OK, long story short..

I had my brother wash my car a month ago and he used a Scotch-brite pad to clean the ENTIRE car. He said he was trying to get the tree sap off my car. I have scratches all over my car. I cannot feel the scratches with my fingernail but they are definitely beyond swirls. Anyways, last week I triedto buff it out w/ PC and 3M Fine Cut rubbing compound. I used a foam pad and low speed but it didn't seem to do the trick.

Questions:

Should I try again with a higher speed setting and a wool bonnet? If so, what speed on the PC do you recommend? Also, what product would be appropriate for something like this?

Also, I've been paranoid about burning the paint with my PC because of the heavy compounding. Should I be cautious about this or is this something that won't happen with the PC?

I really need your help on this one guys! My car looks like sh*t.

 

Well the scotch brite pad is like a scuff pad. It shouldnt leave too deep of scratches. Try using a foam CUTTING pad and the compound, then follow up with a polishing foam pad and some 3M Machine glaze. If that doesnt do the trick, try a little wetsanding to flatten it out, then compound.

If that doesnt work, theres not much you can do imo.

 

Those scratches will definitely come out if buffed properly. I use a rotary buffer and all foam pads, and 3M compounds and glazes as well as a great product called VibraCut which seperates a lot more than normal compound.

My guess is that you have the PC's speed set too low. Random orbitals are great because they don't really cause swirl marks, but at low speeds they don't heat the paint up enough to get rid of scratches. Try turning up the speed a little, unless someone here can correct me.

I also do not suggest wet sanding as I assume your entire car is covered in these scratches, and that would be a lot of wet sanding and a lot of chances to mess something up if you haven't done it before or don't know what you're doing. Also, after as much wetsanding as that would require, you would need to compound and buff the car again anyway, so if the scratches aren't terribly bad, I'd stick with the PC. Good luck.

 

You will need 1Z UPP or PP (depending on the severity) and a good cutting pad. Also, the PC must be set at 6 for this to work properly. 3M fine cut is not enough to get the scratches out, that is made to do light polishing.

 

What would I do without Maxima.org?

I'll try more agressive products and set the speed higher. Thanks for your advise guys. I'll let you know how it turns out.

 

Other polishes to consider would be.....

Menzerna IP and FP
Sonus SFX (all three)
Poorboys SSR3, SSR 2.5 and SSR-1
Meguiar's DACP

Everyone else's advice is correct.