I'm still a newbie at this.

So far, I have Klasse AIO, Klasse SG, Zaino Z1, Zaino Z2. I then have various other products here and there... like tire gloss stuff.


So off the top of my head I can think of the following things that I would need now that I have a PC... please correct me if I am wrong somewhere:


- clay bar (recommend a decent brand.. nothin expensive?)
- Swirl Remover (recommend a brand for black car? maybe 3M?)
- Meguires DACP
- a carnuba wax

- PC kit for pads (what size would I need?? All I know is that I got the coastal tools PC 7424 bonus kit)



With those products, how would you attack a black car with lots of swirls??

I'm thinking:

clay
DACP
Swirl remover
Klasse AIO
Klasse SG
maybe a carnuba wax?

Is that what you guys would suggest? Also, would all of those items, except clay and carnuba wax, be applied and buffed off with the PC?


I have read those roadfly bimmer articles on how to to use a PC... but I read some other articles that were kind of conflicting. For products like AIO and SG that need to be applied very thin... how do you control that? From what I understand, you're supposed to soak the pad with the product and then turn it on. I've also read that you can mist water onto the pad and apply little amount of it, yet other articles say this will cause abbrasion.

1 more thing... I plan to buy all those things I listed in the begginning in 1 place... any suggestions? I'd like to apply some sort of discount and also if I buy all at once, I save shippin later on.

some quick hints and tips would be much appreciated! I'm trying to get an idea on what I would need first of all, and then try to understand how to apply it. Thanks guys, i really appreciate it!

 

oh yes, while I am at it, I gotta buy vinyl/leather conditioner for the dash (plexis?) and some decent plastic polish .

edit:

I did some more searching:

plastic polish- Meguires PlastX
wax to top off SG- Meguires NXT Tech wax

is that a good choice?

 

Holy cow, what a lot of questions...

I'm going to breifly cover some of these:

Clay: Mothers or Clay Magic
Swirl Remover: Get either one. They'll both work fine.
Pads: Get a selection of 6-7" pads, don't have to get fancy. At least 2 of each type, more polishing pads maybe.

Your plan: Try the swirl remover first if you're not sure how aggressive to go. Remember the tip to try the gentle method first. Pad selection and matching them with products is going to have to wait unless someone else tackles that....

I would do SG by hand to avoid wasting product, and AIO by either method. AIO doesn't have to be applied thin - think of it as a final, final polish and use it that way.

You don't have to soak the pad with product, it will become soaked as you work (wasting it really). Don't worry about this but you might have to change the pad if it gets too caked up.

Misting is optional. Many people don't do it, including myself.

Suggestion: You can buy all that stuff (except maybe the pads) locally if you want, but online stores are more convenient and you can get them all that way. The carnauba wax is optional, but I'm sure you know that already. Just make sure it's a paste, not a liquid.

I wouldn't use Plexus for vinyl and leather. It's mainly for clear plastic. Get separate leather and vinyl products (and lots of choices....).

Don't use NXT as the topper. It's a liquid wax and its cleaning ability is.... "under debate" at the moment.


Last tip (for today anyway ): Get a good supply of MF towels. By taking the leap of deciding you want to invest in all this expensive product and equipment, take the time to learn how to do it right, and wanting to perfect your paint, you are in deep now! You really have to get some good towelling and make sure that everything else you use on your paint and everything you do to it from now on is SAFE, otherwise it may end up a wasted effort if you don't. Welcome to OCD country!

 

thanks bman! ill follow your tips.

So far, im about to order 2 yellow, 2 white, 1 orange, and 1 black LC pad from topoftheline.com.

 

For the cleaners, polishes, and waxes follow whatever directions are on the bottle. There are a few tips that are better you might pick up, but in general those directions are there for good reason. Some of them require the use of moisture on the pad or towel. This actually helps spread the material and make it a smoother application.

For pads, the different colors are for different applications. From top of the line, the yellow is for cutting (cleaning and swirl removal), the black is for polishing, and the white is for wax application. Those are the only real differences in foam pads, of course you can get compounding pads, microfibers pads, and other types.

Follow Bman's adivce on the quality of the products. In detailing price is an indicatino of the quality of the product. Prepare to spend some bucks to get a good finish. Get microfiber towels! They are the best.

 

I had absolutely fantastic results with my PC using Meguiar's #2 followed by #7 and 2 coats of #26. The #2 wasn't the easiest to get off but it was really worth the effort. My car is Pebble Beige Metallic so I can't comment on how it works for dark colors but I can't imagine it being any worse.

I used the terry pads w/ #2, yellow foam for #7 and then the black pad for the wax.

 

hey, im still a at cleaning my car...sort of. whats a PC?

