What's a good polish that I can apply by hand. I'm not getting a Porter Cable for awhile so I just need something that will go on with ease but is effective for taking out scracthes etc...

 

klasse or zaino

 

Ummm.... NO.


If you want something that's going to be pretty effective at dealing with swirls or scratches by hand, something like Meguiar's #83 Dual Action Cleaner Polish is a good product. I think some people also use 3M Fine Cut, but that doesn't get a ton of mention anymore these days. They also make a Perfect-It III version of this I believe.

These are all moderate strength products, which isn't overboard, since using this stuff by hand isn't as effective as by PC. You would find a swirl remover (Megs #9 or 3M version) hopelessly ineffective for most defects.

Einszett and Menzerna probably also make products you could use, but I am not as familiar with them, so I can't really recommend from them...


BTW, polishing out defects by hand is often NOT easy.... you have to work in the product quite a bit, so budget lots of time and bring Gatorade.

 

From what I have read on the forums of www.autopia.org , #83 DACP is very difficult to properly break down by hand (polishes must be broken down to do their job effectively). I have been told by many that the Einszett line of polishes are the easiest polishes to use by hand. I just purchased all three of the 1Z (Einszett) polishes and I will be using them all next week. Do some research over on www.autopia.org (free search full of tons of information) and make an informed decision. I can't comment on the 1Z line from first hand experience, but I am strongly confident that they are the best polish to use by hand. Keep in mind that #83 DACP is the standard for Porter Cable use along with 3M's Swirl Mark Remover. Good luck and hope you are arms are ready for a work out.

 

DACP can be used by orbital (similar to hand use) and several people have used it by hand (me, Scottwax etc.) successfully. Do some research and see what would be easier to use, but keep in mind you generally can't buy 1z locally if that matters to you.

 

Scottwax has used everything I am coming to find. Accumulator recommended the 1Z line for easy hand application (not as strong as DACP) and I needed to order some stuff from autopia.org anyway, so I went with them. Not too many people seem to use the 1Z line by PC, so I'm guessing the inability to buy local and the superiority of DACP by PC makes 1Z a good choice for hand application. My clay and 1Z stuff should be here today, followed by my VM + EX-P combo tomorrow. Woohoo! I'll let everyone know my impressions (after I buy some lighting today so we can see results) when I'm finished.