*NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

[Tim Lingor]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

I just got my new G110 polisher and the new washable pads, and have used them once. I was wondering are most of you going to wash these pad after every use, or just every so often. I guess I am asking, because these are machine washable, is it "recomended" to wash them after every use, or only when changing chemicals, or if they are very dirty?

Morning,

Sorry for the late reply.

After a long detail, my pads tend to be saturated with product as well as paint particles from the detailing/buffing process. So in my case I tend to wash the new 2.0 pads after each detail. If they are lightly saturated, I place them in a 5 gallon bucket with warm water and Dawn soap. I wash them thoroughly and rinse thoroughly.

If the pads are really saturated, I throw them in the washing machine and use a combo if liquid Tide and Dawn soap. I do a double rinse and then dry.

As you can see from my original post at the beginning of this thread, I have had and used these pads for sometime now. I can not emphasize just how much I enjoy being able to throw them into the washing machine to clean them!!!!

Tim

[Tim Lingor]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

Great Write Up!!
Nice Pictures!!
Thanks for the review!

Thank you! I hope it helped!!!

Tim

[mb911]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

So is it really ok to low heat dry the 2.0 pads after machine washing, or is air drying safer?

[Tim Lingor]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

Sorry for the very late reply. I was waiting and hoping someone from Meguiar's management would provide the "official" response.

Anyway, I have machine washed and dried the pads many times. I have found that while using the dryer seems to be just fine, I think it may be stressing the pads more than necessary. Therefore, I now machine wash the pads and then I let them air dry for a few days.

Tim

[Fischer]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

A good way to dry your pads is if you just put them on a DA or rotary and put it on a high setting. You might want to do it outside though.

[Tim Lingor]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

A good way to dry your pads is if you just put them on a DA or rotary and put it on a high setting. You might want to do it outside though.

I would strongly avoid that and/or use caution and here is why.

For years, detailing pros have always washed and spun dry the wool pads on a rotary polisher. Depending on brand being used, if you used a 3M or the new Meguiar's W-5000 pad with a threaded shaft attached to the wool pad, you can spin them on the rotary which will get out the vast majority of water, making them usable almost immediately. Also, since most wool pads with velcro are of the 8" variety, there is usually plenty of velcro to solidly hold it against the backing plate.

When people started using the G100 and the PC 7424, they somehow mistakenly began using that method not realizing that the oscillating actions are very different than the direct drive rotary polisher's action.

With foam pads that are attached by velcro, if you try and use that spin dry technique with the DA, there is a very good chance that due to the weight of the water saturated pad and the strong oscillating action of the DA (the continual transference of weight due to the oscillating action) that the pad will fly off and you have a foam UFO flying across the garage! Ask me how I know? You may get away with it a few times until the velcro loosens due to the constant applying and removing it from the backing plate as well as the washing of the pads. Some pads will stick better than others, but the action is still the same. You will notice that the cleaning on the fly technique for DA pads is always pressing the pad against a towel etc, as this too is to prevent the pad from flying off.

With the rotary and foam pads, the rotary's direct drive has a lesser chance of having a pad fly off, but there is another problem. Because the pad is so saturated (ie. heavy) with water, when you spin the pad at high speeds on the rotary, the water on the pad gets throw to the outside due to centrifugal force. This transference of weight can place enormous strain on the pad causing it again to fly off, or if the velcro is strongly attached, causing the foam to blow apart. I have blown apart a few foam pads already, mostly years ago when the backing plate used to be mounted to the foam pad rather than the more modern velcro method. But the potential is still the same.

If you use a rotary to spin dry the foam pads, I would greatly encourage you to use a slower speed and like you said, outdoors unless you like a ring of water and maybe watered down product around the walls, roof and floor of your garage! But I would not use a DA to spin dry pads at all. Just IMHO!

Tim

[Old Dogg™]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

I would not use a DA to spin dry pads at all. Just IMHO!

Tim

Good info and very good post!
You always answer questions I need to know as a novice but didn't know to ask.

