Wetsanded Daily Driver 2000 Nissan Maxima SE Hood

[the_invisible]

I wetsanded the hood of my daily driver to remove some pigtails and to increase the gloss of the hood.

Now, the black paint feels like the surface of a black grand piano:





















Just kidding

[Ganesa]

Re: Wetsanded Daily Driver 2000 Nissan Maxima SE Hood

nice... how long did it take you to wetsand the hood? :]

[the_invisible]

Re: Wetsanded Daily Driver 2000 Nissan Maxima SE Hood

Well, it took me around 5 hours to do just the hood. The reason it took so long was that I was removing pigtail and other defects. Carefully inspecting and spotting for defects took quite a long time. Also, some defects had to be resanded after buffing for full correction, so that took even longer. Spotting for defects takes much longer than simply removing orange peel.

Also, because I am using non-uniform grit sandpaper, I had to spend extra time buffing out the tracers. If I used sandpaper with uniformed grit or Meguiar's unigrit sandpaper, the process would be a little shorter.

Also, unfortunately I do not have a rotary. That also takes a little longer. However, the Lake Country Yellow Pad does an excellent job removing sanding marks in two passes. Having an 7424XtraPower as opposed to the regular regular version also helps a lot. The yellow pad didn't even leave any swirl marks either.

I am currently thinking about investing in a Makita Rotary Polisher for the specific task coming up. I am not sure if it's worth it.

[SHYNEMAN123]

Re: Wetsanded Daily Driver 2000 Nissan Maxima SE Hood

Nice Work great results.

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: Wetsanded Daily Driver 2000 Nissan Maxima SE Hood

Your hood looks fantastic. Awesome reflections. Great work.

[Eddie6th]

Re: Wetsanded Daily Driver 2000 Nissan Maxima SE Hood

Very nice work Invisible.

I think you should invest in a rotary.

What makes and models are available to you in Canada?

[KC's]

Re: Wetsanded Daily Driver 2000 Nissan Maxima SE Hood

Great effort pay out
the road to a great detailer

keep it up


Makita worth all your investment

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Wetsanded Daily Driver 2000 Nissan Maxima SE Hood

What liquid did you use to pull the sanding marks, and what grit sand paper did you use?

While it is sort of natural for folks to tell you to grab a rotary buffer if you're going to continue doing this sort of thing, it's also really, really hard to argue with the results! The hood looks fantastic in those pictures! Still, with paint systems being so different from vehicle to vehicle, and the obvious fact that you love doing this sort of thing, having a rotary in your arsenal does make a lot of sense. Once you sort through the nuances of the machine - and a person with your obvious advanced skills in this arena shouldn't have a lot of trouble doing so - it really is an amazing tool.

[the_invisible]

Re: Wetsanded Daily Driver 2000 Nissan Maxima SE Hood

Thanks guys...!

Thanks KC's, I believe you are more experienced than I am. Not sure if you notice this yourself, but for me the more I detail my cars, the more defects I discover, and hence, the more uncomfortable I feel about the condition of my vehicles.

Hey Mr. Michael Stoops, I used M105 to remove the sanding marks. As for sandpaper I used 3M 2000 grit and then 2500 grit to refine the surface. I think M105 did an excellent job at removing about 90% of the sanding marks in just one pass. The biggest problem I had was tracer marks. The tracers were caused by using sandpaper of uneven grit. I am confident to say that if I used the Meguiar's Unigrit paper, 95% of the sanding marks would have been removed with just one pass. According to 3M, 2500 grit sanding marks caused by their sandpaper are removeable by hand. That seems to explain why many people are having successes in wetsanding without a rotary.

I agree that the 7424XP is not the most efficient tool at removing sanding marks. I discover that the Kevin Brown Method works wonders on sanding marks (although the KBM only shows marginal advantage on medium swirls). Also, I am using a 5.5" Lake Country Yellow Pad. The LC yellow pad is probably the most aggressive foam pad available. The smaller diameter of this particular pad also reduces drag and bog downs on the DA compared to the 6.5" or 7" pads. That also helps removing wetsanding marks more quickly. Despite being the most aggressive pad, the 5.5" LC yellow pad, when used with M105, finishes really nicely without creating swirls or marring.

I am really considering buying a rotary. Wetsanding aside, the gloss created by a rotary beats that of a DA all the time. I think I will go down to my local auto parts store in a few days to inquire about the Makita Rotary. Last time I checked, they have a few in stock.

Oh, by the way, I've already ordered some unigrit sandpaper. No more putting up with the horrible 3M papers! I also ordered another bottle of M105. It took me a few minutes of deep thinking to decide on whether to get a sample bottle of M95 instead of another bottle of M105. I went with the M105 because it finishes very nicely. I am not sure if switching to M95 is worth the risk.

