waxing a motorhome ,which wax? (1 Viewer)

chrisgreen

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i have bought a polisher like the one below,but looking on ebay there are 100's of different wax's bit confused on which wax would be suitable?
any idear's?Broken Link Removed
 
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chrisgreen

chrisgreen

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Hi Chris, I have always used Optimum No Rinse™ Wash & Shine - YouTube and they also do a No Rinse Wash and Wax - Optimum Polymer Technologies although I haven't tried this yet. My cousin Roger put me on to this product who's company is ttautodetailing if that's any help :)

Rob
thing is rob thats a wash and wax product,what im looking for is a good wax to seal the paint as i need to polish out some oxidization
of the paintwork,hence the machine,then seal it by hand or with the machine with wax.
 

Big bus man

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I bought that very same polisher last year being I wanted to bring back some shine and even after reading different threads I ended up using fast strokes at high RPM with the flat foam pad, wetting the surface helped with cutting in difficult areas.
I ended up using normal Autogleam which gave me the results I wanted for now and can work harder on other areas when my confidence builds using the rotary power. You will need to tape up protruding areas especially rubbers using low tack tape as it burns very quickly.

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etap

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"Mer" used it on the boat now on the motorhome easy to put on and polish off, and gives a good smooth shine.

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Diesel

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Have you got you polish sorted ? Just a word of caution the machine is a rotary which will be great on grp sections ..but be VERY careful if you plan too use on sides of motorhome they will have pretty thin paint a dual action polisher will be better suited than a rotary ....for guidance in using a polisher junkman2000 on you tube had some very detailed videos .. 5part IIRC
 
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chrisgreen

chrisgreen

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Have you got you polish sorted ? Just a word of caution the machine is a rotary which will be great on grp sections ..but be VERY careful if you plan too use on sides of motorhome they will have pretty thin paint a dual action polisher will be better suited than a rotary ....for guidance in using a polisher junkman2000 on you tube had some very detailed videos .. 5part IIRC
wont be using on motorhome sides as they are ok,it just the bonnet and wings of the base that are slightly oxidized,will look at the youtube vids tommorow,cheers for that(y)

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Charlie

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"Mer" used it on the boat now on the motorhome easy to put on and polish off, and gives a good smooth shine.

Mer is an old fashioned POLISH it is NOT a Wax . Therefore it will offer NO protection which is why a wax is applied. In fact it will work to the contrary as it will remove any wax on the panels you apply it too.
 

etap

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I am sure you are correct Charlie.
Have used it on new motorhomes and on all new cars also top sides of yacht for some time and the rain runs off easily and it leaves a smooth finish and looks good, also as said is very easy to apply. The surfaces have always looked clean and colour is preserved. So what does a wax do better ? This is a serious question I am interested in the answer.
 
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In know its not the answer to the original question but I thought I would mention this product.

Last year after a very thorough clean with Autoglym polish I started using Autoglym Aqua wax. Every time I had to wash off the little and not so little dead buggers that had committed sucicide on the front of the cab area I found it very easy to get them off with just a microfibre cloth and arm water. I followed this with the Aqua wax, its very easy and fast to apply and it leaves a good finish. A year later the front of the motorhome still looks spotlessly clean and shiny and it seems the dirt etc does not stick to it nearly as badly.

Very little effort to maintain a great finish.

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Charlie

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I am sure you are correct Charlie.
Have used it on new motorhomes and on all new cars also top sides of yacht for some time and the rain runs off easily and it leaves a smooth finish and looks good, also as said is very easy to apply. The surfaces have always looked clean and colour is preserved. So what does a wax do better ? This is a serious question I am interested in the answer.

Mer is an old fashioned polish. In its day it was quite good. I used it and liked it for the simple way it did its job. Bloody dusty stuff but still quite good.

Mer was and is a low cut polish. I think many find it hard to differentiate between a surface that has been thoroughly cleaned which is exactly what Mer will do and a surface that has been what we detailers call corrected.

For many a really well cleaned surface which has a super smooth feel to it is brilliant ! And indeed it is ! No question.

But to a detailer it aint going to be anywhere near good enough !

When I polish a cars paint I want an absolutely flawless finish ! This often means removing all the minor swirling marks and scratches and all and any defects that are on the paint. This is what we call "Correcting" the paint or the surface whatever that surface is.

Take a look at this picture. It shows the paint on my old 2006 Toyota Rav4 after it has been deep cleaned clayed and ready for polishing. Note the swirls and minor defects on the paint .


This picture shows that same area but after polishing. Please remember polish is for the removal of surface defects and to refine the finish to as good as we can get it before we protect it with wax


Another before polish.

After polish



This area is now what I call corrected and ready for Wax. It is the wax that will protect it,


The very act of polishing paint or surfaces will make them better no matter how small that gain is. But please remember the area you have just polished will need protecting. Only a wax or a sealant can do this as the polish you or I have used cannot and will not do it. Yes water may shed of the surface because the surface has been refined is slicker and smoother but again wax is what is required or only half the job has been done.

Please do not think for a minute that Im suggesting that many of you go to the lengths that we detailers do ! But trust me when I say that the correct product whether used by a person like me who is I suppose a bit OCD or a person who has only a little interest will reap huge rewards.
 

etap

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Thanks for that Charlie a great reply, not being a paint man I had no idea why certain waxes or polishes were used other than making paint look better.
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Charlie

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I bought that very same polisher last year being I wanted to bring back some shine and even after reading different threads I ended up using fast strokes at high RPM with the flat foam pad, wetting the surface helped with cutting in difficult areas.
I ended up using normal Autogleam which gave me the results I wanted for now and can work harder on other areas when my confidence builds using the rotary power. You will need to tape up protruding areas especially rubbers using low tack tape as it burns very quickly.