[Tim Lingor]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

Good info and very good post!
You always answer questions I need to know as a novice but didn't know to ask.

You are very welcome!!! I am glad the review was helpful!!!

Tim

[Tim Lingor]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

Again, since there has been a large number of people discussing buffing pads, it is helpful to know what is a polishing pad or a finishing pad etc... Therefore, bumped for assistance...

Tim

[is not null]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

Again, since there has been a large number of people discussing buffing pads, it is helpful to know what is a polishing pad or a finishing pad etc... Therefore, bumped for assistance...

Tim

I plan on buying the G110 very soon and I want to make sure I buy the correct pads along with it. Unfortunately I'm new to this level of car detailing and I'm confused by some of the termonology. Any clearification that could be provided about the cutting, polishing and finishing pads would help me out a lot.

And I'd also like to let Tim know that his reviews are excellent and he is mostly responsible for me wanting the G110! Thank you!

[Michael Stoops]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

Cutting pads are the most aggressive type of foam pad and are designed for aggressive defect removal, usually with a compound or strong paint cleaner. Even defects as severe as sanding marks can be removed with a cutting pad and the proper liquid. But it should be noted that Meguiar's does not recommend the use of our W7xxx series of cutting pads with a D/A buffer like the G110v2, Porter Cable 7424 series, etc. It is so aggressive that when used with this tool there is a very high probability of hazing the paint.

Polishing pads are the workhorse pads for paint correction on a D/A. These provide some cutting assistance to paint cleaners and compounds such as SwirlX, Ultimate Compound or M105. If you've got the typical spiderwebbing, swirls, towel marks etc in your paint and you're looking to eliminate them, this is the pad you choose for the job. Generally run at speed 5 on the D/A and with moderate pressure applied - but keep in mind that this is a starting point and the paint is going to be the final determining factor in how long to work it, and with how much pressure and speed.

Finishing pads are the softest of all and are used for applying pure polishes, finishing polishes like M205, and your wax or sealant. The idea here is that you've already done everything you can to make the paint as perfect as possible, so you now want to touch it as gently as possible when laying down a coat of wax. Remember to use a fresh pad for each product rather than using the same pad for your polish and wax! Wax application is usually done at speed 3 and with light pressure.

[is not null]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

Thank you Michael! You couldn't have made it any clearer. I can't wait to get my G110!

[lexus982000]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

Tim,

I have the Porter Cable 7424 series with a velcro beacking plate. Do all the new pads that you tested have velcro as well or do I need to purchase a different backing plate to use them? Thanks, Phil

[Michael Stoops]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

Tim,

I have the Porter Cable 7424 series with a velcro beacking plate. Do all the new pads that you tested have velcro as well or do I need to purchase a different backing plate to use them? Thanks, Phil

Phil, the Soft Buff 2.0 pads all have a velcro backing so you can, technically anyway, use your existing backing plate with them. A very similar discussion has been going on elsewhere here on MOL so we're quoting a response from anther thread in response to your question:

The backing plate that you have is most likely a 5" fairly stiff plate with a relatively abrupt cut off at the edge. That should be more than fine when working with 5.5" pads but if you use it with 6" pads or our 7" Soft Buff 2.0 pads what ends up happening is that you literally dig that edge into the foam as you compress the pad. The backing plate is too small to properly support a larger pad, which not only leads to the issue you're having but you also lose cut from the outer reaches of the pad because of that lack of support.

If you're going to use our Soft Buff 2.0 pads do yourself a favor and pick up our W68DA backing plate. It fits perfectly into the recess on the back of the pads and it gives plenty of support across the pad, and with enough flex to still let the pad conform to body contours. In fact, you'll get more uniform cut across the pad in those situations when using the W68DA backing plate.

If you also want to use 5.5" pads from Lake Country or others then you'll need a smaller backing plate for those. You need a backing plate of sufficient diameter to support the pad, but not so large that you run the risk of having the edge of backing plate contact the car in any way.

[lexus982000]

Re: *NEW* Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Pads Review!!!

Thank you Michael. All your information is both very informative and very timely. What a great forum this is! Phil