Here's a post I made to Autopia...might be helpful here...either way just chatting it up.

Just thought I would post a couple of thoughts. I spent a lot of hours last weekend doing my car, and continued this weekend with more hours. I did some stuff for the first time so I figured I'd post my thoughts. Here's the process...

-Wash (no dawn)
-Clay (first time, pinnacle clay and lube)
-Polish (DACP, trying to really buff it out, working smaller areas, PC on 6, hard pressure)
-AIO
-SG (first time)

My first comment is on the clay: Okay I get it now. I understand why people clay their cars, and I solved a problem with my girlfriends car. Sometimes on her car and on my back bumper the polish would dry up and be very hard to buff off. Well when I clayed my back bumper I could really feel stuff coming off, and the polish came right off this time. We tried her car and the results were the same. So overall I can no longer say that "overspray clay rubs me the wrong way". I like it. HOWEVER, on a clean car there is no way this step is necessary as often as some do it. There is a risk of scratching your paint if you pick something up and don't see it before you move the clay (I did). Overall I would say that this is a necessary step, but only once or twice a year at the most. More often than that is risky and is overkill.

Second comment on the polish - Buffing out DACP is tough but WORTH IT. I reallllllllly worked the polish this time...much longer than usual. PC was on 6 the whole time, and I used some pressure. Another great polishing tip is to USE THAT SUNROOF. Stand up out of the sunroof to polish the roof. My roof looks better than it has in years...getting a better angle to polish was essential.

Third comment is on SG - Okay, I get it now (again). I took pics of my car (will try to post when I get home) after it sat overnight in the rain and it still looked sick. Part of this is from the improved DACP technique, but part is the SG. WOW. My car is dark green and used to look black in a lot of light. Well the blackness is back on overcast days. The metallic stuff in the paint really sparkles with this too. I didn't believe that the second layer would add that much but it did. I can't wait for #3. I am probably going to try and get 4 layers on before winter...for protection more than looks. The Sonax QD was very helpful in getting rid of the persistent streaking I was getting. I also had a disaster and ended up having to use a just-washed (still wet) MF pad for the second coat this weekend. Having the pad damp...more than just a spritz of QD...helped a lot. Much easier to buff off.



The only thing I am still debating is what wax to top this with. This is for the winter so I need durability. I wanted to try S100 for the first time but the Ardex wax I got from a friend last year looked really sick and seemed to last the whole winter by itself. That was their cleaner wax, Carbon, but I need to get a hold of that same wax without the cleaner...named Topaz...if I want to use that again. Since I'm out of my "natural" phase I think I might go back to Ardex for durability.


I just can't wait until my new paint has cured so I can do that up. the hood and fenders already look lightyears better (my detailing technique was not protection oriented when I first had the car...big mistake). then I just need a new rear bumper cover and blending next spring and the car will be perfect.

I'll try to post pics tonight.

Also I ahve to say THANKS for all the advice. Seriously, this system is taking less and less time as I refine it, but still providing better and better results. I'm finally starting to get a process I am comfortable with down. This process was comparatively easy and really worked. I think the key step is using the DACP right. I am hoping I can go with something less aggressive next spring now that the car is in better shape overall, but we'll see what the winter brings. Either way: using Griot's polishes and pads I was spending a lot of time and not getting results. With a daily driver you just need to be a little more aggressive I think. I still need to try DACP with Griot's pads...since i have so many and they ARE better quality that the properautocare ones. I used them a bit on the bumpers and they seemed to work, but I need to try it with regular paint.

Also, I think taking advantage of the fact that the PC won't burn your paint is key to really getting work done and buffing out the DACP completely. I made some slow passes (1-2"/sec) and that seemed to help a lot, with no ill effects. I think a big part of learning to use the PC effectively for polishing is realizing that it IS a lot less agressive than rotaries, so you can afford to be moer brutal and direct with it. You're using a non-agressive tool, so you might as well use it as agressively as possible. With the diminishing abrasive this is especially true.