A Polish worth a try? (1 Viewer)

[FJmike]

When valeting customers motorhomes I firmly believe in using products that are formulated for what I am using it for. I have heard tell of people using Brasso for polishing their motorhome windows . Personally I use a compound that is specifically formulated for acrylic windows. What people must remember is that motorhome and caravan paint is very thin, it doesn't have a laquer coat like most cars, so if you use the wrong product you may well end up polishing through the paint

 

[jezport]

We sell a lot of a specialist GRP cleaner restorer and get great feedback and have used it myself.
It is designed for GRP and has none of the solvents that damage GRP. Its also good on normal paint and plastics.

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I can offer a discount to fun members. Just message me.

 

[Manxli]

Hi

My roof had quite a lot of green streaks and accumulated dirt , which I only noticed when recently on the garage roof to repair satellite dish after a strong wind storm.

Last weekend there was an incredible torrential downpour (here in Switzerland) and guess what. Roof totally clean. How about that then!

Alan

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[chopper602]

For the same reason I would avoid regular use of any abrasive polish like Autoglym resin polish unless it is required to restore the finish.

AutoGlym Super Resin polish has changed formulation recently and is no where near as abrasive as it used to be. It also goes on and polishes off a lot easier without all the dust it used to leave. It's great !

 

[andrewjw]

I use wash and waxes made by .... http://www.bilthamber.com/

Easy to use and fabulous results...originally recommended to me by a mate who is into "classic cars".

I've no connection to the company...

 

[RS_rob]

Tried G3 never again infact ill give the whole bottle to the next Funster I meet.
To a pro it may be good I watched Clive have his motor done last year in this stuff hence why i tried it, in my hands its useless & took the paint off the bonnet.

Ill stick to Auto Glym thanks.

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[sedge]

Gosh - Farecla cutting paste used to come in a tin, not a bottle - a round one about 3" high and 6" diameter. T-Cut came in a bottle but wasn't anywhere near as aggressive (or as good, depending on what job you actually wanted it to do, eg how badly your husband had oversprayed the door whilst mending the bump on the wing and what state the paint on the door was in to begin with) but of course, I am talking about 'proper' cellulose auto paint here - not 2-pack acrylics, base-coat and lacquer or whatever the hell the trade use now.

But the skill after you have chosen the correct substance for the specific job in hand, is in the application and what you apply it with, the required 'drying' time and the correct removal and waxing thereafter when the same application, removal and buffing techniques also apply.

Speaking personally - I have never been involved whatsoever in polishing any vehicle - as far as I'm concerned it's man's work. If you don't have a captive man suitably equipped, able and skilled - pay the professionals.

 

[ABZSteve]

I use wash and waxes made by .... http://www.bilthamber.com/

Easy to use and fabulous results...originally recommended to me by a mate who is into "classic cars".

I've no connection to the company...

Thanks Andrew. My first job this morning was to order some more Bilt Hamber wheel cleaner and I had forgotten until I seen your reply

 

[FJmike]

Tried G3 never again infact ill give the whole bottle to the next Funster I meet.
To a pro it may be good I watched Clive have his motor done last year in this stuff hence why i tried it, in my hands its useless & took the paint off the bonnet.

Ill stick to Auto Glym thanks.

What most motorhome owners do not realise is that the paint is very thin and does not have any coats of laquer ( except some van conversions). This means that extreme caution must be used when using an abrasive polish such as G3 (other makes also qualify). Not used Bilt Hamber products, judging by the website they are mostly car based so not all their line maybe suitable for motorhomes

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[jaykay]

Tried G3 never again infact ill give the whole bottle to the next Funster I meet.
To a pro it may be good I watched Clive have his motor done last year in this stuff hence why i tried it, in my hands its useless & took the paint off the bonnet.

Ill stick to Auto Glym thanks.

G3 is not a polish. It is a cutting/rubbing compound which is basically an abrasive to take layers of paint off. It is used for finishing car paintwork and not to polish, as it has not wax or protective element at all. Farecla who make G3 also do other products such as gel coat restorer/wax. This is the correct product to use. Regards, ex bodyshop owner.

