#80...How long should I polish? Is it the same for #83?

[suprimeau]

I've been trying to find out how long to polish a section with #80 Speed Glaze. I found a great post with tons of info Using the G-100 to remove swirls with the Professional Line As it says, I worked an area about 1 foot square. Now it says "Work the product until the diminishing abrasives have broken down, but you haven't gone completely to a dry buff." I'm having trouble determining when this is so I'm looking for a time frame to gauge this. I've seen 3-4 minutes and I've also seen two passes in two directions going slowly.

I tried working a 1 foot square for about 3 minutes then moving to a new section. This seems like a long time. It's hard to tell if the product has gone to a dry buff or not because it becomes hard to even see the product left on the surface. This maybe because I have a silver car.

I'm looking for some input. Also I’m also wondering if when I move to the #83 if it is relatively the same.

Thanks

[Ryan L.]

Re: #80...How long should I polish? Is it the same for #83?

Once it starts to "haze". or become cloudy looking, your ready to stop buffing and remove the product. 3-4 minutes sounds about right. You said your hacing problems seeing the "haze", try with a flashlight and looking at an angle.

Hope this helps a little!

[Michael Stoops]

Re: #80...How long should I polish? Is it the same for #83?

Once it starts to "haze". or become cloudy looking, your ready to stop buffing and remove the product. 3-4 minutes sounds about right. You said your hacing problems seeing the "haze", try with a flashlight and looking at an angle.

Hope this helps a little!

Actually, I think if it starts to haze you've gone too long. You should always have a "wet" surface immediately following the travel of the pad. If M80 has broken down to a clear film and is still wet then you're probably at the point where it's time to stop and wipe it off. This time varies with temperature, humidity, etc.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: #80...How long should I polish? Is it the same for #83?

Actually, I think if it starts to haze you've gone too long. You should always have a "wet" surface immediately following the travel of the pad. If M80 has broken down to a clear film and is still wet then you're probably at the point where it's time to stop and wipe it off. This time varies with temperature, humidity, etc.

Well written Mike, let us change that just a tad...


You should always have a "wet" surface immediately following the path of travel of the pad when the polisher is turned on.


That means as you move the polisher one direction, (doesn't matter the direction), the film of product left behind on the surface should be a wet film, not a dry film.

In most cases, if you can go in two directions, and make two passes for both directions, that's long enough, if you can squeeze 3 passes out of two directions that's for sure long enough, just don't buff to a dry buff.


This is so easy to show and so hard to teach using a keyboard.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: #80...How long should I polish? Is it the same for #83?

Also I’m also wondering if when I move to the #83 if it is relatively the same.

Ooops, nobody addressed this and it's important. #83 is quite a different beast than #80 is. Yes, it's more aggressive but it also requires a somewhat different technique because:

• play time is noticeably less with 83 than with 80
• 83 will dust more than 80, especially if you get to a dry buff situation or you oversaturate the pad
• avoid oversaturing the pad by cleaning it after every panel. Do this by holding the machine in one hand and pressing a terry cloth towel against the pad with your other hand. Turn the machine on, keeping pressure between towel and pad to force excess product out of the pad

While pad cleaning should really be done with 80 also, it isn't as critical as with 83. You'll also notice that since 80 has a higher level of polishing oils it the pad will glide much easier over the paint. This means you may not be able to use as much pressure with 83 because of this difference. Very soft paints may look a bit hazed after treatment with 83 and benefit greatly from a follow up with 80 - this is not always needed but should be evaluated after using 83.

[TH0001]

Re: #80...How long should I polish? Is it the same for #83?

I would like to expand on the #83 via rotary...

#83 has less play time, that is once the abbrasives have broken down, you won't have much time to play the surface before going to a dry buff. #80 on the other hand has a huge amount of play time in my experience, that is you can break the abbrasives down and make several more passes if you choose and still leave the surface wet. With #80 I can do half the car with #80 before removing product from the first section I buffed. By comparison, #83 gets difficult to remove if do more then two or three sections.

With #83, I have found that you cannot put alot of pressure on the head of the PC with out bogging the motor way down. It has less lubrication then #80, so it dusts more, has less play time, and is all around more finicky then #80. I don't know if you would ever consider a rotary, but if #80 isn't work via PC, I go straight to a rotary. With a rotary, #83 is a much more user friendly product to use.

These are just my honest opinions.

[acsuppa]

Re: #80...How long should I polish? Is it the same for #83?

I would like to expand on the #83 via rotary...

#83 has less play time, that is once the abbrasives have broken down, you won't have much time to play the surface before going to a dry buff. #80 on the other hand has a huge amount of play time in my experience, that is you can break the abbrasives down and make several more passes if you choose and still leave the surface wet. With #80 I can do half the car with #80 before removing product from the first section I buffed. By comparison, #83 gets difficult to remove if do more then two or three sections.

