One Step - Single-Stage Car Polish

One Step All-in-One Compound has been specifically developed for use with a dual action polisher - such as our MPX and DPX machines – because it’s a compound that has to be fully worked through, breaking down the abrasives all the way from coarse particles (for heavy cutting) to fine particles (to refine down to a near-flawless finish. Like all machine polishing compounds and car polishes it is technically possible to do this by hand, but it will take significantly longer, and it’s more difficult to get the most consistent results. Machine polishers don’t get tired, and aren’t tempted to cut corners, they also apply the same mechanical action on each panel for the best constancy, which is particularly important on large flat panels. For the best results the compound relies on the heat and pressure from the polisher to break down effectively. In some cases, if you’re finding that the One Step residue is a little difficult to buff away, it’s likely that the product hasn’t been worked through all the way. All this said, for intricate areas where your machine polisher may be a little too big to reach, wing mirrors, doorshuts and other awkward parts of the vehicle, One Step can be used to hand polish with a Handi Puck and a suitable Revitalise Spot Pad. For more on how to use One Step effectively, see out article – Slaying Swirls For The Summer Season.

No. One Step has been developed to leave the true finish and doesn’t contain any glazes or waxes. Like any ‘all-in-one’ product, it’s denoted as such because it has characteristics that take it far beyond what you’d expect from a traditional product. In this case the increased range of cut over a more typical paint correction compound – One Step’s ability to transform itself from a course cutting compound to a fine refining polish as it’s worked through. Unlike Tripple All-in-One Polish, which has been specifically developed with fine cut abrasives but also uses deep cleansing agents, glazes and an infusion of carnauba wax to clean polish and protect in a single application, One Step is able to cut away heavier swirling and leaves only the bare refined surface. In this way it creates the perfect top layer for the application of protection, including silica-based (SiO2) ceramic coatings – like the coating in our Caramics Paintwork Protection Kit, which must be allowed to chemically bond and shouldn’t be blocked by a wax layer – along with more traditional sealants and hard waxes. So, while both products are called all-in-ones, it’s for very different reasons. For more on these car polishing products, you can check out our article – Everything You Need To Know About Tripple and One Step.

This will always depend on the aggressiveness of the ‘combo’ - the combination of pad and compound/polish – you use with your DPX or MPX machine. This is because a combo with more cut will take away more of the top layer to level it down to the bottom of the deepest defect, essentially making the defect disappear. As a general rule of thumb though, a heavy cutting combo will take away approximately 5-6 microns and a fine refining polish around 1-2 microns of the top layer of paint or lacquer. To put this into context a human hair is around 70 microns thick, and average two stage OEM paintwork around 100-140 microns thick, including a clearcoat layer (the bit you’re polishing away) of around 45-70 microns. Single stage paintwork (topcoat without lacquer) is a little thinner and often softer, but again you’re only taking away a tiny amount when polishing a panel. On the vast majority of cars there will be plenty of clearcoat to polish, strike through - or burning through the top layer - only really happens due to poor techniques, or on older vehicles which have been repeatedly machine polished over the course of decades. Although the key is only to polish when your vehicle really needs it for enhancement or defect removal, it’s highly unlikely that you’ll be polishing through your paintwork. As for what combo to use for different types of defects including the dreaded swirl marks? Well, we’ve made that straightforward by developing our range of colour-coded compounds and pads specifically for use with our dual action polishers. These include our Revitalise System V2, (with all machine polishing compounds and pads available separately), and One Step All-in-One Compound. For more on those, and all the essential information about how polishes and compounds work, see our guide – All Car Polishes Explained.  

All silica or quartz-based ceramic coatings (such as those found in our products Ceramic Spray Wax, Aqua Coat Hydrophobic Rinse Aid, Lavish Ceramic Foam, Caramics Gloss Enhancer, Caramics Enhancing Shampoo, Wash 'n' Gloss, and our flagship Caramics Protection Kits), use a layer of chemically bonded silicon dioxide (SiO2) to create a barrier between the surface and the elements that’s impermeable to water and only possible to remove by abrasion. In all their forms, and regardless of their durability, ceramic coatings are intended to add the hardiest protection to surfaces and, although they’re also designed to level the optical finish of paintwork and vinyl (including paint and powdercoat on wheels) - allowing light to bounce back to the eye more uniformly to make the finish appear deeper and glossier - the glass-like layer they install is not intended to hide underlying paint defects. So, when it comes to full paint decontamination and paint correction, the application of coating will still be effective with regards to physical protection, gloss and water beading without carrying out these processes, but you will not correct or obscure any defects already in the paintwork. This is why we always recommend carrying out any swirl mark or other defect removal, along with surface cleansing, prior to application of any protection layer (ceramic, wax or sealant) if you’re not completely happy with the condition of your paintwork. Especially when using a product intended for the most extreme durability such as our Caramics Paintwork Protection Kit, which installs a coating that lasts for up to a year. For maintenance washes, where SiO2 products are used to top up previously applied ceramic protection, we would assume that any paint correction necessary would have been carried out before the initial application of the coating. For preparing the surface for your coating, it's essential to use a product that doesn't contain waxes or fillers that will block the adhesion of the coating, such as our Revitalise System V2 Compounds and One Step All-in-One Compound. For the full rundown on the science of ceramic coatings and how they work see our article – What Difference Does A Ceramic Coating Actually Make.

