Detailing question

[Crazylegs]

Does this kit contain everything needed to carry out a full detail of a car maybe bar swirl removal?

Also is it difficult to do each process by hand without using a machine polisher?

http://www.autobritedirect.co.uk/index.php/polishing-prep-waxing/paint-pre-wax-cleansers-glazes/enhance-paint-protection-car-care-kit.html

 

[Granty1056]

Hi.

It seems a bit pricey, not that I,m an expert. In the past Ive used Meguiers Ultimate compound for the swirl marks and Scratch X applied by hand. (Painful on the wrists). Ive invested in a Meguiers machine polisher. Its going to get easier from now, hopefully.

I have,nt heard clay mentioned for a while. I wonder if its going out of fashion. Ive done the clay before and I couldnt manage the car in one go. It had to be, front, middle and then back.

Ive got meself some Meguiars Carnauba wax. Im aiming of getting a start while the weather is still cool.

It might be an idea to wait until some of the members come up with further ideas and advice.

Ill report back with my results.

Regards. Granty.

 

[G Man]

Correct, won't remove swirls.

More of a paint cleaning and protection kit.

 

[Palmerino]

For what you pay for that really isn't much, Meguires and Autoglym do the same kind of starter pack options that may be worth looking into as they'll be far more competitively priced being a well known brand.

Meg's ultimate compound is really easy to use stuff and as above, that kit is for cleaning, not for polishing.

 

[DC5RS]

machine polisher > hand

 

[Foo King Kwik]

For a full detail a clay bar on its own wont fully decontaminate the paint like they say. You'll want a tar remover then a iron fallout remover first, then clay. Tardis as the tar remover and then something like ironX (£10).

As for clay go for bilt hamber medium, about a tenner to buy and you can use water as a lubricant with it.

You'll be better off getting the stuff seperately rather than buying a kit.

Id suggest something like this:

http://www.elitecarcare.co.uk/britemax-aio-max-one-step-cleaner-polish-and-wax-473ml.php?manufacturers_id=76

Followed by this as a top up:

http://www.elitecarcare.co.uk/britemax-spray-and-shine-premium-detail-spray-709ml.php

Shouldnt cost anywhere near 90 quid and IMO you'll get a much better finish

 

[Ben_brodie]

For a full detail a clay bar on its own wont fully decontaminate the paint like they say. You'll want a tar remover then a iron fallout remover first, then clay. Tardis as the tar remover and then something like ironX (£10).

As for clay go for bilt hamber medium, about a tenner to buy and you can use water as a lubricant with it.

You'll be better off getting the stuff seperately rather than buying a kit.

Id suggest something like this:

http://www.elitecarcare.co.uk/britemax-aio-max-one-step-cleaner-polish-and-wax-473ml.php?manufacturers_id=76

Followed by this as a top up:

http://www.elitecarcare.co.uk/britemax-spray-and-shine-premium-detail-spray-709ml.php

Shouldnt cost anywhere near 90 quid and IMO you'll get a much better finish

As above but I'd suggest also using a glaze such as poorboys black hole show glaze to mask any swirls left behind after polishing as you will never fully correct the paint by hand

 

[Crazylegs]

Cheers for the responses guys.

I do already have some Meguiars Ultimate compound and some 2.0 NT Wax so don't need to buy any of them. When does the glaze get done, is that the very last thing to do?

Correct me if I'm wrong but the stages ideally should be

Wash and dry
clay with detailer spray as lubricant
Swirl removal
Polish such as ultimate compound
Wax
Gloss
Glaze

Is that correct?

 

[Mebz]

I recently did mine and thought it came up well. All done by hand.

I did the following

Wash
Dry
Clay (bilt hamber with.water lube)
Rinse
Dry
Gtechniq p1 polish (best hand applied polish i've ever used)
IPA wipedown
Bilt hamber hydra wax

You can glaze instead of wax but you will also need to seal. I sometimes use black hole glaze and exp sealent.

Its all very tiring though.

 

[Foo King Kwik]

Cheers for the responses guys.

