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PitViper posted:What does everyone use for interiors? I HATE the super glossy Armor-All look, so I've been using a low-gloss Meguiar's interior spray. It cleans and leaves a very faint shine, but I'm wondering if there's something better I could try. I've had good luck with Griot's interior cleaner and their vinyl and rubber dressing isn't silicone based (which armor all is, hence the gloss). I never thought of the leaf blower idea, but I really, really like it. Also, you mentioned you "don't get swirls" because you use a foam gun? So do you foam, then scrub, then rinse or is it just foam and rinse?
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Mar 26, 2012 04:57
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Some of you are making me cringe with your recommendations of armor all anything... I don't have any confidence in any of their product line and I'm just picturing lots of unnaturally shiny reflective dashes and tires. Rubber and plastic looks best (and should be) satin/matte in my opinion  katkillad2 posted:What does everyone use when cleaning the inside of a car? Are microfiber cloths still necessary for things like vinyl and all the plastic knobs and whatnot? Also does washing microfiber cloths destroy them or are they thrown away after they get too dirty? I have some small tool vacuum hookups and boars hair brushes that are great for getting rid of dust around knobs and in vents, then I use an interior cleaner (Griots is my current favorite) and finally a little bit of rubber & vinyl protectant on the spots that see the most sun. I'll typically use a smaller microfiber towel or a soft scrap of old cotton t-shirt depending on how much product I'm needing to use and the specific surface. Of the above I think my favorite is the boars hair brushes, they're really nice to use and I feel like they work really, really well.
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Oct 21, 2013 19:50
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Chinatown posted:Seriously Armor All is loving garbage and you can get superior products at basically the same price point from local detail supply shops or online. 90% of detail products at Pep Boys/Autozone/etc are complete garbage. Thank you for having the courage to say what I wanted to say, but was being too much of a pussy to come right out and say myself.
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Oct 22, 2013 04:24
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BoyBlunder posted:Cold engine + Scrubbing Bubbles foam spray. Scrubbing bubbles is decent alternative, but it should be noted that it does leave a bit of armor all esque shine to the rubber and plastic in the bay. Not as bad, but certainly not matte. For anyone that's a Griot's fan they've got one of their 15% off sales going (code: EMABXB) and free shipping over $125. It's good through 11/14.
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Nov 13, 2013 05:41
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The valve cover and some other aluminum parts (side drafts, etc) in the engine bay of my 2002 are a little pitted either from age or someone using simple green. Any recommendations on getting rid of it that doesn't involve polishing? I've seen steel wool recommended, but I thought I'd ask some fellow detail nerds before I dug in 
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Dec 1, 2013 05:24
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Bumming Your Scene posted:Don't care, I hate cleaning wheels and you aren't going to notice whatever scratches that can leave in the 10 times I'll use it. See, but this is the Detailing Thread, not the Nonspecific Thread: Let's talk about spraying cars with hoses once a year
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Feb 8, 2014 19:30
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Folderol posted:Scrubbing bubbles was mentioned a few pages back as an engine / engine bay cleaner. Any other suggestions? I'm leery of using something like that, given all the rubber surfaces. I think I might have been the one who mentioned it... Only use it on cars you don't care about and when you can get it cheap (like at the dollar store). Otherwise you might as well just spring for something legit since it leaves surfaces a bit shiny. I've used it on cars that I flipped for quick results.
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Feb 9, 2014 00:40
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Comrade Flynn posted:I need recommendations for a good leather cleaner. However, the issue is the leather in my car is cream colored - I've had good luck with both Lexol and Griots and neither has ever left a noticeable dye... The leather might be a touch darker during application because it's getting conditioned/moistened, but it's a natural look that lessens with buffing and then over a few days. Admittedly I've never used them on Italian leather, but I've used Lexol on high end american leathers like Horween Chomrexel without issue. Chinatown posted:u got a dog on your leather you might wanna address that issue first 
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Apr 2, 2015 04:02
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Comrade Flynn posted:He's The Best. Top Amazon Review posted:Leather Nova left the red couch looking wet and shiny after completely buffing it and it was dry to the touch. Blah shiny leather you might as well just spray a bunch of armor all on it you monster. If you really want to be fancy you could always get some Obenauf's, which is what I use on my shoes and old codgers love it like they love Lexol. It has a dauber!
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Apr 2, 2015 04:47
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blk posted:What is the general ball park for clear bras? Thinking of getting one for the [NA] Miata, maybe just the bumper cover. Broadly in the Seattle area it's anywhere from $500 to 1500 depending on skill of the installer, cleanliness of the shop and quality of material used.
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May 15, 2015 06:39
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meatpimp posted:Freedom isn't free, it costs you your paint.  I'd maybe try buffing compound before wet sanding, but I fear meat may be right. 
