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I'm in west LA with a black car that needs a buff badly, and I don't trust anybody to do it. I let a guy at Martin Cadillac (Santa Monica) give it a try, mistakenly thinking that going to a dealer would guarantee skills, but all he did was swirl the sh*t out of my quarter panel. Luckily he had the sense to stop when he realized the damage he was doing.
The car's been victim to acid rain and parking lot scratches and poor care, but my 10 years experience working in detail shops tells me it's all in the clear coat and an expert high-speed buffer will get 90% of it solved. Truth is, that's what my dad does for a living and that's how I know what to look for, but he's 2000 miles away and I never learned to buff myself. The one time I tried, I burned through the clear *and* base coat...
I'm not from LA - moved here somewhat recently.
So, my request is simple: If you've had someone high speed compound polish your black car without leaving swirls, please tell me who/where. If not, no need to post here
Also, thanks for your time reading.
Last edited by lancedolan; 01-02-2018 at 01:07 AM.
For clarity, I'm talking about a high-speed orbital buffer used in combination with a "compound" to heat and even out the clear coat. This process removes small scratches and, acid rain spots, and other damage to the clear coat that claybars cannot effect.
I'm in west LA with a black car that needs a buff badly, and I don't trust anybody to do it. I let a guy at Martin Cadillac (Santa Monica) give it a try, mistakenly thinking that going to a dealer would guarantee skills, but all he did was swirl the sh*t out of my quarter panel. Luckily he had the sense to stop when he realized the damage he was doing.
The car's been victim to acid rain and parking lot scratches and poor care, but my 10 years experience working in detail shops tells me it's all in the clear coat and an expert high-speed buffer will get 90% of it solved. Truth is, that's what my dad does for a living and that's how I know what to look for, but he's 2000 miles away and I never learned to buff myself. The one time I tried, I burned through the clear *and* base coat...
I'm not from LA - moved here somewhat recently.
So, my request is simple: If you've had someone high speed compound polish your black car without leaving swirls, please tell me who/where. If not, no need to post here
Also, thanks for your time reading.
99% of the guys that are using rotaries don't know how to use them correctly and end up hologramming the crap out of the paint. DA random orbitals (like Porter Cable 7424s) are fool proof and what I used to use, but they they take far longer for clearcoat correction and I imagine detailers that use them charge much more. If you find a guy, I'd love to know myself! lol
Personally, I'll never let a rotary touch my car, but if you do, I'd suggest that you make sure the person you select is bonded and insured and that you take lots of "before" pictures in the event they hologram your **** like this.....
99% of the guys that are using rotaries don't know how to use them correctly and end up hologramming the crap out of the paint. DA random orbitals (like Porter Cable 7424s) are fool proof and what I used to use, but they they take far longer for clearcoat correction and I imagine detailers that use them charge much more. If you find a guy, I'd love to know myself! lol
Personally, I'll never let a rotary touch my car, but if you do, I'd suggest that you make sure the person you select is bonded and insured and that you take lots of "before" pictures in the event they hologram your **** like this.....
You’re not going to correct any flaws by hand, which is fine if you don’t need to, but that’s not exactly what we’re talking about here. It’s tough to find someone who is trustworthy and actually knows what they’re doing.....
You’re not going to correct any flaws by hand, which is fine if you don’t need to, but that’s not exactly what we’re talking about here. It’s tough to find someone who is trustworthy and actually knows what they’re doing.....
You’re not going to correct any flaws by hand, which is fine if you don’t need to, but that’s not exactly what we’re talking about here. It’s tough to find someone who is trustworthy and actually knows what they’re doing.....
I was going to say the same thing. I'm not sure what hand buffing process he's using. Vette life, are you using a "rubbing compound" on your car by hand? I guess I've done that on some surfaces before, but it doesn't generally have the affect I'm looking for. Have you gotten scratches out that way?
I was going to say the same thing. I'm not sure what hand buffing process he's using. Vette life, are you using a "rubbing compound" on your car by hand? I guess I've done that on some surfaces before, but it doesn't generally have the affect I'm looking for. Have you gotten scratches out that way?
It’s possible, but it takes 100 times longer than it needs to lol
Hey Guys,
You do not need a rotary to get show car results. It is all about the proper tools and knowledge to get the desired results. I just finished up a 05 black coupe that went from a disaster to a beautiful outcome.
I did my wife's black C5 at home years ago but, as I mentioned above, leave it to Dave at Innovative Detailing. He will do a professional paint correction job on your Vette that you will be very satisfied with. Do a search on here to see customer reviews of his work.
Here's the thread I posted when I did my wife's - materials, tools and all.
I did my wife's black C5 at home years ago but, as I mentioned above, leave it to Dave at Innovative Detailing. He will do a professional paint correction job on your Vette that you will be very satisfied with. Do a search on here to see customer reviews of his work.
Here's the thread I posted when I did my wife's - materials, tools and all.
I did my wife's black C5 at home years ago but, as I mentioned above, leave it to Dave at Innovative Detailing. He will do a professional paint correction job on your Vette that you will be very satisfied with. Do a search on here to see customer reviews of his work.
Here's the thread I posted when I did my wife's - materials, tools and all.
I learned to do minor corrections myself a few years ago. Major stuff would be things that need wet sanding which I am not comfy with yet. I know two great corrections guys but they are not in West LA. One is Eric at Envious Detailing and the other is Kelly at SHinedetailing Inc. Both of them are very very detail oriented and do stellar work and ceramic coat install and Eric also does perfect Clear bra installs that you will normally never see a seam or edge since he rolls and caps edges. I highly suggest if you are going to go through the trouble of paint correction that you spend the money to protect it properly with ceramic or PPF or even both. Depends on the car as well. Not worth it for you normal daily car like a Honda or family wagon though. Vettes deserve it not matter what the year or mileage.
Nothing looks better than a clean well detailed black car. Nothing looks worse than a neglected black car. By far the toughest color to keep up. As you found out the dealer is the least able to detail a car. In my experience all they can do well is create swirl marks.
It is a shame that cars as expensive as the Corvette don't always include enough clear coat thickness to safely wet sand.
01-02-2018, 12:58 AM
Who buffs your black car??
