Noob in die need of advise

[Lambros]

Glad to hear things are going well - practice makes perfect - I still have a long way to go but love every minute of it.

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I haven't had much experience with bird droppings leaving marks as I generally try to remove them as soon I see them. I use the technique as described by Mike Phillips on AutoGeekOnline (AutoGeekOnline - Safely remove bird droppings).

Basically, keep some quick detailer in your car/work and a couple of MF towels handy. When you spot droppings, spray some QD on a section of the MF, place the moistened section of the MF over the dropping, pour water onto the MF and let it soak for a while before 'pinch-lifting' the dropping from the surface area; try to lift as much as possible and use enough QD and water to soak into the dropping. Once all has been lifted, give a final spray of QD and wipe the section with a clean MF. Don't forget to bag the MF's and wash those separately and clean your hands afterwards - bird droppings are a cocktail of disease.

If any marks/etchings are left from the droppings (AutoGlym recently conducted a study into what actually causes the marks: AutoGlym study), you will need to compound/polish the affected area. Basically, the paint/clear coat molds around the dropping from heating and cooling and thus requires leveling to achieve a good reflection. I would first try claying the areas before resorting to hand compounding and polishing to see if it makes a positive difference, followed by the usual sealant or wax of your choice.

Sealants and waxes help with the removal of droppings but provide limited protection when exposed over a period of time. The sooner droppings are removed, the better.

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Regarding my combination of pads/polishes with the DA, I always use the advise of the forum to first try with a light combination and move to more aggressive combo until the result/time balance is achieved. I have learnt that the DA is safer but does need to be worked longer (especially on harder paint) with foam pads to achieve good levels of correction. David posted some excellent advise in this thread which is what I follow when priming, relative speeds, number of section passes and finishing.

My combo with the hard German paints and DA is basically:
- Green LC CSS pad with Menz Power Gloss for quick correction (usually creates some holograms) - speed 5.5 with medium pressure.
- Green/White LC CSS pad with Menz Power finish for good correction and often great finish - speed 4-3 with medium/light pressure.
- White/Gray LC CSS or Yellow 3M pad with Menz Final finish for excellent reflections - speed 3-2 with very light pressure;
-- I don't always see a difference on hard paint from this step but it does make me feel better.
- Sealants and waxes I prefer to do by hand with foam applicators.

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A bit long but hope it helps. I'm sure other members will also chime-in with their experiences.