Hand buff tips?, object: remove paint imperfections Options

[DHoops2000]

Hi 6gc owners,

I've only been exposed to this forum for a few days, so I hope its not too early to say that I think you guys are by far the nicest and most knowledgeable people around (especially when it comes to these pretty celicas). Therefore, I was hoping you guys would help me out with some tips on hand buffing my 1997 black celica GT.

THE PROBLEM: 6 months ago, I removed all the dents on my car and repainted it black. However, there are minor slight-noticeable paint drips around some areas of the car and tiny bumps that were resulted from dust particles falling on the paint before it was dry.

I'm hoping since I haven't had the time to buff the car yet, doing so will remove these imperfections and make it look nice for the summer time.

I don't have access to a buffer so I am planning to buff it by hand. But before I start, I wanted to ask a few questions and get you guys' opinion on the issue.

Do you guys believe that hand buffing (as opposed to taking it to a shop and have them machine buff it) will be sufficient enough to remove these imperfections? What kind of car polish would you recommend? (brand and type such as: abrasive paper/pad, compound, polish) I've also never done this before so any links or additional tips would be very very helpful.

Thank you guys in advance and I'm looking forward to your inputs.

[b1gr3d]

are you wanting to look like popeye? lol hand buffing a whole car is suicide. like bufferdan said: 1500 and i would go to 2000 and buff the car with a machine buffer, do NOT get a huge grinder and put a buffing pad on it because u will burn through. use 3m buffing compound with a wool pad then a foam pad with some polishing glaze. i have found that a smooth yellow pad works better than the egg crate style. it's a relatively spendy investment BUT after you do yours you can do your friends and neighbors for cash;) probably do 5 cars with 1 bottle of compund and 1 bottle of glaze