Why are some scared to use machines?

I have noticed some threads lately, often titled(or close to) "Ready to move from hand polishing to machine"... as if hand polishing is less scary and easier to grasp. IT SUCKS! It's almost always uneven or shows errors on your parts much more then a machine will. I tried hand polishing my dad's '91 Ram one time, not only did it take forever and a month, it was uneven. Each panel was different because of me stopping and taking breaks. Came back, tired, applied different pressure next panel. Overall I literally wasted my time.

I found myself machine polishing it next summer. Wow, so much easier and better. I guess I just wish to save beginners time and tell them to just get a machine. You'll learn to be more proficient in that faster then hand polishing, trust me. It isn't the 70s anymore, pads and machines are much better these days.

I suppose this begged that I ask myself why I didn't go with a machine right out of the gate, eh? Well, to put it simple I was naive to the whole industry some 5-6 years ago. DON'T BE ME!

I think fear of ruining the paint back from the straight orbital days. I’ve definitely hand prepped and waxed my last car, I just need a project vehicle before I hit the gti. My 2010 Black Honda Odyssey, never waxed, should do the trick. I had some help from an expert here selecting what to get, but am saving it for the kids to buy for me for Christmas.


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EASY...without the correct guide/instruction & wrong cheap pads....you can still make a nice pretty spiders web pattern....


Mind you I don't polish mine any more....

Crystal black serum from GT...7yrs warranty.....

& the last car I did was my previous car before I sold it..14yrs old original paintwork & in good nick...just was "honest".

2 weeks detailing/cleaning including 6 days machine compounding & polishing (two layers base polish & two layers sealant coat)....

.feck me it was shiny & scratch free after that & looked better than when I bought it new !!

chiefhiawatha said:

I think fear of ruining the paint back from the straight orbital days.

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It's funny how some old-timey advice just refuses to die, isn't it? If you're using a random-orbital polisher, it's almost impossible to damage your paint.

Shane_Anigans said:

It's funny how some old-timey advice just refuses to die, isn't it? If you're using a random-orbital polisher, it's almost impossible to damage your paint.

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I always found myself stalling it. I prefer direct drive on the slowest speed. Just make sure you always hold the pad flat on the panel and NEVER stop moving.

The Fed said:

I always found myself stalling it.

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Then you need something with more torque (or you're using way too much pressure).

I actually watched a ton of YT reviews and ended up with the Harbor Freight DA to learn on, as it apparently is held in higher regard (assuming one swaps out the faulty OE backing pad) than the PC or others in the 150-ish price range.

One actually has to spend 3-4x more than the HF to get something noticeably better. Obviously it's not the be-all end-all of DA polishers, far from it. Until I'm ready to get something european, though, I'll run this till it's burned out and get another when that happens.

armedferret said:

Then you need something with more torque (or you're using way too much pressure).

I actually watched a ton of YT reviews and ended up with the Harbor Freight DA to learn on, as it apparently is held in higher regard (assuming one swaps out the faulty OE backing pad) than the PC or others in the 150-ish price range.

One actually has to spend 3-4x more than the HF to get something noticeably better. Obviously it's not the be-all end-all of DA polishers, far from it. Until I'm ready to get something european, though, I'll run this till it's burned out and get another when that happens.

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I did exactly the same thing.

My buddy has the porter cable, its a little smaller, lighter, and slightly less powerful.

I've gotten excellent results from the harbor freight DA.

I use a meguiars backing plate, meguiars microfiber cutting and finishing pads, and an assortment or chemical guys hex-logic pads.

Meguiars correction compund and their finishing wax are an awesome combo for 2 step.

For 1 step I either use just the finish wax or Klasse All in One.

Which harbor freight model? The ones I am seeing look very inexpensive. A link would be great


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chiefhiawatha said:

Which harbor freight model? The ones I am seeing look very inexpensive. A link would be great


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They make two 6" DA polishers and they are not the same.

This is the one you want:

https://m.harborfreight.com/6-in-57-amp-heavy-duty-dual-action-variable-speed-polisher-69924.html

Get rid of the backing pad immediately, it's junk. Replace it with a quality one.

Also, don't buy their pads.

Hoon said:

They make two 6" DA polishers and they are not the same.

This is the one you want:

https://m.harborfreight.com/6-in-57-amp-heavy-duty-dual-action-variable-speed-polisher-69924.html

Get rid of the backing pad immediately, it's junk. Replace it with a quality one.

Also, don't buy their pads.

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Thanks for the tip! I'll be picking one of these up pretty soon; in the LED glow of the shop light the other night, I spotted some swirl marks on the hood, on my brand-new car! Gotta love a dealership that machine-washes your car before you buy it, eh?

So, besides the Meguiar's backing plate, what else should I get, pad-wise? I'm going to use Meguiar's Ultimate Polish (I've had good results in the past, on cars with much worse paint), and then their Gold Class carnauba plus paste wax. I don't think I'll need to clay it first, since the car's only got 780 miles on it, and the paint is still very smooth.

Shane_Anigans said:

Thanks for the tip! I'll be picking one of these up pretty soon; in the LED glow of the shop light the other night, I spotted some swirl marks on the hood, on my brand-new car! Gotta love a dealership that machine-washes your car before you buy it, eh?

So, besides the Meguiar's backing plate, what else should I get, pad-wise? I'm going to use Meguiar's Ultimate Polish (I've had good results in the past, on cars with much worse paint), and then their Gold Class carnauba plus paste wax. I don't think I'll need to clay it first, since the car's only got 780 miles on it, and the paint is still very smooth.

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Once you get it good and clean with a hand wash, put your hand in a plastic bag and lightly run it across the paint (in many spots, not just one--there's lots of panels on the car). If you hear/feel any dragging, go ahead and clay.

Also look into sealant instead of just wax. Wax honestly lasts about a week or so. Yeah they like to claim on packaging it "lasts for months!" but that just isn't the case with wax. Sealants will last a few months, up to 6 or so if you don't wash *TOO* frequently (bonus is that you can usually foam it and rinse and that takes care of it).

For pads, I snagged a couple of the 25-dollar black/white/orange kits from ebay here:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Chemical-G...722947&hash=item2831a794e3:g:9-IAAOSw5UZY9mz7

It's far cheaper than buying them individually, plus you get the cleaner spray. Add a pad cleaning brush (amazon has plenty from which to choose) and you're set for *MOST* of the work you'll need to do. Yes, there *ARE* more aggressive pads out there, but if you're doing a correction and then glazing/sealing over it now, and maintaining from there, you shouldn't need anything more aggressive than an orange pad.

I use Meguiar's 105/205 for compound and polish. There's TONS out there, it all does about the same thing. Some dusts a little less than others. The Meguiar's was cheap and great for a beginner.

What sealant do you like?


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chiefhiawatha said:

What sealant do you like?


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Not saying buy from here, but this is a good lineup with matching pad:

https://shop.prodetailingsupplies.ca/MEGUIAR-S-M105-ULTRA-CUT-COMPOUND-p/kt-067.htm

This is after the 105/205 combo and before sealing:




Be aware 105 dusts and it likes to get in window seams and whatnot. Start with 205 and see how it looks. Far less dusty.

chiefhiawatha said:

What sealant do you like?


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Check out Klasse All in One polish and sealant.

Non abrasive so not for any heavy correction, but will remove light swirls.

Also outlasts most other sealants...it is acrylic and very durable.

The swirls are minute, and only noticeable with my LED Portable Sun (work light) pointed at it. So, looks like the mild polishes you recommend will do the job. Thanks!