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CUTTING COMPOUNDS
Cutting compounds are the most aggressive type of polishes on the market, and are used to correct major paint defects such as severe swirl marks and deep scratches, and restore dull, neglected paint back to good condition. Cutting compounds work by physical abrasion, and should be thought of as liquid sandpaper. Many modern cutting compounds comprise fine uniformly sized abrasive particles that break down progressively during the polishing process; as a result, such abrasives are usually referred to as (diminishing abrasives). This contrasts with traditional polishing compounds, in which the abrasives did not break down at all during the polishing process, and which left surface hazing that required further polishing steps with increasingly finer abrasives until a high gloss finish was restored. The benefit of modern abrasive technology is that it is now often possible to go from compounding to applying protection without the need for an intervening polishing step with a finer finishing polish. In cases where a finer final polishing step is still required (often on darker colored cars), the amount of additional polishing required is significantly reduced, saving time and effort.
A few important points should be noted about the use of cutting compounds. Firstly, these products are designed to be used with machine polishers, and generally should not be applied by hand. This is because a very high work rate is required to breakdown the abrasive particles, and if they are not worked hard enough then micro marring will occur, which is the technical term for fresh sub-surface defects inflicted during the polishing process as unbroken down abrasive particles are continually moved on the paint, leaving a faint pattern of very tightly defined swirl marks. Secondly, cutting compounds are aggressive, particularly when used with cutting pads, and will remove paint more quickly than you might expect, meaning that they need to be treated and used with respect. Thirdly, compounding should not be viewed lightly, and can only be done a certain number of times before the integrity of the clear coat is permanently compromised. We therefore strongly recommend that you always consider your options carefully before resorting to heavy compounding.
POLISH
The next discernible group of products on the market are polishes, which vary in grade from medium abrasives through to light abrasives. Like cutting compounds, most of the products in this category comprise uniformly sized diminishing abrasives, although in this case the average particle size is much smaller and often quoted as being ultra-fine or micro-fine. In contrast to cutting compounds, the much finer abrasive particles used in polishes require less work in order to breakdown, meaning that they can be applied either by hand or machine (although by machine is easier and gives better results). The purpose of polishes is to permanently remove less serious paint defects, such as minor swirl marks, and create smooth, high gloss, highly reflective surfaces in readiness for the addition of sealant or wax protection. It is fine finishing polishes that are the secret to creating jaw dropping car care results, as it is during the final stages of the polishing process that the paint surface is burnished to its maximum extent.
A few important points should be noted about the use of polishes. Firstly, some polishes currently on the market contain a small quantity of fillers, which help to mask any remaining defects prior to the application of sealant or wax protection. Although this might initially strike you as a good thing, the downside is that once such fillers are eroded some of the remaining defects will reappear. For every polish with fillers there is one without, so always do your homework and pick which type suits you best. Our preference is to always work with finishing polishes that contain no fillers, meaning that the true level of paint correction can be easily assessed. Secondly, when working by hand it is beneficial to use the least abrasive product possible to get the job done. This is because polishing by hand is hard work, and much less effort is required to breakdown finer abrasives. In addition, when working by hand it is possible to inflict micro marring when using medium abrasives, as you may not be able to breakdown the abrasive particles fully. We recommend starting with a light abrasive and only moving onto medium abrasives if absolutely necessary.
GLAZE'S
Glazes are a seemingly misunderstood category of polishing products, perhaps because of confusion caused by the naming of certain products. In the true sense of the word, a glaze is a pure polish that does not contain any abrasives or cleaning agents. Glazes are designed to improve the brilliance and clarity of painted surfaces, and mask or visually reduce the extent of any remaining imperfections. In order to do this, glazes typically comprise gloss enhancing oils and kaolin (China Clay), which fills and hides minor sub-surface defects very effectively. Somewhat confusingly, some glazes only contain gloss enhancing oils, meaning that they do not have any masking abilities, and some products that are called glazes actually include fine abrasive particles, meaning that they are not glazes in the true sense of the word. We therefore recommend that you read product descriptions carefully before choosing an appropriate glaze for the task in hand.
A few important points should be noted about the use of glazes. Firstly, glazes are underused in the most places. In our opinion, it is far better to apply a glaze on a regular basis and hide any defects rather than polish your paint with abrasive products on a regular basis. We only tend to polish our own cars with abrasive polishes once every one to two years, and in the intervening period we use glazes to keep them looking good. Our reasoning for this is very simple; every time you use an abrasive polish you remove a further fraction of your clear coat. Do this too often and you risk compromising the long-term integrity of your clear coat. Keeping daily drivers looking good is hard, but glazes offer a highly convenient solution that avoids the risk of ever over polishing your paint. Secondly, once a glaze is applied you should apply sealant or wax protection immediately, in order to seal in the fillers. If you fail to do this, the fillers and gloss enhancing oils will be washed off the next time it rains or when you next wash your car, negating the benefits of applying it in the first place.
PAINT CLEANERS / PRE WAX CLEANERS
The final discernible group of polishing products on the market are chemical paint cleaners, which blur the line between polishes and last step products as they typically polish and lay down sealant or wax protection in a single step. All of the products in this category utilize solvent-based cleaning agents instead of abrasive particles, meaning that they have limited polishing powers but excellent cleaning abilities. However, some newer products in this category also utilize abrasive particles for the polishing process, meaning that more serious defects are sometimes able to be corrected. In spite of their limited polishing power, such products are very useful and typically brighten painted surfaces up considerably as they draw out dirt seated dirt and grime from within the uppermost few microns of the clear coat. These so called one step style products are also great time savers, and perfect for enthusiasts who want to clean their paint whilst simultaneously adding protection.
A few important points should be noted about the use of chemical paint cleaners. Firstly, they must not be used over glazes, because their solvent-based cleaning agents will strip away oils and fillers, canceling out the benefits of applying the glaze in the first place. Secondly, such products typically lay down a layer of sealant or wax protection and care should subsequently be taken to ensure that if a further protective product is used that it is compatible with this layer, as sealants should not be layered over waxes. The golden rule is that if the chemical paint cleaner lays down a layer of wax then only a wax-based last step product should be applied on top. However, if the chemical paint cleaner lays down a layer of sealant, then you can generally apply any type of last step product on top. If you are ever unsure about what can and can't be layered in terms of chemical paint cleaners and last step products, please contact us and we will be happy to advise you accordingly.
There are videos that can help you understand a better procedure, www.youtube.com/results?search_query=polishing&aq=f
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