Can anyone explain the proper technique of hand-buffing? I was told by another student at my school it is a good alternative to the porter cable. Does hand-buffing produce the same results as the porter cable?

Sorry for all of these posts, I'm a newbie to detailing.

 

Many here will tell you that you will not get the same results by hand as you would with a porter cable. And i totally agree. Unless your car is brand new, and polishing is done to remove light scratches, I would definitly recommend a porter cable. But if your going to do it by hand, remember to do go back and forth with the airflow of the car, avoid circular motions. following that should prevent swirls from appearing.

 

You can do it, i've done a number of cars by hand. Would I recommend it? I'd eat Ramen and drink tap water for 6 months to save money to buy a machine before i'd do it again.

 

agree with the above...
several of us have done it by hand, cause they didnt have machines in the old days that i could afford- and from that i can tell you it is torture. to do it right requires that you polish an area until it dusts (we "worked the box"- 2x2 areas- side to side, diagonals, and finished as the air flows)- for each small area of the car... easily a several hours job, even on our small cars (you gotta have breaks!).
your hands and arms hurt most of the time you are doing it, and continue to hurt after.
so, yes you can do it- but "what ubetit said" - he said it best!

 

You will not be able to do a full correction by hand. THere should be a lot of cheap used PCs online or in forums since a lot of people are moving to the UDM

 

Sure you CAN. Do you WANT to is the question.