 

[MattR]

How about claying after a wash with car shampoo only, dry, polish / wax? I've found that the clay removes lots of contaminates and no longer use shampoo with wax built in - it just seems to seal in the crime that is not washes away in the initial application.

 

[Patcherelli]

G3 also make a silicon polish which is non abrasive and leaves a protective coat

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[FJmike]

G3 also make a silicon polish which is non abrasive and leaves a protective coat

Your quite right, there was a big rebranding went on a little while ago and the G3 range now is extensive, including waxes as well as abrasive compounds

 

[DM14742]

I use Mer car polish on mine (PVC) and get excellent results.

 

[Big Lad]

Mattyjwr - clay bars have moved on a little - our chemical supplier has got a microfibre duster that is impregnated with a special surface that does the job of a clay bar. The bonus being the duster molds to the contour of the panel your working on.

My own motorhome, i initially used a foam to get the green muck off it, then opted for a neutral car shampoo to keep it clean and stop the paintwork drying out dull. I've found using a "wax rinse" product leaves it quite shiny afterwards too and makes it easy to leather off with a large yacht cloth.

As for the poles up the road... be warned.. yes they use traffic film remover, but it's the very cheapest form, and by that I mean usually it's a nasty caustic mix... a friend of mine took their mini to be washed, only to come back finding all the chrome trim was disoloured and ruined. .

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[MattR]

Mattyjwr - clay bars have moved on a little - our chemical supplier has got a microfibre duster that is impregnated with a special surface that does the job of a clay bar. The bonus being the duster molds to the contour of the panel your working on.

My own motorhome, i initially used a foam to get the green muck off it, then opted for a neutral car shampoo to keep it clean and stop the paintwork drying out dull. I've found using a "wax rinse" product leaves it quite shiny afterwards too and makes it easy to leather off with a large yacht cloth.

As for the poles up the road... be warned.. yes they use traffic film remover, but it's the very cheapest form, and by that I mean usually it's a nasty caustic mix... a friend of mine took their mini to be washed, only to come back finding all the chrome trim was disoloured and ruined. .

I like the idea of the duster but must use up the bar first - I have a cupboard full of detailing stuff. I haven't had much luck with wax rinses - they seem to trap too much grey water onto the surface.

 

[Big Lad]

this is what we've been using:
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i understand what you mean about the grey water.. all depends on the product at the end of the day i suppose.

 

[jezport]

I'm sure I've said this before. A polish is a different product to a wax. A polish rubs the surface of the paint or gel coat off to create a clean shiny surface, a wax coats the surface and is buffed to shine and protects the surface.

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[Live Life Now]

All joking aside - has anyone been to a Polish (other nationalities are available!) car wash with a MH ?

I would reckon as long as they keep the high pressure jet away from window and door seals etc it's gotta be worth a try???
They do a fab job on my car

Very tempted to try my local one soon.

Bought myself a small Karcher power washer, brilliant.
Power wash, (not too close) long handled soft brush with lots of soapy water, power wash off. Job jobbed

 

[FJmike]

Bought myself a small Karcher power washer, brilliant.
Power wash, (not too close) long handled soft brush with lots of soapy water, power wash off. Job jobbed

As well as not too close, make sure you have a wide fan and keep it moving all the time its pointing toward your van

 

[jezport]

I will be taking some bottles of the polish I sell to the Newark show if anyone is interested in some.
It is a professional GRP polish which is good on most plastics and paints.

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[Charlie]

Farecla G3 is an AOI or "All In One" polish. Unlike most polishes the particles within the polish break down while its being used. This means the cut will reduce as you polish.
Its a trade based polish aimed at body shops where time is money.
It begins by compounding the paint but as the heat from the pad gets hotter the polish breaks down to give less cut. This is an alternative to using a heavy cut polish then a medium cut followed by a final light cut polish to refine the surface to a very high standard.

Farecla G3 is a polish designed to be used on a pad on a rotary polishing machine. You wont break it down polishing by hand as you wont get enough friction and heat to do it.

