Detailing Equipment

[jae_k]

Found a few minor scratches on my car while washing it today and looking to take it to the dealership to get it touched up. Washing my car today made me realize how much i lost focus in keeping it look brand spanking new so I decided to get a polisher so i can take care of my car more often and not worry about swirls and small scratches. Now my question is, are there any polishers or tips and instructions on polishing your car and keeping it in good condition without spending loads of money by taking it to the dealership? When my car comes back from the dealership im going to make sure i take very good care of it. OR if anyone on this forum lives around Gaithersburg MD and does detailing on exteriors of cars for a reasonable price please let me know and i'll be at your shop right away with my car and as a fellow nicoclub member a little discount would be nice!!

[SVTCOBRA]

I've been very pleased with the Zaino line of products.I don't have time to detail my cars like I used to with 4 currently in the driveway. But, Zaino is quick and does a great job for a fast cleanup, or you can get as detailed as you like with it. Not sure if that makes any sense...

but, the polish goes on ez and comes off reall ez.Also, most of the folks I know that show their cars in competition use it. And, they may spend DAYS getting it ready for a show.

Oh, and as for using a mechanical polisher, I haven't..

[jae_k]

Never heard of Zaino but will definitely take some time and look into it, i just heard Meguiars had great products lined up too. Im guessing you know a little bit on how to detailing cars and what to use, for example what kind of polisher should i use that won't do any harm on the paint of my car, and did you use the polisher(the spinning machine polisher just incase you have no idea what im talking about)?

[WhiteyClay]

I like to use the guy that works in a carwash......

lol

[W661335PF]

It largely depends on what your looking for.... deep color or brilliance and long lasting waxes. The following sites may be extremely helpful and informative:

http://www.autogeekonline.net/http://ww ... co...w.asp

Personally, I prefer to use waxes that last >6 months (Collinate 845- Insulator wax, Nu Finish) as opposed to the Mothers, Meguires and Zaino waxes that give you that very deep beautiful look but don't last as long. If you live where salt is used in the winter, the Collinate is very helpful if you don't want to wax every other week or so. Hope this helps and good luck.

[smockers83]

If you are in the situation where salt is used during the winter, you could switch waxes during the seasons--high gloss during the spring/summer and right before it gets cold, put a coat or 2 of the highly durable wax for the winter.

I use the Mr. Clean Autodry to wash my car--amazing product, I recommend it to anyone and everyone--it really does work (I've used it for nearly 4 years now). As for wax, I use regular Turtle Wax carnauba paste wax as a base coat about twice a year and Meguire's NXT liquid wax on top of that about every 2-3 weeks. After awhile, you need to get some polish to get strip the wax off and start over.

Tips. Work in sections. I work my way around starting with the hood and go around starting with the passenger side fender. Once I finish the driver's side fender, I pull out the towels and start removing wax on the hood and go around again. When waxing, don't use a whole lot of pressure. When you take it off though, you can use some pressure to buff it out. With a polish you really don't want to use a lot of pressure, let the polish do the work for you.

[jae_k]

wow exactly the sort of answer I was looking for, sounds like you know what your doing. Does doing all this erase the circles that appear on the car? Also would you suggest the machine wax thing or just doing it by hand?

[smockers83]

If you're skilled enough, have steady enough hands, and have patience, by all means use a buffer as that will produce the best shine. I myself don't use one because I never have and I don't want to try it for the first time on the G, so until I find another car to do it on...

[goneracin]

Be careful with the buffing equipment. Smockers had a good idea of practicing on a car that doesn't matter. Years ago as a stupid teenager, I buffed the paint off of a wing on my neighbors car. I used too much pressure and burnt the paint right off! Cost me plenty to get it repainted. Buffers can save you lots of time, but it does take a little practice. If your into detailing, go for it. If it is more of a chore, have a professional do it.

Good info about the waxes. There is too many to choose from. Every time a find a product that is amazing, they seem to stop making it.

[jae_k]

that's what I was afraid of with the buffer. Hey smockers do you have any pics of your car?

[smockers83]

Of course I do. Is that even a question haha.

http://s188.photobucket.com/al...t=100

The G starts at the bottom of that page. Those pictures were taken with a so so camera, so some of them aren't too good.

[smockers83]

Here are some I think that really highlight a detailing job I did last summer (these are from the link above--you can find more there).

