After several years of wanting one, I finally took advantage of AutoGeek's sale last weekend and got a PC 7424XP with a selection of Lake Country pads. I also purchased the DG 601/105 combo and various other supplies. BUT, in all of my excitement, I totally forgot to put a swirl remover polish into my cart. Had been waffling between a few choices, then totally forgot to make a final decision before checking out. I promised the lady friend I would detail her car this weekend. So, I need to go get an OTC polish product. without any input, I assume the safest thing to do is to get one of the 3M products which are readily available at Wallmart and the local auto parts stores. Other than 3M, I am not aware of any local sources for the 'better-than-Turtlewax' detail brands. Do you have any recommendations for readily available OTC light to medium polishes? Thanks!
OTC Swirl Removers?
- Thread starter Geauxtiger
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Meguiar M105/M205 are good general-purpose polishes for swirl removal. You can find them at some auto parts stores.
If M105 and M205 are too hard to find then you can pick up it's consumer counterparts: Ultimate Compound and Ultimate Polish.
All of the above are for removing swirls. However if I were polishing someone else's car, I'd play it safe and go with cleaning the paint and hiding the swirls using Mother's Step 1 and 2 system.
However even in the car capital (Los Angeles) M105, M205 are sparse. I have yet to see the two sold side-by-side. I can only find one or the other at different auto parts stores. Mother's I have seen, but only at Pep Boys.
Ultimate Compound and Polish, though, I see everywhere. Even Target and Walmart.
All of the above are for removing swirls. However if I were polishing someone else's car, I'd play it safe and go with cleaning the paint and hiding the swirls using Mother's Step 1 and 2 system.
However even in the car capital (Los Angeles) M105, M205 are sparse. I have yet to see the two sold side-by-side. I can only find one or the other at different auto parts stores. Mother's I have seen, but only at Pep Boys.
Ultimate Compound and Polish, though, I see everywhere. Even Target and Walmart.
Meguiar's Ultimate Compound. Wal-mart usually has it.
The name is somewhat deceiving, as it does not have the cut of a typical compound, IMO. I applied it with a MF bonnet on a pad and did not have to use a finer polish to remove any hazing. I was able to go straight to a LSP after using.
I'd consider it a medium cut product. IOW, it's great for a car that was been maintained, but not outright neglected or abused. It's also unnecessary for paint in excellent condition.
Personally, if I needed something more aggressive than Ultimate Compound applied with a 7424, I'd step up to a rotary.
I was kinda underwhelmed with the results of using it, not because the results were bad, but because there was so much hype surrounding the product. It performs as advertised, not as hyped.
The name is somewhat deceiving, as it does not have the cut of a typical compound, IMO. I applied it with a MF bonnet on a pad and did not have to use a finer polish to remove any hazing. I was able to go straight to a LSP after using.
I'd consider it a medium cut product. IOW, it's great for a car that was been maintained, but not outright neglected or abused. It's also unnecessary for paint in excellent condition.
Personally, if I needed something more aggressive than Ultimate Compound applied with a 7424, I'd step up to a rotary.
I was kinda underwhelmed with the results of using it, not because the results were bad, but because there was so much hype surrounding the product. It performs as advertised, not as hyped.
Thanks Gents! I may head out to the local Wally World and/or Autozone this afternoon to pick up one of these products. Appreciate the info!
Originally Posted By: razel
If M105 and M205 are too hard to find then you can pick up it's consumer counterparts: Ultimate Compound and Ultimate Polish.
Do the Ultimate products have the new chemistry that M105/205 do? I know there was a reformulation of those recently that vastly improved their effectiveness. I can't remember the exact name of it though.
If M105 and M205 are too hard to find then you can pick up it's consumer counterparts: Ultimate Compound and Ultimate Polish.
Do the Ultimate products have the new chemistry that M105/205 do? I know there was a reformulation of those recently that vastly improved their effectiveness. I can't remember the exact name of it though.
I have the same Porter Cable 7424XP and the following work well for me to remove swirls:
Mothers Step 1
Meguiars Ultimate
Meguiars SwirlX
Usually the SwirlX is sufficient and has the least aggressive cutting compounds of the three.
Mothers Step 1
Meguiars Ultimate
Meguiars SwirlX
Usually the SwirlX is sufficient and has the least aggressive cutting compounds of the three.
The brown truck showed up a little while ago. I felt like a kid on Christmas morning. If only I had not forgotten the swirl remover!! Thanks for all the input. I will make a run to town later today to see which of the products you mentioned above can be found.
