WANTED: PAINTED BODY PANELS...

[ultimagtrlover]

I just got a new machine for detailing cars and I would like to practice on junk panels. I would prefer factory paint. The basis for this is so that I can learn the capabilities of my new machine. I plan on completely removing the clearcoat of an area to see just how easy and fast it is to do so. I also plan on making some portions of that panel look like new again. If anyone has any sort of panel to allow me to use, please pm me.

[CaptainHenreh]

Hit me up. I've got that trunk from the 240 you worked on once, and I should have some E30 body panels (fenders, maybe hood) that you're welcome to mad scientist on.

[Nis01]

Off topic.. but what kind of machine did you get? I'm slowly working my way into the detailing world and am interested in purchasing a PC soon. I'll have to hit you up for preference on them.

[.RJ]

interested in purchasing a PC soon

I have a PC orbital buffer, I love it. You're welcome to borrow it sometime and try it out.

[Maengelito]

i've got a hardtop you can have your way with. it doesnt have any clearcoat or anything like that on it though

[Sijray21]

i have some pannels (hood, fenders) from an 86 vw that you could use - i doubt it has clear coat though :lol:

[HAULN-SS]

Orbitals are ok for newbs, but what you really want is a variable speed buffer. Or a high speed grinder with a pad on it - if you have self control and wont eat off your paint.

[.RJ]

Orbitals are ok for newbs, but what you really want is a variable speed buffer.

Mine is both

Bling bling!

[Sijray21]

Orbitals are ok for newbs, but what you really want is a variable speed buffer.

Mine is both

Bling bling!

...so....can i wax my teg over at your place?

(perverted comments be damned)

[HAULN-SS]

so it's high speed and orbital? geh. seems like that would be really unbalanced and cause a lot of cutting at high speed.

[.RJ]

No, its variable speed.

And there is a counterweight on there... when I put a bigger polishing pad holder on, I also had to buy a heavier counterweight.

[ultimagtrlover]

Alrighty people, I have sent pm's to those whose panels I would like to borrow...mainly those with clearcoat. Any more offers for panels with clearcoat will be great. Thanks everyone so far for the help.

As for polishers, I have used a Porter Cable 7424 for years now and it is getting to the point where I need to work more efficiently. Commonly refered to as the "PC," the 7424 is an orbital polisher, meaning the pad spins both in a 360 degree path AND in a slight left to right motion. In other words, the pad "jiggles." This allows the machine to be very user friendly because you do not get much heat build-up between the surface and the pad. This lack of heat production makes breaking down polish very long. At a speed of 5 out of 6, it usually takes about 12 passes over a 2x2 section for me to break-down a polish to the point where I would have to remove it with a towel. For me, this is way too long considering on a full detail I need to do 3 levels of polish over an ENTIRE car, not just a 2x2 area. I believe what "HAULN-SS" is refering to is a rotary polisher. That is what I just purchased. More specifically, I have got the Metabo Rotary polisher for my birthday...some say it is the rolls-royce of rotary polishers. Nevertheless, a rotary differs from an orbital in the way the pad spins. The pad on a rotary spins only 360 degrees on a fixed center, no left-to-right motions. This creates very rapid and much hotter temperature build-up, allowing faster polish break-down times, which means fewer strokes to polish an area. The problem though, is that the rotary efficiency can destroy a clearcoat in the hands of those who are inexperienced. That's why I want to practice on junk panels before I tackle my car. The rotary polisher is a true time-saver when tackling hard clearcoats, such as those found on German vehicles. It can be much more aggressive than an orbital in a much shorter time period. A PC is great for beginners. I will continue to use it to apply some waxes. It makes a great tool to remove polish residue too...get a light cut pad, put a bonnet over the pad, and now you can let the machine remove polish and wax residue instead of getting exhausted removing the stuff by hand. Once these panels are given to me, I will definitely take before/after pictures.

[Jeff]

What I use...hehe. Its really a 9in "Angle Sander" You can really get into trouble with this thing fast if you have the speed set too high. I'm not sure it is that exact model, but it looks just like it. Anyways Ciro, you can do some of your less "rip shit up" type testing on my Van once I get it...I will paint it this summer anyway.

[ultimagtrlover]

Ya, some of the more popular rotary polishers used by pro detailers include the Dewalt 849, the Makita 9227C, Porter Cable 7428, and the Hitachi SP18VA 7". I purchased the Metabo PE 12-175 because of it's ultralightweight design. The Metabo is supposedly 2-4 lbs lighter than the Polishers I mentioned above. It is supposedly almost identical in weight to the Porter Cable 7424 Orbital Polisher. People might say that small difference in weight is meaningless, but after multiple hours of using a machine, going up and down body panels hundreds of times begins to turn into a workout. Heck, this summer I lost 10 lbs and I owe it to detailing! But I didn't want to lose that weight cuz I'm skinny enough. The PC 7424 is still an essential part of any detailer's arsenal because it can be used with substantially less risk on cars that don't need a rotary.

[white_2kgt]

If you are on your way to NY one weekend you are welcome to a few picecs I have here, they are painted but not straight, mostly bent up sheet metal fenders.

[EuphoriousCntrl]

how about an e36 front bumper?