Chris that looks great on the tires. Not overly glossy but glossy enough. For those that don't like to spray onto the tire, spray it onto the applicator and apply it that way.
I look forward to trying it out as soon as it arrives.
Looks good. I know how you feel as I also own a white car. When I have the car in the garage under the lights I have to use all sorts of crazy angles while I'm applying and removing. I would recommend you add polish to your regiment next time to enhance the gloss even more.
I don't have the Adam's backing plate but the lake country backing plate I use with 4" pads is 3.5". I would figure it's about the same siz as the Adam's backing plate. The pads fit on it just fine. The backing plate you have is ideal for 3" pads.
If you don't happen to have any of the Adam's applicators at the minimum you can stop by your local auto parts store and see if they carry the yellow foam applicators. I know for sure that pep boys has some Peak foam applicators for like $3.
If the paint is in good condition with light to moderate defects then I would use foam pads. If you have heavy defects then I would go microfiber. I would recommend a test spot with a white pad and finishing polish. If you need more correction try out the orange pad with correcting polish. If the clear is hard and you need more correction then I would go to MF pads.