I've been reading past threads and it seems swirl and scratch x are both good starting points. Is cut still a good next step up? what else might be good? I just wanted to make sure I'm still on the right track as some of the threads were a few years old. Thanks all!

 

I've been using Griot's Garage products for several years and really enjoy the quality and diversity of car care product available.
Deep scratches and chips thru the clear coat aren't going away and touch up paint is dodgy.
Here's a good chart on guide lines for their various polishes.
https://www.griotsgarage.com/categor...sh+compound.do

 

All depends on what you want to spend and how much time.

If you're looking from something you can find off the shelf and don't have to order, you can go with the Meguiar's line. With Meguiars, you have a lot of different levels of cutting ability just off the 4 basic products, which are Swirl-X, Ultimate Polish, Scratch-X and Ultimate Compound. Swirl-X is a good starting point.

Prima products are ok, but as Flyin'Brick mentioned, Griot's has a lot that are very good and I think better than what Prima currently offers. Some are available locally also.