[Golden]

Re: Wetsanded Daily Driver 2000 Nissan Maxima SE Hood

Wow! The reflection is amazing! Pics of the entire car?

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Wetsanded Daily Driver 2000 Nissan Maxima SE Hood

Also, I am using a 5.5" Lake Country Yellow Pad. The LC yellow pad is probably the most aggressive foam pad available. The smaller diameter of this particular pad also reduces drag and bog downs on the DA compared to the 6.5" or 7" pads. That also helps removing wetsanding marks more quickly.

It isn't just the aggressiveness of the pad or any potential reduction in drag - using smaller pads on a D/A concentrates the energy and work, giving you a lot more cut. Over on the VW forums almost everyone uses 4" pads on the D/A because VW paint, at least on newer models, is notoriously hard and they need this extra concentration of effort to remove swirls, etc. A D/A with a 4" cutting pad and a liquid like M105 can actually be a very, very potent combination. We've seen people get into trouble with this combo only because they weren't aware of the increase in cut and just figured "hey, it's a D/A, what can go wrong?".

All the comments we read about how safe a D/A is assume that the user is spinning a 6" to 7" pad and a medium cutting cleaner of some sort. That is how the vast majority of people use the machine, and that is incredibly safe. It also has limitations. It's always fun to see people pushing the technology and getting such great results.

[KC's]

Re: Wetsanded Daily Driver 2000 Nissan Maxima SE Hood

Thanks guys...!

Thanks KC's, I believe you are more experienced than I am. Not sure if you notice this yourself, but for me the more I detail my cars, the more defects I discover, and hence, the more uncomfortable I feel about the condition of my vehicles.

Hey Mr. Michael Stoops, I used M105 to remove the sanding marks. As for sandpaper I used 3M 2000 grit and then 2500 grit to refine the surface. I think M105 did an excellent job at removing about 90% of the sanding marks in just one pass. The biggest problem I had was tracer marks. The tracers were caused by using sandpaper of uneven grit. I am confident to say that if I used the Meguiar's Unigrit paper, 95% of the sanding marks would have been removed with just one pass. According to 3M, 2500 grit sanding marks caused by their sandpaper are removeable by hand. That seems to explain why many people are having successes in wetsanding without a rotary.

I agree that the 7424XP is not the most efficient tool at removing sanding marks. I discover that the Kevin Brown Method works wonders on sanding marks (although the KBM only shows marginal advantage on medium swirls). Also, I am using a 5.5" Lake Country Yellow Pad. The LC yellow pad is probably the most aggressive foam pad available. The smaller diameter of this particular pad also reduces drag and bog downs on the DA compared to the 6.5" or 7" pads. That also helps removing wetsanding marks more quickly. Despite being the most aggressive pad, the 5.5" LC yellow pad, when used with M105, finishes really nicely without creating swirls or marring.

I am really considering buying a rotary. Wetsanding aside, the gloss created by a rotary beats that of a DA all the time. I think I will go down to my local auto parts store in a few days to inquire about the Makita Rotary. Last time I checked, they have a few in stock.

Oh, by the way, I've already ordered some unigrit sandpaper. No more putting up with the horrible 3M papers! I also ordered another bottle of M105. It took me a few minutes of deep thinking to decide on whether to get a sample bottle of M95 instead of another bottle of M105. I went with the M105 because it finishes very nicely. I am not sure if switching to M95 is worth the risk.

My dear beloved friend
I am amazed at details & effort that you put into your ride....as though i am meeting another thomas edison (I am just simply amazed how one man passion drive you to the excel into perfection)

I have got M 86 & solo sets for a start to blend with my rotary, the results aint that astonishing, i compare to the meguiars reseller demonstration M105 on my hood...after used on to detail on 3 different rides...i am convience that M105 still is my solution..esp sanding marks

Just like you i opted out my solo set pads & wool for LC
as i am quite a rough person...as the LC pad has more industries strength

My conclusion, when u have the best you dont need the rest...M105 is the best for me...& to suppliment for lack of M205 (hasn't arrive to malaysia yet) i used M80 & white LC ccs pad to remove the whitehish residue left by initial M105 with wool & 2nd passes with yellow ccs LC,
now i discover the D151 PRC works extremely good...prior last touch

Cos, i just details a toyota SUV, and the paint was so soft, even when i try to buff the white residue left after wool M105 scratches the paint..thank God for D151...just came in rightly for this job ( i just got my D151 3 days ago) detailing my church van

P/S PLs do not give up in prefecting your paint work, if thomas has to tries out 9999 times of his experience, we are no where near to him....i would encourage u to details another ride mean time to see the joy of detailing, for a moment, and soon u will appreciate yours