Guest Ranger_Man Posted April 20, 2003 Report Share Posted April 20, 2003 cause he/she/it gave me a 10" electric buffer. and now im wondering how the hell i use it. is there some sort of special paste/cream/"buffer compound" type stuff that i need to get? also, is there different types of "heads" that go on it? lastly, if you can put different "heads" on it, which one is good for getting out swirls? scratches? need my ish to shine! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamZman Posted April 20, 2003 Report Share Posted April 20, 2003 I recommend getting some 3m rubbing compound and polish. If this is an industrial buffer you need to be careful if you've never used it before because you could burn off the paint. If it's the the orbital type "polisher" you will probably be ok. I just found this on the net though, since you seem to be pretty new to this: There are two types of buffers: High-speed rotary buffer Dual-action or random orbital buffer The wheel of an orbital buffer operates with two separate motions; a slow circular motion combined with an orbital motion. As the wheel spins, it also orbits slightly off-center around a point. This action imitates hand motion, but at a much faster rate. With an orbital buffer, there is virtually no build-up of heat, and it is difficult to cause damage to the paint surface, except with very aggressive compounds. The high-speed rotary buffer, on the other hand, produces heat and friction with its high speed and continuous motion over a single point. The heat "softens" the paint so that the friction can work quickly and effectively to remove surface defects. This is also the reason why the rotary buffer can cause much more damage to the paint than the orbital buffer. In the final finishing step, the heat "melts" the paint, correcting minor paint damage left over from the major cutting steps. I'm not sure what type of pad, or "head" you are using, but buffing with rubbing compound is usually done by this : http://www.smarnold.com/Media/58-487.jpg Napa is the only place I know of that sells 3M polishes.. You may want to just start with 3M microfinishing compound, and then get you some 3M hand glaze to shine it up. I never really had much luck with an orbital buffer though so if that's what you're using (and a 10inch is most likely orbital), maybe someone will post some helpful tips on that.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ranger_Man Posted April 20, 2003 Report Share Posted April 20, 2003 werd, thanks for the info. it is infact random orbital via 2600 rpm. yea rather new to the polishing world and when i type when i just woke up i am usually missing the vast majority of my vocabulary tongue.gif . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buck531 Posted April 20, 2003 Report Share Posted April 20, 2003 I didn't think orbital buffers went up to 2600 rpm's? I have an old craftsman 12" buffer I got back when I was in high school. It's basically good for putting on/taking off polish and wax.. not much else. Mine doesn't spin fast enough to get down to get the scratches out. Like Sam said, if it's up there in rpm's you can burn the paint REALLY fast and easy. Just don't hold it in one place for too long (keep moving). You may want to get a "test" car to mess around on it first until you get the hang of it. Edit - Oh, to answer your original question about what stuff to use. smile.gif . There really is no special paste or what not. You can use whatever you want to put on the car. I recommend NOT using the 3M Polisher stuff (only on an orbital buffer) as it will scratch the shit out of it because it doesn't spin fast enough. I know.. I tried it . I can't remember the part number that I bought, but there's another one that's specifically used for hand usage and not buffer. I like to use the paste wax only because it tends to last longer than the liquid stuff (Meguiars gold glass sucks). I just tried Zymol yesterday. Looks great, but we'll see how long it lasts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamZman Posted April 20, 2003 Report Share Posted April 20, 2003 Originally posted by Buck531: Edit - Oh, to answer your original question about what stuff to use. smile.gif . There really is no special paste or what not. You can use whatever you want to put on the car. I recommend NOT using the 3M Polisher stuff (only on an orbital buffer) as it will scratch the shit out of it because it doesn't spin fast enough. I know.. I tried it . I can't remember the part number that I bought, but there's another one that's specifically used for hand usage and not buffer. I like to use the paste wax only because it tends to last longer than the liquid stuff (Meguiars gold glass sucks). I just tried Zymol yesterday. Looks great, but we'll see how long it lasts. Good points. I'd still recommend the 3M hand glaze, and it's not necessary to use any buffer with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buck531 Posted April 20, 2003 Report Share Posted April 20, 2003 Originally posted by SamZman: Good points. I'd still recommend the 3M hand glaze, and it's not necessary to use any buffer with it. Will the hand glaze get out minor surface scratches? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nitrousbird Posted April 21, 2003 Report Share Posted April 21, 2003 I wanna learn more about this stuff. smile.gif I keep forgeting to ask Sam about it. I'm just not a "car care" kinda guy. I'm not a wash-o-holic, and I'm no fan of waxing. I've clay bared a couple of times (which I need to do again), and like the Zaino products. But my car needs a good buffing (okay, I'd prefer a new paint job, but that won't be happening). I have some scratches, swirl marks, etc. I'd like to get rid of. I want her to shine for a change. I have an orbital buffer somewhere (I think). But by hand is fine too. What products should I use? I think I have some 3M hand glaze around here, but I don't think that stuff is good for getting swirl marks out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamZman Posted April 21, 2003 Report Share Posted April 21, 2003 Originally posted by Buck531: Will the hand glaze get out minor surface scratches? Well very minor scratches. It usually takes care of the swirl marks like Joe's talking about assuming they aren't too harsh, not as good as the micofinishing or thicker rubbing compound of course. If you have a high speed buffer with a polishing pad (foam 3m kind) the Hand Glaze works pretty good, but it's REAL easy to burn thru pain w/ the polishing pad. And yes Joe your car could use a good polishing. But you know you'll have to wash it first. Have you seen Jason's car since I did a quick buff and polish on it last weekend. It looks a LOT better, and we really didn't work on it that long. You can borrow my buffer sometime if you want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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