Nice -- looks like fun times are in your future.
Ended up getting Meg's ultimate Compound and Ultimate Polish. Not much else to choose from in this little town I live in and I'm not in the mood to drive 30mi to fight the Baton Rouge traffic to get a better selection. These should work fine for an amateur like me. Maybe when/if I get good at polishing I may become more of a connoisseur of the finer polish products.
Originally Posted By: dparm
Originally Posted By: razel
If M105 and M205 are too hard to find then you can pick up it's consumer counterparts: Ultimate Compound and Ultimate Polish.
Do the Ultimate products have the new chemistry that M105/205 do? I know there was a reformulation of those recently that vastly improved their effectiveness. I can't remember the exact name of it though.
My information is old, but I think Ultimate Compound and Polish were introduced after M105/205. Unless M105/205 was updated in the past 2-3 years then I guess the M105/205s got the new formula. I believe the primary difference between the Ultimates and M105/205 is the lattter are body shop safe. I'm not sure if that mean's it's OSHA or new paint compliant or longer working times for rotarys, all of the above... none of the above?
Originally Posted By: razel
If M105 and M205 are too hard to find then you can pick up it's consumer counterparts: Ultimate Compound and Ultimate Polish.
Do the Ultimate products have the new chemistry that M105/205 do? I know there was a reformulation of those recently that vastly improved their effectiveness. I can't remember the exact name of it though.
My information is old, but I think Ultimate Compound and Polish were introduced after M105/205. Unless M105/205 was updated in the past 2-3 years then I guess the M105/205s got the new formula. I believe the primary difference between the Ultimates and M105/205 is the lattter are body shop safe. I'm not sure if that mean's it's OSHA or new paint compliant or longer working times for rotarys, all of the above... none of the above?
Originally Posted By: strat81
Meguiar's Ultimate Compound. Wal-mart usually has it.
The name is somewhat deceiving, as it does not have the cut of a typical compound, IMO. I applied it with a MF bonnet on a pad and did not have to use a finer polish to remove any hazing. I was able to go straight to a LSP after using.
I'd consider it a medium cut product. IOW, it's great for a car that was been maintained, but not outright neglected or abused. It's also unnecessary for paint in excellent condition.
Personally, if I needed something more aggressive than Ultimate Compound applied with a 7424, I'd step up to a rotary.
I was kinda underwhelmed with the results of using it, not because the results were bad, but because there was so much hype surrounding the product. It performs as advertised, not as hyped.
Ultimate Compound has a lot of cut. Don't let the fine finish it leaves on the first pass fool you. This is SMAT based abrasives. Even on a very fast first pass it won't leave the hazing and scratches a traditional rocks in a bottle compound would leave but it doesn't mean it's not removing quite a bit of material.
Anything that can take out 2000 grit wet sanding haze is very aggressive. SMAT abrasive is designed to work differently in that it doesn't break down so you never will get the initial hazing but as long as it's being worked it will continuously cut into the paint and in fact overworking Ultimate Compound will eventually see the finish quality degrade not refine unlike traditional diminishing abrasives where the longer you work the finer the finish. So overwork Ultimate Compound at your own risk.
Originally Posted By: razel
My information is old, but I think Ultimate Compound and Polish were introduced after M105/205. Unless M105/205 was updated in the past 2-3 years then I guess the M105/205s got the new formula. I believe the primary difference between the Ultimates and M105/205 is the lattter are body shop safe. I'm not sure if that mean's it's OSHA or new paint compliant or longer working times for rotarys, all of the above... none of the above?
The Ultimate Lineup is basically an OTC amateur friendly version of M105 and M205. It has extra lubricant added. My own informal analysis at my lab at work showed me that Ultimate Compound is a mix of diminishing and SMAT abrasives designed to break down to final finish extremely fast while offering very aggressive cutting for the first few initial passes before breaking down the diminishing abrasives and working solely using the high lubrication and SMAT formula. But Ultimate Polish is basically just M205 with even more lubricant.
But like I said Ultimate Compound is far from a light polish. When used with a machine it's as aggressive as most decent compounds, it just finishes much better which does fool people. So don't use Ultimate Compound as a seasonal polish. That's living quite dangerously.
Meguiar's Ultimate Compound. Wal-mart usually has it.
The name is somewhat deceiving, as it does not have the cut of a typical compound, IMO. I applied it with a MF bonnet on a pad and did not have to use a finer polish to remove any hazing. I was able to go straight to a LSP after using.
