How to correctly detail your auto - Page 3

MOREPOWER · #31 (**permalink**) 11-19-2006, 09:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brandon1

No problem. How did the #7 work with the rotary? I have always had trouble with #7. I have found #80 to work much better, but it dosent have as good of a look as #7.

It leaves a mirror look on the paint, I was expecting more cut from it it did little for the webbing and minor scratches, I should have used the "3m perfect it glaze dark" instead it says it takes out scratches and swirl marks, with my polisher grinder the #7 quickly pasted up, it said it wont leave any powdery residue but it will gum up leaving hard to remove blotches on the paint if it gets too dry, I wont use it again on a machine, maybe on a porter cable unit it would be better, i guess it will go to my collection of obsolete polishes, now that I have the Duragloss #105 and aqua wax all my other stuff is useless.

RaceCarInTow · #32 (**permalink**) 11-28-2006, 01:06 AM

Great post! How about the windshield?

Have you ever used Rain-X? It clears a windshield in a thunderstorm or splash by a semi in less than a second.

If you have ever owned a British car with Lucas electrics, or raced a car in the rain that had the winshield wipers and wiper motor removed to save weight, it saves your butt.

It is so much easier to remove the dead bugs from the windshield with Rain-X freshly applied too.

The usual disclaimers apply.

Brandon1 · #33 (**permalink**) 11-28-2006, 07:26 AM

Yeah, in the article I talked about how to polish and seal the windshield the same way as the paint. Rain-X, IMO, does not do worth a flip. Beads good for a while, but protection from water spotting isnt there. Sealing your glass with sealant is much more effective.

DevinSixtySeven · #34 (**permalink**) 12-04-2006, 08:15 PM

if it's sealed up, will it bead off the same? spotting is a problem around here when things start to melt.

MOREPOWER · #35 (**permalink**) 12-04-2006, 08:44 PM

I just seald my wind shield yesterday with Duraglass #105, any idea if it will last as long as the stuff on the paint.

Brandon1 · #36 (**permalink**) 12-04-2006, 08:55 PM

It will last just as long as on the paint on the side windows. On the front windshield, probably about 1/2 as long. I just use #951 on my glass after each wash.

DevinSixtySeven · #37 (**permalink**) 12-06-2006, 04:46 PM

ok brandon, i'm gonna give this a shot...starting with a filthy truck and a diy carwash at the spray station, tho. i guess my results may vary, but it's pretty clean. will the "wax" stuff in the spray-on make a difference...should i just mitt it with simple green and duragloss #901 cwc and then continue, or can i start as-is?

here's my shopping list...

simple green (got plenty)
clay magic
mequiar's water magnet
optimum compound+p/c 7424+pad kit+backing plate (can these be purchased otc or must they be ordered? i'm bored today...home sick and whatnot)...not going by hand, lets just say i have a lot of "defects"

in the paint...
vroom microfiber for excess compound removal
mezerna final polish II or duragloss #652
clearkote red moose glaze
duragloss #105 total performance polish (sealant for paint & windows)

sooooooo...can i get all this stuff otc at advance or pepboys or lowes (with the exception of the moose and pad/backing parts)...and the pads, can i substitute stuff from lowes or wherever rather than the ones from autogeek...i'm definately in to instant gratification

, tho i'll definately get this stuff from the geek rather than lowes since lowes seems to be going a bit downhill these days

.

and...can i do this process over a couple days...i think the claying part is gonna take forever

. my truck is FILTHY. but im also not going wheeling for a few months and snowboard season is like "bring on the road grime", so clean and gunk-repellent would be great.

thanks brandon

-sean

Brandon1 · #38 (**permalink**) 12-06-2006, 05:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DevinSixtySeven

ok brandon, i'm gonna give this a shot...starting with a filthy truck and a diy carwash at the spray station, tho. i guess my results may vary, but it's pretty clean. will the "wax" stuff in the spray-on make a difference...should i just mitt it with simple green and duragloss #901 cwc and then continue, or can i start as-is?

here's my shopping list...

simple green (got plenty)
clay magic
mequiar's water magnet
optimum compound+p/c 7424+pad kit+backing plate (can these be purchased otc or must they be ordered? i'm bored today...home sick and whatnot)...not going by hand, lets just say i have a lot of "defects"

in the paint...
vroom microfiber for excess compound removal
mezerna final polish II or duragloss #652
clearkote red moose glaze
duragloss #105 total performance polish (sealant for paint & windows)

sooooooo...can i get all this stuff otc at advance or pepboys or lowes (with the exception of the moose and pad/backing parts)...and the pads, can i substitute stuff from lowes or wherever rather than the ones from autogeek...i'm definately in to instant gratification

