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Can anyone tell me if the clear coat is considered to be soft? I've been dealing my car for about a yr. with no problems but all of a sudden I have swirls and holograms all over the place. Not sure if anyone has found some glazes or sealants just don't do well on Civics.

Thanks for any help you can offer,
Howard

 
Rep Power: 326

well.. depending on what you use to clean your car, waxing every 6k miles or as directed can help prevent swirls or scrathces. but all that is gonna happen regardless of what you can do. itll always swirl i got a new paint 3 months ago, and i have light swirls. so just clean, wax, and polish. and that help!

 
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btw...go Red Sox!

 
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that was spiteful....

 
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Thanks for the respnse.........I got hooked on detailing couple months ago so I am using 2 buckets, sheepskin mitt, MF towels, slick Poorboys soap, etc. Everything was going well until lately when I started using a glaze, but that doesn't make sesme as the glaze has no abrasives. Anyway, just wondering if anybody new if the clear coat was considered to be soft as compared to other common cars.

Regarding the Red Sox comment........with their pitching looks like they have the AL East won.....oh, well...........maybe the Wild Card.

Howard

 
Rep Power: 296

Yeah... Honda clearcoat is generally pretty soft. The good thing is that this means it's easier to remove the swirls with a random orbital buffer (like the Porter Cable 7424 or the Cyclo). The bad thing... the swirls will eventually come back.

It can be a matter of preference, but I'm not a big fan of sheepskin mitts. I'd rather use chennile or MF mitts vs. sheepskin. The one time I tried sheepskin, it swirled the heck out of my freshly detailed paint. Otherwise, it sounds like your off to a good start. 2 bucket method, MF towels, Poorboy's... sounds like you've been reading Autopia. If not.... www.autopia.org Good luck.

 
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Yeah.....I switch back and forth with either a sheepskin or the SHmitt. I'll look into the chennile. Have you used a PC on your car yet? I am on the fence about getting a rotary or a DA. I'm leaning towards the rotary as videos I have seen using a DA it just takes so long.....even for a Civic :-) Although the rotary is more dangerous I think practicing on an old hood will do it. But if the PC works a little faster on a Civic because of the clear coat being softer I may go in that direction.....does it?

Howard

 
Rep Power: 388

Get the orbital buffer, it moves in two directions and you have less of a chance of burning through your paint. SERIOUSLY- if you havent used a buffer before- get the orbital one. Our paint is too soft for a nonprofessional detailer to be using a rotary buffer... I've burned through some paint before on my old bumper... it really sucks when you see the black plastic shineing through. It usually happens on tight corners, or edges. So when you say you think you'll be fine on an old hood- that makes me worry kuz hoods are so flat and have no detail, which you'll probably do okay with, but when you come back to your car and have the technical sections, you'll regret the rotary buffer. Oh.. and if you get something to pratice on, make sure it has the same type of paint- as far as the softness goes. For instance- toyotas have harder paint- which will take a lot longer to burn through then through a honda. Heads up.

 
Rep Power: 296

I have a SHmitt too. I have yet to try it. LOL Anyways... yeah I've used the PC 7424 on my Civic. I'll agree... it does take longer to remove swirls with a DA. I've used Poorboy's Super Swirl Remover 2.5 and 2 with a yellow pad at speed 6 (top speed) and I still had to do several passes to minimize the swirls. I'll usually do SSR 2.5 (x2) and then SSR 1. The rotary is more effective, but also comes at a bigger risk. I have yet to take the rotary plunge myself.

I say start off with the DA. Then eventually move on to the rotary. You'll probably end up using both. Along with the rotary come the inevitable holograms, marring, etc... so the DA can help get rid of those without taking too much off the paint. As for the rotary burning paint... yes it will. But for the most part, you're supposed to stay away from lines on the hood, edges, etc... That's where paint is the thinnest. Hence, why people usually burn through those areas. The PC 7424 can go over edges, etc... without any risk. Whatever you decide... good luck.