Restore Dull Oxidized Paint with 7424 Polisher

This picture doesn't show it well but the surface is very dull. 
Note blurry reflections of clouds.

     In another article, we did the same procedure with a circular (DeWalt 849) polisher. For that article, see, "Restore dull, oxidized paint with a circular polisher."

Note: to demonstrate the complete procedure, we are showing the compounding step. If your vehicle has very light oxidation, you can skip compounding and go directly to polishing.

    Polishing removes compounding haze and restores surface gloss. It creates a mirror-like, highly reflective finish ready for waxing. Polishing is best accomplished using a white foam polishing pad and a finishing polish.

    Finishing protects the surface with your favorite wax or sealant. Finishing can be accomplished by hand or with a dual action polisher (Porter Cable7424). Applying a wax or paint sealant by machine is typically done using a grey foam finishing pad.

 About dual-action polishers:

   Dual action polishers trade safety for ultimate paint cutting ability. Since the pads oscillate (jiggle) rather than rotate, dual action machines may not be able to abrade away enough of the top paint or clear coat to completely remove  severe oxidation, deep swirls and scratches. That said, dual-action polishers will always produce better results than could be achieved by hand.

    On the plus side, the random, oscillating motion of dual action polishers makes these machines very safe for novice users. It is virtually impossible to damage the paint or clear coat with a dual action polisher.

Choosing the proper pads:

    For compounding, we chose a Yellow Foam Compounding Pad but our Orange Power Pad would have worked equally as well. Lambswool Leveling Pads can also be used for compounding. Lambswool pads offer the greatest cut but also produce the greatest amount of "haze".

Compounding haze is a dull, surface finish which must be removed by polishing. I recommend starting with the Yellow Foam Compounding Pad or the Orange Power Pad. These pads don't cut quite as fast but produce much less haze. Wool Leveling Pads should be reserved for vehicles with severe paint blemishes, deep scratches, very heavy oxidation or as a last resort if the Yellow Compounding Pad fails to restore the finish. 

    For Polishing, we chose a White Foam Polishing Pad but our Orange Power Pad would have worked equally as well. If using the orange pads, use two pads, one for compounding and one for polishing. Never mix compound and polish on the same pad.

    Finishing, applying the final wax or paint sealant, can be done by hand or with the Porter Cable polisher. If applying the final sealant by machine, use the Grey Finishing Pad.

Product requirements:

• Dual-action polisher (Porter Cable 7424)
• A Yellow Foam Compounding Pad or Orange Power Pad
• A compound such as Menzerna Intensive Polish,  Meguiar's Medallion Premium Paint Cleaner or 3M Fine Cut Compound.
• A White Foam Polishing Pad or Orange Power Pad.
• A polish such as Menzerna Final Polish, Meguiar's No. 9 Swirl Remover or 3M Perfect-It Swirl Mark Remover
• Two Water Spray Bottles (one with an alcohol/water mix).
• At least three Microfiber Detailing Cloths.
• A Red Finishing Pad if applying the final wax or sealant by machine.
• Your favorite wax or paint sealant.

Procedure:

Step 1 - Compounding

• Place the Yellow Foam Compounding Pad on the backing plate and attach to your machine polisher using the adapter (if needed).
• Work on a small area, 18 to 24 inches square, out of direct sunlight.
• Apply compound directly to the surface.
• Mist the compounding pad very lightly with water.
• With the machine off, spread the compound (i.e. Menzerna Intensive Polish, Meguiar's Medallion Premium Paint Cleaner) over the surface using the foam pad. This coats the compounding pad with compound and reduces compounding paint temperatures. 
• Press the Yellow Compounding Pad against the paint and turn the machine on. Set the speed dial on the polisher between 3-1/2 and 4. 
• Work the pad over the surface in a figure 8 pattern. Go over the area in a left-to-right figure 8 pattern and then an up-and-down figure 8 pattern.

Apply compound to paint.

Put foam compounding pad on
machine's hook and loop backing plate.

Mist compounding pad with water.

Spread compound with machine off.

Set the speed dial between
3-1/2 and 4,

Work in a figure-8 pattern.

• Go over the area several times or until the compound starts to dry.
  
• Inspect the results. Spray the surface with a 50/50 solution of Isopropyl Alcohol and water to remove compounding residues and wipe the area dry with a clean Microfiber towel. (I mark one of the water bottles "Water/Alcohol" with a Magic Marker to keep them separate) Run your fingertips over the surface. Is it smooth? 

Remove residues with an alcohol/water
solution and inspect the surface.

• Has the gloss been restored? Have the swirls been removed? If not, repeat the compounding and inspection procedure until the gloss is restored or until no further improvement can be observed. Compounding may cake the pad with dead, oxidized paint limiting compounding effectiveness. If this happens, switch to a fresh pad or wash the dirty pad in a bucket of water, rinse and pat as dry as possible. When the surface is as defect-free as you can make it, proceed to Step 2, Polishing.

    Compounding may leave the surface dull depending on the abrasiveness of the compound used. This is normal. This dullness is removed in the next step which is polishing.

    Polishing is done after compounding to remove compounding haze (surface dullness). Polishing restores surface gloss and prepares the surface for waxing.

Step 2 - Polishing

     The procedure for polishing is exactly the same as for compounding with two exceptions. 

• Use the White Foam Polishing Pad for this step with a finishing polish (i.e. Menzerna Final Polish, Meguiar's No. 9 Swirl Remover).
• Mist the white foam polishing pad with water, spread polish over the area and polish in a figure-8 pattern. 

Switch to the white polishing pad.

Mist foam pad with water.

Apply polish to surface.

Keep the speed dial between
3-1/2 and 4,

Spread polish with machine off.

Apply in a figure-8 pattern.

Wipe residues & inspect surface

•  To test for results, wipe off polishing residues with a clean Microfiber cloth and inspect the surface. (Do not spray the surface with the alcohol and water solution.  This would remove fillers and gloss agents that you want to stay on the surface.) 

    If the surface is still dull, continue polishing. When the haze is removed and surface gloss looks good, proceed to finishing.

Tip: If you omitted the compounding step, went directly to polishing and are having trouble removing oxidation, you have three options:

1. Increase the polisher's speed. Increase the Porter Cable's speed to between 4-1/2 and 5.
2. Switch to the Yellow Foam Compounding Pad but continue using the same polish. (You could also switch to the Lambswool Leveling Disc for maximum cutting power.)
3. If the swirls remain, it will require compounding.  Switch to the Yellow Compounding Pad and use a compound as outlined above.

Step 3 - Finishing

    After polishing, finish with your favorite wax or paint sealant/ protectant. You can do this by hand or use the Porter Cable polisher and a Grey Finishing Pad. 

    When you're finished, wash all pads in a bucket with soapy water, rinse thoroughly with a garden hose and allow to air dry. Do not machine wash or dry pads.

We've chosen to apply Blackfire
All Finish Paint Protection by hand.

What kind of results can I expect?

    In all cases, this system will produce better results than could be accomplished by hand. Using a circular polisher will completely remove dull, oxidized paint, swirls, scratches, and acid rain, water spots.

     Using a dual action polisher will remove most oxidation, minor swirls and visually reduce deeper swirls, scratches and paint defects. It may not be possible to completely remove deep swirls, scratches and acid rain water spots using a dual action polisher .

Wipe on final protectant.

Buff to a bright shine.

Surface is vibrant and swirl-free!
Note reflection of clouds!

Here's a better shot of the finished hood. Quite a difference!