, tho i'll definately get this stuff from the geek rather than lowes since lowes seems to be going a bit downhill these days

.

and...can i do this process over a couple days...i think the claying part is gonna take forever

. my truck is FILTHY. but im also not going wheeling for a few months and snowboard season is like "bring on the road grime", so clean and gunk-repellent would be great.

thanks brandon

-sean

If you want, you can start at the diy carwash, but use your own stuff. Also, do the final rinse with the spot-free. After you do your "big" detail at the diy carwash, I would reccomend not going there and getting someting like Optimum No-Rinse wash (waterless wash you can do in your driveway in about 15min). Oh, dont use the wax at the carwash, it's actually a watered down spray wax, and IMO is crap.

All of your stuff looks good, I would add a nice washmitt and some good tireshine.

All of the duragloss stuff can be found at Napa or Carquest(go on their website to find a dealer near you) the PC 7336sp can be found usually at lowes, but the backing plate, optimum, mezerna, and clearcoat is only found online. We Are Car Care ! Car Wax - Car Polish - Auto Detailing Supplies & Car Accessories has the best prices. They also have several Porter cable "kits" that come with the PC, backing plate, and a couple pads for cheap.

You can do some stuff over a day or so, but if you drive the truck anywhere, you have to wash again before you start polishing/claying/etc. Even if the truck sits overnight outside, wash before you start again. It's to big a risk to be buffin dirt into your paint.

I usually leave mine in the garage and work on it when it's raining outside, and then I drive one of our other cars to work/school.

Hope this helps. If you know anyone that could benifit from this article, send them the link. I am doing my part to make the world a better place, one car at a time.

DevinSixtySeven · #39 (**permalink**) 12-07-2006, 12:59 AM

oh man...got a clay bar, started messing around with it...ive never seen spots that clean on the truck before, and was surprised at some of the stuff that came off. it also quickly became obvious that i need to clean the *inside* of the windows, and i'm even happier that the trd decals are under the clearcoat. the clay really did a number on the headlights, too.

also pretty sure my hands are gonna fall off.

what do you use to get swirl-free shine on chrome? the arb has a big fat chrome hoop.

THANKS

...i'll have to do this all a little at a time at first, but the truck has never been this clean before.

what pads do i use on the p/c for the different steps--the compound, glaze, sealer, etc.? i'm looking over the p/c+pads deals on autogeek right now.

-sean

*edit* am looking at this package

how about a glaze for silver paint?

Brandon1 · #40 (**permalink**) 12-07-2006, 09:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DevinSixtySeven

oh man...got a clay bar, started messing around with it...ive never seen spots that clean on the truck before, and was surprised at some of the stuff that came off. it also quickly became obvious that i need to clean the *inside* of the windows, and i'm even happier that the trd decals are under the clearcoat. the clay really did a number on the headlights, too.

also pretty sure my hands are gonna fall off.

what do you use to get swirl-free shine on chrome? the arb has a big fat chrome hoop.

THANKS

...i'll have to do this all a little at a time at first, but the truck has never been this clean before.

what pads do i use on the p/c for the different steps--the compound, glaze, sealer, etc.? i'm looking over the p/c+pads deals on autogeek right now.

-sean

*edit* am looking at this package

how about a glaze for silver paint?

Swirls on chrome, impossible to remove. I have tried about 30 different products on my runningboards to no avail.

The orange pad=compound, polishpad=polish/glaze, finishpad=sealant.

The kit you are looking at is a fantastic kit. I would def. recomend that.

As far as glaze for silver, it's a waste, IMO. Glaze will mute the mettalic and it's really designed for darker paints. All paints can benifit from a glaze, but some to a lesser degree than others. I would definatly go with the Mezerna FPII on silver. This polish really allows the paint to come out.

Brandon

Brandon1 · #41 (**permalink**) 12-07-2006, 09:15 AM

Optimum Porter Cable 7424 Kit Remove swirl marks and paint flaws

I would also recomend this kit. I did not know they had this. It comes with optimum compound, optimum polish (another really good polish, IMO), and optimum car wax. The spray car wax is ok, but the Duragloss will be better. Also comes with towels and pads.

If you are looking to get all from one store, then go with this kit. If not, then you would be better off getting things from different stores. You get more pads with the PC kit you linked.