Better Buffing

When buffing, it is best to always be buffing on the paint.  That sounds odd, but after going over the same area a couple times, the compound or polish starts to build up. This makes it harder to get scratches and texture out of the paint, since you’re buffing on too much compound instead of clean paint.  

Compound and polish are water based products. So to remove them, a water based cleaner needs to be used.  Either water borne cleaner that you would use for paint prep can be used, or rubbing alcohol.  Use either of these throughout the buffing process.  Use the alcohol with caution, some paint can be a little sensitive to it, but it does work very good.  

  • With the polish removed all the time, you can actually see what the paint looks like.  Compound and polish hide a lot of flaws.
  • The goal is to end up polishing a panel, and wipe it down with the cleaner, and have it look exactly the same.  
  •  A big reason paint seems like it scratches easy or fast, is because all the scratches were never totally removed.  Instead, the polish is finally wore off, and then the scratches show up. (They were there the whole time)
  • Don’t use and ‘instant detailer’ to clean the panel while buffing.  Although it keeps the paint shiny, it doesn’t help you do a better job buffing. 
  • When you are struggling getting a scratch out, stop, clean the area good with the cleaner, and try again. You’d be surprised how much it helps.