 

Not always.... You just have to use what works, and some products can actually be good deals. If this addage was true, Zymol would clean your house and cook dinner as well as make your car GOD!
I don't know if you're referring to a Meguiar's or Lake Country type "yellow" pad, but in the future you may want to try either a cutting or polishing grade pad with #2, see if you need #9 (which is a common intermediate step) with a polishing pad, and then do the glaze and wax with finishing pads.

I'm glad that it worked out for you and that you're happy with the results, but doing it that way might make the finish more "refined" and maybe have fewer filled-in pad marks (if this was a LC yellow).

 

PC = Porter Cable.

http://www.properautocare.com/porcabpolac.html

Shop around for best prices and deals on the machine itself. Coastal Tool (I think that's the name) frequently runs specials where you get the 7424 with a 6" pad and counterweight. Whatever you do, you really want the velcro base so you can just apply and remove the various pads you'll be using instead of having to screw and unscrew everytime you need to make a change.

 

I got everything listed on the this page, except the Viper Microfiber Bonnet, in a package properautocare - http://www.properautocare.com/porcabac.html

Could be that I'm hiding imperfections instead of getting rid of them but I am happy with the results, especially for a 7-year old car that's spent all of its time in Arizona. I'll look into #9. Suggestions on where to get the right pad you're talking about if the above isn't a good one?

 

For the DACP get that puppy up to 6 and make sure you keep after it until you buff it out (it will start to dust).

For AIO ***DO NOT*** soak the pad in it!!!! You're life will be a living hell if you do. You only need to use a ***VERY*** small amount of it. Just put a nickel sized amount on a pad...maybe mist the pad with a touch of Sonus QD first, and then use the PC on 2 or 3 to spread it around.

For SG I do it by hand. You can probably do it via PC though...just don't use too much.

 

I've tried using the PC to apply SG. I misted the pad (as I always do for anything I apply with the PC) and used a very small amount. It didn't work too well. I'm not sure why, but it was very hard to remove, so I now apply SG by hand with much better results.

 

what is, AIO, and SG?

 

Klasse All-In-One (paint cleaner / polish)

Klasse Sealant Glaze

 

Oh no, there's nothing wrong with the pads you're using, it's just that I find it confusing when people refer to pads by colour rather than by grade. In this case it was confusing because a Meguiar's yellow pad is a polishing grade, but a yellow pad private labelled by Lake Country is a cutting pad.

My suggestion was only a suggestion, and you could try simply because it's a more conventional approach. In the end, you do whatever works for you and if you're satisfied.

 

I'm actually thinking about trying SG by machine...never done it.

The thing is this: people on Autopia tell em that they don't like to apply wax by machine. If I'm using a big enough canister (blitz, ardex, etc.) I *love* applying wax by machine. Using the PC it's sooooooooooo easy to get a really really super thin, even coat...*much* easier than by hand. Obviously SG is even more sensitive to coat thickness than wax, so I'm thinking there must be some technique that will allow it to be applied by machine.

I'm going to ahve to experiment...your experience is noted though...I hope I can figure something out...

 

I like applying wax/sealant by PC, too. There's no way I could get it as thin and even by hand. I've used GC, #26, #20, and now NXT by PC. All work extremely well, and get super thin. I should be getting a shipment from Meg's on Monday, which includes #16 (to top NXT with), #82, and some ultimate bonnets. So I'll be able to remove my wax/sealant by PC, too. Others on Meguiarsonline and Autopia have said removal by MF on a PC actually increases the gloss over removal by hand. Not to mention it's faster, more thorough, and less tiring (important at my age).

nadir,
I take it you're really liking your PC? I've never heard of anyone using one and NOT liking it. It'll make you wonder how you ever did a lot of things by hand. It has drastically cut my detailing time and gives me better, more consistent results because I don't get tired.

Dave

 

hey dave

I intend on using it for the first time this weekend... probably going to use my dad's car.

So far, I've collected a bunch of MF towels, Klasse AIO, Klasse SG, Zaino Z1 and Z2...

and now this came in JUST NOW!:










I need to get clay magic... hopefully my walmart carries it.

 

Man, that's a lot of stuff!! Your ride's gonna look great.

 

I wanna do my car, but I don't think I have the time this weekend for it... there's a ORG/all nissan meet + brother flying in.

However, I will do my dad's 1994 corolla... i think it's in the worst shape so far. I'll take before/after pics... gotta test out my PC somewhere LOL.

 

Practice would be good to do first. Then I'd set aside the better portion of a day to do yours. It usually takes me 6-8 hours to wash, clay bar, polish, AIO and SG. Some can do it quicker, but I take my time....and I'm a perfectionist.