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Same as above. Some sort of bug and tar remover (take your pick from the parts store stock) and a cloth. It will take off any wax you may have had on the area, so you should reapply afterward.
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Aug 18, 2013 02:10
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What do you guys recommend for sealants? I've been using a 3m paste wax, but I'm not thrilled with it and would like to try a sealant. Was looking at either meguiars m21 or chemical guys m-seal, would prefer to use amazon with prime. Also, how are you guys polishing smaller areas and curves? The 6.5" pads that came with my polisher are awesome for large flat areas but it's pretty awkward for everything else. I'll probably get some 5.5" pads and 5" back plate soon, but was curious if you guys were using some other type of small pads. I saw some 3" hand polishing pads (boo doing it by hand) or some 4" pads from lake country.
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Aug 18, 2013 05:21
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velocross posted:What do you guys recommend for sealants? I've been using a 3m paste wax, but I'm not thrilled with it and would like to try a sealant. Was looking at either meguiars m21 or chemical guys m-seal, would prefer to use amazon with prime. How about Sonax Polymer Netshield - http://www.amazon.com/Sonax-223100-Black-Polymer-Shield/dp/B00BDO48XM/ ? Seems to be getting a decent amount of hype lately. The smaller pads I use are Buff And Shine 4" with a 3.5" backing plate. The shroud on the GG6 hides that BP almost completely. Some places you just need to do by hand.
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Aug 18, 2013 05:49
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sim posted:"Residential car washing" is prohibited. Commercial car washes are okay, so I may just use the nearest self-wash place until the ban is lifted, hopefully by winter (since fall doesn't exist in Texas). If I did a rinseless wash inside my garage though, I don't think anyone would notice. yeah optimum no rinse is your friend in this scenario
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Aug 18, 2013 23:56
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Today's project. Door panel. Has pen marks on it with faded leather (I think) around it per removal that failed. Stuff is old. Ideas? 
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Aug 21, 2013 20:09
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I have paint swirls all over my 04 black mustang, the only kind of buffing pad we have is one that attaches to a drill. Will this be okay to use for the whole car or is it a dumb idea? The drill is heavy duty and can safely be used for a few hours.
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Aug 25, 2013 23:06
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Cage posted:The drill is heavy duty and can safely be used for a few hours. It can be safely used as a drill. It can only be safely used on a car by someone with one hell of a lot of experience. "Regular" car polishers are fairly safe, but are random orbit machines, a there's nothing random about a drill, it's going to make concentric circles that can cut the poo poo out of your paint. Only try it if you know what you're doing.
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Aug 25, 2013 23:27
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Well I certainly don't, so looks like Ill be hiring some guy on craigslist to do it for me.
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Aug 25, 2013 23:46
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Cage posted:Well I certainly don't, so looks like Ill be hiring some guy on craigslist to do it for me. Or read through the thread, buy the right equipment and do it yourself. Which will pay for itself by the second or third time you use it as compared to hiring the job out. That's the way I went (recently with a lot of help from these guys) and it worked out great.
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Aug 25, 2013 23:52
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Good advice (and it does interest me), but its going to be a winter car so I figure Ill try the craigslist route once, and if it looks worth it Ill pick up a power buffer and supplies over the winter when deals pop up.
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Aug 26, 2013 02:54
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Cage posted:I have paint swirls all over my 04 black mustang, the only kind of buffing pad we have is one that attaches to a drill. Will this be okay to use for the whole car or is it a dumb idea? The drill is heavy duty and can safely be used for a few hours. Not that I'm really recommending you go this route, but you can turn a drill into a DA, sorta. http://www.meguiars.com/en/automotive/products/g3500-da-power-system/ http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/product-reviews/60691-review-meguiar-s-da-power-system.html
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Aug 26, 2013 05:37
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$60 for that? Wow. If you look around you can get a real D/A on sale for not much more. I paid $99 for this last year: http://www.amazon.com/Griots-Garage-11620Z-Machine-Polish/dp/B009XR5KF6/ref=pd_sbs_auto_1
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Aug 26, 2013 17:31
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Yeah, Harbor Freight's DA polisher/sander is $60 and it's fine for most personal use.
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Aug 26, 2013 17:48
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Earlier today I was showing off my new truck to a friend of mine who started poking at the display on the dashboard and he scratched up the cleat plastic window that covers the instrument cluster What is the easiest way to remove such scratches?
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Sep 6, 2013 01:59
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vxskud posted:Earlier today I was showing off my new truck to a friend of mine who started poking at the display on the dashboard and he scratched up the cleat plastic window that covers the instrument cluster Novus Plastic Polish has always worked great for me.
