is meguiar #7 a glaze or a polish?
and what is the difference between the two?

 

It depends what you define as a "polish". The short answer is that it's a non-abrasive glaze that will help shine up the paint and hide minor flaws.

A "polish", as most people think of that word, is usually abrasive, but the word has been horribly misused and used to describe all sorts of products. It really depends on the manufacturer.

 

so i can use the #7 and follow it up with a wax and ill be fine?
but will i accomplish a nice shine if i do this step?

 

That will work just fine. However, you want to make sure the paint is clean prior to the #7 since it has no cleaning abilities. If it is, go with the polish and then a coat of wax. If not, use Meguiar's Medallion Premium Paint Cleaner, then the #7, and follow with a wax of your choice. Here is a pic after a coat of #7 and a top coat of Pinnacle Souveran, Pic.

 

Ditto. "Cleaners" by the way, are what people normally think a polish should be. Meguiar's is particularly fond of calling various grades of abrasive products "cleaners". They're not cleaners like soap, so don't think of them doing the same thing, they're abrasives that range from mild to aggressive. The abrasive (usually mild - the Step 1 pre-wax cleaner stuff is a good example) combined with the solvents in them allow subsequent products to adhere and work better.

 

One last comment on using #7. It hard to remove, so don't try removing it in one pass. Instead, apply it to the entire car and then go back and remove it using several passes. #7 contains a lot of polishing oil, so each time you wipe down a panel you end up reliqufying it. Use a terry towel on the first pass, and then finish it up with a microfiber towel.

I learned this from the autopia.org forum. A Meguiars' tech guy named Mike Phillips provides an excellent explanation on how to remove #7.

I used #7 on my dark blue Max last April. It creates a wet look and fills in lots of the light scratches.