Menzerna 300 Super Heavy Cut Compound Tested And Reviewed
For some paint correction jobs, medium cut polishes just won’t cut it. Trying to remove deep scratches, especially with a dual action polisher can be extremely time-consuming. For scenarios where aggressive cutting is required, the most aggressive polish in the range, Menzerna Super Heavy Cut 300 (SHCC300), is a great option to turn to.
300 is part of the Premium product range from Menzerna. This range also includes Menzerna 400, with both of these polishes intending to complete two steps in one.
Menzerna 300 is defined as having a cut rating of 10/10, and a gloss rating of 6/10. It is not suitable as a one-step polish, but it is possible to skip the medium cutting step and go straight to a refinement stage. The heavy abrasives make this polish suitable for removing sanding marks from paint down to 1500 grit, or 1200 with a lambswool pad.
Menzerna 300 Super Heavy Cut contains no silicones or fillers and is safe for use in body shops.
Prepmycar Rating: 6.9 / 10
Menzerna Super Heavy Cut 300
- 6 Ease of Use
- 9.5 Cut
- 3.5 Gloss
- 8.5 Value for Money
- 7 Residue Control
- 7.8/10 OVERALL TEST SCORE
Pros
Cons
Menzerna 300: Application and Usage
For testing, I have used a Vertool Forced Drive machine polisher. This machine bridges the gap between a rotary and a dual action, so bear in mind if using a standard dual action polisher, results may not be achieved as quickly.
Before polishing it is very important to ensure the surface is clean and ready for polishing. This will require washing, decontamination using tar and fallout remover and if necessary, a clay bar decontamination.
I first spread out a small amount of polish onto the heavy cut foam pad. Priming the pad in this way will help to reduce hazing marks that can frequently occur when using heavy cut compounds.
Applying 5 or 6 dots the size of a 5p piece is a generous amount of polish, and less could be used. I find that this extra bit of polish gives me a longer working time on a roughly 40 cm x 40 cm section.
Start the machine on a low-speed setting to spread around the working area before increasing the speed of the machine. Menzerna recommends applying light pressure for the initial passes and then increasing the speed of the machine and applying no pressure for a final pass.
Finish Achieved
After a final high-speed low-pressure pass, I wiped the polish residue away and sprayed panel wipe onto the surface to inspect the results.
The section I was working on had been wet sanded with 2000 grit beforehand. Upon inspection, the Super Heavy Cut compound had made light work of the sanding marks, which was to be expected. The surface was now free of sanding marks, but the clarity was not perfect, which again was to be expected. There was visible hazing left on the surface which would easily be removed later from additional polishing steps.
How is This Polish Best Used?
This polish is great for when no other compound will get the job done. It should not be the first option in paint correction. Car paint is only so thick, once it is burned though it can only be fixed by repainting the surface, which is never a cheap undertaking.
This is only a polish I would feel confident using if I knew I was working with extremely hard paint and if I had a paint depth gauge to at least give me a rough idea of how much clear coat is left on the paint. I would not even consider using this on softer paints, as are found on many Japanese cars.
Residue
There was no notable dusting that I had to deal with when using this polish. The liquid diminished as it was worked, and the residue afterwards was quick and easy to remove.
If the surface is particularly dry or oxidised, a spritz of water can help reduce excess dusting.
What Needs to Follow This Polish?
As mentioned, Menzeran 300 Super Heavy Cut does not have enough refinement to be used as a stand-alone product. After using this polish, I would recommend jumping to a finishing polish with a soft foam pad.
The Menzerna range includes three polishes to choose from, 3000, 3500 and 3800. I would recommend 3500, as it will be able to flatten out any high spots left after the heavy compound, while still being able to leave a mirror-like finish.
Value for Money
This product is generally available in two sizes, 250ml and 1000ml, which can be purchased for around £15 and £30 respectively. The advantage of buying a larger bottle can immediately be seen, as it contains four times as much polish for only twice the price.
I weighed out roughly how much polish I used for a single section 40cm x 40cm roughly. This was about 6g. If there are roughly 25 sections of roughly this size on a medium car, then 150g of polish would be needed. Menzerna state that this polish has a density of 1.3kg/l. 150g would therefore equate to 115ml of polish.
Based on the cost to buy a 250 ml bottle, the cost to polish a medium car once with this polish would be roughly, and it is only a rough estimate, £6.90. Based on a 1L bottle, the cost per car would drop to £3.45, again, this is only a rough estimate. The cost of pads, machines and finishing polishes all need to be factored in, but in terms of cost-per-use, this is great value for money.
Level of Cut
This is Menzerna’s most aggressive polish, and the testing confirmed this. I took average depth measurements before and after polishing and found that the average depth of the paint had reduced by 7 μm (1 μm = 1/1000th of a millimetre).
When I tested Menzerna 400 as a comparison, I found it had removed 4 μm from the same bonnet, so it can be seen that Menzerna 300 does have considerably more cutting power than even the next closest product.
Results
Menzerna 300 Super Heavy Cut easily removed the sanding marks left by 2000 grit sandpaper. The finish left was not anything unexpected, with light hazing here and there and a general lack of ‘brilliance’. The below photo shows the finish before and after using 300.
FAQ
Will Menzerna 300 remove sanding marks?
Yes, Menzerna 300 Super Heavy Cut will remove sanding marks down to 1200 with a wool pad, or 1500 with a foam pad.
Can Menzerna 300 be used in a paint shop?
Yes, Menzerna 300 contains no silicon fillers which can be damaging to a paint shop, so it is safe to use in this context.
Do I need Menzerna 300 and 400?
No, not necessarily, 300 cuts very aggressively which is not needed in most situations. If I had to choose one, I would choose Menzerna 400 as it still cuts well, but is less aggressive, meaning less chance of any disasters.
What needs to follow Menzerna 300?
Menzerna 300 can be followed up by using a finishing polish, such as Menzerna 3500. Menzerna 300 will remove the majority of defects, which 3500 will refine the paint to a high gloss.
Menzerna 300 – Final Thoughts
Menzerna 300 Super Heavy Cut is without a doubt a specialist product that can speed up cutting stages that might otherwise take twice as long. Due to the high level of cut, it deserves to be treated with caution. Knowledge of the paint being polished and depth readings are essential pieces of information to have before using this polish.
I do not think it is needed by every enthusiast detailer, who may instead be better choosing Menzerna 400, which will not cut quite as aggressively. For the professional, however, this is a useful product to have in the toolkit, even if it is not used regularly.
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