So, I've recently gotten my full run of greaseless compounds in (Formax, from Caswell Plating) and I'm having some trouble applying it since there aren't any full-out instructions anywhere that I could find...

After some experimentation and questions (Thanks, Dylan!) here's what I ended with: Rake the buffers thoroughly, then trim them with scissors so it's all still fluffy, but all a uniform circle, then load the compound slowly (My buffer is 1800 rpm with a 1/4 HP motor, so It doesn't really have the juice to do the on/off thing... But I found a method that gets a fairly even distribution for me*)

Here's my problem: No matter how many times I reapply the compound or what different techniques I try, even though the cover is uniform in height, it is not EVEN... I don't have pictures just yet, so I'm going to explain this as best I can: The entire outside of the wheel is covered, and it is, for the most part, very flush, however it is cracked into separate "plates" of compound... Like a piece of clay left out in the sun, if that helps...

My question is; is that okay? I seem to recall some resource saying that you most likely won't get full, even coverage on the first load, and that use and reloads will smooth the whole thing down into one flat "single surface" wheel... Is that right?

Basically, Do I need to get the whole thing to be one surface, or should I just go with it if there's no protrusions/obstacles, and let time sort it out?

(*The method I use to apply the compound is to hold it just barely touching the wheel so that the heat/friction starts to melt the compound, but there's no real pressure... Then, once it starts to melt, jam the compound against it and bog the wheel down like there's no tomorrow... Sounds very amateurish, but I found the recommendation for this on the Caswell forum, and it actually worked a lot better than anything else I had tried)

Any advice and suggestions welcome... Thanks for the time, guys!

Cheers,
Jeremy