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Sep 6, 2013 02:58
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Dont loving take a porter cable to the edge of a door sill youll take off a ton of paint 
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Sep 6, 2013 06:31
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coolskillrex remix posted:Dont loving take a porter cable to the edge of a door sill youll take off a ton of paint How did you manage to take off paint with a Porter Cable buffer? Were you using it upside down or after you'd dropped the pad on your driveway? I'm a detailing retard and I can't make mine take paint off unless I put sandpaper on it.
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Sep 6, 2013 16:11
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Motronic posted:How did you manage to take off paint with a Porter Cable buffer? Were you using it upside down or after you'd dropped the pad on your driveway? Yeah pretty much this. How on earth did you do that? Porter cables take off less than 4 microns of paint on high with megs 105. Your door paint must have been ultra mega thin. 
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Sep 6, 2013 16:16
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That is the entire reason I've been too nervous to use that kind of product or buffer on my E30. My paranoia and lack of skill in combination with the couple of other burn through spots on the paint make me resistant.
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Sep 6, 2013 16:21
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Lightbulb Out posted:That is the entire reason I've been too nervous to use that kind of product or buffer on my E30. My paranoia and lack of skill in combination with the couple of other burn through spots on the paint make me resistant. http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trksid=p2050601.m570.l1311.R1.TR10.TRC1.A0.Xpaint+thi&_nkw=paint+thickness+gauge&_sacat=0&_from=R40 Enjoy! 
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Sep 6, 2013 16:26
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You're forgetting about the paranoia and lack of skill, though! Thanks for the link, I might have to pick one of these up. I've just been keeping wax on the cars, but they both are in need of a good buffing.
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Sep 6, 2013 16:52
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Motronic posted:How did you manage to take off paint with a Porter Cable buffer? Were you using it upside down or after you'd dropped the pad on your driveway? The only way to damage paint with a Porter Cable.  Can't get the timecode to work; but just skip to 2:46 detailed instructions.
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Sep 6, 2013 17:59
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That guy is awesome.
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Sep 6, 2013 18:23
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ratbert90 posted:Yeah pretty much this. How on earth did you do that? Porter cables take off less than 4 microns of paint on high with megs 105. Your door paint must have been ultra mega thin. Open front driver side door, near where the vin number sticker is, use megs 105 with a yellow pad and watch as you take off the paint pretty effortlessly. rounded corners must have thin paint. Tried to buff out two scratches on a 2009 WRX and now when i have the doors closed and im looking at the cars profile i see a thin 1mm sliver of gray primer showing through.
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Sep 6, 2013 19:33
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Aren't Subarus notorious for having soft paint?
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Sep 6, 2013 19:42
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coolskillrex remix posted:Open front driver side door, near where the vin number sticker is, use megs 105 with a yellow pad and watch as you take off the paint pretty effortlessly. rounded corners must have thin paint. Tried to buff out two scratches on a 2009 WRX and now when i have the doors closed and im looking at the cars profile i see a thin 1mm sliver of gray primer showing through. If you are polishing the door jambs/side areas of the doors, always have the pad just touching the area of the car you're polishing (just a sliver of the pad on the vehicle, the rest of the pad in air). Never angle the buffer to that you are hitting the edge of the door while you're polishing a flatter part, that is going to localize the abrasive force and strip the edge of the door skin. Please don't tell me that's what you did. No matter how much research you do on a particular operation, you still need to use common sense. Insides of doors / door jambs are almost entirely hand work, anyway.
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Sep 6, 2013 19:42
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meatpimp posted:If you are polishing the door jambs/side areas of the doors, always have the pad just touching the area of the car you're polishing (just a sliver of the pad on the vehicle, the rest of the pad in air). Never angle the buffer to that you are hitting the edge of the door while you're polishing a flatter part, that is going to localize the abrasive force and strip the edge of the door skin. The scratches were on the rear doors, in hindsight should have just kept the stupid driver side door closed. I didnt angle the buffer at all, i tried to stay away from the edge but enough of the pad was making contact that it hosed it over. Before the wrx i did my entire 99 mustang gt and did some pretty major scratch correction on that too. Just a warning to others, i saw the video of the porter cable being smashed on the hood of a corvette years ago, i understand exactly how hard it is to burn through paint on a flat surface, but take strong precautions when approaching edges of paint where it could be a lot thinner. I dont trust meg 105 for poo poo when approaching edges anymore, ill only use it on expansive flat surfaces.
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Sep 6, 2013 19:55
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coolskillrex remix posted:The scratches were on the rear doors, in hindsight should have just kept the stupid driver side door closed. I didnt angle the buffer at all, i tried to stay away from the edge but enough of the pad was making contact that it hosed it over. Before the wrx i did my entire 99 mustang gt and did some pretty major scratch correction on that too. You should be EXTREMELY careful with 105. 105 is a cutting compound, like the old-school-named "Rubbing Compounds." It doesn't matter whether you have a microfiber cloth, porter cable or newspaper, you can tear the poo poo out of paint with 105/similar compounds (even flat surfaces).
