Help with wheel marks

[swirlnuts]

Hey all, this is my first post. I work at a dealership in the detail shop. After our guy who normally did all of our buffing left abruptly, i got slapped with the job. Here is my dilemma. I use an old makita rotary, and no matter whether i use foam pads, wool pads, heavy compound or light compound, i can not get rid of those snake looking wheel marks. I try polishing with the rotary and a foam pad, i try doing it with an orbital. The only thing i have been able to do with any success is put a few coats of polish on that covers them, but only temporarily. I would greatly appreciate any help. I dont mind so much that some of the cars on the lot have wheel marks, but id like to be able to do better on the customer cars. By the way we use a combination of 3M and Wizard products right now.

[TrueDetailer]

I've never heard of wheel marks???? Is this another term for swirls? Could you show me a photo of these wheel marks for my own knowledge?

[travisdecpn]

I think he is talking about tracers or holograms. Usually this is from moving the rotary too quickly and not giving the compound/polish enough time to breakdown. It can also be caused by buffing with the pad on an angle and not completely flat on the surface. Just because you are moving quickly, does not mean you are doing good work, slow down and let the polish and pad do the work.

[Anthony A]

Originally Posted by swirlnuts

Hey all, this is my first post. I work at a dealership in the detail shop. After our guy who normally did all of our buffing left abruptly, i got slapped with the job. Here is my dilemma. I use an old makita rotary, and no matter whether i use foam pads, wool pads, heavy compound or light compound, i can not get rid of those snake looking wheel marks. I try polishing with the rotary and a foam pad, i try doing it with an orbital. The only thing i have been able to do with any success is put a few coats of polish on that covers them, but only temporarily. I would greatly appreciate any help. I dont mind so much that some of the cars on the lot have wheel marks, but id like to be able to do better on the customer cars. By the way we use a combination of 3M and Wizard products right now.

No offense intended but you have no business using a rotary. You obviously don't know how and a rotary in the wrong hands can destroy a paint job in no time. Dealerships are just ridiculous with this stuff. It takes a long time to become skilled with a rotary. I would never attempt to use one on any car until I receive proper instruction from a skilled person and spend many hours practicing. Your situation at work is why I will never let a dealership touch my paint, not even to wash it.

[SVR]

Same deal for me, I work at a dealership but fortunately for them, I have a great friend who is second to none in australia with a buffer and I had a lesson with him not long ago. Besides that I read the machine buffing topics at autopia and here and am doing really well with the rotary

My best advice - switch to menzerna polishes and edge 2000 buff pads
intensive polish - po85RD 3.01, po 85rd, final polish II, P0106ff and PO 85U are what you need

Start at the slowest speed you can - 300-600 rpm
Spread a 6 inch line of product over the surface, mist the buff pad with water a couple times

From right to left, go over the line with the left side of pad raised by an inch or two. Do it quickly. Once you get to the end of the line, flatten pad and work side to side from top to bottom at 900-1100 rpm
Go vertical and horizontally over each section and work each product well
Usually I spend a minute with each product.

[maximv1]

welcome swirlnuts, i work at a dealer also. i would tell your manager your fear of screwing up a customers paint. this will get his attention quickly. then i would ask for a time frame each day to practice on wholesale vehicle to get your skills up to what you feel is acceptable. you will probably get a pat on the back, for being customer concerned about your performance. i was in the same boat at one time. i worked at a dealer for about three weeks when the head detailer quit suddenly. i had never touched a buffer before and i was thrown in the deep end. all it take is practice, and ALOT of patience. good luck

[Anthony A]

Wow, it sounds like standard operating procedure for dealerships to hand your car over to total rookies with a rotary. Like I said there is no way a dealership is ever touching my paint.

[swirlnuts]

thanks for the replies guys. I am a lot better than when i started, but I have never had one ounce of instruction from anyone. They wanted to send me to the bodyshop and have one of those guys show me, but i did better when i first started than those guys who have done it for years. I guess I'll just keep practicing.

[Anthony A]

Originally Posted by swirlnuts

They wanted to send me to the bodyshop and have one of those guys show me, but i did better when i first started than those guys who have done it for years. I guess I'll just keep practicing.

Yeah that doesn't surprise me. Body shops are notorious for butchering paint jobs with rotary polishers.

[jaybs02]

Swirlnuts it's great to see that you actually care about the work that you are doing, and are seeking advice.
I'm sure that many others that have been put in your situation just would have gone on without caring.
I agree with maximv1 on going to your boss and explaining your concerns, and he will most likely appreciate your goal for customer satisfaction (I know, I do with my guys)

Be patient, practice, and soon enough you'll acheive the results you want.

Good Luck,
"J"