E30 Zone

I have purchased some Farecla G3 from ebay in order to bring out the shine on my oxidized paint work (not on my BMW thankfully!). Question is what's the best way to use it. I know you should use a machine polisher or buffer which I have with a lambswool mop and wash the car properly before using it, but some people I've heard say you should wet the bodywork and then apply it with the buffer on the wetted bodywork and other says wash the car and let it dry before applying it. Obviously once it's done you wash the car down to remove any residue and give it a good waxing. Is it worth waxing it with the colour wax stuff to put some more shine back?

Thanks, Kam

You're right about making sure the car is very clean, I personally wouldn't machine polish a car with a thorough going over with a clay bar as well - if you going to do it, do it properly because most of the finished result is in the prep.

I haven't used G3 myself, but a friend of mine rates it (although admits it is messy). I would suggest keeping the pad damp, not water straight on the panel. Don't go mad with the speed (what polisher are you using?), and the key to good results, like most polish, is to make sure it is fully broken down. Failure to do this can result in holograms and marring. Work in small areas at a time, really work the product through.

Oh, and mask up plastic trim really well because I'm told its an absolute sod to remove once its on there.

As for colour magic style wax, its shite. If you haven't got a decent finish when you've finished polishing, that stuff isn't going to help. Get yourself a decent sealant with a UV inhibitor, and follow that with a good quality carnuba wax.

Seconded, that colour wax is shite; I tried Halfrauds blue-coloured stuff and it went all blotchy when it rained

The guy I bought my Touring from had done the same thing. The paint was faded and he was using that to try and keep it alive. Once dry it was just a blotchy stained mess. I nearly choked when he handed me the bottle as I was about to drive away. At least he was making an effort to protect it I suppose, didn't have the heart to let him see me throw it in a bin as I drove off up the road!

Thanks for the advice gyus. ShineOn, i was going to use a standard B&Q (don't laugh) jobby buffer I got. I was thinking of getting a proper machine polisher like the pros use, but they seem a bit expensive being upwards of £60 or so. Any recommendations on what to use to bring the paint shine back and also a chepa but reasonable variable speed polisher?

I don't know which one you mean from B&Q, but without wishing to sound rude I expect it will be fairly naff - certainly not up to the job of working and breaking down an abrasive polish.

My Metabo rotary polisher was £170 - you get what you pay for. Saying that, I use it all the time so its justified. There are some rotary polishers on ebay called Silverline which I believe start at around £40. However, a rotary polisher in the wrong hands can cause far more damage than it can rectify, and they are not the most user friendly of machines. In particular I have been told those ones are quite heavy and they lack soft start and speed control (which means if you apply much pressure it will bog down at low speeds, which is what you would be using).

If you got one, and got some decent foam pads to go with it, I'd suggest having a practice on some scrap panels first (body shops will often let you have a couple for free) and get a good feel for the machine and the G3 before getting stuck in on your own car.

Cool, any ideas what the different coloured foam pads are all about? Blue, white, pink and orange. Seen them on ebay and assume it has something to do with the type of abrasive you will use? Deffo need to get a better polisher first I think!

Ranges of pads use colours to show what level of abrasion the pad offers.

For example, one of the ranges I use is Lake Country.

Black pad = Finishing Pad. No abrasion at all, used for Finishing polishes or sealant/glaze/wax application.
White pad = Polishing Pad. First level of abrasion.
Orange pad = Light Cutting Pad. More abrasive

etc

As the pads get more abrasive you can feel that they are a lot firmer. Golden rule when machining is to use the least abrasive combination of pad and product to do the job. So for example, you'd start with a Finishing Polish on a polishing pad, then if no good go up to a light cut pad. If still no good, go back to the polishing pad and use a slightly more abrasive polish, and so on.

By far the easiest polishing machine to use is called the Porter Cable 7424. Its an american machine that is a duel action random orbit polisher. This means that the chances of inflicting damage to paint through heat build up, or on clearcoated paint, strike through the clearcoat, is massively reduced compared to a rotary machine.

Downside is that by the time you've bought a decent transformer (110v) you are still into £150 + pads and products. But it is a great little machine.

ShineOn mate you'ver given me lots of good info here. i really appreciate it. i guess I got to save up some dosh and get me a decent polisher before I start polishing my car anytime soon.

Hiya, I bought a PRO (that's the brand name) random orbital from B&Q about three years ago with a 5" velcro pad. Thing has never let me down (touch wood) and works great! I do valeting from home as well as light restoration work and I use this little thing for all forms of sanding and polishing. No swirl marks or any issues. Thing is, I wanted to buy another one but they don't seem to have them anymore. Usually I start with G3 and then redo with Autoglym Resin polish and finish with Autoglym high gloss or Farcela / 3M glaze. Colour polish is crap as is Autoglym Show shine (swirls and residue) but Meguiars spray wax works great for a quick clean.

lance1a wrote:Hiya, I bought a PRO (that's the brand name) random orbital from B&Q about three years ago with a 5" velcro pad. Thing has never let me down (touch wood) and works great! I do valeting from home as well as light restoration work and I use this little thing for all forms of sanding and polishing. No swirl marks or any issues. Thing is, I wanted to buy another one but they don't seem to have them anymore. Usually I start with G3 and then redo with Autoglym Resin polish and finish with Autoglym high gloss or Farcela / 3M glaze. Colour polish is crap as is Autoglym Show shine (swirls and residue) but Meguiars spray wax works great for a quick clean.

i used to be a fam of meguairs and autoglym but since getting hold of some zainio gear and menzena there is no going back now.

my p/c cost me £125 all done including the tramsformer brand new. and with some pads.

whatever you do, dont use the lambswool mop - bloody agressive and you may end up regretting it. Get some decent pads (as mentioned before), either LC or Meguiars will do. This is probably more important than the quality of your polisher if you are only an occasional user.

Cheers,
Pad

just picked up a diamond black 325 touring on a G plate today for a mate. Intended to restore it to it's former glory but after washing all the crud off, the paintwork is a third rate blow-over. at least if they got the whole car as badly crazed as the rear quarter panel then it might look sort of 'fast n' furious' intentional, but try as i might, it still looks like a satin finish. time to get the gun out. ah well, got to paint the Alfa anyway.....

i would say, for the sake of 6 squid, try autoglym paint restorer, time consuming but very effective, worked a treat on my beamer, and still got a 3rd of the bottle left, worked for me, but each to their own

wet flat it then give it a realy good going over with the mop, you got nothing to lose.

just dont let the mop go dry or it will burn through the paintwork.sealey polishers are the mutts.

IMO air powered polishing mops are the best to use, not as aggressive as lecy mops. You do need a large air supply though