What Rubbing and Polishing Compound can do for your Paint

[Intrepidation]

For anyone who is curious about how well compounds and polishes work on restoring paint, I thought I'd share a few examples using Meguiar's Ultimate line. Lawnmowers are lucky if they ever get washed in their lifetime. I wash mine after each use, and I also do a thorough detailing of the ones I repair. Check this out.

[G. David Felt]

WOW, Dodgefan you are amazing with those machines. That is freakin awesome. My 6.5hp Sears lawnmower gets cleaned via hose off all the time and then I do a cleaning at the end of the season, but sadly my deck on my 12 year old mower is starting to rust and during cool weather it is very picky as I have to squeeze the fuel rubber button for the first min or so till it warms up and then it runs fine.

I do change the spark plug, oil and air filter each spring along with a new blade, but it has been good for being 12 years old, yet nothing like what you have done.

KUDOS to you as those are some nice machines!

[SAmadei]

DF, you are a sick, sick man. LOL.

[ocnblu]

He certainly is. BUT he's also very handy and thrifty with a dollar, two traits that truly SHINE in these economic times.

[A Horse With No Name]

Impressive, I love mequires products!

[Camino LS6]

He certainly is. BUT he's also very handy and thrifty with a dollar, two traits that truly SHINE in these economic times.

Yep.

Nice work. DF!

[G. David Felt]

He certainly is. BUT he's also very handy and thrifty with a dollar, two traits that truly SHINE in these economic times.

Yes a man who deserves some praise!!!

[Drew Dowdell]

DF, you are a sick, sick man. LOL.

Why? I bet he can charge 25% more or more for one of his mowers that goes through his restore process. If he is making money on it (hope he's turning a good profit) then he's smart, not sick!

[SAmadei]

DF, you are a sick, sick man. LOL.

Why? I bet he can charge 25% more or more for one of his mowers that goes through his restore process. If he is making money on it (hope he's turning a good profit) then he's smart, not sick!

First, its meant to be a tongue-in-cheek compliment. Second, DF needs to put those profits into flipping high profit items... cars, boats, houses, planes... he obviously has a knack for this stuff and while he likely DID profit more, only a small percentage of secondhand mower buyers will spend extra on a mower for its curb appeal. I just hope he's not getting too attached to his mowers. ;-)

[Intrepidation]

Profit margins are quite good on mowers.

This little guy was originally on its way to the dump when it was given to me. I spent $11 on it and sold it for $85. That orange Scotts mower I made $120 or so on.

I've found that people will indeed pay more for a mower that looks close to what a new one would as opposed to one that looks like it sat at the bottom of a particularly muddy lake for several years. Plus I take pride in the work I do. I had a couple people tell me they contacted me because mine stood out as the nicest looking mower of the ones for sale on CL in the area. I've also noticed people tend to be inclined to take better care of their machines VS someone who just buys one from the big box mart. I've had a couple come back for service and was impressed to find they were clean both on top and under the deck.

The thing about lawn mowers vs repairing other stuff like cars is that they take up far less space and are far easier to work on in my spare time. A car is a complex machine with lots of moving parts and can be difficult to diagnose. They're also quite big and very heavy. A push mower doesn't take up much space, and if i want to work under it I simply pick it up and put it on something or tip it on its side.

I tried my hand at plumbing recently and as the exasperated zoo keeper said to the last male panda in the world, f@#k THAT!

As for getting attached, no worries. I only have 6 mowers I've kept for myself.

[Intrepidation]

Speaking of paint restoration, I'm pretty excited because my friend got a hold of a high speed buffer and we're going to put it to work on the cars. We tested it on a small area this evening and even after a brief use the difference is immense. We're also working on fixing the one area on the car where I have paint issues, which has been a slowly growing area of clear coat peeling off. Gonna be good stuff!

[Intrepidation]

...7 If you count the "beater mower" used for tall brush that hangs around until someone buys it. I do miss the Poulan Pro I was using for that purpose. I guess I'll make two with its exact twin (but self-propelled instead of push). Oh the agony. Rights now that job falls to the "ServiceStar" mower which has nifty one lever height adjustment.

[SAmadei]

There are a few used mower places around here, but none go to your extreme with the detailing. I'm I had a "normal lawn" instead of a pile of weeds and hidden objects, I'd be more likely to take care of the mower. When we got the riding mower, I tried to keep it nice, but doing acres of rough yard near trees and fences, its just brutal. I can't keep it looking good.

The thing about lawn mowers vs repairing other stuff like cars is that they take up far less space and are far easier to work on in my spare time. A car is a complex machine with lots of moving parts and can be difficult to diagnose. They're also quite big and very heavy. A push mower doesn't take up much space, and if i want to work under it I simply pick it up and put it on something or tip it on its side.

This was my argument for making scale model cars... but I was getting more and more out of hand with details, lighting, paint, etc. that it seemed to be easier to work at 1:1 scale. Better ROI, as well.

I tried my hand at plumbing recently and as the exasperated zoo keeper said to the last male panda in the world, f@#k THAT!

