After all these years having faded and damage paint on my cars, i have lately tried my hands on painting.
After some works and redoing.. i came to a satisfying finish that is good enough.
But there is some dirt and a bug in it.. do, i want to buy a buffer so i can wet sans and buff it.
I think with all the older cars in the family, if i can develop some skills they will be put to good use for years to come.
Stay reassure i paint some spare body panels to learn the buff on something i can make mistakes.
So, any hints on a good fair priced buffer ?
I really like the harbor freight most expensive random orbit polisher. It looks like a clone of the porter cable one that everyone recommends.
I've used a porter cable for years & it's worked well.
I've had a porter cable random orbital for years. With the right pad/compound/polish combo, it's unstoppable. There are obviously better buffers on the market but I still love my Porter cable and for the price it can't be beat.
Yes, but how does the OP use this legendary orbital? (Secretly asked for myself, but didn't want to hijack thread.)
I too have the Porter Cable and can attest to its quality. Worth every penny at $119. I also have a set of the Chemical Guys pads which attach by vel-cro.
It is used in stages. You will generally buff from coarse to fine polish. If its very bad, you may need to start with a rubbing compound or even wetsanding. If you are unsure which stage to start with, first work your way from finest stage to coarse stage so you avoid damaging paint.
I like to keep it simple, so I usually just do 1 type of polish and 1 wax. Wash first, let dry. For the Challenge Wagon, I started with a general polishing compound, Turtle Wax I think, put a few dime size dots on the pad, and worked that into a 2' x 2' section. Wipe off any excess with a clean rag. Don't let it dry. Don't work in direct sunlight! The heat combined with polishing could cause micro tears in the paint. If you don't believe me, take a very close look at the hood of the wagon next month. I think I did a couple sessions with the polishing compound on each section. For the wax, I apply it by hand in a swirl pattern and let it dry to a "solid" haze. Should not wipe off with a soft finger swipe. Then put a clean softer pad on the buffer and buff that wax out! It should feel like buttery glass to the touch. A proper wax job will result in water "beading" off the paint when it rains, preventing those dreaded rain spots. So basically wax will help keep your car cleaner, longer.
Paint detailing is a very deep rabbit hole, like most things automotive. There are debates on how many stages of polish, what speed for which stage, softness of pad, pressure to apply, etc etc etc. Just having a proper DA orbital buffer and polish puts you way ahead of a typical car guy "wash and wax". You can work wonders on faded rough paint.
If you do end up getting a DA buffer, a few things to keep in mind. Use the right pad for the job. Don't re-use pads from one stage to the next either. If this is the first time, you might consider claybarring the paint and washing it again before you attack it with the buffer, that way you're not dragging contaminants all over your paint at high speed. I had really good results with Meguiar's #3 Mirror Glaze. It's got the lightest cut and designed for machine application so you won't burn your paint. Wax after polish.
I use a 6" craftsman. It's realtively small but it gets into those tight spots a bit better than a gianormous one. Make sure whatever you get has comfortable handles that provide good control; you're going to be spending a lot of hours using it. 8-10 hours over the course of last weekend on my 10 year old paint that had a lot of swirls from years of POs taking it to the automatic car wash:
