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Best rubbing compound 2018 – [Buyer’s Guide]
Last Updated December 1, 2023
My name is Willard Lawson. I spent 45 hours researching and testing 21 different types of rubbing compound and found that material, variety of sizes, and style were most important.
Eventually, I found something that would suit my needs but it occurred to me that I wasn’t the only one who might be having the same problems I did. Without further-a-do, let’s take a look at the Top 3 list in 2018 which are available in the market.
Best rubbing compound of 2018
Many models on the market may be confusing to a person who is shopping for their first time. Here, I will review 3 of the best rubbing compound of 2018, and we will also discuss the things to consider when looking to purchase one. I hope you will make an informed decision after going through each of them.
The best rubbing compound will make your fairytale dreams come true! Come with me.
Test Results and Ratings
| Rank | №1 | №2 | №3 |
| Product |  |
 |
 |
| Total | 4.8 | 4.5 | 4.3 |
| Style |
5 points
|
5 points
|
4 points
|
| Versatility |
5 points
|
4 points
|
4 points
|
| Durability |
5 points
|
4 points
|
5 points
|
| Price |
4 points
|
5 points
|
4 points
|
| Awards |  |
||
 |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
How to save up to 86%? Here is little trick.
You must visit the page of sales. Here is the link. If you don’t care about which brand is better, then you can choose the rubbing compound by the price and buy from the one who will offer the greatest discount.
№1 – 3M 39060 Perfect-It Rubbing Compound – 16 oz.
| Total: |
4.8
|
Why did this rubbing compound win the first place?
The product is very strong. Its material is stable and doesn’t crack. I don’t know anything about other models from this brand, but I am fully satisfied with this product. I was completely satisfied with the price. Its counterparts in this price range are way worse. I really enjoy the design. It is compact, comfortable and reliable. And it looks amazing!
5
|
5
|
5
|
4
|
№2 – 3M 36058 Perfect-It EX Rubbing Compound – 8 fl. oz.
| Total: |
4.5
|
Why did this rubbing compound come in second place?
I like this product. For such a low price, I didn’t even hope it to be any better. It’s decently made. Seems that the material is good. It has a very beautiful color but I don’t really like the texture. This is a pretty decent product that perfectly fitted the interior of our office. Managers explained me all the details about the product range, price, and delivery.
5
|
4
|
4
|
5
|
№3 – Meguiar’s M105 Mirror Glaze Ultra-Cut Compound – 32 oz.
| Total: |
4.3
|
Why did this rubbing compound take third place?
This price is appropriate since the product is very well built. I hope that the good reputation of the manufacturer will guarantee a long-term work. I liked the design. We’ve been using it for 2 months and it still looks like brand new. It doesn’t squeaks nor bents. Looks great in my apartment.
4
|
4
|
5
|
4
|
rubbing compound Buyer’s Guide
Effectiveness
Before you make a pick up of whatever rubbing compound you want to use, make sure you check out how effective it is by reading reviews of those who have already used it before you.
The information given by the manufacturer should also be taken seriously, including the ratings on their website. It should be a product which should remove water spots, swirl marks and oxidation.
It should be noted that some rubbing compound can only do a specific task, thus, should be avoided if need be.
Ingredients
Consider the ingredients used to manufacture the best rubbing compound that you are about to purchase because that is what determines the quality.
Avoid anything that contains a lot of toxic ingredients and fillers such as silicone as it will have negative effects on the surface of the car.
No086Rubbing Compound
Apart from removing scratches, blemishes, and watermarks, it will restore shine to your car as it did to mine some time back; I had an old and dull car which was restored instantly after use of this great product.
It smoothes, cleans and makes all the rough surfaces to restore the lost perfection. In case your car has scratches and dents, you need to use this perfect product as they will go with just a simple wipe; it is easy to apply. You are good with this product even if your car is suffering from deep scratches as it will wash them away.
Meguiar’s G1721Compound
It is one of the best rubbing compounds currently available in the market as attested by a friend who bought it recently after his car was involved in an accident that left a deep scratch on the side of the back door.