I do already have some Meguiars Ultimate compound and some 2.0 NT Wax so don't need to buy any of them. When does the glaze get done, is that the very last thing to do?

Correct me if I'm wrong but the stages ideally should be

Wash and dry
clay with detailer spray as lubricant
Swirl removal
Polish such as ultimate compound
Wax
Gloss
Glaze

Is that correct?

Wax is always last.

No need for all them stages, just use a good polish that removes/fills swirls. Autoglym Super Resin Polish/Poorboys Black Hole/Gtechniq P1, followed by a wax or sealant. All thats needed.

Or go for like i said an 'all in one' product that'll do your swirls and add a layer of protection. (Britemax AIO, Auto
Finesse Tripple etc.) Bare in mind without a machine you'll never sort swirls out totally. No harm in going over the AIO product with a wax too.

 

[Crazylegs]

Cheers Rob,

My car could do with a good going over as the paintwork is very dull so hoping to spend some time detailing it when the weather improves. Will eventually get a full professional detail and paint correction done at some point.

 

[truupR]

As Rob says, you'll never really remove swirls without a machine to actually correct them, by removing a small amount of your clear coat. Rob has covered pretty much all the bases on the process order. I think the car will still look awesome when its all shined up, you can only see the swirls etc. from certain angles.

Professional detail can be very pricey indeed. You really need to know your method of maintaining the paint work is spot on or you're just going to put the imperfections back in the paint! You could always opt to go for a DA polisher like these or these. While they aren't exactly pennies to buy, you can bring the paint back to near perfect with a bit of will to learn and practice. Also you got no worry of harming the paint with a DA.

I've yet to take the DA to mine yet - this weather isn't even funny any more!!!

 

[Palmerino]

The easiest option for a great shine is a product like Autoglym Super resin polish.
whilst having very minimal abrasives it has lots of fillers to help cover up the scratches, it wont last that long but a very simple option to help top up the shine without going into cutting the clearcoat.

as above though, its good to know how to prevent scratches from the word go than just trying to cover them up.

Youtube really is a great source for detailing advice, it can be a little overwhelming sometimes with the amount of stuff on there but research really pays off.

 

[Crazylegs]

Iron X

How often should you use this on wheels? Once a week, once a month or only every few months?

I've bought some and used it the other day and it's brought the wheels up nice but I've heard it's very abrasive if used often, is this the case?

Thanks.

 

[2ndy]

It's not a wheel cleaner it's a fall out remover, I only use it once every 3 or 4 months at the most

 

[Crazylegs]

Thanks mate.

Yeah I know it's a fall out remover but it's supposedly not great on wheels if you use it too often.

That's fine, I've used it the other day so will give it a few months before I use it again.

Cheers.

 

[RichA]

I was really happy with the results of mine lately, I washed the clayed the whole car then polished by hand (don't have a DA) with autoglym super resin polish. The next day I washed again and used naviwax to protect.

I was amazed at the difference, I thought my paint was ruined but it literally changed from cream back to white! It's well worth putting the effort in and unless you have money to burn or are a total perfectionist not worth taking it to a professional. You can get great results doing it yourself!

 

[Shortstuff]

Recently Max & Myself did his MX5 project.

Wash
Clay
Polish with DA and Autofinesse 3 stage kit. (Only needed stage 2)
Wax with Naviwax.

Looked like a fresh paint job

 

[maxvr6]

I've never heard of Iron X being harsh on paint or wheels, my impression has always been that the way it works is very gentle.

Products like Wonder wheels for example are completely different though, its basically a mild acid.

 

[Rom]

I've never heard of Iron X being harsh on paint or wheels, my impression has always been that the way it works is very gentle.

Products like Wonder wheels for example are completely different though, its basically a mild acid.

This.

Iron X works on a chemical reaction.
The paint on your wheels is no different (in essence) to the paint on your car.
If it was harsh to wheels, it would be harsh to the car too.

Any acidic cleaner, is harsh on wheels. It's also harsh on cars, it's just no one's stupid enough to use it all over the car.
This is why it burns eyes and cuts when sprayed.