeter of the pad and a dot in the middle. Do not saturate the pad with polish. Similarly do not use too little.
• Once you've primed the pad with polish make sure you place it on the paintwork before switching on DA, otherwise the polish will fling off everywhere.
• Always sling the DA cable over your shoulder otherwise it can drag/trail across the paintwork causing marks (just as you are trying to get rid of them!).
• Do a test spot first to see what is required to remove swirls etc.
• Take it slowly and work a small area at a time. Split larger panels up into smaller manageable areas, say 1.5' x 1.5' areas.
• Use moderate arm pressure - too light and it will have little effect, too much and you will get build up of too much heat and may damage your pads and possibly the backing plate.
• Use medium speed - too low a speed won't achieve anything. Many people start off on too low a speed.
• Move the DA slowly over the area to be polished. Moving it too fast won't be effective. Move the DA across the work area horizontally back and forth, slightly overlapping as do, then move it vertically up/down, again slightly overlapping movements.
• Stop, remove polish residue and inspect at regular intervals to see how you are progressing and what further action is required.
• Use a good LED light source to check your progress close up
• You might need to do several passes to achieve the required correction/finish
• Clean your pads on the fly. Do not add fresh polish onto a pad with built up polish residue.
• After polishing use a good IPA or Panel Wipe to remove all polish residue before going on to seal/wax the car.
• Have regular cups of tea!
Some great tips and vids here
http://www.autogeek.net/dual-action-polisher.html
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/how-articles/20135-how-clean-your-foam-pad-fly.html
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Thanks Booth, getting ready to give this a whirl when it arrives. :smiley: