Just bought a polisher.

[XxMerlinxX]

And the only cars I have to use it on are my new to me space gray M3 and my wife's new to her sapphire black X3. I'm terrified of burning up the clear coat on either of them my first time out. Any tips for a newbie?

[1MOREMOD]

Practice on a neighbors car they leave in driveway.

[Brian_Fantana]

Originally Posted by 1MOREMOD

Practice on a neighbors car they leave in driveway.

Wonderful advice

Just make sure you don't stay in one spot too long and plastic parts (bumpers and side skirts) react different then metal. Keep your heat from friction cool enough to put your hand on it. Also, if your polishing a scratch if your fingernail catches it as you run your finger over it, it's likely too deep. (not always true but gives you a good reference for a starting point)

Menzerna 400 is a miracle compound.

[1MOREMOD]

If it turns out well charge them for the service.

[rjd598]

well what type of polisher is it?

[atruelunatic]

I first spent about a long week learning on proper steps from YouTube and forums. Then I just went at it on my car. You'll hopefully lean on the safe than sorry side and it might take you longer to get the job done, but that's how I ran with it the first time. I then got practice on friends' cars without charging just so I can get experience. You'll feel safer on more beat up cars since you can't really go too wrong.

[XxMerlinxX]

Originally Posted by rjd598

well what type of polisher is it?

Griot's Garage 6" polisher.

Tried it out with some Meg's Ultimate liquid polish and did alright. I don't think the liquid polish I used was abrasive enough though, as I still had some scratches that didn't come out.

[rjd598]

Originally Posted by XxMerlinxX

Griot's Garage 6" polisher.

Tried it out with some Meg's Ultimate liquid polish and did alright. I don't think the liquid polish I used was abrasive enough though, as I still had some scratches that didn't come out.

you won't burn through it, but watch some videos from junkman on how to properly polish. start with a compound like m105 and then follow up with m205

[RoshDawg]

How do you like that polisher? My fiancé is always complaining about the porter cable I bought her. Saying it's too harsh for her to handle for long.
I really recommend watching a ton of YouTube videos of how to use them. Clay your car completely and make sure it's smooth as glass to the touch. To practice, use a black pad with a glaze or finishing polish to get the hang of it. Then when you've got it down, do the regular steps of compound then polish with orange and white pads respectively. Good luck.

[Z K]

Originally Posted by RoshDawg

How do you like that polisher? My fiancé is always complaining about the porter cable I bought her. Saying it's too harsh for her to handle for long.
I really recommend watching a ton of YouTube videos of how to use them. Clay your car completely and make sure it's smooth as glass to the touch. To practice, use a black pad with a glaze or finishing polish to get the hang of it. Then when you've got it down, do the regular steps of compound then polish with orange and white pads respectively. Good luck.

The porter cable is not a very smooth machine but it gets the job done. The good thing is, it is not so powerful so you can work the polish for a while without damaging the paint. I've burned through paint with a rotory before.. not fun. Be careful.

[nickzhu50581203]

i watched drive clean on Youtube, Larry from ammo nyc said DA polisher will be really easy on the paint, it is not too expensive too. I am also watching tons of videos and want to start detail my car myself too. Good luck on yours

[XxMerlinxX]

Originally Posted by RoshDawg

How do you like that polisher? My fiancé is always complaining about the porter cable I bought her. Saying it's too harsh for her to handle for long.
I really recommend watching a ton of YouTube videos of how to use them. Clay your car completely and make sure it's smooth as glass to the touch. To practice, use a black pad with a glaze or finishing polish to get the hang of it. Then when you've got it down, do the regular steps of compound then polish with orange and white pads respectively. Good luck.

The Griot's polisher has more power than the Porter Cable, so I'm not sure that she'd enjoy using it either.