Until I get really smart and buy a spinner, I do some adjustments by hand using scotch brite pads. I usually move the pad across the track area. Any other suggestions for hand applications?

Hopefully you aren't using these balls in sanctioned leagues.  Ball surface prep should be uniform over the whole ball.  Making the track area different from the rest of the ball is illegal in sanctioned events.

You can do most sanding by hand, using sandpaper, SB, Siaair, Abralon, Mirlon, or NEAT pads. The rougher sanding is harder, due to the nature of the roughness.

Use of a CAB or other device to insure the evenness of the sanding can be very helpful. Light, even pressure is best; it helps to insure the actual grit level of the pad is applied and reduces the amount of stock removed.

Use of water will help cut down on the toxic resin dust put into the air and which you will wind up breathing.

Compounds and polishes are much harder to apply effectively. A spinner is almost a necessity, with a a few exceptions , like rough compounds (Step 2, Crown Compound, Gel Scuff, as examples). You won't be able to get them to smooth the ball, but they can apply a rough version of what they usually do.

I have experimented with scotchbrite pads in the past and they seem to be alot more effective while using with water (talking on a spinner)
I dont know what color pad you are talking about, but i was trying the white one which I think was approx 2000 sia pad equivalent

abralon and sia pads are fairly inexpensive
I get mine from here
http://abralonpads.com/Default.aspx

Dave,

Technically, 3M told me the white pad is roughly 1200 grit CAMI or 2400/2500 grit FEPA. However, the abrasive used is talc, or talcum powder, which is very soft. It hardly has an effect on the very hard coverstock material, resin. I have found you need intense pressure on the white pad to have any effect whatsoever. As a result, I have stopped using it.

Thanks Charlest, I didn't care for them either
Do you have experience or opinion on the new JOST pads?
they less expensive, wondering about performance and longevity

There are "new" Jost pads??
I tried the old ones about 4 or 5 years ago and wasn't impressed.  (It's been so long, I've all but forgotten them.)
Where did you get yours or where did you see these?

http://abralonpads.com/Category/16-6-inch-jost-sg3-superpads.aspx

Haven't tried them yet.
Lots of grits to chose from now

These are not the Jost I remember; they are, like they say, more like Abralon and Siaair. They claim to be the basis for the other two. So, how bad could they be??

Since I'm very low on 2000 grit, I just ordered a box of 20 of 2000 grit from a place called ProSource on Ebay  for $42 shipped. That's very close to the price on AbralonPads.com ($40).

I bought the full range of Jost super pads from abralonpads.com several months ago.
 
They are similar to Siaair/Abralon as the website says. But I felt there was a noticeable difference in Jost pad life. I usually use Siaair, and I get about 35% additional life over Jost. Yea, Jost are cheaper to buy up front, but probably not cheaper when you consider product longevity.
 
The other thing that annoys me is that the ink on the backing completely dissolves when rinsing the pad in water. I have to mark the grit# ahead of time on the back with my Sharpie to preserve the number. Not a big deal, but still annoying.
 
I've gone back to using Siaair exclusively. Still, it was a useful experiment.

I guess now we know how" bad" they can be. Thanks, "Steven".
I wonder what the abrasive is; I didn't see anything on the few web sites that sold them. I'll dig deeper tomorrow sometime.

I only use the grey and the burgundy pads.