Aside from making sure surfaces are clean and free of contaminants, this always depends on the circumstances. Are you topping up wax protection from a previous full detail or adding wax protection for the first time? This is important because, first and foremost, polishing will remove any protection layer – the reason why we don’t use abrasives during routine maintenance, and only polish paintwork when it’s absolutely necessary. In this case of maintenance, we’d assume that any paint correction needed had been carried out before adding the first round of wax protection. When it comes to adding wax protection for the first time, we’d always recommend getting surfaces to the best possible level of refinement first. Although it’s wholly possible to apply a wax to car with swirly paint, and it will still bond, protect from grime and offer extreme water behaviour and beading, what it won’t do is hide any major defects, so essentially, you’ll be locking these in. Pure waxes are non-abrasives, so they’re not designed to correct or obscure defects in the surface underneath, they are purely for protection and to add extra gloss. So, for the best results, we’d always recommend correcting or enhancing any paintwork you’re not completely happy with the condition of, and fully preparing the surface, before applying any protection layer. The advantage with waxes over ceramic coating in this instance though, is that you don’t have to consider the chemical bonded needed for an SiO2 coating to adhere, so you can utilise any of our correction products and cleansers depending on the finish you require regardless of if they already contain waxes and paint glazes. This includes our Revitalise V2 System Compounds, One Step All-in-One Compound, Tripple All-in-One Polish and Rejuvenate Paintwork Cleanser. For more information, and some top tips on preparing your vehicle for a hard wax, see our full guide - Getting The Most From A Hard Wax. 

While both Rejuvenate Paintwork Cleanser and One Step All-in-One Compound are polishing compounds that use advanced diminishing abrasives to correct and prepare surfaces prior to application protection, perhaps the most important way they differ is their ‘range of cut’, or their ability to remove various levels of defect. One Step has been developed to start off as a coarse cutting compound for heavy defect and swirl mark removal, finishing down to a near flawless finish as the abrasives are broken down using a machine polisher. It contains no waxes or glazes, so can be used prior to adding any protection layer - in other words it will not block the chemical bonding needed for ceramic coatings to adhere, and also accepts physical bonding from waxes. Rejuvenate uses fine abrasives and deep-cleaning solvents that are capable of refining surfaces to correct light swirling and remove oxidation. These abrasives have been designed to be easy to break down, making Rejuvenate ideal for hand polishing, along with light refinement with a machine polisher. Rejuvenate is classed as a cleaner polish, but contains glazing agents to obscure defects and promote a concours finish, so it's suited to surface preparation before application of a hard wax - more specifically, we initially developed this product to make the most of the characteristics of our Signature Hard Waxes. Whereas One Step is an advanced all-in-one compound designed to cycle through all the correction stages (coarse cutting, polishing and refining), giving a true finish without the need for multiple (and progressively finer) compounds and machine polishing pads.  

Both Tripple and One Step are denoted as all-in-one products – because their characteristics and uses go far beyond that of traditional products – but it’s for two very different reasons. Tripple is a 3-in-1 product made up of a blend of fine diminishing abrasives, deep cleaning solvents, paint glazing agents and carnauba wax. One Step is a polishing product that’s able to break down all the way from a coarse cutting compound, to a fine refining compound as it’s worked through. In practice this means that Tripple can clean away oxidation and lightly refine paintwork, removing light swirling by hand or with a machine polisher, leaving behind paint glazes to reduce the appearance of other swirling and a layer of wax to add even more gloss and protect the surface. One Step however has been developed specifically for use with a machine polisher, but is able to remove heaver swirl marks and other paint defects to leave behind nothing but a true finish. Because it contains no waxes or fillers, this also makes One Step suitable for paint correction before the application of a ceramic coating as well as waxes and sealants. For more on these amazing all-in-ones, see our full guide – Everything you need to know about Tripple and One Step.