Hey guys been watching alot of videos on car detailing. Ive used numerous waxes on my punto from TurtleWax,Mer,AutoGlym,AutoSmart etc some videos say that you should apply waxes in straight motions instead of circular. This helps to hide swirl marks caused threw washing.

What you guys thoughts on that?

a pure car wax will not hide swirl marks.....


as a general rule

polish in circular motions

wax in longitudinal passes along the cars length

I would take a look on http://www.detailingworld.co.uk

They have loads of threads on applying wax etc etc, and is also useful and looking at proper washing methods.

If you want to reduce the amount of swirl marks, then you will ethier have to polish by hand or machine. You can get good results with hand, with the correct product and work.

I would remove all previous protection, clay if needed, polish, then protect all that hard work with a good wax, I do mine is circle motion applying a thin layer, as less is more.

But yeah I am far from a expert, but as I said take a look at detailing world, such a good site.
http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/

I apply my wax in circular motions and take it off by circling the opposite direction, I find it helps pick up all the dusty wax bits. (Almost karate kid style)

Got some decent Megs stuff for crimbo so my car will be as clean as ever

Cheers
Tom

ysidfa said:

I apply my wax in circular motions and take it off by circling the opposite direction, I find it helps pick up all the dusty wax bits. (Almost karate kid style)

Got some decent Megs stuff for crimbo so my car will be as clean as ever

Cheers
Tom

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Wax doesn't 'dust', polish does.

Eklipze3k said:

Wax doesn't 'dust', polish does.

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A lot of waxes can 'dust' and if the wax has been applyed thickly onto the surface then it's likely to dust if it's fully cured.

As for applying vertically to the car or in circular motions, I usually alternate.

Rawb said:

A lot of waxes can 'dust' and if the wax has been applyed thickly onto the surface then it's likely to dust if it's fully cured.

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Hmm true, ok - 'wax applied correctly shouldn't dust' - better?

Eklipze3k said:

Hmm true, ok - 'wax applied correctly shouldn't dust' - better?

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Much better, it's the same story as Super Resin polish and people complaining that it's dusty.

A wax shall never scratch your clear coat UNLESS you have picked up dirt on the material in wich you are applying the wax. This is why they say to apply it in an up and down method. Applying it up and down will cause the scratches to reflect less light, than when applied in a a circular motion. I have recently tried Collinite on my 500 and it looks amazing wet,wet wet!!!!:slayer:

As said, wax does not contribute to swirls if your cleaning and drying technique is correct. Polish on the other hand can/will... most modern polishes break down as applied and the most common reasons for swirls when polishing is using too coarse a polish or not working the polish enough on the area so that it has not had time to breakdown fully.

All cars will have minutely fine scratches all over the paint/clearcoat. If you do have noticeable swirls, the swirls appear to be formed around light sources reflected in the paintwork giving the effect of being caused by circular motion, the reality is that they are in random directions but just illuminated from a point light so appear around it. Wax just does a good job of filling in these minute scratches making the paintwork look more glossy. There are many great waxes out there and you don't have to buy Zymol Royale to achieve a superb lasting finish. But also consider sealants... you can often get a wetter looking deep shine with a sealant

But to answer the question, apply it in an even and very thin coat... if you can achieve that easiest with a circular motion then thats the right thing to do for you. Some waxes respond well to applying by hand due to the warming effect of your skin too.

Very useful comments. So would you say Mer is a polish or a wax?

Bit of both. other wise known as an all in one


I dont like it to be honest its a pig to remove


If its for the car in your sig

a Clay bar then a decent hand polish

such as autoglym super resin polish then a sealent such as Extra gloss protection

OR

clay then this kit...

http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/werkstat-acrylic-kit-cat1.html#aMasterZWSAK000

Got a LOAD of meguires stuff for christmas and with it came some high caranuba wax. I know its a general rule of thumb that More Caranuba > Less caranuba but does more caranuba mean less wax need be applied?

Cheers
Tom

Some waxes dont contain carnubra anyway also there are a few types/ grades..... Its mainly used to make Confectionery shiny rather than on cars.....



your best off doing 2 really THIN coats say an hour apart than lathering it on really thick, as It wastes product (the stuff not directly in contact with the paint is literally wasted) and it makes it a pain to remove.

it helps to have your applicator pad damp as well as this helps you spread it..

Agreed, Ive only recently started using a damp pad to put it on and it makes the applying so much easier and quicker.

If you're using a wax with carnauba in it it's a good idea to lightly spray the finished surface with water, then buff up again, this is because carnauba molecules plump up when they get wet.

VmanC said:

If you're using a wax with carnauba in it it's a good idea to lightly spray the finished surface with water, then buff up again, this is because carnauba molecules plump up when they get wet.

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I did read about this the other day actually, the thread on Detailing world mentioned using pure/dio water post removal of the wax to give a wetlook glossy shine, as pure water doesnt contain any addatives such as limescale, florine, chlorine ect, it drys without leaving drip marks.

Im due a good wash and polish this weekend so Ill give it ago
Thanks for the advice

Tom

i use a damp micro fibre cloth to apply the polish that way you avoid the dust residue..

jaberwockie1959 said:

i use a damp micro fibre cloth to apply the polish that way you avoid the dust residue..

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Polish is not wax.

I use liquid hard wax which goes on like water an hardens not sure if it has carnauba in it it autoglym don't like to say