Sorry, I am going to have to disagree with the whole paint melting theory. Basically when you polish you are rounding off the edges of the scratches making it harder for the light to catch them and in essence harder to see or in some case removing a small layer of clear coat to the level where the scratch is so it is gone. Temp does come into play a little bit but mostly it causes the solvents in the polish flash at a certain temp. When it is too hot this happens too soon and too cold not soon enough. It is more of a mechanical abrasion that causes the polishing effect.
There are some new clear bras that will melt and the scratches will go away with heat and they are even working on a paint that is similar but it is not on our Vipers.
When polishing especially with a rotary you want to stop and feel the paint once in a while, you do not want it to get too hot or you could burn the paint easier. Warm to touch is OK. Obviously if it get really hot out in the sun the paint does not melt and if you are getting it that hot when polishing you are in trouble.
What you should do totally depends on the type of cover you use on your car as well as whether or not the car has been sitting in a covered garage or out doors. If outdoors, you always wash. Remember, I take things in to consideration using common sense as my rule of measure. Here's the deal.
If the cover that you use allows dust to get through to the paint, then not only is it not a good cover but that car is going to need to be washed. A cover should breath but NOT allow dust to get through. Wiping the dust off with a quick detailer is what I call "making sandpaper". Unless the dust is recent, very light and can be removed with a light dusting using a California Duster (as I do in my dust removal videos), then that dust is going to become sandpaper as you start wiping it off the car. This is what creates the very beginning stages of swirls. Look at this close up picture of swirls. They are not scratches that go in a circle, they are scratches that go in straight lines, at every possible angle there is.
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So what should you do? WASH IT AGAIN. The dust has been sitting on your car for no telling how long and the fluctuation of temperatures will cause the dust to become matted to the clear coat. That is a perfect recipe for creating scratches if you try to remove that dust with a quick detailer.
Sorry, I am going to have to disagree with the whole paint melting theory. Basically when you polish you are rounding off the edges of the scratches making it harder for the light to catch them and in essence harder to see or in some case removing a small layer of clear coat to the level where the scratch is so it is gone.
That's almost 100% correct but allow me to add this. The rounding off of the edges only happens with milder polishes and less powerful buffers. You are still removing layers of the clear coat regardless of the polish or machine that you are using, although it will be miniscule with a light polish and a machine like the PC. With the proper machine, polish and technique, you are shaving the clear coat off the car and bringing it to a level just BELOW the scratches the scratches, which is how you properly remove the scratches.
Temp does come into play a little bit but mostly it causes the solvents in the polish flash at a certain temp. When it is too hot this happens too soon and too cold not soon enough. It is more of a mechanical abrasion that causes the polishing effect.
I agree.
There are some new clear bras that will melt and the scratches will go away with heat and they are even working on a paint that is similar but it is not on our Vipers.
The only experience I have with clear bras is with the 3M brand. I have worked with and spoke with only the engineers from that company. There is no "melting" with that brand of clear bra. You actually treat it like paint and use wet sanding techniques to fix damage to their clear bras.
When polishing especially with a rotary you want to stop and feel the paint once in a while, you do not want it to get too hot or you could burn the paint easier. Warm to touch is OK. Obviously if it get really hot out in the sun the paint does not melt and if you are getting it that hot when polishing you are in trouble.
I agree. But most importantly, you should develop a solid technique with a rotary so that burning the paint is not an issue. This is why I never make videos on using a rotary. People get the technique I use with a PC wrong no matter how many times I stress the technique in my video. Thus, a rotary video would be a disaster for a lot of folks.
Lightning is wicked if you can put it to the ground.
