Question! Products and pads

[jakobsob]

Hi everyone! New here :smile:

I used to detail my black Jag by hand (in love with PB's!), but now it's time for DA.

I have the following products:

Slick&Suds
Bug Squash
SSR1
PwC (Blue)
BH
Nattys Red
EXwC
Bold&Bright

Due to quite a lot of swirls I have now bought:

SSR2
Lare EPL41 DA
Flexipads (White, orange, yellow, red)

But after reading a bit on which pads to use for which product, I'm a little confused.
This is my process, and the appropriate pads (i think?):

1. SlickSuds + Bugsquash
2. Clay
3. SSR2 - Orange pad?
4. SSR1 - Yellow finishing pad?
5. PwC blue - which pad?
6. BH - Red pad (super soft)?
7. EX - yellow finishing pad?
8. Nattys red - by hand
9. Bold&Bright

Thank you for a great forum, can't wait to upload pics after the detailing

Jakob

 

[Beercan31]

Hi everyone! New here

I have the following products:

Slick&Suds
Bug Squash
SSR1
PwC (Blue)
BH
Nattys Red
EXwC
Bold&Bright

SSR2
Lare EPL41 DA
Flexipads (White, orange, yellow, red)

But after reading a bit on which pads to use for which product, I'm a little confused.
This is my process, and the appropriate pads (i think?):

1. SlickSuds + Bugsquash
2. Clay
3. SSR2 - Orange pad?
4. SSR1 - Yellow finishing pad?
5. PwC blue - which pad?
6. BH - Red pad (super soft)?
7. EX - yellow finishing pad?
8. Nattys red - by hand
9. Bold&Bright

Jakob

OK you have some nice stuff to play with and I'm going to address them in the order you have them.
1. are you mixing Bug Squash with you SSS? I did not know you could do this without derogating the Bug Squash. If bugs are a big issue I would Rinse off the Vehicle and spray Bug Squash on the needed areas and start the washing of the Vehicle allowing the Bug Squash a good dwell time with out drying on the surface.
2. only clay on a "as needed" bases
3. SSR2 - "Orange" pad is an aggressive approach, you can take some cut out of this process by dropping your pad down a notch and use the Yellow pad. its is a hit or miss plan but always try the less aggressive approach first.
4. SSR1 - Yellow pad is fine here
4.5 Pro Polish - White or Red pad will work here, Pro polish is on of items you lacking in your arsenal I feel it's a must have product.
5. PWC- Black (finessing) would be best if you did this step by hand but if you MUST apply it by machine would Black is you best option here. and other pad would and could put buffer marks back on the surface that would look like hazing.
6. Black Hole. this is a glaze or also know as a filler product, when I first started out detailing I could not stand any product that contained fillers or a glaze because it would hide what I was trying to remove. but this product has grown on me and is now in my arsenal.
7. EX- Black pad, again if you must use a machine.
8. Nattys Red - black pad
9. Bold an Bright - microfiber applicator pad.

If you look through some old "Detailing Weekends" on the forum you will see a jerk apply a sealant and wax with a machine a D/A (duel action polisher) I know for fact he uses microfiber applicator pads and runs his D/A polisher on medium low speed to low speed. doing this type of process can lift the sealant if done back to back with out a set time to allow the sealant to set-in, I do this in direct sun light and the time factor is slightly less depending on the humidity of that day. Oh by the way I'm that jerk and my go to sealant is EX-P.

Hope this helps is some way, can't wait for the before and after photos.

 

[jakobsob]

Hi Bling King,

Thank you for you helpful reply!

I will head out tomorrow and get some black pads and the PP

1. I dont mix them haha! As you say, it's only as on needed basis, put them both there as they're both used in a thorough preparation stage
2. yes
3+4. yellow it is, alway the least aggressive approach that gets the job done, right?
4/5. PP. You say white or red pad. With the flexipads i have, the white is the very aggressive cutting pad (white > orange > yellow > black, are the colors the same for other brands?) and the red is a supersoft (very very soft sponge), I understand the PP is a last step finishing polish, so a mild pad is needed?
5. Will do this by hand (worked great before, when i only worked by hand!) If i understand correctly, for 'layering' product, there's essentially no benefit of using a machine?
6. I heard glazes need to be worked in to get the best effect, would a black pad work here?
7. Again, 'layering' product, so by hand, right?
8. Wax by hand

Thanks again,

 

[sscully]

Jakob,

The pad colors that bling gave you in the post above are Lake Country pad colors, which do not 100% match the Flexipad color codes.

