Polishing

Overview

Polishing is the step in the detailing process that yields the most dramatic difference in your paint's appearance. The objective of polishing is to remove imperfections in the clear coat that cause the paint to look dull. Surface imperfections can include swirls, scratches, water spots, etchings, industrial fallout, oxidation, etc. These surface imperfections cause light to fragment instead of passing directly through the clear coat yielding less gloss and depth. When these imperfections are removed, you will reveal the true potential of your vehicle's paint.

A swirl mark is a very thin and shallow scratch on the surface of your paint, that often comes from washing and drying improperly. Waxes, sealants and most glazes will not permanently remove these surface imperfections at best they will hide them temporarily. To eliminate these imperfections safely and permanently you want to polish the surface starting with a less aggressive polish and using more aggressive polishes as needed. The chemical polishing agents and/or the polishing particles will safely remove the extremely fine imperfections.

Frequency

We recommend only polishing as needed, which is typically around one to two times per year during a full detail. After a thorough multiple step polishing process has been completed you can maintain the finish properly using the correct washing and drying products and techniques. Keeping the paint in good condition will ensure it needs less frequent polishing.

Why Use a Buffer?

While you can polish by hand, it is highly recommended to use a quality buffer for maximum results. When you remove imperfections in your paint, you are working in polishing particles thoroughly and evenly. To do this by hand, you need to use a fair amount of pressure while moving the pad rather quickly. To put it in perspective, the standard in the industry for buffers is the Porter Cable 7424 XP. This buffer can generate 6,800 oscillations per minute at full speed very safely and effectively. Imagine trying to move your arm 6,800 times per minute for hours on end, all while exerting 10 - 15 lbs of pressure on the applicator pad. It's impossible to duplicate by hand and it can be tiresome to do a small fraction of this work by hand.

Another main advantage of a buffer is its ability to work with various pads that help increase the polishing power. For example a blue pad is extremely soft so it's used for extremely fine polishes, but if you use an orange pad it's more dense and can work in a medium cutting polish extremely well. Best of all these pads all use the same hook and loop backing so you simply slap them on and pull them off with ease and no tools are needed. Below we will outline some of the most popular buffers for detailers and what pads and polishes they work great with. There is no one best buffer and there is no one best combination of pad and polishes, however our recommendations come from years of experience and consistently yield excellent results.

How-To Polish

Properly polishing your paint to remove imperfections can take lots of practice to master, but if you follow these steps as closely as possible, you'll get the best results in the shortest amount of time. Before you polish your vehicle, the paint should already be washed and clayed for maximum results.

Proper Lighting

In order to know if you are getting the results you are looking for when polishing, it is extremely important to invest in quality lighting. One of the most cost effective light sources you can purchase is a handheld light gun by Brinkmann. Using the proper lighting will reveal imperfections in your paint and give you a clear understanding if the polishing combination you selected is going to give you the results you'll be looking for.

Caring for Pads

As you polish and your pads become saturated with product, you are going to want to swap them out for fresh pads after every couple of panels. To maximize the life of your pads, it's highly advised to keep a 5 gallon bucket of water with some Snappy Clean solution mixed in. As you are done with a pad, simply put it in the bucket to begin soaking to release and dissolve the polish right away. This will help keep your pads in like new condition without much work. When you are done letting the pads soak in the solution, take them out and blast them with a stream of water from your hose or pressure washer. Allow them to completely dry and store them in a labeled Ziploc bag with the product you used with the pad. It is best practice to only use 1 product per pad.

Taping

To help reduce the risk of damaging any part of your vehicle, it is best to tape off the areas you want to protect. By properly taping, it also allows you to get as close to trim pieces as possible without damaging them. There are many quality options on the market but we recommend the Meguiar's Professional Masking Tape. This will release easily from your paint with little to no residue left behind and is easy to clean up. We recommend taping off any area you do not want to polish or get any product on. Common areas to tape are your trim pieces, around emblems, headlights, tail lights, around clear bras, and more. When in doubt, tape it up, it's better to prevent a problem than to create one.

Step 1: Attach the appropriate backing plate to the buffer

Step 2: Center your pad on the backing plate

Step 3: Apply several pea sized drops of polish on the outer edge of the pad (apply a few extra drops to a fresh pad

Step 4: Visualize your working area, starting with a small 12" x 12" box on a horizontal surface

Step 5: Trace your working area with the polish on your pad with the buffer off

Step 6: Turn the buffer on a low speed setting (1 - 3) and spread the polish evenly through the entire 12" x 12" working area

Step 7: Turn the speed dial of the buffer up to 5 or 6 and start in a corner of your 12" x 12" working area

Step 8: Begin to apply roughly 15 - 20 lbs of pressure on the head of the buffer

Step 9: Working from one corner to the next, move the buffer at a pace of 1" per second while exerting the 15 - 20 lbs of pressure

Step 10: Once you reach the opposite corner, follow the same path back to where you started, but overlap your first pass by approximately 50%

Step 11: Continue this pattern until you have polished your entire 12" x 12" working area

Step 12: Polish the area again, but this time use the opposite direction (if you were working top to bottom then bottom to top the first time around, change it to left to right and right to left overlapping movements)

Step 13: Polish the area the same as you did the first time, but this time use slightly less pressure

Step 14: If the polish is broken down (usually looks like a clear milky haze), shut the buffer off

Step 15: Using a clean microfiber towel, remove the broken down polish from the paint

Step 16: Assess your work with your light source to ensure you have achieved the results you were looking for

Step 17: Repeat steps 3 through 16 until the entire vehicle has been polished

Note: After every couple of panels, replace your pad with a fresh one for maximum results. If you are working with a limited number of pads, clean out the pad after every few sections using a medium bristled toothbrush and the buffer on a low speed (do this away from the car as it can potentially dust quite a bit).

Hand Polishing

Step 1: If you are using the Polishing Pal select the desired pad and center it on the Polishing Pal

Step 2: Apply a few pea sized drops of polish to the face of a clean pad (when the pad is new you can apply a few extra drops)

Step 3: Spread the product over a 18" x 18" area or less with extremely light pressure to distribute the product evenly

Step 4: Work the polish in with medium to firm pressure in a circular motion

Step 5: Overlap each pass by 50% working left to right and then up and down

Step 6: Remove the excess product immediately or within a few minutes with a clean microfiber towel

Step 7: Assess your work with your light source to ensure you have achieved the results you were looking for

Step 8: Repeat steps 1 through 7 until the entire vehicle has been polished

Upon completion the paint should have less swirls, oxidation and other surface imperfections. With a more optically clear surface you will now get a deeper gloss and a better shine. Additionally your sealant or wax used afterward will bond to this cleaner and smoother surface better so you can expect increased durability from the protection.