Mequiar's Electric Dual Action Polisher question

[se93]

Happy Holidays to all:

I have been looking into getting a Mequiar's Electric Dual Action Polisher but have one question. Is it safe on paint edges? I know that with those high speed buffers/grinder looking machines used in body shops must be used by a professional as you will easily ruin the paint finish/edges of the vehicle. I am not much of an expert with this kind of equipment and absolutely do not want to ruin the paint edges of my 3 day old repainted vehicle. The video i saw of Meguiar's Polisher is something i would definitely purchase as it appears to be of very simple use. Can someone shed some information regarding this.


I am going to use #5 or #7 until my paint job cures and then i want to use the Dual Action Polisher!

Thanks,
Mark

[sneek]

all you have to do is tape them off
Happy holidays

[Shiny Lil Detlr]

I have never had any problems using it on paint edges, after hundreds of hours of polishing different vehicles with the G100. And as it was already mentioned, you could tape them off if you still aren't comfotable with it. The machine is still fairly foolproof though.

[imacarnut]

you shouldn't have any probs. in fact, i just used mine today...

[rusty bumper]

Re: Mequiar's Electric Dual Action Polisher question

Originally posted by se93
Happy Holidays to all:

I have been looking into getting a Mequiar's Electric Dual Action Polisher but have one question. Is it safe on paint edges?

Generally speaking, the G-100 is safe to use on paint edges, but not on very sharp edges (Ask me how I know).

Tape up the sharp edges and finish those areas by hand.

[repo]

Ill ask.


How do you know?

[Vandelete]

I never had any problems on the edges..you should take more care at the edges when using a Rotary

[se93]

I have always applied waxes by hand and have always been paranoid to using a machine to wax my vehicles because of the fear of ruining the paint on the pronounced edges of the car finish. I am almost 100% convinced with the Mequiars Dual Action Polisher and guess that the only way to find out is to get one and put it to the test. As i stated, i don't have any prior experience with a machine when waxing my car and thus continue to look around for good information as to the proper use of this equipment.

[Tim Lingor]

Hey se93

Welcome to Meguiar's Online!

Regardless of method of product application, it is a wise habit to get into taping off sharp edges as this is where the paint is the thinnest.

Now with that said, the G100 is extremely gentle. It is no where near as powerful as a rotary polisher. Moreover, I have never had issues with edges and the G100 on paint in good condition.

BUT if you are working on unknown paint (ie. you have no idea if it has been aggressively buffed with a rotary previously) the paint could be extremely thin especially on the edges. In that case, even applying the product by hand could create issues on paint that thin. Hence my comment about taping sharp edges.

But again, the G100 is quite fool proof and very safe to use. You will love the quality of the finish that the G100 can provide!!

Recommended Products - G100a Dual Action Polisher

Tim

[se93]

Tim:

I sent you an email.




Thanks,

[Accumulator]

I can see erring on the side of caution with regard to sharp edges and abrasive products. But I sure wouldn't worry about it when using a *wax* or other nonabrasive product with a soft pad. If neither the product or the pad are functionally abrasive you don't have anything to worry about.

I've cut through on very soft single stage on old cars that'd been polished many, many times- but I was using abrasives and polishing pads. I went over the same areas countless times with LSPs and the cut-throughs never got any worse or larger.

[se93]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Accumulator
I can see erring on the side of caution with regard to sharp edges and abrasive products. But I sure wouldn't worry about it when using a *wax* or other nonabrasive product with a soft pad. If neither the product or the pad are functionally abrasive you don't have anything to worry about.

I've cut through on very soft single stage on old cars that'd been polished many, many times- but I was using abrasives and polishing pads. I went over the same areas countless times with LSPs and the cut-throughs never got any worse or larger. [/QUOTE

I am ready to get the Mequiars Dual Action Polisher! ]

[Tim Lingor]

Originally posted by se93
Tim:

I sent you an email.




Thanks,

A reply has been sent!! I hope it helps!

By the way, you will LOVE the G100!!!

Tim

[Mike Phillips]

Just to add to what Tim posted... from a related thread,

http://meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=8070

We get this question a lot at Meguiar's, I get it at almost every Saturday Detailing class.

There is no set answer because it depends on what you start with, (film-build or paint thickness), and what you use and how often.

What you start with
There's a difference between purchasing a car, (new or used), that has all of it's clear coat intact, that is to say, since it was manufactured, and a car, (new or used), that "Bubba the Archaic Detailer", hasn't ground off half of the clear coat using archaic products because he doesn't know any better.

You could two identical cars, with different paint thicknesses. So to say,

"As long as you use clear coat safe products you'll never go through the clear coat", would be a mistake because we don't know the history of the car and what has been done to it.

Does that make sense?

It's possible to have a car that looks okay, but you start rubbing on it with a paint cleaner by hand and the clear coat dissapears... is it because the product was aggressive? Doubtful, more than likely there was only a whisper thin amount of clear coat to start with.

The above is a worse case scenario and chances are good that a majority of your car's paint is still intact. This is one of the reasons at our detailing classes we not only educate people on how to choose the right product following our philosophy of,

"Always use the least aggressive product to get the job done"

but to also be aware of the products being used by anyone that you hire to work on your car. Look at the below example as lesson in what not to use...



Here's a thread on how much paint you're removing when machine polishing, it makes the case that if you're using safe products and good technique, as well as paying attention to what you're doing, the amount of paint you're removing is very little...

How much paint are you removing

In the big picture, the idea is to learn how to,

* Evaluate the finish
* Choose the right products
* Use good technique

Then, once you have restored the finish, put into practice a maintenance program that includes not instilling swirls and scratches back into the finish. This includes much of the things we're always talking about here such as using a quality car wash, quality car wash mitts and brushes, quality drying towels, etc.


As for anyone using overly aggressive products such as aggressive compounds or any kind of product that uses abrasives that don't break down and remove a lot of paint, the results from routine use of these product will undoubtedly lead to the need for a new paint job.

[rusty bumper]

Originally posted by repo
Ill ask.


How do you know?

I went through the entire clear coat and base coat on the top back corner of the water gutter/ valley (or what ever you call it) on the roof of one of our cars.....(Sorry, no pictures)

It was not a large spot (and it not that noticeable), but the paint was probably thin in that area to begin with (as was mentioned above).

The G-100 is a very safe machine and I highly recommend it. It's just that sometimes a vehicle can have a very sharp edge or two that needs to be buffed with care, or taped over if in doubt and finished by hand.