Just to give you an idea of what Lake Country pad color codes are :

Yellow - Cutting Pad
Orange - Light cutting Pad
Green - Very Light Cutting Pad ( or heavy polishing pad )
White - Polishing Pad
Black - Finishing Pad ( light polishing ?? )
Blue - Fine Finishing Pad
Red - fine Finishing pad

So what I get from the Flexipad catalog.

Flexipad - Lake Country ( which is generally the color of pad given on the site here )

Yellow - Yellow
White / Orange - Orange ( Flexipad scale White & Orange seem to be the same - Orange is just a thinner pad )
Blue - Green
Pink - White
Black - Black
Red - Red / Blue

This is just what I got from the PDF of the catalog, the descriptions starting on Flexipad catalog page 18, and the chart on page 20 do not quite match.

Here is the pad chart from LC.

 

[jakobsob]

Wow, thanks sscully!

Makes sense now.. ;-)

Flexipad scale White & Orange seem to be the same - Orange is just a thinner pad

Hmm I don't think they are, snapped some pics:

Same thickness:

 

[sscully]

...<snip>..


Hmm I don't think they are, snapped some pics:


Same thickness:

I got that from the catalog, not like those things can be trusted :smt037

So one of them is more aggressive than the other.

So it seems a White Flexipad is about the same as a Yellow Lake Country pad ??

The Orange Flexipad looks to be the same aggressiveness as a White Lake Country Pad

-> Just make sure from the chart above that I have this correct, else you could use a product with the wrong pad and get something that looks like 2000 grit sandpaper at a finishing stage.

 

[jakobsob]

Aha! Take a look at the reference numbers on the pads:

I searched the numbers in the Flexipads catalog and found this:

Would the orange flexipad be ok for SSR2, then the yellow flexipad for SSR1? Which pad would you guys recommend for Pro Polish? Also a yellow one?

 

[sscully]

What I have found in threads :

SSR2 would be on a LC Black or Red pad, which is either a very light polish or finishing pad ( depends on who you ask ). This pad is generally what a Glaze would use ( like White Diamond or Black Hole - non layered ). If I had to choose from those 3, I would say the yellow finishing pad is the best bet, but you could go with the orange pad if the marks are bad enough ( that is my opinion, not Poorboy's ).

SSR1 - as a follow up final polish, the yellow finishing pad

ProPolish - Depends on what you are trying to get it to do. It is a chemical polish ( SSR line is a mechanical polish that has break down stages ). If you are going at it for heavy swirls or marring, I would use the Flexipad orange polishing pad and see if that does the trick. If it is light marring / swirls, go with the yellow pad.
- changing the pad and the amount of time you work the section will increase the defect removal ability. So the Flexipad orange pad might get 95% of the defects, and an additional pass or two might get any more severe defects out or you might need to step up the pad ( and then work back down from the white to the orange to the yellow flexipad ).

This is what I am getting from the post above and the catalog making a cross comparison to the Lake Country pad colors in the chart above.

 

[jakobsob]

Thank you sscully!

I think I'll have to go with the orange for SSR2, took some pics earlier, not the best just to give an idea:

Scratches on hood:

A nice hit and run:

Ugly scratch on C pillar:

Orange seems to be the way to go, huh?

We've had some horrible weather the last couple of weeks and months

 

[sscully]

There are members with much more detailed experience with the PB products, but I use Orange flexipad and ProPolish and have a go at it, and see what the results are.

Some of those look to be ProPolish & Flexipad yellow cases to me, but start with the orange to see what the paint is like ( soft - normal - hard ).

I have read where most will say the black paints ( from any manufacture ) seem to be on the softer side, but this is just what I have read.
GM's black on some years is like granite requiring a strong arm technique to get correction on it.

Take an area and work on just that to see how much time you are going to need.
If you use the boot lid as a test case, you might find that you either get done with defect removal in 30 min with the Orange Flexipad and ProPolish, or you might find you need to take 3 or 4 ( or more ) passes to remove the defects ( which at that point tells me to go more aggressive on the pad with proPolish then back down to the Orange then Yellow Flexipad ).

That hit and run spot on the bumper, can you feel it with your fingernails ? That looks like paint transfer from the other car. I use an Orange Lc pad and a very fine polish ( SSR1 ) to get the paint off with good luck in the past. while you are at it, see what the Orange Flexipad and ProPolish does, else go with SSR1 and the White pad ( as long as it is not deep scratches that you can feel ).

 

[jakobsob]

can't wait for the before and after photos.

http://PoorboysWorld.net/board/showthread.php?1540-2004-Jaguar-S-type :smt023