It seems the process of either polishing or coating (waxing) is confused here.

Polishing is where you actually sand few microns of your gelcoat/paint off by applying abrasive liquid with rotating pad. What kind of tool, pad or abrasive to use depends your paint and it's condition. Ask 10 detailers and you get 10 different answers.

Coating is applying protective chemical, usually wax, to polished surface. It's meant to protect it, not polish it. Never seen any detailer apply coating with power tools.

Some waxes have abrasive component, so you end up trying to polish a bit in a process of waxing. These are your most common waxes sold everywhere. They do pretty bad job in coating and polishing.

Clay is for removing contaminants that are stuck in the paint. I cannot imagine road dirt contaminating glider so bad to use it.

Important thing is to know if you want to polish or wax your glider and get proper tools for that. Wax is something you want to be always present on the paint surface. Polishing is not required every time you wax the glider.