After a very long winter full of salt and slush... I need some advice about polishing....

Should I Clay before polishing? or the other way around, so basically, i should wash the car with dawn (even if my car now is already only zaino), but i want to take out any wax on it as usual,
then clay the car, after dawn and clay, wash again using Z7

then polish? should i wash again after the polish?

also, i brought the sonus hand polish bundle http://www.autopia-carcare.com/sonhandpol.html
should i use the S1? the car hasnt been polished in the past 2.5 years, but has been well zainoed constantly, there are a few noticeable scratches, but as everyone know DS does not show swirls nor many scratches unless it is really bad, or should i use S3 only and not S1?

finally, after the polish work by hand, should i wash again using Z7 before using Zaino Z2?

I'd appreciate any feedback

 

Clay before polishing.

If you are not changing wax brands, and are going to polish anyway, then there is no reason to wash with Dawn.

I would wash the car with Z7, lather it all up and clay it while still wet using the shampoo as a lube.

Always use the least aggressive polish for the situation. I would use SFX-2 with a white or yellow pad and probably finish up with SFX-2 using the softest pad. If for any reason you still see some spots that need more attention then go back and hit those with SFX-1.

I would then probably wash again (Z7) and apply the Zaino.

 

Do you mean finish up with SFX-3? I know before you always said move stepwise up from finer to more aggressive polishes, then once you get the scratches/swirls out, move back down the ladder to the finest stuff. You still hold to that correct? Brad, do you think you need to wash in between polishing steps or can you buff and go right to the next finer polish??

 

Oops, yes, finish with SFX-3. What I mean by moving up is go more aggressive only if the finer polish doesn't do the job.

If #2 doesn't do the job then go back and use #1, followed by #2 and #3. You can usually quickly tell what will be required.

No need to wash between steps.

 

Autopia has a really good step-by-step explanation on how to get the perfect shine. I plan on using their guide along with the recomended products (which includes a lot of sonus products) next time I wax. I plan on only using the Sonus SFX-2 enhance polish as I don't really have any heavy scuffs or scratches (which require SFX-1 restore polish)

http://www.autopia-carcare.com/inf-perfect.html

 

i think i forgot to mention im doing this on a hand polish pad by sonus (the one with a yellow side and a black side.... ) but now i might be using a random orbital i can get from a local car store by a brand called simoniz (anyone with experience with them?)as i really do not want to commit 200 bucks using the porter cable.... does anyone know what size the backing pad is for the porter cable so i can at least run the pads by sonus?

im gonna try hand polishing first.... next weekend will be my day for doing the polish job with the hand polish pad..

also bradB, think you can tell me a method of getting out the polish reside from the foam pads?

 

The most usable size pad is 6". Get a 6" backing plate.

The standard Porter Cable 7424 kit does not come with a velcro backing plate unless the vendor seperately bundles it. They come stock with one bolt on pad which works but is a bit inconvenient to change and clean.

There are a few good ways. Dishwashing liquid in the sink or a bucket. Let soak a minute then simply squish & squash it with your fingers to work out the compound. You should rinse under flowing water to remove any residual soap. Set on a towel when done so they can dry. You can spin them on the buffer to accellerate this process but it is messy!

I polish so often and end up with so many dirty pads that I don't have the time or energy to bother doing them by hand. I wash them on the short/gentle/cold cycle with liquid detergent in my washing machine. After the spin cycle they are almost dry. I set them on a paper towel to let them finish drying. Don't worry, the polish is water soluable and does not harm the machine.

Now many people, even some manufacturers, will tell you not to put them in the washing machine. This is because they are fearful that a machine washing will loosen the velcro piece that attaches to the pad foam. In 10+ years I have never had this happen except once after 10-15 washes on a Meguiars red pad. This is the process I will continue to use.

They do make "pad washing devices" but they are expensive and cumbersome, IMO.