[abdoman]

I would not use a buffer unless you absolutely need it. It's too easy to damage the paint and it's very difficult to remove swirl marks. http://guidetodetailing.com/ar...Id=15

If you've never done it before, it's not the time to start on a new car (as mentioned above).

The best course of action is hire a professional, then not to get them. I use this guide:http://homepage.mac.com/vladim...g.pdf and it has worked very well. I don't wipe my car dry, I pat it dry using a microfiber towel.

[jae_k]

Wow, quite impressive!! Very spotless and gorgeously beautifully nicely done. Definitely going with your advice. Thanks bro

[smockers83]

No problem buddy. Thanks for the compliments. To make it even better, I just need some bigger wheels... All you really have to do is have patience and have attention to detail. The washing and waxing job takes me a complete evening, all by hand. Evening by the way is when I recommend you do this, or early in the morning. You want your car to be cool, don't do it in the afternoon, or else find some shade and let it cool off for awhile. If you decide to get the AutoDry car wash kit, I'll give you some pointers on that--there's a couple tricks to it that I use.

[jae_k]

I'm ready to hear those extra tips just bought the auto dry cleaner last night.

[ZeroDfx]

To remove the fine swirl marks you see you would be well served with Random Orbital Buffer from Porter Cable (either the PC 7424 or 7336) which can be had for about $100-125 at Lowe's or other establishments, including online. You cannot do any serious damage as an amateur and you will be pleasantly surprised to see the quantum leap in results you get from doing it by hand (unless you want to spend a LOT of time polishing the swirls by hand).

Then I'd suggest you get a separate polish to remove the swirl marks, and then a sealant or wax to finish it off and protect the paint. You can keep the swirls out by never taking the car to a car-wash or having anyone do it besides yourself. Then take care in your own washing technique and it will stay relatively smooth.

If I knew how to insert a photo I'd show you what my 2003 G35 looks like.

For more info than you could ever want, see http://autopia.org/forum/index.php?

Good luck, Nick

[jae_k]

I took a look through the forum that you sent me on detailing cars and it's a lot work and time im willing to put into my car but before i start reading up on other tips on taking care of your car i wanted to know what you thought (ZeroDfx) on smockers technique?

[ZeroDfx]

I can't comment on his technique as he didn't say all that much about it, but his results are clearly striking and look fantastic. So based on the results I'd have to say he is obviously doing something right. Perhaps he can elaborate on what he did; the sequence in which he did it; and the time it took with each step to achieve those results.

One clarification re the buffer issue:I think you would be safe and wouldn't hurt your paint as an amateur with a Random Orbital Buffer (ROB); but I would not even think about trying out a rotary buffer without learning how to use it properly on a junk car. From what I understand from reading the experts on Autopia.org, you can actually add swirl marks or burn through the paint if you don't know what you're doing with a rotary. Although I was somewhat nervous the first time I used the ROB, it quickly became apparent that I wasn't in danger of doing damage.

Nick

[jae_k]

Thanks for the advice zero, could you give me a link to the buffer your using so i can buy it and try it out? BTW smockers if you don't mind sending me specifics as specific as you can get to the process on what you do and exactly what you use i'd greatly appreciate it. Whenever you have the time or get the chance. much appreciated. I look forward to posting the results on how everything came out on monday bc that's when i'll be washing my car.

[smockers83]

Alright I'm back...was on a 2-day skiing vaca.

Technique...man now you want to know my trade secrets. Who you workin for? Well I umm, well I just wrote something up and it was really long so I'm going to rewrite it in numbered steps so its easier to follow.

[jae_k]

lol thanks bro, i really appreciate it.

[1njen]

i bought a used G and i have a couple small scratches on it. recently i purchased some 5star shine...

http://www.5starshine.com/ppc/...U-lfA

their video convinced me.... apparently it's european so i gota wait till it comes in. i'll tell you how it is.

[Beancooker]

I had some @$$ key my car. Here's what I used.

zerothread?id=283991

Article on wetsanding/buffing

[jae_k]

wow so many different materials i can choose from, don't know which one to choose all seem very convincing. Thanks for the info beancooker, i'll take a look into it.

[Beancooker]

Cool, bear in mind you can only safely wet sand your car once. I guess you could twice if you were REALLY good, but I won't ever do it again. I would wait until the car has a lot of scratches, or a few key marks. That way you get the most out of it.

[smockers83]

WWYG 101: Washing and Waxing Your G using the Mr. Clean AutoDry to wash your car.

1. Use only Mr. Clean AutoDry soap. Other soaps will work in it, but none of them dry spotless...trust me, even ones that claim to dry spotless (I've tried). Also, make sure the car surfaces are relatively cool. Either start early in the AM, find lots of shade, or do it in the evening.

2. Spray your car down with water.

3. Start with the hood to wash. Spray it down with soap, just enough to cover it with suds. Grab your wash mitt, soak it with soapy water from the sprayer and gently wash. In fact don't use pressure at all, just let the wash mitt sit on the car and let its own weight do the work. If you need to use pressure go ahead, but only in areas where needed like bugs.

3. Speaking of bugs, I use two wash mitts. Sounds silly but its serious stuff. I use my good wash mit for almost the whole car. The 2nd wash mitt I use on the front bumper for bugs, the lowest areas of the door and rear panels, and the wheels. Why? This prevents your main wash mitt from picking up dirt and other things that can scratch the rest of your car.

4. Finish the hood/front bumper, move to the passenger fender. Rinse your wash mitts. Now make sure its still wet, spray enough soapy water, spray wash mitt and wash.

5. Passenger door. Rinse mitts, make sure its wet, spray soap, mitt, and wash. You'll want to keep an eye on the previous panels that you've washed...try to keep them relatively wet, don't let them dry completely (not sure if this is completely necessary, but its what I do).

6. Keep doing the same for the rest of the car, using your two wash mitts. Now once you've finished the driver's fender, you can finish the last bit of soap left (you may need to a tiny bit more for this step). Go around the car spraying it down with just water to get it wet again, go back to the hood, spray it with the soapy water and go around the car just spraying soapy water one time around. Go around and rinse with regular water. Then go around and rinse with the filtered water. The filtered water with the soap is how it dries spotless.

7. Clean up your wash stuff and put it away before someone yells at you to put it where you found it Let the car dry completely. You'll find water near the grille and by the mirrors once everything else dries, just wipe it dry. Prepare to wax. If your wax came with an applicator sponge, use it. Run it under water and then squeeze it out.

8. Waxing. Waxing can almost be considered an art, especially when done by hand. You need lots of attention to detail and have to remain consistent. So, how to do that? Only use a small amount of wax. What's a small amount of wax? Well, my personal rule of thumb is to put a line of liquid wax about 3-4 fingers wide on the sponge as I mainly use the three middle fingers. What you don't want to do is use the whole sponge...just the area in which you applied the wax. If you use a paste wax, just dip an edge in it until you get some on the applicator. How to be consistent? Move in lines, but use small circular motions. My lines are about 4" wide I would say. Spread the wax out evenly and consistently, you only need a thin layer--one could think of this like painting a wall. Only overlap your lines slightly. When waxing, go around the car just like you did washing it (you could go the other way for variety if you wanted to). When waxing, don't use a lot of pressure, just enough to spread around the wax.

9. Once you've finished waxing, your hand might be tired, but you gotta tough it out as this is only halftime. Grab some 100% cotton cloths. I use these smallish cloths from Target, they come in packs of 12 or so, you find them in the automotive section. Grab like 3 of them, of the cloths I mean, not the packs. To remove the wax, start where you started waxing. Use quick circular motions, but they can be bigger than they were when waxing. You'll find you'll need a bit of pressure, that's quite alright--I usually use the bottom of the palm, where the bone is. Every once in awhile, you'll need to turn the cloth, and every couple of turns you may need to shake it out. You'll get a feel for when to do this as the wax builds up on the cloth, there's a point in which it just feels much harder to remove the wax. You don't necessarily want to reach that point, but its ok if you do. Move around the car in the same way you did when waxing.

10. As you're removing the wax, you can buff the car as well with your cloths. Just put the cloth down and use your whole hand and just move in fast circular motions with some pressure. Once you finish removing the wax, grab a microfiber towel and do a final buff. Just go around the car using your whole hand with the towel under it and just wiping it down.

11. Stand back and admire. If it doesn't come out as glossy as you expected, that's ok. Once you wax it 2 or 3 times, it'll look real good. Oh and clean up before someone yells at you again.

[jae_k]

Wow, can't wait to try this out on monday, thanks again.

[smockers83]

I feel like there was something else I was supposed to comment on...ah I found it. How much time. What I just wrote above takes me a whole evening to do. Start at about 5ish, I can have this done right before sundown. So I guess 3.5-4 hours maybe...it's been awhile since I've seen summer days so I forget when the sun goes down.

[jae_k]

Coooool, i cant wait!!