Polishing using high RPM is just about as dangerous as it gets ! Never use high speeds / RPMs as heat will be generated and the risk of striking though is enormous !

I have attended detailing meets throughout the UK and into Europe where I have been asked to do demonstrations on machine polishing. The very first piece of advice given is Never polish using high speeds ! I have been at this caper for well over twenty years and I will not EVER use high speeds cos its way way to risky ! I use a paint thickness gauge a swirl spotting lamp and a surface temperature gauge and still I would not even contemplate turning the speeds up.

I say this with much respect but please consider what you write is read by others who may just follow your example !

As for adding water to polishing many polishes wont work at all well without lubrication by water. Some can clog up on the pads and create a situation where much damage can occur without that important water lube.

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Charlie

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i have bought a polisher like the one below,but looking on ebay there are 100's of different wax's bit confused on which wax would be suitable?
any idear's?Broken Link Removed


You don't need a polisher for wax. Wax is best applied by hand or you will waste most of it .

If you decide to polish with it be very careful . From what I read it does not have a slow start up so will reach speeds very quickly which can result in damage even in the hands of an experienced operator !

Personally I would not use a machine like that ...

Polishing by machine is fine even for the novice but you must be aware that changing Speed, The type of pad , Or the speed of the machine can take you from super safe to burning through surface in a very very short time.

There is a guide in the detailing section which I hope will help. Most of if not all of the information to get you started and most importantly Safely is there .
 

GWAYGWAY

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Whatever it is that you use the maxim applies. The harder to it, the better it is for the paintwork.
Trouble with motorhomes is that they are huge areas to put polish on, scooters are easier.
 
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chrisgreen

chrisgreen

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You don't need a polisher for wax. Wax is best applied by hand or you will waste most of it .

If you decide to polish with it be very careful . From what I read it does not have a slow start up so will reach speeds very quickly which can result in damage even in the hands of an experienced operator !

Personally I would not use a machine like that ...

Polishing by machine is fine even for the novice but you must be aware that changing Speed, The type of pad , Or the speed of the machine can take you from super safe to burning through surface in a very very short time.

There is a guide in the detailing section which I hope will help. Most of if not all of the information to get you started and most importantly Safely is there .
used the polisher today and it is a soft start,starts slowly and builds up to speed(y)

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FJmike

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Before using your new polisher on your motorhome bonnet, check the paint thickness first. A lot of motorhomes have very thin single coat colour.
 

Charlie

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Whatever it is that you use the maxim applies. The harder to it, the better it is for the paintwork.
Trouble with motorhomes is that they are huge areas to put polish on, scooters are easier.
Whatever it is that you use the maxim applies. The harder to it, the better it is for the paintwork.
Trouble with motorhomes is that they are huge areas to put polish on, scooters are easier.

It doesent work like that I'm afraid.

Paints come in different combinations like Mike mentions above . We have single stage which is just that one coat of paint. Then we have the more common laquer over base which is of course two stages. Laquer is always much harder.

Paint vary in both hardness and thickness. We that have experience measure the thickness of the material we are polishing. We do this with PTGs or Paint Thickness Gauges. This allows us to see exactly how much we can remove safely. I actually use in addition to this a laser surface temperature gauge so I can keep an eye on the heat build up.

We then have to take in how hard the surface is. This differes emensley. For example German vehicles have extremely hard paint. Japanese cars have extremely soft paint plus all the variables in between . This why we MUST start with a low cut polish and a soft pad first or severe damage can be inflicted.

If you are having to to work hard and sticking to your maxim I'm afraid you have chosen the wrong polish/pad combination.

Polishing should be easy and not arduous . There should be no need for example to press on the machine or work hard on an area to get results.

This is however a thread about waxing. Polishing is covered in another thread here in the detailing section.

There is no need or requirement to use a machine for waxing. All you will do is waste product and apply far to much of it.

Wax should be applied with a soft foam pad not a machine.

Lastly Mike mentions the caution we MUST take if we have single stage paint. I completely and full endorse his that message ! I have not encountered it yet as all the modern vehicles I've worked on have had laquer over base. But I don't have the experience specifically of motor homes like Mike does .

If you have single stage paint then colour transfer will take place. IE whatever the colour of the vehicle will appear on you polishing pad or cloth. If this happens extreme care should be taken to the point the inexperienced really should stop and seek advice on the combination of pad and polish.
 
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GWAYGWAY

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I was not talking about machine polishing I was on about hard WORK to POLISH . I left to 'DO' it not referring to doing it harder whatever you do it is a lot of hardwork. I use a soft start polisher and a hard carnuba wax, marine wax is very hardwearing . If you do it by hand it is even harder to do, but it builds up the arm muscles.

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Charlie

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I was not talking about machine polishing I was on about hard WORK to POLISH . I left to 'DO' it not referring to doing it harder whatever you do it is a lot of hardwork. I use a soft start polisher and a hard carnuba wax, marine wax is very hardwearing . If you do it by hand it is even harder to do, but it builds up the arm muscles.
Can I ask why you apply wax with a machine .
 

The Dotties

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Recently asked @Charlie for advice about polishing and waxing a 60 year old car.
Followed advice and cannot believe the difference it has made. It looked quite good before, but now......
Off to international marque show the weekend so will see what happens.
Geoff

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