If anyone wants to see what a complete novice (and one who's not really mechanically inclined) can do with the right tools and instruction, here's the results of my first polish job. This was on my Bro-in-Law's Saab that basically sat outside, parked under a tree, for 5 years. It was a DISASTER.

Washed, waxed, and clayed the whole car. Then I polished the passenger's side with a Flex polisher and first using Menzerna SIP and a wool pad, followed by SIP and an orange pad. Wanted to finish with Menzerna Super Finish on a white pad, but my Bro in Law got lazy, and was so impressed with the results so far, that he wanted to skip the Super Finish, and start on the driver's side.

If you look REALLY closely in person, there are a few water spots that I wasn't able to get out; but I didn't want to get too aggressive with the polishing.

Just thought I'd post this if anyone was nervous about doing this or wondering what real results a "noob" could achieve. It's not perfect, and probably far less than what a pro could do, but if you saw this car originally, you'd say the results were pretty awesome.

Anyways, see pics below. Both sides washed and clayed (and re-washed after polishing the passenger's side). No wax applied.

Un-polished:


Polished (2 pics, trying to get the same amount of sun glare for a "fair" comparison):

The dots are dust, and the lines are from the QD streaking :P Seeing it in person, it's really mirror-like!

 

Looks great. Congrats. Do you have the 3401 or 3403 Flex?

I have the 3401 and I love it. Makes me look like a pro even though I am a noob too

 

Great job Joe. I'm glad everything is working out for you. For all those that have ever wondered if THEY can do it, hopefully now you see that "YES; you can". Joe was very nervous about the whole process, but I'm glad he took the leap and it's obvious it has paid off. Thanks for sharing your experience with us Joe. Now where are the before/afters of your Turbo?

 

Great job, I like that shine .. i know you do to

 

Thanks for all the comments. Yeah, I'm really happy with how it turned out. Much better than I thought - I was doing it in the garage at night, so I never really got a chance to see it in the sun.

I have a Flex 3401 and am VERY happy with it. We might pick up some Megs 105/205 and try it on the other side.

Feeling much more comfortable re: the turbo, and will start that after we're done with the Saab (which should be this week or weekend).

Thanks for everyone's help so far. I'm sure my questions have been a bit annoying at times :P

 

Nice job Joe, especially considering that you had the hardest color to correct. And keep the questions coming, as I've learned several things from your threads.

 

looks great!