DA/MF Cutting Compound - Hard To Remove?

[FJP]

Hello everyone. Used the DA/MF Cutting Compound this past weekend and had great results. However, I did have to use a detailing spray to remove the dried compound from the surface on most of the car. Question, is this typical? I'm spending minimal time with the orbital with 2-3 passes of moderate pressure and 1-2 light passes. Seems to dry very quickly. Anyone else? Also, those MF cutting disc seem to get beat up pretty quickly. Even after a wash, they don't look too good. Regardless, the system works and even removed a few scratches that my Flex left behind.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: DA/MF Cutting Compound - Hard To Remove?

This is actually highly unusual as D300 tends to have a very long buffing cycle even under conditions of high ambient temperature and low humidity. Did you properly prime the pad first, and use just 3 or 4 pea sized drops of product on the pad? Were you working an appropriately small area, no more than about 2' x 2'? Ideally you should be using pretty heavy pressure, much more so than you would with traditional foam pads and commonly used liquids, and cover that area by moving side to side, then up and down, and repeat both directions. Wipe off should then be very easy. Also, are you thoroughly cleaning the pads after every section pass? This is critical with this system.

Lastly, what's the model year of the vehicle in question? If it's quite old and the paint is badly dried out that could cause the liquid to dry prematurely. While we have yet to see it happen with D300 we've seen it with other compounds, most notably M105 on extremely desiccated paint.

[FJP]

Re: DA/MF Cutting Compound - Hard To Remove?

Hmmm...probably that I am not cleaning the pad after every section. More like every panel. Will make the adjustment next time...thanks!

[Michael Stoops]

Re: DA/MF Cutting Compound - Hard To Remove?

Thorough cleaning of the microfiber discs after every section pass is critical with this system. Compressed air works best, but a good pad brush is great, too. And less really is more when it comes to product use here.

Oh, and we almost forgot - Welcome to MOL!!! (glad we got that strange banner ad thing cleared up, too!!)

[FJP]

Re: DA/MF Cutting Compound - Hard To Remove?

Thorough cleaning of the microfiber discs after every section pass is critical with this system. Compressed air works best, but a good pad brush is great, too. And less really is more when it comes to product use here.

Oh, and we almost forgot - Welcome to MOL!!! (glad we got that strange banner ad thing cleared up, too!!)

No problem! BTW I'm using a 5" backing plate that was left over from my PC (yellow, flexible). Is there a real advantage to using a Meguiar's backing plate with this system?

[Michael Stoops]

Re: DA/MF Cutting Compound - Hard To Remove?

If that's our old backing plate, you're good to go. It is really important that your backing plate have micro hooks so that it is properly synchronized with the loop material on the back of the microfiber discs. If they aren't designed to work together (in many cases the hooks on the backing plate will be too long) you end up with a lot of slop where the hooks and loops come together. This creates a lot of friction and heat due to the oscillating action of a DA buffer, and that is only exacerbated by the level of pressure used with this system. We've seen extreme heat build up with mismatched hook & loop material on a DA, even exceeding 235F where the pad and plate join, and that can lead to premature break down of the pads.

You might want to read through Backing Plates - More Than Just A Way To Stick A Pad To A Buffer for more info on why selecting the proper backing plate is important.