Essance + MF help

yg1829

yg1829

New member
Hey everyone, looking for a little assistance.

In a month or so I plan in doing our subaru outback with essance and cquartz origional but I have never used a MF pad.

The car is in pretty good shape so I think I can one step it. Test spot will tell. I have a v2 meguiars da.

My main question is how many MF pads do I need to do a car that size?

I know more is obviously better but can I get away with 2 or 3 5" pads and 2 or 3 3" pads?

I plan on cleaning on the fly with air.

Thanks in advance.



Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk
 
You can. But it will be slow going because since you have just a few pads, you are going to have to stop to clean them off quite a bit and air alone will not be sufficient. Unlike foam pads that can be spun dry on the buffer, I have always found that they need some time to dry enough to be able to work properly. Some people swear by MF pads and I like them for some finishing work, but I just got a dozen or so the CarPro flash and polishing pads in 3 and 5 to see what those are all about. If time is on your side, then you should be able to knock it out with the pads you have.
 
DapperDon said:
You can. But it will be slow going because since you have just a few pads, you are going to have to stop to clean them off quite a bit and air alone will not be sufficient. Unlike foam pads that can be spun dry on the buffer, I have always found that they need some time to dry enough to be able to work properly. Some people swear by MF pads and I like them for some finishing work, but I just got a dozen or so the CarPro flash and polishing pads in 3 and 5 to see what those are all about. If time is on your side, then you should be able to knock it out with the pads you have.
Click to expand...
Hmmm....very true. Thanks Don.

I wonder if I should just do a correction with a polish I'm more comfortable with and use essance as more of a gloss enhancer/primer on a finish pad.

I have a ton of hydrotechs I use.

I know I wont save any time that way but I'm just a DIY hobbyist.

Thanks again Don. One of the reasons I asked is others opinions help get the wheels spinnin.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk
 
You are very welcome. I am no pro by any stretch of the imagination, but I do listen very carefully when the Pros do try and teach us all something.
 
I find I use 5-7 pads per step (correction or polish). Having fresh pads insures consistent results across the full vehicle.

I just used 5, Buff & Shine MF 6" pads to do a new Forester. (Not a pro, just one of the enthusiasts).
 
Ebg18t said:
I find I use 5-7 pads per step (correction or polish). Having fresh pads insures consistent results across the full vehicle.

I just used 5, Buff & Shine MF 6" pads to do a new Forester. (Not a pro, just one of the enthusiasts).
Click to expand...
Thanks Ebg18t. I'm really not sure what I want to do. I keep going back and forth in my head.

Maybe I'll just bite the bullet and pick up a bunch of MF pads and be done with it.

I really want to try to one step this cause the subaru paint is so soft and in pretty good shape...I think it will come out good.

How was the condition of the Forester?

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk
 
I think you should be able to complete the car with just a few pads. The biggest thing I find with the MF pads is they need to be swapped out often (maybe as often as every pass) to get the best cut, and to reduce the heat build up. (I toasted a Meg's MF Finishing pad with the Rupes 15 Mark II over the weekend trying Essence and the 'slow' method because I did not swap out the pad often.)
I did a G35 a while back, and cleaned & swapped the pad after every pass. It added a little time, but I got through the whole car with 2 Megs MF cutting pads and my GG 6".
 
black-n-silver said:
I think you should be able to complete the car with just a few pads. The biggest thing I find with the MF pads is they need to be swapped out often (maybe as often as every pass) to get the best cut, and to reduce the heat build up. (I toasted a Meg's MF Finishing pad with the Rupes 15 Mark II over the weekend trying Essence and the 'slow' method because I did not swap out the pad often.)
I did a G35 a while back, and cleaned & swapped the pad after every pass. It added a little time, but I got through the whole car with 2 Megs MF cutting pads and my GG 6".
Click to expand...
That's cool! Thank you for the input. I really appreciate all the help.

The whole MF pad thing is new to me. I am not an expert with foam pads either but I've at least used those a handful of times.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk
 
My two cents. When using essence, cut should be done, speed at lower levels, and you shouldn't be collecting much on an MF pad.

I have been using essence exclusively as lsp prior to coating since it was released. Both with mf ( when that was the only polishing step needed) and with CP gloss pad when it was used after a cutting step.

I'm thinking if using MF, blow the pad after a panel, use little to no pressure on the machine and you are fine. Essence tends to stay fairly wet on a pad and with lower speeds, I don't see it causing the hard spots on fibers that become a problem when cutting.

For some insane gloss.... Cut with MF and something with a little more correcting power and follow with essence on the gloss pad. That will yield some eye popping results.
 
steve.soule.10 said:
My two cents. When using essence, cut should be done, speed at lower levels, and you shouldn't be collecting much on an MF pad.

I have been using essence exclusively as lsp prior to coating since it was released. Both with mf ( when that was the only polishing step needed) and with CP gloss pad when it was used after a cutting step.

I'm thinking if using MF, blow the pad after a panel, use little to no pressure on the machine and you are fine. Essence tends to stay fairly wet on a pad and with lower speeds, I don't see it causing the hard spots on fibers that become a problem when cutting.

For some insane gloss.... Cut with MF and something with a little more correcting power and follow with essence on the gloss pad. That will yield some eye popping results.
Click to expand...
Thanks Steve. Yeah I think I'm gonna cut with something I'm more comfortable with do an eraser wipe and the gloss it up with essence.

I shouldn't need much more than a medium cut polish and a polishing pad with the soft Subaru pant but the test spot will tell me for sure.

Thanks guys!!

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk
 
Just as a side question. When using Essence, if you are not going to do a coating would Reflect be considered the LSP? Also, have what are your experiences with the CP Flash pad and Fixr?
 
Hmm, I'm thinking results would be similar using reflect or essence as far as polishing level. Both are designed for "finishing". Essence has the addition of some protection where I believe that reflect is purely polish. Probably slightly higher gloss with essence due to SI02.



As for the flash pad and fixer question... To be honest, I'm sure the combo works well but I probably haven't given it a fair amount of testing. It's all about comfort and confidence in what combo you are using and I have probably fallen into a level of confidence using certain pads and compounds and I'm sure that had prevented me from fully discovering the potential of other combos.

Now that I think about it, I'm going to need to go back and take a closer look at what I can do with fixer and flash pad. Can't ever have too much knowledge or too many tools in your Arsenal.

If you have that combo in your shop/garage, it will work. But like every pad and polish combo, will need to figure out how much product and pressure as well as what speed on the machine and how fast you need to move the machine to achieve the desired result.

Sorry, I know that isn't the most direct answer, but it's a very subjective topic and all of the combos are situation specific to achieve best results.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top