 

[Adrian & Alison]

Have experimented with many compounds / polishes over the years on various vehicles and would agree with the above G3 / G6 are far to abrasive for most MH finishes (unless using a Mop on very deteriorated paint ) and without the application of a decent wax afterwards you are probably doing more harm than good
Our MH suffers from a bit of dullness and quite a lot of black streaking over winter and i have found that "Simoniz Bug & Tar Remover" with about 30% "T cut" mixed in works wonders as its not to coarse and removes even the most stubborn marks with ease and polishes of far easier the the dreaded T Cut on its own , but as with anything you use still need to apply a go0d wax afterwards..

 

[jezport]

We sell a lot of a specialist GRP cleaner restorer and get great feedback and have used it myself.
It is designed for GRP and has none of the solvents that damage GRP. Its also good on normal paint and plastics.

See Broken Link Removed

I can offer a discount to fun members. Just message me.

I have recently been testing a professional hard wax that has been made for use in the marine industry. Up to now it has been very good, when the black streaks appear they are easily washed off. I hope to have some for sale in around a week.

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[Charlie]

There seems to be confusion here over Wax and polish.

Polishes are designed to cut. They come in many guises and some will have a lot of cut and some will have very little. There are many in between and unless the person doing the polishing understands the level of cut two things can happen.

1 is that if the polish has to much cut or is to aggressive if you like Severe damage can be inflicted upon the surface being polished. On car paint it is easily possible to burn through the lacquer/clear coat and destroy the finish.

2 Is that if a polish has little or no cut or not aggressive enough then results will be very slow or non existent.

Waxes or sealants have no cutting ability whatsoever. These products are to protect the finish after polishing has taken place. Waxing can be done to surfaces that have not been polished of course and will still add protection.

There is no such thing as a combined polish with wax.

Those of us really into vehicle preparation often called detailing use PTGs or Paint Thickness Gauges so we can measure the thickness of paint we are polishing.

Automotive paint is a base/colour coat with lacquer over the top. Most PTGs measure the combined thickness of these two elements .

The gauge I use measures each cost individually so I can see the exact thickness of the Lacquer. This is the element we are polishing. The lacquer not the base/colour coat.

Frankly using Truck wash is so detrimental to vehicles and motor homes and caravans it should be bloody banned. Effective at shifting grime but it's caustic based and over time will absolutely destroy whatever you put it on.

It's your kit so feel free to chuck over it what you like but certain products mentioned in this thread should be binned .

 

[andyman]

Automotive paint is a base/colour coat with lacquer over the top. Most PTGs measure the combined thickness of these two elements .

Are you sure this applies to all paint. Pearls and metallic yes, but are solid colours lacquered.

 

[Charlie]

Are you sure this applies to all paint. Pearls and metallic yes, but are solid colours lacquered.

It's almost unheard of for cars vans and so on not to be lacquered. Certainly everything made within the last say 6 to 7 years will be lacquer over base. Remember red cars fading and turning pink ? These had what we call single stage paint which is just a colour coat with no lacquer . They faded because no lacquer meant the pigments in the paint were exposed directly to UV light.

It's easy to tell for sure . Take a cloth and a wee bit of polish and rub. If you get colour on the cloth it's single stage. If not its Lacquer over base..

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[FJmike]

Those of us really into vehicle preparation often called detailing use PTGs or Paint Thickness Gauges so we can measure the thickness of paint we are polishing.

Automotive paint is a base/colour coat with lacquer over the top. Most PTGs measure the combined thickness of these two elements .

The gauge I use measures each cost individually so I can see the exact thickness of the Lacquer. This is the element we are polishing. The lacquer not the base/colour coat.
.

Only ever used a PTG a few times in the past. Do they work on painted aluminium??????

 

[Charlie]

Only ever used a PTG a few times in the past. Do they work on painted aluminium??????

I have a DeFelsko positector. It measures the base and lacquer coat individually. It will measure on steel aluminium and even plastic. But the downside is it was mega expensive. That said I have worked on some very very expensive cars where mistakes would not only be expensive but very embarrassing !

Most PTGs this side of £500 measure the combined thickness and only on steel.

 

[angusboy]

my friend builds serious fishing boats, said dont use g3 but use g10 they use it for slipping 10 mtr hulls out of moulds.g3 too abrasive

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