Hi,
I have a car with great 1 year old paint and need advice on trying to keep the paint a great as possible.
Where do swirls come from and how can I prevent them?
I think I know the answer, but would like all advice.

Also, how can I keep my vinyl top in good condit?
Thanks,
BQ

 

use old shirts to polish wipe down . cotton shirts, microfibers scratch paint. If you buff the car keep constant speed and dont move to fast. Im a big fan of maguires spray detail it's not harsh on paint and it brings a really nice sheen to the paint. I painted my car 5 years ago and it finally needs a good buff job again. The vinal top i would just use leather type cleaners that leave a certain amount of moisture in the material so it does not dry rot .

 

For the top and other similar stuff try AP 303.

 

Swirls mean that somebody improperly rubbed out the car.

You need to use an ultra-fine compound.
I personally like "Liquid Ebony," but I believe that 3M's Finesse-It II is good as well.
I personally prefer to avoid compounds with silicone, and those with "advanced polymers" and similar things which are never clearly defined; they're mostly just fillers which evaporate in a few months, leaving you back where you started.

- Eric

 

Swirls used to come from the old-style plastic brushes at the car wash, too.
I used Blue Coral wax on a black car, [Cad Limo] to remove them, by hand! [I was sore]
Swirls didn't come back for about 50 washes.

 

Swirls don't always mean the car was rubbed wrong. They can be caused my inproper drying cloths polishing cloths etc. Swirls are created by the buffer. I can straight cut clear coat like body filler with 1000 grit and it will buff out but if you buff it wrong the swirls will be obvious. Buffer speed compound and the quality of the buffer pad affect swirls more than anything. Btw the term rub in body shop lingo means wet sanding. If you hand buff stuff that makes swirls and marks. High speed buffers are the way to go. Buff with wool pad betwee 1000 rpm and 1200 and foam pad betwee 1300 and 1500 3m products are tops and are worth the money.

 

Try using 3M hand glaze. A body shop turned me on to this when I had a black Harley and the tank started to look like it had spider webs from the swirl marks when the sun hit it. This is what shops would use after final buffing. On my every day driver I would use clay bar, hand glaze and then a good wax with a clean rag two to three times a year. On my restored 442, I will use hand glaze and a light coat of wax. This car is a convertible. It stays cover in the garage so it only gets a very light bath maybe twice a year. Likes others said, you need to have a clean soft rag when you start applying and removing the wax.

 

I have a related question
The shop that painted my car left some residue from the compound or something
Most areas are as smooth as silk then you find a spot that feels a little rough
It all looks shiny and nice but how do I remove the residue
The car is white so when it was first buffed out they misses some spots and I had to bring it back
Now it looks great with a couple of rough spots by feel
Wax did nothing

 

Try Mcquires Clay Bar kit in an area. Someone spray painted a fire escape and got overspray all over my truck. I tried all sorts of solvent and nothing worked. I went to a detailing shop that recommended the clay bar kit. It was the only thing that worked. It comes with a spray liquid and a bar that looks like a small hotel bar of soap. Use plently of liquid and usually you will feel the clay bar starting to slide easier when it starts to remove the impurities from the paint. Hand glaze and wax afterwards.

 

What color is the car?

 

Whatever you do, do NOT drop the clay bar onto the ground. If its been dropped to the ground, the clay bar is useless. Hold the clay bar firm and steady. After I finish using the clay bar, I store it in a plastic soap box.

 

the very fine scratches can be caused by the smallest dust that settles on the car. When you touch or rub it the scratch is there. If your car is already buffed use a duster religiously. Then spray detailer. I prefer a product called wizards mist n shine, a friend of mine came across this stuff in a motorcycle shop while out of state and it works awesome. Your fine scratches or swirl marks are best removed with 3m's blue machine glaze and a foam pad. use a 9" electric buffer or orbital polisher. This stuff works best when there is almost no material on the pad, if you use too much I believe the pad simply floats on top of the glaze. I use this method on a regular basis and it's guaranteed. if the scratches are deeper use the extra cut compound it will take you from 1000 grit scratches all the way to buffed. Mikes 65 this is what i would reccomend for you. I couldn't tell you without seeing but the rough areas may be a buildup of compound. If it were simply not polished you wouldn't be able to feel it. So try some extra cut on it by hand first (use a cheap towel and the get a quality micro fibre cloth to finish. Keep your same micro fibre cloth for spray detailer only no matter who's product you use and if it's too saturated just buy new ones! Cross contamination and hard water type washing will defeat the purpose of a fine cloth. PM me if any other questions i'll be glad to help.

 

Using a glaze before waxing and keeping the car clean and waxed are the best things that you can do to keep it from getting swirl marks. I also use a detail spray to remove the dust from sitting in the garage and driving to and from car shows. Quality micro fiber towels are the best for all cleaning. Do not wash them with any other type of cloth and do not use a fabric softer when washing or drying.

When you wash your car, either use a quality dry wash or a car wash soap with plenty of water. I use a lambswool mitt and believe that the sponges will scratch the paint. I haven't used a sponge for over 40 years, so they may have improved them.

 

I got some overspray on my 65 a few weeks back, and needed to remove it, saw your post yesterday. I bought the Meguires clay bar kit and, WOW, what a difference. Even on the rest of the car not affected, it did a world of good for the paint job. Never realized how much garbage was adhered to the paint.
Just wanted to say thank you for your words of wisdom, and the help for my paint job.

 

I'm glad it worked. If you haven't tried it yet, get liquid hand glaze and then give it a coat a wax. The hand glaze will make a huge difference also although you will need to give it a coat of wax when your done.

 

That is all excellent advice. As far as the vinyl top is concerned, DON'T use Armor All. This can damage the vinyl in the long run.

I used Armor All Tire Shine on my tires before deploying to the desert, 13 months later there was a brown crud on my tires.

Instead use saddle soap and a soft cloth (the same kind you would on high quality boots). A friend of mine shows a 78 DeVille and he swears by it.

 

You are the main cause of swirl marks mostly by using a Microfiber towel as these have nylon and nylon is fishing line use a quality waffle weave towel