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Post by Paulus17 on Sept 1, 2019 10:43:58 GMT
Is THIS set any good do you think? Birthdays coming up and have been asked what I would like so was thinking of this? |
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Post by unclebob on Sept 1, 2019 11:24:45 GMT
Silverline is the one I have but only polished faded headlamps to date .....not had the bottle to try it on my paintwork 😳
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Post by Hoovie on Sept 1, 2019 11:33:16 GMT
Is THIS set any good do you think? Birthdays coming up and have been asked what I would like so was thinking of this? The Polisher itself is decent and worth getting. Being totally honest, I would not use the supplied backing plate with that kit and would also maybe look for a "bare" polisher to then add my preferred pads to. UPDATE: This is the Backing plate I would get (and have myself in both 5" and 3" versions) - www.elitecarcare.co.uk/product/3m-perfect-it-iii-09553-125mm-rotary-backing-plate-58/It is not cheap but I feel a lot safer. The normal supplied backing plates are very hard, and also oversized and so a moments lack of attention and bang goes the paintwork if the edge is touched. (You can also trim the supplied plate down easily on the machine with a tool if you don't want to get a different plate) Just to show what I mean about the backing plate size, here is an "action shot" showing the Silverline polisher in use on a RAV4 in my old workshop  
The Yellow bit on the machine is the 3M Backing Plate; The Green is a polishing pad. You can see how the pad overhangs the plate quite a bit. This is really handy for paint safety and especially when working on a inner curve like in the above picture as the rear wing is curving down to the bumper. If the plate and pad were the same diameter the potential for the plate to make contact with the body on that kind of transition is too high for me personally to take the risk!
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Post by Paulus17 on Sept 1, 2019 15:23:04 GMT
Silverline is the one I have but only polished faded headlamps to date .....not had the bottle to try it on my paintwork 😳 No nor me Bob and have never fancied doing it either, but when I waxed the Rav the other week I noticed two quite big marks that looked like where bird poo had left it's mark so used the pads I have in the drill to get them out and it worked to mt surprise. There are some bad swirl marks on the sides which look terrible in the right light, so thought if I tried getting those out i'd need a bigger pad and proper polisher, but as you say having never done this before should I leave well alone?? |
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Post by Paulus17 on Sept 1, 2019 15:25:18 GMT
Thanks David I did wonder about he supplied pads hence asking on here first for more experienced replies  I like the idea of the bigger pad so if I decide to attempt polishing I will try those ones out. What polish do you use, I have been looking at the Scholl one step and mop? HERE |
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Post by charliefarlie on Sept 1, 2019 17:03:33 GMT
I would very strongly advise both the inexperienced and the experienced to polish using 3 inch pads and low speeds.
Remember we are talking polishing soft Japanese finishes. Plus 3 inch pads are so much easier to control and easier to use no matter what we are polishing.
On the Silverline machine and others.
A soft start up is absolutely essential on polishers. Plus stable speed control especially at the lower speed we should be using. Anyone who reckons high speed polishing hasn’t a clue.
Reading the reviews on this machine I see comments about it lacking oomph. Their words not mine !
This indicates that the motor fades when pushed. Not good.
If you need to move up in speeds to ensure zero fade you have the wrong machine. Also leaning on a pad enough to cause machine fade says to me it’s user error.
So whether it’s a poor machine or user error is hard to say.
The Silverline machines are a starting point in polishing. Not the best not the worst. You really do pay your money and take your chance.
Makita make seriously good machines but cost a bit more. Milwaukee’s AP12QE is another excellent machine serious machine and very very light.
To sum up.
For me this is one area where I use only quality kit. You do not want machines that are anything other than perfect at the lower speeds that should be used for polishing especially on Japanese cars 👍👍👍
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Post by Hoovie on Sept 1, 2019 19:55:04 GMT
The Silverline Polisher is one of the many rebranded ones which are identical to each other. I don't think it has soft-start anymore than taking a couple of seconds to get to the set speed. It certainly doesn't slowly ramp up but I found it easy to use the speed control to change speeds (and never noticed the speed varying from what was selected when in use TBH).
On my Green RAV4 the paintwork was good generally but was very swirly. I found it very quick to eliminate with a fine polish due to the soft paint (on the other hand, the time it took me to do the full RAV4 to eliminate the Swirls was around the same to bring up a bit of a shine on half a VW Bonnet!)
Jase, when it comes to polishes, I am not the best to ask. I have stuck with the 3M Perfect-it range of pads, compounds and polishes as it is simple to use and reasonably priced and I got the level of result I needed. There are masses of different ones out there and proper detailers will have a whole raft of options to pick from depending on the job in hand.
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Post by bigkev on Sept 4, 2019 5:16:43 GMT
Methinks a point has been missed here.......this very much looks to me like a straight ROTARY polishing machine, as opposed to the EASIER FOR NOVICES orbital type machines, naw.....? Much as Charlie taught us beginners the ROTARY is not the fire breathing dragon it was being made oot to be, I would deffo err on the cautious side, Paul, and either go for smallish diameter polishing pads, as suggested by CF, or buy a Dual Action / DA / Oscillating wan and learn using that........much easier, and I use the word guardedly or Charlie may shout at me........SAFER.
I huv spoked......