With #83, I have found that you cannot put alot of pressure on the head of the PC with out bogging the motor way down. It has less lubrication then #80, so it dusts more, has less play time, and is all around more finicky then #80. I don't know if you would ever consider a rotary, but if #80 isn't work via PC, I go straight to a rotary. With a rotary, #83 is a much more user friendly product to use.

These are just my honest opinions.

I used #83 a few times via my PC and I found it to be dusty and dry a lot quicker them #80. I guess I was trying to use it like #80 but it didn't really work well for me. I ended up reaching for #80.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: #80...How long should I polish? Is it the same for #83?

I used #83 a few times via my PC and I found it to be dusty and dry a lot quicker them #80. I guess I was trying to use it like #80 but it didn't really work well for me. I ended up reaching for #80.

The first couple of times I used #83 with the PC....well.....I all but hated it. It was dusting like crazy and it was a royal pain to remove. You see, I was using it exactly the same way I had been using #80, which I really enjoy using. I had a funny feeling the problem was me, not the #83. Sure enough after reading about how #83 really should be treated - a little less pressure, very frequent pad cleaning - I discovered that it's really as easy to use a #80, it's just different.

The real problem you get if you treat it like #80 is that, as it builds up in the pad it starts to dust. When you see this dust you start to think it's drying out so you stop buffing and try to wipe it off. But it hasn't broken down fully so it's difficult to remove. Once you do get it all wiped off, you just get deeper into the vicious cycle because now you add more product to the pad. Now it starts to dust sooner so you stop sooner. And it's even harder to remove. Well, you move on to the next panel so you.......add more product to the pad!!! And now it dusts really bad!!!! Arrrrghh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But work a panel and then clean the pad and you're good to go. Sure, maybe halfway around the car you need to be cleaning the pad a bit more frequently, but the process takes a matter of seconds, literally. All that pad cleaning has to add, what, a whopping 5 minutes (at most) to the time it takes to go over the whole car? Yeah, I'll take an extra 5 minutes for those times when I need the extra aggressiveness of #83. Because it's really great stuff!

[Lydia]

Re: #80...How long should I polish? Is it the same for #83?

The first couple of times I used #83 with the PC....well.....I all but hated it. It was dusting like crazy and it was a royal pain to remove. You see, I was using it exactly the same way I had been using #80, which I really enjoy using. I had a funny feeling the problem was me, not the #83. Sure enough after reading about how #83 really should be treated - a little less pressure, very frequent pad cleaning - I discovered that it's really as easy to use a #80, it's just different.

The real problem you get if you treat it like #80 is that, as it builds up in the pad it starts to dust. When you see this dust you start to think it's drying out so you stop buffing and try to wipe it off. But it hasn't broken down fully so it's difficult to remove. Once you do get it all wiped off, you just get deeper into the vicious cycle because now you add more product to the pad. Now it starts to dust sooner so you stop sooner. And it's even harder to remove. Well, you move on to the next panel so you.......add more product to the pad!!! And now it dusts really bad!!!! Arrrrghh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm glad you wrote that, Mike!! I'd all but given up on that stupid stuff called #83. Now maybe I'll give it another try. I had that exact problem. "Hey it's dusting...I'd better stop buffing and remove it. Stupid stuff...it doesn't want to come off now!! Well I'll try once more....It's dusting even faster now!! Awww, forget it!!" Lol. Maybe with the advice you gave I can finally get it. It makes me feel better to know I'm not the only one who couldn't get it.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: #80...How long should I polish? Is it the same for #83?

I'm glad you wrote that, Mike!! I'd all but given up on that stupid stuff called #83. Now maybe I'll give it another try. I had that exact problem. "Hey it's dusting...I'd better stop buffing and remove it. Stupid stuff...it doesn't want to come off now!! Well I'll try once more....It's dusting even faster now!! Awww, forget it!!" Lol. Maybe with the advice you gave I can finally get it. It makes me feel better to know I'm not the only one who couldn't get it.

The more I read, the more I use different products, the more I see why Mike Phillips refers to this whole thing as "the art of polishing paint".

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: #80...How long should I polish? Is it the same for #83?

Your mind plays tricks on you when working the two products. Your doing your thing with #80 with the longer play time. Then you realize that you have to try #80. You change your pads and ready to go. For me it takes a little bit to realize oops I'm using #83 less play time etc. Oh well live and learn.

[Ticman]

Re: #80...How long should I polish? Is it the same for #83?

One other thing I have found about #83 is you don't use as much pressure as you do with #80. And a little spritz of distilled water will help if the humidity is really low.