Can dust particles cause scratches when polishing plastic?

[wisco8]

I'm thinking that small dust particles are causing scratches when I'm polishing, is this a common issue? I recent;y used all of my micromesh from 3200 to 12000 grit and noticed that while I'm polishing that I'm actually putting tiny scratches back into the finish even after using Tamiya polishing compounds. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

                                       Steve C.

[Ace-Garageguy]

One thing to really watch out for...and I learned this doing 1:1 cars...is that sandpaper will 'shed' little pieces of grit as you use it. That's why you should always change your water when you change sanding grits. You don't want a piece of 800 grit sand getting rubbed all over your body while you're trying to sand it to 8000.

You should also wash the model between grits, and again when you finish color-sanding prior to polishing.

[Agent G]

Also pay attention to the cloth you are using. 100% cotton flannel is the best. Even a slight polyester/cotton mix will leave small scratches.

G

[wisco8]

   That is excellent advice!! I will put each separate sanding grit in separate bags,and do exactly what you are saying. Thank you Bill, your the best!!!

                                                                                                                                                                     Steve C.

[Jeff Johnston]

I agree with Wayne as the cloth that you use to polish can cause the scratches.  The best that i have found is a really old cotton t shirt.  Interestingly what is even better are those shoe buffers that they used to put in Hotel rooms.  I haven;t found anything better but good luck finding them anymore.  

[Crazy Ed]

    Another place to look for Polishing Cloth is your Eye Doctor. The Lens Cloths they sell for Lens Cleaning do a really good job. Sure you can get Microfiber Cloth for less from other places but the size they're selling are just about made for Kit Polishing.

[Snake45]

I agree with Wayne as the cloth that you use to polish can cause the scratches.  The best that i have found is a really old cotton t shirt.  Interestingly what is even better are those shoe buffers that they used to put in Hotel rooms.  I haven;t found anything better but good luck finding them anymore.  

Old T-shirts, especially all-cotton ones, are great, as are old flannel shirts. Recently I've bought squares of white felt in the craft section of Walmart, and I cut them into strips about 1" wide. These are fabulous for the early stages of polishing (with my beloved Wright's Silver Cream) and can be folded to get into tight corners much better than say T-shirt cloth. I often switch back to the T-shirt for the final polish with water-cut Wright's, though.

[jwrass]

Pay attention to your compound as well... Stay away from the dried up gunk around the opening of the container.

Cleanliness is key... A few drops of Ivory dish soap in your water makes a huge difference.... Helps shed the slurry that is produced during he sanding process and acts as a lubricant. which makes sanding so much easier.  

[Chuckyg1]

I purchased a yard of plain white flannel from the local fabric store. It's cheap, you can cut it to suit your needs & in my case, lasts for years. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[keyser]

Changing water and washing car is important. I also wash my sanding cloths with warm soapy water when done, light scrub with toothbrush to get recent paint out of it. 

Any cloth can leave scratches, so if you drop it, or it gets dirty, the small fibers really don't clean very well, so pitch it. With Microfiber cloth, if you wash them, do NOT use fabric softener. They'll feel softer, but the fabric softener just "glues" the fibers together to make it "feel" softer. It'll leave  scratches more often as it picks up the sanded paint. I usually rinse the body after sanding but before the polishing, and use different parts of cloth frequently. Works on 1:1 cars too. 

[crazyjim]

I use a small plastic tub for wet sanding and before adding water, I add a few drops of Dawn dishwashing liquid. It makes the water wetter and slides easier.

[10thumbs]

Pay attention to your compound as well... Stay away from the dried up gunk around the opening of the container.

Cleanliness is key... A few drops of Ivory dish soap in your water makes a huge difference.... Helps shed the slurry that is produced during he sanding process and acts as a lubricant. which makes sanding so much easier.  

Great tip!  I can imagine that as a real good "slide" element.

Jim, same thanks to you as well, you do really fine paint jobs.

I like this and can imagine that it works better.  Saved.

Edited September 2, 2016 by 10thumbs

[Tom Geiger]

and somehow I'm not overly concerned!   

[Snake45]

Love that rusty Corvette!

[jwrass]

A rusty Corvette.... that's a new one...... well played Tom.... Love it

[Mike_G]

My favorite polishing cloths are old cotton diapers, but nowadays they're as hard to find as a rusty Corvette.

[Art Anderson]

Also pay attention to the cloth you are using. 100% cotton flannel is the best. Even a slight polyester/cotton mix will leave small scratches.

G

Correct: Polyester fibers are hard fibers--they are made from the same basic material as polyester resin, AKA Fiberglass Resin.  For my money, I rely on 100% cotton tricot, which is the knit cotton fabric we wear as tee shirts.  I have used old cotton tee's as polishing cloths for years, now use fresh scrap cotton tricot which is sold in bulk for dustcloths.

Art

[MrObsessive]

You've all seen my paint jobs...........I've used and swear by chamois cloths. Never a problem with scratches afterwards because it's essentially......................skin.  I've used this since maybe the early '90's?

Here are a couple that were polished with a chamois cloth and Meguiar's Car Cleaner Wax. BTW, the finish was wet sanded with the polishing cloths beforehand as was mentioned above.

 

[om617]

 

 

 

1961 was a great year for GM design. Beautiful car and build. 

Will do mine in concord green.