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Post by Paulus17 on Sept 4, 2019 8:05:53 GMT
Thanks for the replies folks :TU: Strangely enough my brother popped in on Sunday and I mentioned about polishing the Rav and was on about getting a polisher when he said "you can have mine as i won't be using it again or even attempting to polish a car again" Whys that I asks him. "It's not as easy as it's made out to be" says he. "But by all means if you fancy trying it I have all the kit, all new used once." So Mrs P was listening and doesn't fancy me trying it on the Rav and possibly ruining the paintwork so she's happy to leave it as it is :no I'm still tempted to give it a bash but after watching videos like Davids wet or dry polishing etc it does seem more involved and brings up more questions like, how do I know that the Rav hasn't been polished to within a micron of it's life in the past, and how many times as it been done, if any?? Which then brings me onto paint depth measurers, are the cheap ones any good or has it gotta be an expensive one to get accurate readings, how thick should the paint be, does it measure the top coat or just an overall thickness, so how do I know how much top coat is left before it starts getting into the paint itself???  Think i'll just leave it and continue waxing :yes: |
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Post by charliefarlie on Sept 4, 2019 9:46:49 GMT
PTGs
Paul the less expensive ones measure the thickness of the material on the panel. They do not separate the layers and indicate the thickness of the base colour coat and the lacquer individually . You need to spend circa £1100 plus for one of the ones that do that.
For heavy swirl removal a random orbital is ok but it’s gonna take some time. I have known folk in frustration at slow results get carried away and do irreparable damage.
If you polish with a Rotary at LOW speeds with the CORRECT pad the CORRECT polish you will not damage your paint.
To specifically answer your question about the particular machine.... No it’s not great. Spend a wee bit more and have the right tool for the job.
Paul when you buy machinery for wood turning is the cheap stuff as good as the expensive stuff ?? Nah. Thought not .
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Post by Paulus17 on Sept 4, 2019 12:27:43 GMT
PTGs Paul the less expensive ones measure the thickness of the material on the panel. They do not separate the layers and indicate the thickness of the base colour coat and the lacquer individually . You need to spend circa £1100 plus for one of the ones that do that. For heavy swirl removal a random orbital is ok but it’s gonna take some time. I have known folk in frustration at slow results get carried away and do irreparable damage. If you polish with a Rotary at LOW speeds with the CORRECT pad the CORRECT polish you will not damage your paint. To specifically answer your question about the particular machine.... No it’s not great. Spend a wee bit more and have the right tool for the job. Paul when you buy machinery for wood turning is the cheap stuff as good as the expensive stuff ?? Nah. Thought not . Ok thanks Charlie :TU: I know what you mean Charlie re the polisher, but forking out a lot on a polisher that I may only use once if things go wrong, would be an expensive learning curve. Is there really that much difference in how a polisher spins? From what I have seen it's just the weight that makes a difference on the more expensive models?? But just to be clear a Rotary polisher just turns in circles it doesn't oscilate?? What would be a decent cheaper alternative to get started with? |
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Post by Paulus17 on Sept 4, 2019 12:55:33 GMT
Heres a couple of piccys of the sort of scratches I was hoping to have got rid of, you can't see em, well I can't until the light hits em at a certain angle? But just spoke to Mrs P and she said leave the polishing until the MOT is out the way and see how it gets on, which makes sense I suppose :yes:   |
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Post by Hoovie on Sept 4, 2019 17:37:14 GMT
The rule of thumb with scratches is usually run your fingernail across it. if it snags on the scratch, it will NOT polish out. Having said that, you can reduce the appearance by rounding the edges so the light is not bounced back right at you. That video I posted with the various effects of different polishing approaches I think had some good info - including a way to use a PTG that does not distinguish between layers. I don't dispute those are better, but £1100 for one! you have to be into this game fanatically to want to spend that much. you can use a basic one to get a good idea IMO. Paul,I was going to send you a selection of Wet and Dry but not done so yet  I have a basic PTG you can borrow if you wish and can send with the paper but would cost you recorded postage. I used it like the guy in the video - check the bonnet and record it and then check the shuts and record it. sure, not as good as the top class ones, but it is a method that works pretty well. These guides are excellent - Using a Dual Action Polisher (like Kevin is suggesting) - www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/images/misc/dapolishing.pdfUsing an Orbital Polisher - www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/images/misc/rotarypolishing.pdfPersonally, apart from being slow, I found using a DA very uncomfortable due to the vibration and got 'white finger' very quickly. (get the same from using a DA Sander as well). If you get the same it takes all the enjoyment from the process |
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Post by charliefarlie on Sept 4, 2019 19:42:07 GMT
You would have to be quite mad to polish some of the cars I have without a dual layer PTG.......£1100 is nothing compared to rectifying damage to expensive cars. Not to mention the dent to the pride.
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Post by Hoovie on Sept 5, 2019 9:32:56 GMT
You would have to be quite mad to polish some of the cars I have without a dual layer PTG.......£1100 is nothing compared to rectifying damage to expensive cars. Not to mention the dent to the pride. True, but £1,100 is an expensive tool to buy to use maybe once a year on a car that is worth around £4,000. |
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I have a basic PTG you can borrow if you wish and can send with the paper but would cost you recorded postage. I used it like the guy in the video - check the bonnet and record it and then check the shuts and record it. sure, not as good as the top class ones, but it is a method that works pretty well.