What head to use on mechanical polisher

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MidlandsOnSea

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I'm going to cut, polish & seal my boat, and acquired a mechanical polisher. It comes with a variety of different heads, each with a different colour, and a polishing bonnet. Plan is to use Farecla to cut back, then apply polish, then seal. But, can anyone give me guidance on which of the heads to use for which jobs?

Any other tips for a newbie polisher?

Thanks
 
Use a foam head (you can get them from Screwfix or Brown Brothers etc.) Use plenty of water with the compound to stop the head dragging too much. This is ideal for the cutting compound, you can then apply the polish and finish off with a lambswool bonnet on the head.
 
as said use a water spray in one hand and the polisher in the other.dont let the farcella get dry or it will get hot and leave marks.
use the medium density sponge and when done use a clean soft sponge and go lightly
 
The Farecla website may well be worth a visit at http://www.farecla.com/ but it's not so useful as the old .co.uk one.

Agree with others on keeping the mop wet but not so wet that all the compound is flung off. Protect your neighbours boat! Also keep well within the maximum speed for the mop. Work on small areas at a time. Say 1/2 sq metre.

If the polishing machine is heavy you may need to rig up some method of supporting its weight.

Wash the boat to remove dirt first.
 
I use the blue foam head on my boat for both G3 (shine) and heavier compounds for cutting out scratches. I then use the lambs wool bonnet for the polish. dont know if that s the 3m solutioworks for me.
 
Excuse my ignorance but is a mechanical polisher the same, similar or completely different to, an angle grinder? My boat needs a polish but I don't want to cut holes in it.
 
I learnt to use polishers the hard way compounding cars. You can easily go too hard. Get the Farcela video on how to do it and make sure you use the right grade of compound.

If you go to machine mart they have white and blue foam heads, one is for coarse paste unfortunately I can't remember which!

Remember polishing is just another word for saying you are only GRINDING away a thin part of the gelcoat!
 
Screwfix offer a white mop for two pack paints and G3 compound, a blue one for cellulose and acrylics etc and a very soft red one for finishing. I guess on gelcoat the white one would be the one to use (mine is white but it is not a screwfix one).

Re Seaspray111's comments about speed: the max speed for my mop is 2500 rpm but I find 900 adequate. Small angle grinders can go at 11,000 rpm
 
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