So, I started this afternoon on stripping the clearcoat and polishing the Tradewind. I'm using the Napier Removall 210 and the Southern Shine with the CHinese victim INcarcerated in forced labor Kamp TM brand buffer from Habor Frieght (now on sale for $29.95, by the way)
I started about 3 this afternoon and I was almost half done by 7:00 when it got too dark to see.
The Removall seems to work well; it's pretty warm here still, and the time between when it's done working and when it dries out is pretty short. The SS / CHINK buffer with the Official 3M wheels is clearly The Bomb (a toast here to Trailertrash and Stefrobrts!)
I've still got the curb side to do, and another pass with the fine wheel, but this is going very, very well. If I had cool weather and all day tomorrow to work on it, I'd be done this time tomorrow.
I'm not going nuts on the "perfect mirror finish" --- I just want it to look better than it does now with the dead clearcoat.
And here's the port side, after the "fine" pad, cleaning with lacquer thinner, and waxing with Meguiars Gold Class....
(Say, isn't that a gorgeous 1976 Cutlass with original special order paint, Hurst t-tops, and a factory 455 in the reflection? My, whoever owns such a magnificent vehicle must be quite a stud-muffin!)
This is 80/20 polishing. I believe I can get this thing looking 80% as good as a Cyclo/Nuvite job, with 20% or less of the effort. No, I didn't wet sand all the scratches out with 40,000 grit sandpaper. There's still scratches and FFC in places. It's a long way from being perfect. But it's a much longer way from where it was when I started...!!
...and I'll polish the center of the roof when you polish your belly pan! So there!
Have already purchased two Far East buffers (wife wanted one too) at HF for 29.95. Ordered 3M 5701 and 5705 wool pads last week which I hope are the correct ones and already have the SS and laquer thinner.
Are these the pads that you used?
How much of the SS did you use to do 1/2 of your AS?
I've been going at it with the same equipment, same polish (SS), same pads (3M), my AS wasn't nearly as bad as the pic's posted when TT made a visit to AZ and pic's were posted of a 7 min operation. As of now I have 24+ hrs invested and and I'm just half way! (And still not satisfied)
What tips are being left out? By the way, the mineral spirits was a great time saver for losing the stripped oxidation.
And if you think that 2 or3 bottles of SS will do the job, "you're nuts"! Some of us will use a bottle "plus" just detailing the old '60 model Herh windows.
In addition to the 3M pads (yep, those are the right ones), you will need the adaptor. I'm using the Removall 210 (or private label version therof) and I'm gonna get the whole trailer out of a gallon, easy.
I got 3 bottles of SS, and the first bottle is about gone, so I should be cool with what I've got. I've only used one side of each of the 3M pads, so I should be cool there, too. (Keep in mind that I'm not doing the top...)
I'm only polishing up as high as the awning roll, as you really can't see higher than that from the ground.
I did get a trigger nozzle deal for my garden hose to get a better stream to wash off the stripper. The lacquer thinner does a great job of taking off the Black Goo, but you'll need to have rags on hand for the process.
Looking good! So, how scared were you when you saw all the swirls the coarse pad was leaving? I think I would have had a heart attack right there! But the finished product looks excellent. I guess I'm going to have to give this a try!
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OK, gang, if this doesn't get me...
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