# Bloody swirl marks on roof (black)



## Hark (Aug 23, 2007)

Had roof sprayed phantom blac. Now 2-3 months later and I've got quite alot of swirls on the roof.

Is just the problem with black cars or is the paint softer or am I washing it wrong?

I haven't polished or waxed at all during this time. Wash it with Johnsons and washmit, dry off with drying towels.

What's the easiest way to keep the swirls away?


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## Alan W (Oct 8, 2007)

Hose, or pressure wash, the car first to remove any grit etc then use the 2 bucket method to wash.

Pat dry rather than wipe dry and use something like Meg's Lats Touch as a drying aid.

Alan W


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## bigsyd (Jul 9, 2008)

Hark said:


> Had roof sprayed phantom blac. Now 2-3 months later and I've got quite alot of swirls on the roof.
> 
> Is just the problem with black cars or is the paint softer or am I washing it wrong?
> 
> ...


all i can say m8 is how is the prep on your car even b4 the mit touches the car ??? with me it's power wash....foam...leave for 5mins power wash then wash with mit


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## Hark (Aug 23, 2007)

bigsyd said:


> all i can say m8 is how is the prep on your car even b4 the mit touches the car ??? with me it's power wash....foam...leave for 5mins power wash then wash with mit


lol

erm non existent then I guess. :? 

I hose off with a normal hose (do have a pressure washer but hose keeps popping off the connector).

The wash, then dry.

Are there some guides on here?

Detailing guides would be great but it's more the weekly wash where I think I'm doing the damage.


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## scottg66 (Jul 25, 2009)

hi the swirl marks maybe from a mp used after you spray a car somtimes the only way i can think to remove it is to use a twin headed mop if theres any valeters near you or use the eep shine polish from ato glym isnt to bad either but will prob come back just an idea i maybe worng hope it works


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## Hark (Aug 23, 2007)

scottg66 said:


> hi the swirl marks maybe from a mp used after you spray a car


?


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## Tim G (Feb 16, 2005)

Paint your roof silver & you wont see them as easily :wink:


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## magic1 (Mar 13, 2008)

scottg66 said:


> hi the swirl marks maybe from a mp used after you spray a car somtimes the only way i can think to remove it is to use a twin headed mop if theres any valeters near you or use the eep shine polish from ato glym isnt to bad either but will prob come back just an idea i maybe worng hope it works


??? :? ???


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## steve o (Dec 5, 2006)

Hi mate, think he's suggesting the swirls might have been put in by the body shop after they painted it maybe? If they used the wrong "mop" or polish after they painted it, they might have put some nice swirls in there for ya!!!

Anywhoo, yes, your new paint is likely to be softer than the original audi stuff. VAG paint is known to be hard, your body shops paint is not likely to be anywhere near as hard and more prone to swirls, plus the fact its dark and they'll show more.

Fact is, you'll never, ever stop swirls. No matter what your prep, they'll always come back, all you can do is reduce the amount and severity by using good wash technique. Most swirls are picked up through the wash stage, so as has been said, a two bucket method with a good wool mitt is usually enough to reduce the number of swirls. Go one step further and prewash with snow foam and pressure wash to eliminate most of the harmful grit that causes the swirls.

Now you have them, you need to machine polish them out, clay, seal and wax wax wax to protect from more swirls and use better wash technique in future.

Steve.


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## ahaydock (Sep 19, 2006)

Some good advice above. If it were me I would look to either get machine and do it myself or pay a pro detailer to correct the paint, then focus on proper washing and drying techniques to keep the finish spot on.


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## bigsyd (Jul 9, 2008)

> Fact is, you'll never, ever stop swirls. No matter what your prep, they'll always come back, all you can do is reduce the amount and severity by using good wash technique


SPOT ON ADVICE THERE M8 8) that is why i did not go for 100% correction on my car, i wanted to leave plenty clear coat for future machine polishing


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## steve o (Dec 5, 2006)

Cheers mate, and thats exactly my stance as well.

A PTG (Paint Thickness Gauge) is useful if you're into a swirl free motor. Anything above 100microns is considerred safe to machine and as a rough rule, you can consider the clear coat to be approx 40% or more of that.

Fortunately, my TT seems to be quite thick, around 250u all round, giving quite alot of scope to machine. I recently corrected my pug 306 however which was borderline 100u, so I only took a light abrasive finish polish on a finish pad to remove most of the swirling, achieving 90% correction and leaving a few behind, but knowing I have alot of scope for future correction when it gets bad again.

Steve.


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