It is capable of removing all the scratches and other blemishes without having to leave the car dirty. It has a fast cut, abrasion which enables it to remove all the defects found over your car’s surface and making the car to be restored to its original shape.
If you see my friend’s car, you won’t believe the pictures of at the accident scene, and after the application of the rubbing compound. With it, you won’t find the repair work to be back breaking, rather, you will enjoy it.
If you are in need of one of the best rubbing compound, then it is advisable that you buy a Griot Garage 10862.
It is a product which will bring out all the scratches from your vehicle, leaving it shiny and looking better than it was before the scratch occurred.
It has micro abrasives which require you to gently rub it over the surface to make it possible to achieve the best results. The application process is user-friendly because all you need to do is to do a single pass and wipe and the perfection will be back on your vehicle.
It is one of the best rubbing compounds which I learned about its effectiveness through a colleague at work who was all praise for it.
He talked about it not being the usual rubbing compound as it does great things to a car. All this should be attributed to its formula that comprises of the high level of professionalism that ensures that you get pleasant results. Your dull and oxidized surfaces will become good as new.
Car Wash Tips to Care for the Paint
Dishwashing detergent contains a higher concentration of salt and strong chemicals that are harmful to the paint, rubbers, and plastic trim in the long term.
As for washing detergent Bowden says the best car wash products are those with formulations that are pH balanced to be gentle on the paint, don’t contain strong chemicals, with a layer of lubrication and good soapsuds to keep grime suspended and away from scratching the paint. For him, a good quality detergent serves a dual purpose in reducing the damage from the elements and adding a layer of protection to the paint surface.
When asked how often should you wash your car, and can you wash your car too much with any risk of damaging it? Bowden assures that as long as the proper preparations are taken beforehand and the correct steps are followed, there really shouldn’t be any risk of damaging the paint from multiple washes.
Snow foam should be left to sit for three to four minutes to break down any grime that can scratch the paint surface during the wash.
Proper car washing techniques
Besides getting a proper microfibre wash pad or mitt, and a good quality car wash detergent, Bowden recommends having two buckets ready, one with fresh ‘soft’ water for rinsing, and another for the detergent mix. If your buckets permit, it is good to fit them with a grit guard to safely trap any dirt particles and grime that gets washed off the car, and prevents it from mixing with the washing liquids and being splashed back on the car.
Every wash should start with a thorough rinse, although for more fastidious enthusiasts, Bowden says they can start off a wash with a pre-washing using a pH balanced ‘snow foam’ formulation, such as their Snow Job. The snow foam is sprayed over the car and left to sit for three to four minutes to breakdown any grime that can scratch the paint surface during the wash, before being rinsed off.
With any loose dirt and soil washed off the body, the car wash detergent can now be applied with a microfibre wash mitt or pad starting from top to bottom (cleanest to dirtiest parts of the car) to ensure any dirt left behind doesn’t get moved onto the cleaner parts of the car during the washing process.
Though chamois is effective at soaking up water, scratches can occur when it gets dragged over sections of grime that were missed in the process of washing. “Avoid washing the car with circular motions as this may leave swirl marks if the dirt isn’t completely rinsed off. Instead run your wash mitt or towel along the body in a lateral direction to wipe away the remaining dirt,” says Bowden.
Bowden also advises using an electric blower to remove any pockets of water in hard to reach nooks and crannies, such as the wing mirrors housings, may contain water that could allow rust to form. Also after a wash Bowden recommends taking the car for a short drive to draw out any remaining pockets of water.
An electric blower can be used to remove any pockets of water in hard to reach nooks and crannies.
How to wax a car
Once the paint surface has been thoroughly cleaned and prepared, Bowden recommends giving it a coating with a quality carnauba wax. These sort of waxes are one of the best car wax around as it provide a more naturally based paint protection that is ideal in the harsh Australian environment, as well as adding a wonderful glowing shine. In order to work the wax into the paint, the car’s surface must be kept cool and out of the sun during the whole process.
