Cut & Polish before sealing?

[Bravotwozero]

I think you will find using cut and polish will add more swirls . Meguiars swirl remover should do the trick !

I thought they had a clear coat over the paint? Cut & polish will totally stuff your paint.

lol at both of you. Clearly no idea.

 

[RiCeY]

I thought they had a clear coat over the paint? Cut & polish will totally stuff your paint.

Where did I say I used cutting compound? I said normal polish and scratch X both of which are barely abrasive.

 

[TraidMarc]

Sorry, maybe i should have said"won't cut & polish stuff your paint?"
but fair enough, I do not have the facts If I had No idea, I wouldn't have commented.......But I am interested......
There are no stupid questions, just stupid answers..........
Some people know a lot about everything, but stuff all about anything in particular.
But I guess its better to be labelled an Idiot, than to open your mouth & prove it...

 

[TinSnips]

It's a really common misconception - and if the person using the abrasives doesn't know what they're doing, it most certainly WILL stuff your paint. Nothing stupid about asking a question like that.

 

[DAKSTER]

Especially with clear, all you are doing is taking the top off the paint with cutting compound, and filling what tiny scratches the cut is making with the polish at the same time. Do it right and you will have a flawless finish. Do it wrong and you wont. Even a single grain of sand on your polishing cloth will make more scratches than you are trying to get rid of for instance.

I saw some idiot posting the other day regarding sanding, and insisting you only rub in straight lines, never circles, or you will create scratches. I think he needs to put the woodwork book down, there is no grain to follow in paint... small tight circles and gentle compound is the go.

Remember there is a difference between 'cutting compound' and 'cut and polish' too.

'Cutting compound' is just liquid sandpaper, it will scratch. Its a preparation tool, not a finishing tool.

'Cut and polish' is a combination, uses a less agressive cutting medium, and in theory fills its own scratches with the inbuilt polish. Use a dirty cloth, or bad polishing technique, and you will still get scratches though.

'Polish' has no cutting properties, and simply fills the scratches and adds a shiny layer over the paint. It has limited filling properties too though, and wont hide a lot of scratches.

I rub back paint with wet 2000 grit (though I have often gotten away with 1200 grit ), then buff it with a mild 'cut and polish', then buff it again with a good quality wax.

I'm hoping snips agrees with me here, because he is a pro and I know nothing but it works for me.

 

[ScottSV6]

I thought they had a clear coat over the paint? Cut & polish will totally stuff your paint.

That sounds like a sales spool from the aftermarket chick trying to flog someone paint protection and telling them that polishing the paint ruins it so they need paint protection instead. :rofl2:

 

[DAKSTER]

That sounds like a sales spool from the aftermarket chick trying to flog someone paint protection and telling them that polishing the paint ruins it so they need paint protection instead. :rofl2:

I opted for 'paint protection' for the new Kia I bought a couple weeks ago. Just on the basis that they actually maintain the paint for you as part of the deal. They advise never to attempt to polish it, they will void the paint warranty if its washed with anything but soapy water. Presumably polishing it will harm the protective coating. I can see how cutting compound or even cut and polish would harm it but no polish sounds like hogwash to me. However they are prepared to fix any ( non accident ) paint damage for the duration of the 5 year warranty if I stick to their rules so no worries, I obey

 

[TinSnips]

There are abrasive polishes and non abrasive polishes. The term 'polish' is widely misused. In ideal conditions, there's no need to 'fill' anything. The finish is refined to a point beyond the point of even being fill-able. The idea is to actually remove any polishing oils after machining, that can fill as well, to make sure there is nothing left to be filled - ie, leaving clean, perfectly refined paint. There are guys who have been in the game much longer than I have who will be able to word that better (^^^ Like Scott.. Hi Scott) - but hopefully that makes sense.

To use the sand paper analogy, there are different grades of sand paper, in the same way that there are different grades of polish. Aggressive compounds and pads remove scratches but will often leave hazing and holograms - so you refine with finer grades of polish and pads, until the finish is crystal.

 

[ScottSV6]

Just on the basis that they actually maintain the paint for you as part of the deal. They advise never to attempt to polish it, they will void the paint warranty if its washed with anything but soapy water. Presumably polishing it will harm the protective coating. I can see how cutting compound or even cut and polish would harm it but no polish sounds like hogwash to me. However they are prepared to fix any ( non accident ) paint damage for the duration of the 5 year warranty if I stick to their rules so no worries, I obey

Any polish with the slightest abrasion will remove their paint protection unless its something like "Opti-Coat" or "cQaurtz" which can be polished with a very slight abrasion without removing it and cannot be removed with even heavy chemical cleaners.

