This forum has helped me alot to get this far but now I just can't get this project finished. I have dark green non-metalic single stage urethane and wet sanded it to meguires 2000 then 3m compound using a 3m black foam polish pad, 1500 rpm, then 3m finessit with 3m black foam, 1100 rpm, then 3m machine glaze for dark colors 1000 rpm. All with different pads using same Makita rotary. At each stage it looks really good and very wet and glossy looking in the light of my shop. In bright sun light it has holograms and if you look real close it has very very fine swirl scratches. What am I doing wrong? Materials? Tecnique? How do I get rid of the Hologram look.

Thanks for all advice, Mike

Your method sounds very good to me, But I would polish with 3M swril remover with new black polishing foam (1200rpm)after the machine glaze. I think the machine glaze is a little to agressive for your dark color. This took care of the same problem with my black ssu chroma-one paint job.I am not a professional buffer, but a hobbiest. Any one else got an idea?

That is the reason I hate buffing... been doing it for 13 years and always work myself to death on dark colors... I have used primarily Mirror glaze products in the past and this year finally tried out some 3M.. I think the 3M compound does a better job at removing sand scratches and leaving less swirls, but I think Mirror glaze has the market on polishes... Their Dual Action polish is the only step I need after compounding.. I dont use glaze's because I have never needed anything after the Dual Action...

Another thing is IMO just mine of course Mirror glaze also has the market on buffing pads... The 3m pads sucked in comparison to the mirror glaze pads.. They load up quicker and are harder to keep clean as you go along... I usually do overalls so I see how well pads hold up for an all day buffing event.... Of course 3M has a great following and for good reason so dont think I am a 3m hater, just I had used mirror glaze for 12 years and tried this out thinking it would be better and was let down with the performance of like the Finesse IT lll product etc.....

A good friend of mine who has been to paint school always told me when buffing a dark color ... Use a foam pad, but not a compound pad, use the same one you would use for polish/glaze, he swore that it would keep the swirls down to nothing... Then use a fresh polish pad for your polish/ glaze... I have done this and it works great... Takes a little longer to compound but you dont chase scratches and swirls etc all day long... With abrasive pads and fresh paint you cant hardly win when it comes to dark colors... Fresh paint will scratch when you wash it and run a towel across it so imagine what a pad at 1500 rpm can do.


Lastly between stages make sure you completely clean all the compound off... If you have compound residue and then go to polishing you are grinding that compound grit into the paint still and it will never be right... Trust me... I know that one from experience..

BK

I have had to learn buffing on red and black. Drove me nutz. I got the 3 step 3M system, i like the cloth pads. Use the white for rough cut, then the yellow for the fine stuff. Then basically got a fine yellow one that i just use for polishing keeping it clean and making sure all i wipe all the dust off. If you keep all the buffing dust off all those scatches disappear. I just keep my buffing pad clean as possible and dont let dust build up. I broke down bought clean rags and wipe and clean the dust away while cleaning the pads. The dust if you run thru it puts swirls back. That was the drive me nutz part. I would get it looking good just to mess it up over and over. I hated buffing now i kinda like it,, not really!!!!