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Just to be clear, my black 03 has mostly light swirls. No true scratches (at least none deep enough to feel if you run your hand over the surface).
By far the worst mark on the car happened recently when I had it in a shop to replace all the fluids and someone must have dragged a hose across the right front corner. You can't feel the mark with your hand or fingernail but it's pretty obvious in bright light.
That is not a hose dragged over the corner mark. Sorry.
Put on a latex glove, wipe your hand over the area and see how it feels. Work your magic and do the test again. When the scratches are gone it will be quite obvious.
When I got this car the paint was terrible. After some research and a bunch of elbow grease it came out like new. There were some serious scratches in this car as well swirl.
Just educate yourself and go for it, you will be fine.
I just did my Torch Red 04 a few weeks ago....what a huge difference
I have a Porter Cable 7424XP 6-inch Random Orbital polisher that I used along with Meguires 105 Compound /205 Polish and Lake County Orange and Blue Foam Pads. There are plenty of how-to's on Youtube. Take your time, follow directions and you'll be amazed on how it turns out.
This was my method as well. I used the same orbital and Meguiar's 205 polish on the very beat up finish of my black 1998 Camaro. The finish on my test spot came out so good that I did the whole car and it looks fantastic.
My advice would be to try out whatever machine polishing you're going to do on a vehicle you're not too concerned about first for practice.
I watched all of Junkman's video's and everything on Autogeek, then went straight after my TR Z06. It really is just like the Junkman says. The car had horrible swirl marks and a couple of scratches. Swirls are almost completely gone and the scratches are much less noticeable. I understand your apprehension, I'm a wrench not a detail guy, it worked out well for me.
I used a PC random orbital buffer, LC pads, M105 & M205 then finished off with Menzerna SF4000 and black pads. No less than 4 passes in total. That alone should tell you it's not easy to screw up. If you are scared, tape off the sharp corners so you don't burn through. Finally it was polished with Zaino.
You can do it.
I just did my Torch Red 04 a few weeks ago....what a huge difference
I have a Porter Cable 7424XP 6-inch Random Orbital polisher that I used along with Meguires 105 Compound /205 Polish and Lake County Orange and Blue Foam Pads. There are plenty of how-to's on Youtube. Take your time, follow directions and you'll be amazed on how it turns out.
@ SG Lou- Totally agree with you. This past weekend i used much of the same (only i used a surbuf pad, followed by the LC orange and finally the LC white pad with megs 205. Ended up achieving a very high correction. Swirls were completely gone leaving just a few RIDS. I was a complete newbie when i first dove into this a few yrs ago. Never burned the paint and have learned a lot since. The key is work slow in small areas and be patient. The hood, roof, trunk areas took me 3hrs to fully polish and that didnt include the sealant/wax that was applied in the coming days after work. To the OP, I'd say go for it- just use a DA, not a rotary polisher.
Buy a Porter Cable DA polisher, Some lake country pads and M105/M205 and a pack of quality microfiber towels. Its as simple as that. C5's are VERY easy cars to learn on since there isnt alot of sharp lines on it. With a DA polisher, Its basically fool proof. Its damn near impossible to damage paint compared to a rotary.
Get a cheap body panel (broken is fine) from a junkyard or a craigslist part out and practice on it.
I plan on grabbing a cheap unusable part from a C5 (like a hood from an accident) and practicing my skills on that first before I move to my car. It'll make me much more comfortable so I don't ruin anything.
You could even go to your local body shop and see if they're throwing out a panel or two.
One good tip for beginners is to mask the body edges do you don't burn then through, the paint is always thinner on sharp edges and can be burned through. I keep a spray bottle of water around when I buff to wet the area I'm working on so the pad doesn't get dry. A dry pad with compound on it can be very bad for your paint.
Week one owning my black 2003 coupe, I certainly agree with what one poster told me -- black isn't a color, it's a career.
Put it this way, I've been religiously watching Junkman videos. He's very convincing that I might be able to do it myself.
But realistically, should I? Is it worth investing in the equipment and supplies or, considering I'm a novice and would never forgive myself if I screwed up, am I better served having a detailer get out the swirls, etc?
What's a reasonable price for a job like that?
One guy in FW quoted me 500-1200 depending on amount of swirls and how deep
for the money that you're being told it will cost you you could buy the equipment and have the ability to do everything you'd ever want.
If you're not a do it yourself kind of guy them maybe you should take it to a place that employs highschool kids to wash and buff cars.
With the right equipement it's super easy, yes get a random orbit not a rotory.
I love my porter cable and swear by what I can do with this thing. I love a perfect car and want to have the ability to fix small scratchs when I want to and not when the shop can get me in.
Bite the bullet and buy the stuff. You'll never look back.
I just did my Torch Red 04 a few weeks ago....what a huge difference
I have a Porter Cable 7424XP 6-inch Random Orbital polisher that I used along with Meguires 105 Compound /205 Polish and Lake County Orange and Blue Foam Pads. There are plenty of how-to's on Youtube. Take your time, follow directions and you'll be amazed on how it turns out.
This guy knows what he is talking about. Pay attention to him. and watch videos and comunicate with auto geek.com 1800 number 105 and 205 are the pros go to choice
08-28-2015, 04:26 PM