Unfortunetly most of these paint protections from dealerships are nothing more then a synthetic wax (polymer, ptfe etc) and can be removed with chemical cleaners thats why they say it can only be washed with a gentle car wash otherwise you will void the warranty, most even specify that you must use their products to maintain it. Theres one particular product that contains Titanium Dioxide that is sold through dealerships Australia Wide and they market it saying that it contains Titanium Dioxide Ti02 so its "self cleaning and breaks down dirt", thing is Ti02 is just a pigment that is a UV Reflector thats used in sunscreen, doesnt really have anything to do with durability or self cleaning. Last time i checked my sunscreen didnt perform self cleaning on me.

So the whole paint protection package is only worth whatever the written warranty terms are as the products are quiet average, I love when people tell me a dealership has told them their paint protection package includes repair of damage, because how far does this damage extend too? whats exactly covered and if the car is absolutely covered in bird poo etching and needs a full respray are they going to pay for it? I doubt it, what comes with paint protection is a "Warranty" not "Insurance", the "Warranty" only extends as far as the product they are selling, same as everything you buy that comes with a warranty, its not insurance.

It was only today i had a client tell me the dealership told them their leather protection covers the seats for a lifetime, so if they start to wear even in 10yrs time they will replace them. Luckily the client was smart enough to know a "liquid" protection product on a flexible porous surface will not protect against wear and also wont last a lifetime and "will" need to be reapplied regularly, (they also told him its a once off application and needs no reapplication within a lifetime). Unless its written in writing their verbal sales pitch means nothing and im yet to see one that has in writing they will repair affected paint work or replace interior parts if they are worn, even if they did they would argue that you did something that voided the warranty, it was out of their control or the protection was no longer present!

I hope for your sake they are inspecting it annually to ensure the protection is still present for your benefit, however from your post above you sound smart enough to know if the protection is gone or not.

Sorry to hijack the thread!

 

[DAKSTER]

Any polish with the slightest abrasion will remove their paint protection unless its something like "Opti-Coat" or "cQaurtz" which can be polished with a very slight abrasion without removing it and cannot be removed with even heavy chemical cleaners.

Unfortunetly most of these paint protections from dealerships are nothing more then a synthetic wax (polymer, ptfe etc) and can be removed with chemical cleaners thats why they say it can only be washed with a gentle car wash otherwise you will void the warranty, most even specify that you must use their products to maintain it. Theres one particular product that contains Titanium Dioxide that is sold through dealerships Australia Wide and they market it saying that it contains Titanium Dioxide Ti02 so its "self cleaning and breaks down dirt", thing is Ti02 is just a pigment that is a UV Reflector thats used in sunscreen, doesnt really have anything to do with durability or self cleaning. Last time i checked my sunscreen didnt perform self cleaning on me.

So the whole paint protection package is only worth whatever the written warranty terms are as the products are quiet average, I love when people tell me a dealership has told them their paint protection package includes repair of damage, because how far does this damage extend too? whats exactly covered and if the car is absolutely covered in bird poo etching and needs a full respray are they going to pay for it? I doubt it, what comes with paint protection is a "Warranty" not "Insurance", the "Warranty" only extends as far as the product they are selling, same as everything you buy that comes with a warranty, its not insurance.

It was only today i had a client tell me the dealership told them their leather protection covers the seats for a lifetime, so if they start to wear even in 10yrs time they will replace them. Luckily the client was smart enough to know a "liquid" protection product on a flexible porous surface will not protect against wear and also wont last a lifetime and "will" need to be reapplied regularly, (they also told him its a once off application and needs no reapplication within a lifetime). Unless its written in writing their verbal sales pitch means nothing and im yet to see one that has in writing they will repair affected paint work or replace interior parts if they are worn, even if they did they would argue that you did something that voided the warranty, it was out of their control or the protection was no longer present!

I hope for your sake they are inspecting it annually to ensure the protection is still present for your benefit, however from your post above you sound smart enough to know if the protection is gone or not.

Sorry to hijack the thread!

Yeah mate thanks.. totally aware of the limitations of the warranty.

Of course it doesnt cover accidents, chemical spills etc. They do touchups on chips though, its a requirement that I bring it in annually for inspection, repairs and a reapplication of the product (no further charges).

The warranty is mostly useful if the paint starts fading, crazing or peeling of course, but since they say they will also touch up stone chips and suchlike, it seemed worth doing. I've had a few Kias, and found them to be excellent in terms of service and honouring warranty claims.

It came as a package with rust protection anyway, and I wanted one so I kinda had to have the other anyway lol.. 900 bucks for rust protection, extra sound deadening and paint protection. No idea why it should need extra rust protection lol.. dont they come with it normally? but the sound deadening alone is worth the money, makes a major difference.

Also sorry for the off topic discussion guys..