Scrap panel not an option

[Don]

As the title says, getting a scrap body panel is not a viable option, so I'm going to have to do things the dangerous way...on real cars.

Like I've mentioned, I doubr I'll even go as aggressive as #83 for quite a while. I have #9 and I read over the sticky on products/speeds for the rotary. Color X wasn't mentioned, and A-12 Cleaner wax was only touched on very briefly. Could someone help shed some more light on the possibilities with these products and the rotary?

[Mike Phillips]

Hi Don,

Which pads are you going to learn with, the larger 8" pads or the smaller 6" pads?

The 6" pads are much easier to control and thus easier on your arms and upper body. My advise would be to learn/practice only doing a section at a time, for example, the hood, a single fender, the roof etc.

When you consider the time it will take to rotary buff the panel, one-step or two-step, then follow that with either a hand applied or machine applied cleaner/polish or wax, from start to finish it's going to take you some time. By only doing one marked off section at a time you will increase your chances of mental success as you increase your skill level.

Performing a multi-step rotary buff out on a large car from start to finish is quite the task, even a small car can be a challenge. So start small and work your way up.

ColorX is not formulated for use with a rotary buffer, a good product to learn with would be M80 Speed Glaze with a W-8006 polishing pad.

Learn right off the bat to clean your pad often while you're buffing.

[Don]

I'll be using the 7.5" Lake Country pads (for now anyway). I don't have any #80, but isn't the #9 less abrasive than #80? Wouldn't that be a good place to start then?

I DO plan on going real slow and easy, one panel at a time.