So got the PC system from Richard(SCD) and got a chance to try it on 2 cars yesterday(Sunday). Here's a report-sorry for lack of pictures since I totally forgot to document.

Woke up at 6 am to clean stuff around the house. 2 hours later, I brought out the PC and Prima products. The vehicle is a 96 Chevy Cavalier, white and been through too many automatic car washes(tons of swirls) and few black skid marks from rubbing against another car(silver colored). I washed it with Dawn and clayed it down(this is its third claying in 3 weeks) just to make sure it's perfectly pristine. The clay bar did not take out the black marks(nothing surprising since I tried it twice before) but everything was clean and prepped. Taped up and now onto the PC!

Richard recommended the Orange pad with Swirl(I skipped on the Cut since it's supposed to be very abrassive) and did a spot test. Did 3 runs through it and the swirl marks improved remarkably but still very present. Looks like nothing but the most abrassive is gonna work. Richard mentioned that Chevy's paint is really hard. I wasn't sure if I wanted to try the yellow pad with Swirl since I'm unsure if yellow is supposed to work only with Cut so I decided to finish everything with Swirl+orange pad and get the most repair out of it. It did take out all of the black marks though and the car is perfectly white(other than the chips that needs to be repaired). I then went over with Swirl again plus white pad(per Richard's recommendation) and it helped some more. Darn swirl marks still bothered me but 3 hours into this and not having Cut means I have to deal for now. Applied Epic, let dry, buffed out using the PC and it shone almost like glass. Only in the right light(high noon) can you spot the swirl marks but I was very impressed with my work.

Anyways, while I was waiting for Epic to dry, a cousin had brought her new Honda Fit to visit and it was pretty brand new(2 weeks old). She asked if I could do a quick clean and I said sure(assuming that since it was pretty new, I didn't have to clay and swirl remove too much). Boy was I wrong. Darn thing had to be prewashed, clayed, washed, clayed more detailed and washed again. My cousin had brought it into an automatic car wash and there were already swirl marks! ARGH! Didn't look too bad so I tried black pad plus Amigo. Surprisingly it worked and the surface was clear of swirl marks. I was thoroughly impressed. Did a coat of Epic and had time for BG before she went home. Holy wowzers, now I understand the dark pool of oil look. It was amazing! Dark color and all.

A single car detail(aiming for 5-6 hrs) took a record 11 hours. Today I am sore, very sore-this coming from a triathlete too! Thanks again Richard and now I have to buy Cut and Black Wow from you. :P

 

where are the picts?

 

No pictures- Honda Fit is gone and the Chevy has just been rained upon(ARGH DARN WISCONSIN WEATHER!). I'll definitely remember to take before and after pictures next time though-was too excited to whip out the PC.

 

Nice!!! Considering this was your first time using the PC, I'd say you did pretty well!! A few tips to consider. On very hard paints, try slowing the arm speed even further and polish longer before wiping it off. Although you don't have Cut or the Yellow pad, an orange pad with Swirl with more passes or longer polishing passes might do the trick.

Following the process with the white pad will remove even finer swirls and marring, as you noticed. But a PC can't fix all paint types. In most cases however, it will significantly improve the finish--its the delta that matter most.

re: New 2 week old cars
Don't you love that?? I hear that all the time--"I've got a new car and it just needs a wash and wax--the paint is already in good condition"...until I see it, lol.

As you found Amigo does wonders on black paint--however, with a black pad, the pad is so soft and the polish is so mild that you are mostly utilizing the filling capabilities of Amigo to improve the finish--as well as improving the gloss and reflectivity of the paint. I would have tried Amigo and a white pad before using the black pad, and if there was more time, Swirl or Finish before that.

Great work!!! Your Cut and BW are waiting for ya! LOL.

Richard

 

Ah, the first lesson of PC detailing: The PC makes detailing more effective, not faster!

Don't stress out about not removing 12 years of swirls on your first try. You probably wouldn't have any paint left if you took them all out!

 

this makes no sense.

 

Which part? I'm happy to explain!

 

I actually posted a mistake- I did use the white pad with the Amigo(the kit had 2 whites and I kept the black one for Epic on both cars). As for the more passes with the orange pad with Swirl, I tried 3 passes on just the hood and the improvement can be seen but complete swirl marks were still present. Arm speed was definitely slow and deliberate(I actually thought the arm speed of the DVD was rather fast). I would have tried more passes had the leftover swirl marks were incomplete swirl marks(showing signs of disappearing) but since they were still complete, I decided to wait for the Cut. I continued to do 3 passes throughout the car though! The best part was when the black rub marks disappeared-boy was I ecstatic!

Sign me up for that Cut and BW(the kit has the yellow pad which I got a terry cloth cover for and used to wipe off Epic)! I'll do the order through the site instead of a 6 am personal call this time. ;p