The wax should be applied to a panel at a time. Start by smothering the wax completely over an applicator pad before lightly applying it on the body in circular motions. Once spread over the whole body, and left to dry for around a minute, it will form a light dry haze over the paint surface.
Wax is best applied with an applicator pad in circular motions.
There should be no wax residue remaining once buffing is complete, leaving a good shine to the paintwork.
A rubbing compound
It is an abrasive material that grinds the surface layers of dull and damaged paint. It creates a magic by making the scratches vanish! But of course, you need to follow certain techniques to use it efficiently. This guide will exclusively teach you how to use rubbing compound to get rid of scratches.
Item Weight: 11.2 oz.
3M once more comes in on the 4th position. This 03900 rubbing formula, just like its earlier sibling, works instantly removing each and every visible scratch. It not only works on the surface to remove blemishes and defects but also restores the lost attractiveness of your car’s surface making it look new once again. If you dislike dull looking cars, that makes the two of us.
To be honest, disliking isn’t enough; you also have to take action against what you dislike. And yes, with this formula, you will definitely have that attractive car you have always wanted. Extremely easy to use, you can either use a machine or your hands to rub it over the surface of your car.
In fact, it effectively and safely gets rid of grade 1200 or even finer sand scratches on your car making it look attractive. Whether you are worried about medium oxidation, coarse swirls or even water spots, this formula is your solution.
These are variations of synthetic car wax, and serve a slightly different purpose than just protection. Colored waxes come in color variations to match your car and keep its color looking rich and helps your car maintain its protective shine.
Car Waxing Techniques
When it comes to caring for your car waxing is an easy and efficient way to keep it looking good and to protect it from debris, dirt, and grime. There are several different methods to waxing however and it is beneficial to learn about each type so that you can choose what method is best for you and your car. Both hand waxing and electric buffing have benefits and drawbacks and an in depth look at both is the best way to decide what is right for you.
Hand Waxing
Hand waxing is any application of waxing or a waxing product with nothing more than your hand and an applicator or a sponge. When it comes to waxing many prefer hand buffing to electric buffers for a few different reasons. For starters, older cars that have not been painted in a while are more likely to have their paint peeled or buffed away by high speed buffers. Hand waxing allows the user to apply the exact amount of pressure needed and to vary that pressure dependent on what the car needs in each particular are.
This means overall that hand buffing offers far more control than an electric buffer offers making it the preference for many. Another reason that people prefer hand buffing is that you can get a thinner layer of wax without buffing it all away and needing to start over. The third reason many prefer hand waxing over electric waxing is that you do have more control and you can give your car the attention that it needs. Hand waxing on the downside does take far longer and can be tiring and may not be able to remove large scuffs.
Get All your Prep-Work out of the Way
Prior to starting a buffing procedure and re-coating your hardwood floor, it is important to get the floor ready for buffing. The initial phase of getting the floor ready necessitates figuring out what sort of finish and coatings are already on the floor.
Step 2: Use the floor buffer
Mount the screens and buffing pad on the buffer. The least demanding approach to achieve this is to put the buffing pad on the buffer, and after that mount the screen on the base of the buffing pad.
You should also have a decently ventilated area to work in and use gentle fans if you can, or even better, use dust collectors.
Step 3: Use Your Hands When Necessary
The angles close to the walls should be roughened using your hands, because normally floor buffers are quite massive, making it impossible to reach such angles without causing any harm.
A drywall sanding pad together with a 150 grit screen functions admirably for such places. Use a 2-inch masking tape to tape-off the baseboards before you begin so as not to scratch them.
Alternatively use a smaller floor sander (power hand sander).
Step 4: Get rid of ALL the dust
When the whole floor finish has been scraped off, vacuum the room once more to get rid of every speck of dust. Also vacuum the window ledges, walls and baseboards, then utilize a clean, moist fabric to wipe off the rest of the dust and leave the floor to dry completely.