Really? I find it pretty easy to just start replacing lots of copper with CPVC or PEX if its a big project. Only thing that sucks is that you need to hop through legal hoops to do most house work... unless you own the house yourself.

Worst part for me... crawl spaces. I won't do any work in really tight areas.

As for getting attached, no worries. I only have 6 mowers I've kept for myself.

Hello, Lawn Mowers Anonymous? ;-)

Speaking of paint restoration, I'm pretty excited because my friend got a hold of a high speed buffer and we're going to put it to work on the cars. We tested it on a small area this evening and even after a brief use the difference is immense. We're also working on fixing the one area on the car where I have paint issues, which has been a slowly growing area of clear coat peeling off. Gonna be good stuff!

Looking forward to seeing this. The '04 GP has some clear coat issues I'd love to sort out myself.

[Intrepidation]

Really? I find it pretty easy to just start replacing lots of copper with CPVC or PEX if its a big project. Only thing that sucks is that you need to hop through legal hoops to do most house work... unless you own the house yourself.

Worst part for me... crawl spaces. I won't do any work in really tight areas.

Let's just say it invloved a clogged main pipe full of poo water and toilet paper. Needless to say I gave up, through out the snake, and called a plumber.

Hello, Lawn Mowers Anonymous? ;-)

Let's see, I have my shiny Brute, which objectively is a nothing special besides that it looks brand new and kickstarted the hobby.

A Honda Harmoney HRB215 that I got on trade and needed nothing. It's easily the nicest of all the mowers. It's built very well, has a blade clutch so it can stay running while the blade is not spinning, and is super quiet.

Then there's the 80's aluminum deck Toro Recycler with the 2-cycle Suzuki engine.

The 80's Lawn Boy which is also aluminum and has a 2-cycle engine (I still need to get it running, haven't had time yet).

A `79 Simplicity which either has an aluminum or Magnesium deck. It's quite the oddball which is why I like it.

And the aforementioned Poulan Pro which I got for free and is built like a tank.

Looking forward to seeing this. The '04 GP has some clear coat issues I'd love to sort out myself.

Depends on the issue. If it's faded (like teh Prizm's roof) you can only do so much because the base coat becomes damaged, and applying clear won;t fix the issue. In the case of the Intrepid the clear coat literally separated from the base coat, but the base itself is still fine. I'll give a full rundown when its done, but the short version is I cleaned the area, removed all of the loose clear coat, and used liquid touch up clear to cover it, putting enough on to raise it above the surrounding clear coat. Then it will be wet sanded with 2000 grit sandpaper and buffed. Right now its not smooth, but from 5 feet away from most angles you can't tell and it blends right in with the surrounding areas, so its only going to get better.

The area we buffed removed the yellowing that occurs over time and brought the luster back to the paint. This requires a radial buffer because a random orbit buffer can't heat up the clear coat, which is the key. When its done I'll have plenty of photos.

[Drew Dowdell]

I bet that '79 Simplicity is a LawnBoy badge job.

Are you factoring in an hourly rate for your time when figuring out your profit?

[Intrepidation]

I bet that '79 Simplicity is a LawnBoy badge job.

I'd be inclined to think so as well, (LB made some rebadges for International), but while similar, the deck design isn't quite the same as any Lawn Boy I've seen of the era.

Are you factoring in an hourly rate for your time when figuring out your profit?

I do when it's a customer's, when I fix them to resell not as much.

[Drew Dowdell]

I bet that '79 Simplicity is a LawnBoy badge job.

I'd be inclined to think so as well, (LB made some rebadges for International), but while similar, the deck design isn't quite the same as any Lawn Boy I've seen of the era.

LB also did some for JC Penney too.

Why I think it's a badge job:

1. Deck shape - while not exactly the same, would be so close as to raise the eyebrows of the patent attorneys.

2. The self propeller mechanism is identical to a lawnboy I had (and is now my father's)

3. The Pull starter is classic lawnboy design.

4. Simplicity push mowers of the era were just badge jobs from other companies to give retailers something to sell next to their real product... tractors.

[Intrepidation]

Could be, if I really want I'm sure I could consult with some experts, maybe when I actually get around to working on it.

Today I finished up the clear coat patch. It's not perfect but its a damn sight better than it was, and I got the driver's side doors done. Even without all the right pads the results were awesome. Nearly all the scratches, even from an accident 4 years ago, are gone and the doors glisten line new. I'll get photos when there's daylight. I also did some practicing on the Prizm, so the trunk looks brand new and so does half the hood.

[Intrepidation]

Speaking of paint restoration, I'm pretty excited because my friend got a hold of a high speed buffer and we're going to put it to work on the cars. We tested it on a small area this evening and even after a brief use the difference is immense. We're also working on fixing the one area on the car where I have paint issues, which has been a slowly growing area of clear coat peeling off. Gonna be good stuff!

Looking forward to seeing this. The '04 GP has some clear coat issues I'd love to sort out myself.

Check it out: