Detailing photos/discussion

[77Concours]

you need to inspect the cars paint very carefully before you start working on it. chances are it already has swirls and rag marks all over it. Mothers 100% Brazilian carnauba paste wax is hard to get off. use only a small amount of wax and I would go one panel at a time waiting for the wax to haze up, which happens in about a minute. an easy way to test is to run your finger through the wax and see if it comes off clean or leaves residue. detail spray works great for cleaning off wax. nothing you are going to do will remove any swirls. make sure you use the plushy towels not the regular microfibers, they scratch like crazy. The key for you will be to make sure you wash the car very well and in the shade and don't let it get water spots. if you use a shamy to dry it be sure it is washed out really well before and dry the bottom of the doors and bumpers last.

Thank you! I'm unsure what type of Mother's wax he's using. I'm hoping its liquid and not paste, I might take some Meguiar's gold class carnauba wax along just in case. I also do have some plushy yellow microfiber towels as well. Work had a ton extra and my boss told me to take some. I hope it looks half decent when I'm done with it.

 

[SkyHighColorado]

Thank you! I'm unsure what type of Mother's wax he's using. I'm hoping its liquid and not paste, I might take some Meguiar's gold class carnauba wax along just in case. I also do have some plushy yellow microfiber towels as well. Work had a ton extra and my boss told me to take some. I hope it looks half decent when I'm done with it.

you will be fine! the gold class is easy to use and has great results. I do like the Mothers pre synthetic wax, its easy to use and looks decent. sometimes I like to use ultimate quick spray wax for the final wipe down instead of detail spray.

 

[77Concours]

Guess I should have posted the results once I got finished lol. Everything went fine and there were absolutely no swirl marks or residue left over. My neighbor told me he wasn't looking for perfection at all. The car was last waxed 13 years ago by his son (who was killed in a racing accident) so it felt a little eerie. When I got q-tips out to touch up around the emblems he said "You don't need q-tips for a tractor, boy." All in all he was very pleased and asked me to do his first gen Cummins dually in the fall before it goes in to storage.

Thanks for the help!

 

[sewlow]

Pix of the last time I waxed my '97, about 2 weeks ago.
Had a bit of a prob with the clear coat after it was painted. Seems that that flattened out within about a month after. But only the roof, tailgate & hood. Most would of been happy with the paint, but I wanted to get it perfect.
Wet sanded the hood first 'cause it was the worst. It came out a lot better!

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Now compare that to the tailgate, which hasn't been wet sanded yet.

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It looks O.K., but it just doesn't have that flashy shine that the hood does. The reflections look kinda fuzzy.
The passenger side could use a bit of sanding to. It also would be passable for most, but I see it & it's certainly is not as nice as the driver side.

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Soon as I get a couple of days, I'm gonna wet sand the whole truck.

(Damn, I hate that tailpipe!!! Sooo UGLY! Looking for an Escalade tip!)

 

[SkyHighColorado]

good job on the hood! The tail gate looks hazy for sure, they probably just finished it with the wool pad and not polished it up to its best. at work today the paint shop brought the Porsche C4S rear bumper back and it looked like crap, so guess who had to polish the sanding marks out.....this guy. I hate doing that I wish they would just bring painted parts back perfect and ready to go.

 

[SkyHighColorado]

The new ZL1! its so badass it makes the SS look stupid. Im not a fan of the SS but the ZL1 I love. it just looks pissed off all the time.

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[SkyHighColorado]

Al, do you have a FORD behind that door?

 

[sewlow]

Yea. (Hangs head)
It's magnetic & that's the only metal around the whole shop that's big enough for it to stick to.
But!!!...
There is a 'Parking for Chevy Trucks Only' sign between the 2 overhead doors!
Does that make up for it?

 

[Blue95]

Great thread!

I have not heard anyone mention Griot's in this thread, I am really suprised... I love their products. I use their interior detailer, glass cleaner, wax stripper, quick wax, glaze, fine hand polish, soap, speed shine detailer, claybar (huge), rubber/vinyl cleaner, rubber vinyl satin dressing.

Their stuff is so great!

I don't have a DA, so my process goes wash, the wax stripper, claybar it, Turtle wax medium cut compound then fine polish on the scratches/stains I can get out, then I use Duragloss polish (which is a sealant really, then top with two coats of Collinite paste wax.

I paid to have it done last year by a local place and they did a great job, but I think I can do it myself and save some money, I have done it by hand in years past anyway.

The Griots rubber cleaner/satin dressing is so great on tires and molding.

 

[SkyHighColorado]

Griots makes good stuff, I don't personally use much from them but my dad does and they work well. I do have a Griots DA and they don't last long with heavy use just so you know. A guy I work with had a newer Griots DA and his failed last week. Not saying they are bad, infact when they work I love them because they seem faster in RPM than my porter cable DA. Porter Cables are the best bang for your buck but I have also blown one of those up! the gears failed in it, but I sent it back under its 90 day warranty and im currently using my back up porter cable that I have had for along time with no issues yet. The griots DA failed from electrical melt down on both.