Griots Garage..and orbital polisher

[giguchan]

Hello all,
I just received my first order from griots.. I have the clay kit has anyone used clay before?
The directions look pretty simple.. I do have swirls in the paint , so after i clay i'll do a light polish to get out the swirls out.Then if i'm still able i'll do a nice hard carnuba wax with my new orbital..
Hope all goes well.
Gig

 

[dingo]

I use the Griots and Mothers clay regularly. Both are good. Just give your truck a good wash and then use the slick soapy wash or the griots speed shine as clay lube. It's really hard to screw up. Follow up with a mild polish (machine applied is way easier on your arm). I usually use griots machine polish 3 (mild) or 4 (fine) for light swirls or Pinnacle's XMT machine polish 1 (ultrafine) or 2 (fine) with a light cutting pad. I also use the random orbital for application. I have both the Porter Cable 7424 and the Griots RO. I find the Griots random orbital has a tighter orbit pattern and has less of a tendency to vibrate as much albeit slightly heavier. Both are good machines though imho. Follow up with a sealer or wax of your choice using a soft red pad as your LSP. Post some pics when your done. It's always fun to look at a freshly detailed truck! :bigok:

 

[Iron Clad Lou]

I use the Griots RO, clay, polish and wax....very impressive results and super easy to use.

 

[J.A.]

I use the Griots Clay Bar for every wax job i do. It is great. I did get a bad bar once though, it was very very hard. Wouldnt soften up at all, even with the microwave trick. They send out another one and that one was better but not as good as the one i have previous to it. Anyway the orbital from Griots looks great and I think they have a lifetime warranty. I am contemplating that or the UDM or PC machines.

 

[giguchan]

All,
Thanks for all of the tips. It's good to see that there are other folks out there who have the same interests.I have the same porta cable Orbital polisher..I have heard of some people using it for application as well as removal.. I bought all of the griots polishes I have pretty decent paint on my 3 gen I'll see if i can post pics(swirls n all)
P.s. I would have responded sooner had i known there messages here.. the outbound notification is amiss.

 

[dingo]

I have heard of some people using it for application as well as removal.. I bought all of the griots polishes I have pretty decent paint on my 3 gen I'll see if i can post pics(swirls n all)

I tried removing the machine polish, sealer, and wax residue with separate removal bonnets once with my orbitals. To be honest, it took more time because I was constantly switching out the microfiber bonnets on the orbital. They would eventually gum up with residue. It was just quicker for me to remove it by hand.

As for the griots machine polishes, they are milder / more gentle compared to other polishes out there (I use the XMT and Menzerna for more aggressive polishing on other family vehicles). I doubt you'll need MP 1. By your description, probably just fine with MP 3 or even 2. Just always start with MP 3. I doubt you'll need MP 4 too much since MP 3 breaks down as you go. Since griots polish is water based, have a spray bottle with distilled water or slightly damp microfiber cloth to remove the polish residue. They can be a bit finicky when taking off. At any rate, have fun!

 

[giguchan]

Thanks for all of the replies...I was very curious about the Griots RO and the porta cable 7424... I was actually going to buy the Griots unit as a back up.. and also the small orbital... I have racks on my roof... so a small machine would be a blessing.. the Griots price is pretty cheap so i think i will... I took a few pics... mind you... i have more to do this is just a quick few shots..