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Sep 6, 2013 20:00
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2 months ago I purchased a new 2013 Toyota Venza. I tend to keep my cars for a long time so I'm doing my best to make it look like new for at least 12-15 years. For that I purchased Xzilon and applied it myself (dealer wanted $500, I purchased 4 bottles for $160). I understand this stuff is basically paint sealer. How will I know when to reapply another coat? Does sealer work over an existing coat? Or will I have to strip the old Xzilon before applying another coat? I'm not planning on doing this now of course (it's only 2 months old) but I'd like to reapply yearly until all my bottles are gone. Will simply waiting until it stops beading water give me a good indication of when to reapply? Will the squeak test work? I've already waxed it twice since I got it and I plan doing at least one more wax job before winter sets in. Also, a little bit off topic: anyone know how to protect my nice calipers from rust? I think they're coated or painted right now (the calipers look a little shiny and hasn't discoloured yet). Can I apply wax or oil to the caliper surfaces to keep them rust free?
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Sep 6, 2013 20:18
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Ricecop69 posted:Novus Plastic Polish has always worked great for me. Much appreciated I checked it out and I'm probably going to order some, I'm guessing number 2 is the one to use?
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Sep 6, 2013 22:59
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vxskud posted:Much appreciated http://www.amazon.com/Novus-Plastic-Cleaner-Scratch-Remover/dp/B0035U5ARK #2 is "fine scratch remover", so that should work. Either #1 or #2 had some strange directions about letting it dry or buffing in a certain direction, I never had any issues but worth noting. I do have to give a recommendation for the griots 3in polisher. That thing is awesome for small areas like window trim. I gotta admit, using a machine polisher is pretty pretty sweet compared to polishing/waxing by hand. Quick question, are you supposed to use anything after you've polished a car to remove the polish residue before waxing/sealing? Doesn't seem to be big deal, just curious.
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Sep 7, 2013 04:42
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Will those plastic polishes get what appear to be basically calcium stains off of my plastic on the inside door sills of my BMW? It looks like a couple waterspots where soapy water has dried but they are like ingrained in the plastic. That area also suffers from very mild scuffing from my shoes/dirt. Its black plastic if that makes any difference.
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Sep 7, 2013 06:09
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Hey y'all, I just recently bought a new car and want to take care of it considerably better than I did the old beater. I've read this thread cover to cover, but I still have some retard-questions. I want to thank those of y'all in the all-purpose thread who pointed me here with my initial questions. I am a retard when it comes to car care. I try to keep it clean, but I had no idea all the poo poo I was supposed to be doing - Would it be ok to just use one of those big ol' soft sponges for cleaning with Dawn (and later a proper car washing soap)? I see plenty of stuff on spray washes, but I live in an apartment and gernerally my method for washing exteriors has been just sudsing the car by hand and then getting clean buckets I dump by hand on top of the car to rinse it. - When you apply polish / Rubbing Compound / SMR / glaze / wax what do you use? Microfiber cloths? I must be blind but I didn't see anyone say anything about what specifically to use to actually apply these things. - What about scotchguarding the interior? I recently bought some for the inside of the car out of some sense of paranoia. I haven't applied it yet so if this is something I shouldn't do, please let me know. - I am currently (considerably) far away from all the junk I bought before finding this thread. I know one of those things was a "detailer" version of the armor-all cleaner/protectant for vinyl dashes and the like. I have read a lot of NEVER USE ARMOR-ALL. And so just wanted to know why. I know that a lot of that sentiment comes from a gone era where they used harmful chemicals. Also, this protectant seems to claim to be a more matte finish (which is good). My thought process of attack is something like this: Dawn by hand, dry Clay Hand Glaze (maybe start with SMR?) via microfiber cloth? Wax / Protectant (I already bought a jar of that Turtle Wax paste, I know that's not optimal, but I'd also not like to waste it if it's not AWFUL) Wash with car soap Dry For the tires I have one of those foaming tire wet and I also bought one of those specific rim cleaners (which I guess is a waste now that I know more about what I'm supposed to be doing) I realize some of this is repetitive, and I'm sorry for that. I'm just really paranoid about screwing up my new baby.  Also, it's black and I didn't know that was a huge undertaking.
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Sep 17, 2013 13:46
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What's the best way to get oxidized wax out of gaps and edges around trim pieces?
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Sep 17, 2013 13:59
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FogHelmut posted:What's the best way to get oxidized wax out of gaps and edges around trim pieces? I just use a damp microfiber cloth, push one of the edges into a gap with a fingernail, then just rub sideways several times.
