Buffing Advise
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 1,523
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From: grand prairie texas
Buffing Advise
Last weekend I painted my 77. PPG base/clear coat. I sanded the clear with 1500 now which is the best way and what buffing products should I buff it with? I borrowed a good 2 speed buffer. Thanks for any help
Drifting
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 1,944
Likes: 22
From: Yooperville MI
I would wet sand with 2000 to remove the scratches made with 1500. The sand scratches won't be noticable with white or a bright color, but if you have a medium to dark color, 1500 is too rough. 1500 will buff, but the shine might not be as clear or it might have a slight haze due to the fine sand scratches. Worn out pieces of 2000 also work great. Make sure you have enough clear to work with.
I use mostly Meguiars products with a rotary with a wool pad and an orbital buffer with foam pads, so here is my procedure and there will be others that do it differently. I can't see your sanded finish so you'll either start with fine cut cleaner, and decide if it's cutting enough after one or two applications. Your eyes have to decide if you are getting the result you want and each product might be needed 2 or more times. Look at your finish under a flourescent light and you'll see the sand scratches at this point. If you think you need to be more aggresive, use medium cut cleaner followed by fine cut cleaner. At this point you should be able glossy enough to see the results of your wet sanding as far as orange peel goes. Decide if you need to re-sand some areas. Next use Machine Glaze until the finish looks the way you want it. Machine Glaze will give the paint a wet look and it should be very clear if you've done it right. When you are satisfied, do a final application of Machine Glaze with an orbital buffer once or twice. Followed by Swirl Remover using the orbital.
These are the tools and pads I use. The 3M 5705 Superbuff pads are pricey but last many years. You'll need an adapter to use them. Whit and yellow foam pads work good for the orbital.
I use mostly Meguiars products with a rotary with a wool pad and an orbital buffer with foam pads, so here is my procedure and there will be others that do it differently. I can't see your sanded finish so you'll either start with fine cut cleaner, and decide if it's cutting enough after one or two applications. Your eyes have to decide if you are getting the result you want and each product might be needed 2 or more times. Look at your finish under a flourescent light and you'll see the sand scratches at this point. If you think you need to be more aggresive, use medium cut cleaner followed by fine cut cleaner. At this point you should be able glossy enough to see the results of your wet sanding as far as orange peel goes. Decide if you need to re-sand some areas. Next use Machine Glaze until the finish looks the way you want it. Machine Glaze will give the paint a wet look and it should be very clear if you've done it right. When you are satisfied, do a final application of Machine Glaze with an orbital buffer once or twice. Followed by Swirl Remover using the orbital.
These are the tools and pads I use. The 3M 5705 Superbuff pads are pricey but last many years. You'll need an adapter to use them. Whit and yellow foam pads work good for the orbital.
Last edited by crazywelder; Aug 15, 2007 at 06:28 PM. Reason: pics added
