Uro-Cell Foam Pads

The detailing world has been all a-buzz about "euro" foam pads, and rightly so. 

The foam used is imported from Europe and was specifically designed years ago for use on automotive surfaces.  Its design was driven by the OEM auto manufacturers who demanded highly durable foam pads that can quickly produce great results in the factory's intensive buffing environment where it is common to find dozens of buffing technicians working non-stop every day, all day long to perfect the fresh paint of hundreds of newly manufactured vehicles coming off the assembly line.

Buff and Shine has positioned itself to be at the forefront of euro foam technology with the introduction of two categories of foam pads constructed with the finest available imported European foam.  Buff and Shine's Uro-Cell Foam Pads, are designed for a wide variety of polishers and buffers, including standard dual action and random orbital machines, gear-driven DAs, and rotary (high-speed) polishers.  If you use a long-throw or long-stroke dual action polisher, we suggest you use Buff and Shine's Uro-Tec Foam Pads, which are specifically designed for these machines.  (In fact, we DO NOT recommend using the Uro-Cell pads with long-throw or long-stroke DAs.  If this is the type of machine you prefer, CLICK HERE for information about Uro-Tec pads, which will work great for you!)

Technicians are reporting amazing results with less time using the Uro-Cell Foam Pads with their favorite polishes and compounds.  There is a reason for this.  The Uro-Cell pads use closed-cell foams, which has several benefits.  First, closed-cell foam greatly reduces absorption of chemical, so that the chemical remains in contact with the paint surface much longer.  This yields more efficient buffing and quicker paint correction times.

Another benefit of closed-cell foam is chemical savings.  Because the polishing or compounding chemical does not readily soak up into the foam, less product is required to do the same amount of work.  Less saturation of chemical into the foam pad results in less wasted product!  And buffing technicians find that because the product is not soaking into the pad, the performance of the pad and chemical is consistent for a longer period of time between re-applications of product--that is, it takes longer for the dollop of product to "wear out".

Yet another benefit is that these pads work fantastic with newer water-borne, VOC compliant, or "high water content" detailing chemicals.  The pads bring out the best performance from these products, providing even dispersion across the pad and the vehicle surface.

Since the chemical is not soaked into the pad, the pads are very easy to clean.  Cleaning is as simple as washing with water or you can use your favorite pad-washer, or throw several used pads in a washing machine for safe cleaning. 

Buff and Shine's Uro-Cell Pads come in three grades:  the Blue pad is the most course, the Orange pad is for medium grade polishing, and the Red pad is great for final finishing as well as application of wax or sealant.

• Blue Uro-Cell Pads--for heavy paint correction.  You will find that using the Blue pad brings out levels of performance of your favorite compound that you have not experienced before.  As mentioned earlier, the closed-cell nature of this pad produces rapid surface cutting, producing consistent results quickly.  (In fact, some technicians are reporting that with "diminishing compounds", the paint surface is sometimes ready for final waxing or sealing after one step!)  Nonetheless, the Blue Uro-Cell pad is great for major paint defect remediation, including scratch reduction and removal of heavy oxidation.  And if you find that the paint still needs a bit of shining up, switch to the Orange Uro-Cell pad and your favorite polish.

• Orange Uro-Cell Pads--for light paint correction and polishing.  These pads are excellent for removal of minor paint defects like wash scratches, cob-webs, and light swirls.  Or use with your favorite polish or swirl remover for standard polishing to bring out the shine of the paint after heavier compounding.  The pad has excellent shape-retention during polishing, which helps to yield exceptionally consistent results across the polishing session.

• Red Uro-Cell Pads--for final finishing and wax/sealant application.  These pads are made of dense finishing Euro foam that yields great chemical dispersion for even results.  The pads have low "mechanical" ability, meaning they produce minimal action on the paint.  Thus they are excellent for final finishing using finishing or swirl-removing polish, without the worry of adding any swirls or orbital haze.  They are also excellent for applying protective products like wax or sealant to the paint surface once the buffing and polishing steps are done. 

By nature of their manufacture, all Uro-Cell foam pads have high tensile strength, which means they are highly resistant to tears and break-down.  You will find that these pads last longer than other pads you might have used.  And, of course, because Buff and Shine's uses only high-performance adhesives, separation of the foam from the backing material is not likely, even with extended use and multiple washings.

One note of caution:  with rotary (high-speed) polishers, you might notice a bit more sling than you are used to with other pads.  Again, this is because the pads are not absorbing product.  The simple solution for this is to start with far less chemical than you normally do.  You will notice that the product-pad combination still gives you increased performance, even though you are using less chemical.  Thus, you are saving money in chemical costs!  It will just take a small adjustment time for you to figure out the proper amount of chemical to use with these pads in order to reduce or eliminate sling.