Subject: Cleaning Your Paint, Part 3
                                      
   by Larry Reynolds
                                      
   The first two articles outlined the types and usage of glazes and
   polishes. In this article, I will list several quality paint cleaning
   agents and give a brief synopsis of each. The most important caveat is
   "use the least aggressive product to accomplish the task." It is easy
   to redo an area with a gentle product - it is rather costly to replace
   paint once you have gotten enthusiastic with a very aggressive
   product. The list is alphabetical, so infer nothing by the order. You
   may read between the lines to determine my personal favorites.
   
  3M Imperial Hand Glaze
  
   This is my personal favorite (how is that for between the lines?). I
   have tried just about every product on the market, and keep coming
   back to 3M Hand Glaze. It is gentle on the paint, produces, in my
   humble opinion, the deepest gloss, yet is aggressive enough to remove
   fine swirl marks and scratches. It also "feeds" the paint with
   emollient oils.
   
   If an area needs a little more aggressive cleaning, soak your pad in
   the 3M and add a small amount (about the size of your pinkie nail) of
   P21S Metal Finish Restorer Polish (don't you just love the translation
   of German names?) or Blue Magic Metal Polish, mix the two together on
   the pad and then rub out the area using a linear motion. Buff out and
   repeat if necessary. This combo works very well on swirl marks and
   scratches that can be seen but not detected with your finger nail.
   Once the blemish has been removed, follow with an application of
   straight Hand Glaze to restore the deep shine and then wax. The recess
   behind the door handles is a classic area that responds well to this
   combination.
   
  Harly Pre-Wax Cleaner
  
   A mild chemical cleaner and polish that does a decent job on oxidized
   paint, but doesn't remove scratches that well. It does work very well
   on oxidized chrome.
   
  Meguiar #01 Medium Cut Cleaner
  
   A moderately abrasive cleaner to remove surface defects including
   harsh swirl marks, oxidation, water marks, and wet sanding marks.
   Follow with a fine glaze (3M or #7) and a coat of wax. This is the
   "medium sandpaper" of the abrasive cleaner set, so use only if your
   regular glaze will not do the job.
   
  Meguiar #02 Fine Cut Cleaner
  
   A mildly abrasive cleaner for fine swirl marks, water spots, and fine
   defects. Follow with a fine glaze and a coat of wax. The "fine
   sandpaper" in the abrasive cleaner family.
   
  Meguiar #04 Heavy Cut Cleaner
  
   A heavy duty abrasive cleaner for paint that is one step away for
   1-800-NEW-PAINT. This is slightly safer to use than compounds. Should
   be followed by an application of #02 and then a fine glaze and a coat
   of wax. Use with extreme care, or you will make some body shop person
   very happy.
   
  Meguiar #06 Cleaner Wax
  
   A one-step chemical cleaner with a liquid wax. Use for spot
   application when your favorite cleaning/wax regimen is not practical,
   or use on your Yugo.
   
  Meguiar #07 Showcar Glaze
  
   A hand applied glaze to remove fine swirls and water spot also adds
   emollient oils back into the paint. Follow with a coat of quality wax.
   
  Meguiar #09 Swirl Remover
  
   This is a polish (chemical cleaner with an emollient oil matrix) that
   works well on clear coat finishes that are in reasonably good shape.
   
  Meguiar Medallion Paint Cleaner
  
   Another chemical cleaner that contains a fair amount of polymers. This
   may not work well with some German finishes. Designed for use with the
   Medallion cationic bonding system.
   
  Mother's Products
  
   These products contain a fair amount of polymers, and may cause some
   hydroscopic problems with certain German finishes.
   
  One Grand Clean & Wax
  
   A one-step chemical cleaner, filler and liquid wax. Will hide minor
   swirl marks and apply a coat of wax in one operation. Another spot
   repair type of product.
   
  One Grand Glaze
  
   A water based abrasive glaze. This is somewhat aggressive for normal
   application. May be used for somewhat neglected finishes.
   
  One Grand Omega Glaze
  
   A fine water based abrasive glaze. Leaves a nice finish. Seems to work
   better on American/Japanese finishes than German paints.
   
  P21S Gloss-enhancing Paintwork Cleanser (another translation from German)
  
   A superfine creamy glaze that leaves a deep rich shine. Developed by a
   German company with the German finishes in mind. A very close second
   to 3M Hand Glaze (did you read between the lines again?).
   
  Sonax Polish & Wax
  
   Another one-step chemical cleaner and liquid wax combination. If a
   cleaner is designed to remove old wax, how does it know the difference
   between bad old wax and good new wax?
   
  Zymol HD Cleanse
  
   Zymol offers the "pina colada" experience for those who enjoy the
   olfactory stimulation while cleaning their paint. A touch aggressive
   and a touch expensive for my taste, but defended to the death by Zymol
   addicts. Be aware of a new line of Zymol products that are made by
   Turtle Wax and sold under the Zymol label. If you find Zymol in
   K-Mart, it is really Zurtle Wax.
   
   I hope that the last three articles have shed some light on the often
   confusing world of glazes, polishes, cleaners and compounds. If anyone
   has any questions on application, usage or other products, please feel
   free to give me a call.
   
   Larry Reynolds also operates Car Care Specialties Inc.,
   Post Office Box 535,
   Saddle Brook, NJ 07663-0535.
   Phone 201-796-8300, Fax 201-791-9743,
   E-mail carcaresp_at_aol.com 
   www.carcareonline.com