DAs are the way to go, much safer than orbitals. I have a cheapo Argos one. Personally I use menzerna polish, I got three grades of polish, compound, light polish and finishing polish. Pads, I use Lake County, orange, white and black, this is medium cut, light cut to finishing. Finishing polish and Finishing pad will literally give you a mirror finish. The skill is to find the right combo, you work from light and increase cut until you are actually making a difference then start refining. The challenge with bikes are they have small surfaces so you might need to invest in smaller pads and pad backings. I haven't used it but you get 1 step polish than breaks down from a medium to light to polish ( they are techinically called diminishing polishes) - chemical guys makes a very good product called VSS. Also dont forget glazes which are essentially fillers, but dont use them under ceramic! Honda (japanese) finishes are really soft and thin to be really careful especially on those edges!
thanks for this , what size pads are best for a bike 3ins ? and does the argos one have a 3 ins backing plate ,
The Argos one is a 180 mm size pad, which is waayy too big for a bike. I had to buy a 125 mm backing plate with 140mm pads. Better if you can buy smaller. Buy quality like Lake County or Hex logic, the cheapo ones say light cut, medium etc but 1 they tend to be open cell foam (just like a sponge - you dont want this!) 2 all have the same cut properties(regardless of the manufacturer rating) Note its the pad that does most of the work, you could basically just use water! 140mm are still too big for smaller areas and edges so have really cheap 25/15mm pads on an electric drill. The smaller pads are not the quality of Lake County and quickly degrade but this do the job,note its the pad that does most of the work! Edit: just to add the cable on the DA is stupid short, I may take it apart and put 5m on it!
Be very careful using a small pad on a drill though! Smaller contact area, higher heat, quicker to burn through the paint, especially as a drill is not dual action.
Good to know, I also ride all year round. To be fair, they both have high end cars so that makes sense! Never even thought of that! Excellent point. I think I'll go with PPF once available and then apply ceramics on top at some point. My local Honda dealer tried pushing the motoGP branded ceramic coat for about £400 (inc. fitting iirc). Anyone tried this one? Any good?
Yeah that was mentioned to me too but I thought it was expensive. If you have a garage or other dry area do it yourself. It's cheaper and you will probably be more methodical and pay closer attention to the job than some lad waiting for his bait time
I thought so too. Currently, my garage isn't quite ready but neither is the bike Unsure how much they'd charge just for the product without fitting but doubt it'll be much cheaper (but it'll be worth it to make sure I get every nook and cranny)
Loads of good quality products for sale from retailers and the like on the internet. Have a look at YouTube to see how different brands are applied and then take your pick. Most are between £50 & £80 now but that would normally give you enough to apply a couple of coats on a couple of vehicles so much better value, though of course you have to do the work !
well ive just got one of these from argos so now just need to get a 3in backing plate , and some of the pads , can you remember where to purchased yours from , cheers.
If you've never used one before you might be better off with a 5 or 6 inch plate/pad as less chance of causing damage until your comfortable and happy with it. I tend to get my stuff off the internet ( google car detailing) should bring up a few suppliers. If you have a car it might be best starting on that first too, nice flat surfaces and the lacquer is probably a good deal thicker too. Just a thought that's all Have fun
All of amazon, probably find it cheaper else where though, check the thread first on the da before you The Argos pad you get is a bit cheapo and generic ( and massive!!) All my DA pads are 5.5 inch (140mm) Lake county Orange - Light Cut White - Polishing Black - (Zero cut) finishing https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00VRKBVMS/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00VRKBKWE/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00VRKBKXI/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 with a 125mm backing plate with 5/16 inch UNF male thread https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00SXC7YQK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 all off amazon for convenience but generally I use https://www.slimsdetailing.co.uk/ for my detailing gear - all the pads they have are quality my polish set is similar to: https://www.amazon.co.uk/menzerna-C...s=menzerna&qid=1593281255&s=automotive&sr=1-3 If the paint is good you only need a combo of the white/black pad and the super finish plus Before you commit on the backing plate check the thread on the DA Also I recommend marking the backing plate with a sharpie so you can see it rotate, you'll get a feel on the right speed and pressure, but as said start on the car, bikes especially Honda have soft and thin paint, and with the edges its easy to burn through.(watch out on the nose cowl!)