Rottenstone
A ferrous oxide abrasive material consisting of coarse grains of ferrous or iron oxide that is used for grinding metal before polishing. Finer grains are called rouge.
Lightweight, glassy volcanic rock that is crushed into a powder for use in jewelry work for producing non-polished finishes on metal. It should always be used with water for lubrication, and should also be rinsed frequently (for jewelry applications), for woodworking, paraffin oil can be used for lubrication.
Compound Confusion
One of the difficulties in using and understanding rouge or abrasive compounds is that each manufacturer uses his own recipe to make the finished material. Most metal smiths also have basic knowledge of some of the terms used in lapidary work. Polishing finished stones is as difficult as polishing a finished piece of jewelry. Aluminum oxide is a material that is regularly used in lapidary polishing as well as metal polish.
Tripoli Compound
Tripoli in compound form is red/brown in color and is used to remove light scratches, imperfections, and oxidation on non-ferrous materials such as wood, aluminum, brass, copper and die cast metal. Medium cutting action. It is used as an abrasive for preparing jewelry work for polishing. The powdered stone is usually mixed with a binder and molded into cakes for easy application to buffing wheels. The most popular general compound for cutting down and buffing base metals. Gives a smooth, satin finish to copper, aluminum, pewter, gold and even hard plastic surfaces. Use Tripoli first to remove scratches and pits then follow with rouge for high luster. This compound is water based for easy cleaning in ultrasonic. Use with yellow buffs. Used for fast cutting action and some degree of color on all metals.
Cerium-R Oxide
On a telephone conversation with Matchless Metal Company a large supplier of abrasive compounds, they indicated the their chrome oxide was less than micron. This is unverified information.
Cratex Abrasives
Cratex is a tough, resilient, rubberized abrasive that utilizes silicon carbide as the abrasive grain in a standard bond of premium grade, oil-resistant chemical rubber.
This product contains ceramic particles mixed in a rubber carrier.
Soft, flexible rubber wheels compounded with pumice abrasive.
Blaze incorporates a coarse (100 grit) silicon carbide abrasive with a silicone rubber bond.
Scraping
Purchase a razor blade or another type of sharp scraping tool to eliminate any machine markings that may be left on the acrylic. Move the sharp instrument from side to side, evenly scraping off the excess and scratched acrylic. Be careful not to dig into the acrylic. You can avoid this by angling the tool at degrees. Using the acrylic scraping method is also great for shaping any jagged or uneven edges.
Buffing
Stationary polishing wheels are great for buffing acrylic back to a nice clear finish after its been sanded. To make sure you are less likely to overheat the acrylic, use an 8”-14” diameter, 2”-3” wide piece of bleached muslin with bias strips. This will allow the wheel to run much cooler. Make sure you clamp the acrylic in place so that it doesn’t move when buffing.
The finished quality of the acrylic will depend on the type of polish compound you use. A medium cutting compound will result in a glossy finish. A higher, luster finish can be accomplished by applying a fast cutting compound followed by a fine compound. This is a longer process but it will give you the best finish.
If All Else Fails…
The techniques described above can be used on single stage and a variety of projects using professional paint products. Buffing is also used for wood finishes and stone counter tops to restore luster and repair marks from joining pieces.
The YouRepair Store carries a full line of automotive tools and products everything from paint to swirl remover to let your car look the best it can.
Enlisting the Skills of a Professional
A complete topside refit using Awlgrip, Imron, or other two-part polyurethane paints is capable of looking great for years or more, especially if a top-quality two-part paint is used. On the downside, this is an expensive process; you may well be taken aback by the prices quoted if you’ve not already had experience of having a boat resprayed. In addition to the large amount of preparation work needed, part of the problem is that there’s often no alternative to putting the boat in a shed for the work, which entails lowering the mast if you have a sailboat.
