[MatthewAMEL]

Greetings, all.

Going to Ceramic my car next week while I have a few days off.

Can some folks please chime in with recommendations on a detailing/swirl checking light? I'd like to go over all my panels with a good quality light source before coating.

Thanks in advance.

[KirkH]

I have all the fancy swirl finding flashlights. I prefer halogen for seeing swirls but they get hot.

I wouldn't recommend buying a detailing light for what you are doing. Sunlight is the best. Next best is a big halide in a parking lot. A $20 LED work light from Lowes will do fine for you.

[SSport16]

Even a small LED flashlight works well if you are going over a few spots. I use one in my garage and it works great if I am looking for scratches/flaws/issues, etc.

[timmy8784]

Agree with above. Sunlight is the absolute best source for checking progress (all swirl finding lights mention how their product reproduces sunlight). Unless you wanna spend in the hundreds for the Scangrip lighting system, go with a simple flashlight and use the sunlight when you can.

Good luck!

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

When correcting paint always do a 2' x 2' area first, then check the area with lighting. Don't proceed on until you get this area to your satisfaction. Then repeat the exact same process on the rest of the car.

As mentioned, sunlight is best. I have a Flex swirl finder light, and while it works well, it's ridiculously over-priced.

Check Amazon for a 3 mode adjustable flashlight, around 130-200 lumens.

This video shows how to correctly use a light, but again, this light is WAY overpriced, and it isn't even made by Flex. It's a Cree light.

[MatthewAMEL]

Originally Posted by Joe M 2012 2SS

When correcting paint always do a 2' x 2' area first, then check the area with lighting. Don't proceed on until you get this area to your satisfaction. Then repeat the exact same process on the rest of the car.

Great advice. I'll post some before and afters...

[ride98red]

Originally Posted by MatthewAMEL

Great advice. I'll post some before and afters...

Any results to share? I tried my hand this weekend at paint correction and it seems like the clear/paint is really hard.

[KirkH]

Originally Posted by ride98red

Any results to share? I tried my hand this weekend at paint correction and it seems like the clear/paint is really hard.

What tool, pad and polish did you use?

[ride98red]

Originally Posted by KirkH

What tool, pad and polish did you use?

Torq 10fx with M205 and a white polishing pad. I'm finding it quite difficult to polish the white. I think I need a better light.

[KirkH]

Originally Posted by ride98red

Torq 10fx with M205 and a white polishing pad. I'm finding it quite difficult to polish the white. I think I need a better light.

When you say "difficult" does that mean having hard time removing swirls? Or hard time seeing if you are getting results?

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

If your paint has swirls, you'll need to compound first. Lots of different options. My go to for most factory paint is Megs D300 and their DMC microfiber cutting pad. No dusting, residue wipes off easily. GM paint is usually around medium in hardness. Swirls are generally around 2-3 microns deep. 205 through a full cycle on medium/hard paint will remove 1 micron or less of paint. The Megs D300/DMC is usually around 4 microns.

Here's a video with some good options for lighting on white paint.
Unfortunately the Brinkmann Dual Xenon has been discontinued.




White is more difficult to see defects on versus a darker base color. If your doing this in your garage, be sure the lights in your garage aren't flooding the paint with too much light. This will make defects harder to see.

[KirkH]

Compounding for swirls? That’s not the approach of using the least
aggressive method for your task.

I start with a white pad, quality polisher and a polish low on the Autopia polish aggressiveness chart. If I dont get results I want, then:

1 more passes
2 more pressure on machine
3 more aggressive pad
4 more aggressive polish

[Joe M 2012 2SS]

Originally Posted by KirkH

Compounding for swirls? That’s not the approach of using the least
aggressive method for your task.

I start with a white pad, quality polisher and a polish low on the Autopia polish aggressiveness chart. If I dont get results I want, then:

1 more passes
2 more pressure on machine
3 more aggressive pad
4 more aggressive polish

I inspect the paint first. Very few cars have only light wash marring on them. Then take paint measurements from each panel if it's obvious the car needs compounding.

For most all GM paint I've done, it tends to be medium in hardness. A finishing polish and finishing pad wont remove swirls.

Many cars have the DISO (dealership installed swirl option) right off the lot. No sense trying to remove them with a finishing polish.

Most of these scratch marks (swirls) are 2-3 microns deep.
Use a combination that will cut enough to level the paint, removing all defects except for RIDS (random isolated deeper scratches).
Most Camaro's have 50 plus microns of clear, so removing 4 microns isn't that big of a deal.
The key is to wash the car properly after you've done the initial correction, so you never have to use compound again, only finishing polish, for normal light wash marring you'll get over a year of weekly washing.

Some times on softer paints, a medium cut pad and finishing polish will be enough. It's rare that GM has a paint this soft though.

On harder paint like Mercedes or Audi, a finishing polish is a complete waste of time to try and remove defects.

Nothing wrong with trying out a section first with finishing polish and light cutting pad, but if it isn't removing defects, step up to a compound, unless the paint measures too thin to do so. Again this is rare.

[wrankin]

Originally Posted by KirkH

1 more passes
2 more pressure on machine
3 more aggressive pad
4 more aggressive polish

Hey Kirk,

Interesting methodology. A couple of questions. Generally if I apply more pressure the pads seem to heat up, and start to come apart, so now I try to let the machine do the work. I even had a 3" hook and loop backing pad come apart - probably too high of a speed and not allowing it to cool down. All of my pads, (3 1/2 and 5 1/2) are Hex Logic from Chemical Guys. The 3" backing pad is also from Chemical Guys. So, do I need better quality pads or do I need to do something different?

Can you expand on the more aggressive pads and more aggressive polish, and the products and pads you use together?

Thanks
Bill