ZviZZer Thermo Allrounder Pad "Soft" Thermo Foam Pad (Yellow) 10 pieces

A soft pad for hologram-free high gloss in the finish

What is the ZviZZer Thermo Allrounder Pad Soft? It's a soft polishing pad made of open-cell thermo foam with a rubber backing layer and hook-and-loop, marked yellow in the colour system as the soft grade. It's built for finish polishing, cuts very little and builds gloss. Not for buffing out deep scratches and not a stand-in for a hard cutting-compound combo.

ZviZZer Allrounder Pad Soft is a soft polishing pad from ZviZZer made of open-cell thermo foam, marked yellow in the five-step colour system and therefore the soft grade. Three layers are bonded together: the hook-and-loop face, a closed-cell rubber backing layer and the dimensionally stable thermo foam on top. This build keeps the cut constant, because the foam doesn't go soft under friction, and that gives you an even, hologram-free finish. It runs on both dual-action and rotary.

• Constant cut thanks to thermo foam. The open-cell thermo foam stays dimensionally stable and doesn't soften under heat, unlike a standard foam pad. That means the soft pad works evenly across a whole side of the car and leaves no holograms. According to ZviZZer, the tear-resistant foam lasts up to 6 times longer than a conventional pad.
• Rubber backing layer for a smooth run. Between the hook-and-loop and the foam sits a 20 mm layer of closed-cell foam and rubber. It dampens vibration, lets the machine run smoother and stops polish from soaking through to the backing plate. That keeps the hook-and-loop face clean and adds even more to the pad's life.
• Five sizes from Ø 50 to 165 mm. The pad comes in five diameters for every backing plate and every spot. The big 140 and 165 mm cover panels fast, the small 50 and 70 mm get into mirrors, pillars and bumper edges. So you polish a whole car with one type of pad in one hardness.

Detailing1's tip from the shop: The most common mistake with a soft finishing pad is the wrong polish to go with it. Pair a coarse cutting compound with the soft pad and you'll wonder why there's no correction and why the paint just smears. Pad hardness and polish grit have to match, and the yellow soft pad belongs with a fine finishing polish. Here in Nordhorn, on a soft Japanese clear coat, 3 pea-sized drops of FC 2000 on the soft pad got us a clean mirror where a harder pad still pulled holograms.

Pad hardness and polish have to match each other

The soft pad only gives up its cut with the right polish: soft pad plus a fine finishing polish gives you gloss, soft pad plus a coarse polish just gives you smear.

Day-to-day, the yellow ZviZZer Allrounder Pad Soft is the partner to the FC 2000 finishing polish in the same yellow grade. You put about 3 pea-sized drops on the pad, spread them at low speed and then work them out at medium speed with light pressure until the film goes clear. Work in sections of about 40 by 40 centimetres.

Keep the pad clean: after two or three sections, knock out the polishing dust and swap the pad if you need to. A clogged pad smears and stops building gloss. Pick the right diameter to suit your backing plate and the spot — a second polishing pad in a small size is well worth it for tight edges.

Finish and gloss yes, heavy correction no

The soft pad is the soft grade for finishing and building gloss: it cuts very little and refines the surface rather than removing material.

Its home turf is the last step: pulling holograms and fine halos after a correction, working out depth and a mirror, smoothing a base for wax or coating. On soft paints like Japanese clear coats, which marr quickly under harder pads, it plays to its strength because it stays gentle and still builds gloss.

The limits are clear: when deep scratches or heavy swirls need to go, the soft pad is too soft — that's when a harder orange or red pad with a cutting compound belongs on the machine. If you want to finish down a touch finer, say on very dark soft paint, you reach for the even softer Ultra-Soft pad in green. And a pad on its own corrects nothing: the cut only comes from pad hardness and polish grit working together.

For the finishing step, not the first cut

The ZviZZer Allrounder Pad Soft is the right call when you want to grab that last percent of gloss and depth after correction, without risking fresh marring.

It's less suited to the first heavy pass on neglected paint, where you need to cut. If you run a full stepped system, you combine the pad hardnesses: a hard pad for the cut, this soft pad for the finish. Pick the sizes to suit the car and the spot, from the 165 mm for doors and bonnets down to the 50 mm for mirrors and swage lines.

One detail that decides the pad's life and that hardly anyone bothers with: wash the pad out after polishing, before the polish cures inside it. Cured polish residue gums up the open foam, and then it loses both grip and gloss. Let it air-dry, not in the sun. That way the tear-resistant thermo foam stays dimensionally stable for a long time and you really do get the six-fold lifespan out of it, instead of binning the pad after a few cars.

Using the ZviZZer Thermo Allrounder Pad Soft

From the correction step to a hologram-free mirror finish

The soft pad is used in the finishing step after the actual correction has been completed. First, choose a diameter that matches the backing plate: The pad must not extend beyond the plate, otherwise the edge will overheat and tear over time.

Apply about three pea-sized dabs of a fine finishing polish to the yellow pad, dab it onto the surface, and spread it at a low speed. Then, work it in at a medium speed with light pressure until the polish film becomes clear and a high gloss is achieved.

Work in sections of about 40 by 40 centimeters and brush off the pad after every two to three sections. For tight spots like mirrors and body lines, switch to a smaller polishing pad of the same hardness.

Wash the pad immediately after polishing before the polish hardens in the open-cell foam, and let it air dry lying flat, not in the sun. This keeps the thermo-foam dimensionally stable and retains its absorbency.

Notes: The yellow soft pad is the soft finishing level and has low cutting power. It is too soft for deep scratches and heavy swirls; in those cases, a harder orange or red pad with a cutting polish should be used on the machine. A pad alone does not correct anything; the abrasive effect is only created in combination with the polish grit. On very soft dark paint, you can finish one level finer using the green Ultra-Soft pad. Store in a dry and clean place; protect the foam from solvents and harsh cleaners.