Do-It-Yourself Solutions
You can make even greater savings by painting the boat yourself, which need not be a time-consuming process if you are well-organized. Unless you already have considerable experience with using spray-painting equipment, don’t be tempted by this route; it’s a skill that’s more difficult than an experienced operator makes it appear.
Luckily though, spray painting is not the only way to achieve a great finish. An excellent result can also be achieved with two people working as a team. This means having one person apply the paint using a four-inch roller, while the other uses the most gentle of stokes with the tip of a wide paint brush to lay the paint off with vertical strokes. It should be possible to apply a coat to each side of a 30-foot boat in around 60 to 7minutes using this method. Once the paint has hardened for a few days, a few hours of polishing with a machine can bring the paint to a finish almost as good as a professional respray, without highlighting as many imperfections in the smoothness of the hull as a respray.
Maintenance
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You have a scratch on your new car, and it bothers you to no end every time you look at it. Guess what? you can probably fix this yourself. All cars produced since probably the early nineties now have a clear coat. The car’s paint consists of a gray primer, the color, and then a clear coat on top to keep the color from fading from the sun or being scratched. If your scratch is not all the way down to the color coat or primer, you can repair it yourself rather easily without having to use touch-up paint.
There is an escalating series of products to fix the problem. The first thing to try is a good car wax. Do a firm waxing of the scratch with a good paste wax, available at your local auto parts store or Wal-Mart. Step back and see if this has fixed the scratch to your satisfaction. If not, go to the next step.
A couple of key tips from this video
Be sure to wet the white towel as well as the marble polishing powder.
Rating: ★★★★★
This ‘color and clarity restorer’ has long been one of our favourite paint treatments, as it strikes a great balance between abrasion and progress on marks. Nothing we tested could match the way it tackled our self-inflicted scratch and left a shiny finish that did not require further polishing. It can be applied by hand with a foam pad or cloth in a circular motion, or by a machine polisher or buffer. A superbly balanced and effective solution.
Rating: ★★★★☆
It’s hard to know how to rank Autoglym’s new kit. It is undoubtedly expensive for just 100ml of scratch remover paste, but it does come with a microfibre cloth, foam applicator pad and 100ml of Super Resin Polish to bring the rest of the paint to the same appearance. The paste works brilliantly, dealing quickly with marks and leaving a shiny finish.
At this point we usually provide a list of important features, but with these scratch removers, there really is only one important consideration: does it remove scratches? As all bar a couple use the same method – the abrasive one where the particles become smaller as you work – we can safely say each does the job, although some claim to do it better than other.
As for price, while it is always a consideration, the difference in price between these is minimal – none, for example, are greater than £20 – so you really need to be looking at them in terms of the job they do and how they do it, rather than in cost.
Let’s Wrap It Up
Which do we recommend? Well, the only one that claims to deal with deep scratches is the Quixx product, number 10, so if that is the problem you are dealing with, that’s your choice. For surface scratches, the choice is yours, as all of these come from known brands with great reputations, hence you really can’t go wrong. We’d recommend you leave out number – the scratch remover pen – as it is a far from permanent solution, so the pick of the rest if up to you.
How to save up to 86%? Here is little trick.
You must visit the page of sales. Here is the link. If you don’t care about which brand is better, then you can choose the rubbing compound by the price and buy from the one who will offer the greatest discount.
Final Word
First of all thanks for reading my article to the end! I hope you find my reviews listed here useful and that it allows you to make a proper comparison of what is best to fit your needs and budget. Don’t be afraid to try more than one product if your first pick doesn’t do the trick.
Most important, have fun and choose your rubbing compound wisely! Good luck!
So, TOP3 of rubbing compound
- №1 — 3M 39060 Perfect-It Rubbing Compound – 16 oz.
- №2 — 3M 36058 Perfect-It EX Rubbing Compound – 8 fl. oz.
- №3 — Meguiar’s M105 Mirror Glaze Ultra-Cut Compound – 32 oz.
Questions? Leave a comment below!
Chatting about rubbing compound is my passion! Leave me a question in the comments, I answer each and every one and would love to get to know you better!