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Sep 17, 2013 14:12
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JetsGuy posted:Hey y'all, I just recently bought a new car and want to take care of it considerably better than I did the old beater. I've read this thread cover to cover, but I still have some retard-questions. I want to thank those of y'all in the all-purpose thread who pointed me here with my initial questions. You don't need that last wash step, and if it's brand new (as in yesterday or something) you probably don't need the clay step, but in general, yes, your list is right. The comments I'd make on the turtle wax are: it's not going to do the rest of your hard work justice, it's not going to last as long as a good synthetic or as glossy as a good carnuba, but yeah, if winter is coming, it's a passable stop gap. No idea about scotch guard on the interior, though.
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Sep 17, 2013 14:52
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Alarbus posted:You don't need that last wash step, and if it's brand new (as in yesterday or something) you probably don't need the clay step, but in general, yes, your list is right. Thanks for the reply  It's 'new' in so far as I am the first owner and have had it about 2 weeks, but it is a 13 that must've spent some time on the lot as it had a few hundred on it when I bought it. So I figure I should clay it and just use one of the finer things like hand glaze (is that called polish?) just to even the little things out. I may buy SMR just in case, and I doubt it's been through enough hell to warrant rubbing compound. As far as Turtle Wax goes, I guess it's not a HUGE loss to give it to a friend or something. Maybe I can find some decent Megs protectant at autozone or something when I get back in the country. I could also buy some Zaino AIO and Z2 I guess? Just to be sure, I can apply the Dawn with a sponge? When y'all say "wash and wax" do you mean the whole process or do you mean just using some general car wash soap and then waxing?
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Sep 17, 2013 15:10
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Alarbus posted:You don't need that last wash step, and if it's brand new (as in yesterday or something) you probably don't need the clay step, but in general, yes, your list is right. I'd disagree with new cars not needing claying. Lots of new cars straight off the lot are loaded with contamination. JetsGuy posted:Hey y'all, I just recently bought a new car and want to take care of it considerably better than I did the old beater. I've read this thread cover to cover, but I still have some retard-questions. I want to thank those of y'all in the all-purpose thread who pointed me here with my initial questions. Dawn is vastly overrated as a stripping/cleansing agent. So are so called stripping shampoos. I don't know what you mean exactly by "big ol' soft sponge" but if you like sponges then get a plain grout sponge from a hardware store. If you are going to polish the whole car do yourself a favor and invest in a machine (dual action). You're not going to want to do an entire car, or even an entire panel, by hand. Foam and/or MF pads. I apply LSPs by hand using either MF or foam. The yellow UFO shaped foam applicators tend to grab on unprotected paint. Armor All supposedly caused dashboards to crack and it's an allegation that the brand never completely shook off. There seems to be few hard facts and a lot of rehashed "I heard that" spouted off as fact on message boards. Depending on who/what you believe, the current formulation of Armor All is now supposed to be a PDMS based dressing like almost every other dressing on the market.
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Sep 17, 2013 15:22
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JetsGuy posted:Thanks for the reply Lots of cars are prepped like poo poo by the dealership and are delivered to the new owner with swirls (DISO - Dealer Installed Swirl Option). Just because a car is brand new doesn't mean the paint isn't full of defects. Glaze is usually a term used for a non abrasive product that is used to hide/fill (as opposed to correct) very minor defects in the paint.
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Sep 17, 2013 15:29
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Use a microfiber mitt to apply the soap, you can get one for $4 at Autozone. I have no idea about using sponges, if they are abrasive enough to scrub food off of dishes, I would rather not use it on my car. If you are really up against the wall, I suppose you could use a microfiber towel. The general rule I have learned, is use the least aggressive cleaning/polishing methods you can. I car with only a couple hundred miles will probably only need a wash, and a wax. Rubbing compound is for when you REALLY need to clean up the clearcoat. You can polish it if you really want to, you may or may not see a difference at all. I am not sure what "hand glaze" is. There is a lot of marketing in the detailing industry, try not to get suckered in to hype on the bottles. My opinion about interior detailing is about the same; use the least aggressive solution that cleans any problems. If your new car "needs" scotchgaurd to protect it, you need to ask why. With regular cleaning, the interior should last a long time without any fancy protections. It is not bad to be paranoid, but dealers and marketing will take advantage of that feeling. To apply any polish/compound/wax by hand, you can buy some microfiber application pads. They are different than normal towels, they should be soft and flat, as opposed to towels which have a lot of shag. Best bet? Go look up DRIVE CLEAN on youtube. I will find some of his better videos that cover alot of these issues. In the short run? Wash your car, clay if you really want to, then wax. e; Everyone will have different opinions, mine may or may not be right, you have to research a lot for yourself. blueblueblue fucked around with this message at 15:37 on Sep 17, 2013 |
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Sep 17, 2013 15:35
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