I'd consider it a medium cut product. IOW, it's great for a car that was been maintained, but not outright neglected or abused. It's also unnecessary for paint in excellent condition.
Personally, if I needed something more aggressive than Ultimate Compound applied with a 7424, I'd step up to a rotary.
I was kinda underwhelmed with the results of using it, not because the results were bad, but because there was so much hype surrounding the product. It performs as advertised, not as hyped.
Ultimate Compound has a lot of cut. Don't let the fine finish it leaves on the first pass fool you. This is SMAT based abrasives. Even on a very fast first pass it won't leave the hazing and scratches a traditional rocks in a bottle compound would leave but it doesn't mean it's not removing quite a bit of material.
Anything that can take out 2000 grit wet sanding haze is very aggressive. SMAT abrasive is designed to work differently in that it doesn't break down so you never will get the initial hazing but as long as it's being worked it will continuously cut into the paint and in fact overworking Ultimate Compound will eventually see the finish quality degrade not refine unlike traditional diminishing abrasives where the longer you work the finer the finish. So overwork Ultimate Compound at your own risk.
Originally Posted By: razel
My information is old, but I think Ultimate Compound and Polish were introduced after M105/205. Unless M105/205 was updated in the past 2-3 years then I guess the M105/205s got the new formula. I believe the primary difference between the Ultimates and M105/205 is the lattter are body shop safe. I'm not sure if that mean's it's OSHA or new paint compliant or longer working times for rotarys, all of the above... none of the above?
The Ultimate Lineup is basically an OTC amateur friendly version of M105 and M205. It has extra lubricant added. My own informal analysis at my lab at work showed me that Ultimate Compound is a mix of diminishing and SMAT abrasives designed to break down to final finish extremely fast while offering very aggressive cutting for the first few initial passes before breaking down the diminishing abrasives and working solely using the high lubrication and SMAT formula. But Ultimate Polish is basically just M205 with even more lubricant.
But like I said Ultimate Compound is far from a light polish. When used with a machine it's as aggressive as most decent compounds, it just finishes much better which does fool people. So don't use Ultimate Compound as a seasonal polish. That's living quite dangerously.
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Thanks for the lesson Qwertydude. I'll use this stuff with an abundance of caution.
SMAT, that's what I was thinking of. Great info, qwertydude.
Originally Posted By: razel
. I believe the primary difference between the Ultimates and M105/205 is the lattter are body shop safe. I'm not sure if that mean's it's OSHA or new paint compliant or longer working times for rotarys, all of the above... none of the above?
Well you are correct in that M105/M205 are body shop safe, and Ultimate Compound isn't. Body shop safe compounds/polishes are safe to use in environments where paint is being sprayed, such as a body shop of course.
. I believe the primary difference between the Ultimates and M105/205 is the lattter are body shop safe. I'm not sure if that mean's it's OSHA or new paint compliant or longer working times for rotarys, all of the above... none of the above?
Well you are correct in that M105/M205 are body shop safe, and Ultimate Compound isn't. Body shop safe compounds/polishes are safe to use in environments where paint is being sprayed, such as a body shop of course.
If lady-friend has no interest in taking meticulous care of the car, I would 2-step the car using M205. By 2-step, use an orange cutting pad and M205 to remove the light defects, haze and oxidation, and follow-up with M205 on a black pad to maximize gloss.
After some thought, I am starting to agree with qwertydude that the paint removal is not worth it on a DD. I would not hit the paint with an aggressive product if you’re detailing the car for the purposes of “enhancement.”
After some thought, I am starting to agree with qwertydude that the paint removal is not worth it on a DD. I would not hit the paint with an aggressive product if you’re detailing the car for the purposes of “enhancement.”
Just for swirl removal I'd say Ultimate Compound only if you have to but first try Ultimate Polish to see if you can get good enough results with it. Since you have a real deal polisher I'd say you'd most likely be able to remove everything but deep swirls with Ultimate Polish and a firm polishing pad. And it'll leave a finish good enough.
For a daily driver burnishing to a mirror finish is pointless. Just getting a the majority of the swirls and reducing the severity of the really bad swirls will be enough. After the first improper wash and dry the mirror finish be ruined. And likely unless it's a fellow detailer, the finish left behind after the first polish will stun them anyways.
For a daily driver burnishing to a mirror finish is pointless. Just getting a the majority of the swirls and reducing the severity of the really bad swirls will be enough. After the first improper wash and dry the mirror finish be ruined. And likely unless it's a fellow detailer, the finish left behind after the first polish will stun them anyways.
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