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Jul 19, 2015 04:52
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Evil Crouton posted:My brand new black Fiesta ST has an extremely fine and light scratch on it already. It is maybe 5" long and at the worst part I think I can barely feel it with my nail, although that could be in my head. Assuming I currently have nothing but the most basic car washing supplies, what should I get and what can I do about this scratch? Or should I bring it to a professional? 1. Buy some wax 2. Wax your car 3. Get used to the idea that you bought a black car, which show of scratches like no other color and notoriously well known for being a challenge to keep nicely detailed.
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Jul 22, 2015 05:33
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I heat gun might help things too.
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Jul 24, 2015 05:54
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blk posted:Would it gently caress the paint if I heat gunned from the outside? I can't get behind it. I haven't found an adhesive strong enough to hold down the errant tab. I was hoping there'd be a spot I could zip tie it but nope. As long as you're careful it'll be fine... You don't want to melt it, you're just warming it up enough to make the plastic more malleable. Sometimes you can get a little extra form out of it that'll stick when it cools.
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Jul 25, 2015 06:10
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Any of you guys ever apply OptiCoat or a similar product? I've got a new car arriving soon and while a 3M clear wrap did right by my current car there are definitely draw backs that have me considering something else.
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Jul 27, 2015 04:56
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japtor posted:engine bay and opticoat Thanks for the thoughts on OptiCoat. Re: engine bay, scrubbing bubbles has already been mentioned and is an easy and cheap option if you don't have too much oil and grease build up. The bad part is that it leaves a bit of shine like armor all does, so if you're picky like me you're better off with a matte cleaner, or to in the very least follow up with one after. You can use SimpleGreen, but be careful with it as it doesn't play well with Aluminum. Also, an old toothbrush will work wonders for nooks and crannies
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Jul 28, 2015 04:48
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fps_bill posted:How bad of an idea is it to use tire shine on husky liner floor mats? Using tire shine on anything is a great idea if you want me to be mean to you
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Aug 4, 2015 05:43
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I don't have a good solution other than drying the car, but you could try a waterblade to make it go faster. I use one and it actually works pretty well.
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Aug 9, 2015 17:55
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Lord of Garbagemen posted:My question is about the claying, i was reading a faq from a detailer and he said claying black paint was dangerous because if not done right it could mar the paint? What would this look like? I just sprayed an ample amount of quik detail and ran the clay with moderate pressure across the hood. A couple of times it grabbed but nothing was left on the hood. What should i be looking for? I think that detailer may be stupid. If you don't clay black paint then what the gently caress do you do to clean out all of the poo poo that gets stuck in it? Yeaahhhh, no, just clay it and be careful. Straight strokes, plenty of lube.
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Sep 20, 2015 05:57
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blk posted:water spots I read the other day that barely moistened dryer sheets can help on shower doors. I haven't tried it yet and wouldn't go buy any just to try, but if you already have some it may be worth trying. But that said, yours may be bad enough that it doesn't matter. Time to buy some cerium oxide powder? Just be careful that poo poo gets everywhere.
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Oct 20, 2015 02:50
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RIP Paul Walker posted:I hate to plug an armor all product, but their glass cleaner + a clean cheap (like the Costco ones) microfiber has treated me really well. I've tried stoners and whatever else, and imho the armor all stuff is better. gently caress armor all and the horse they road in on. LessThanThree posted:I have used IG with old flyers/newspaper. Better results than microfiber. This until I die. Only in the worst of cases have I needed more and at that point I was polishing not cleaning.
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Dec 9, 2015 06:48
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Larrymer posted:Sonax is supposedly good, but I have no personal experience with it. Sonax is fantastic. It smells awful and is pretty expensive, but I've found that it's more effective than other wheel cleaners and so what you get goes farther.
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Jan 13, 2016 08:17
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Heyo detailing nerds, the weather is starting to get nice, time to start thinking about spring detailing! One post winter result, the Duragloss 501/Collinite 845 on my wife's car, is old, beat up, and parks outside, weathered pretty well. I'll definitely be using that combo on her car and older cars again. Meatpimp's Dr. Colorchip suggestion coupled with this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kspr5GjOla4 (specifically the before/after pictures at the end) have me curious enough that I think I'll give this a try too.
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Apr 9, 2016 19:22
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Lexol>Megiuar's for leather IMO. I've actually used it on shoes too and it's pretty good there too, though for deep conditioning Obenauf's is better. I detailed my car this weekend, I'll post some pictures in a few days with some results.
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Apr 19, 2016 04:50
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El Scotch posted:Windshield question: after cleaning both sides of the front windshield I've discovered that much of what I thought was dirt, etc is actually itty-bitty pits and scratches absolutely covering the windshield, due to the horrid winter road sand, etc. Cerium Oxide. It can be had cheaply on amazon, just be careful because the poo poo gets everywhere. There are plenty of videos on youtube of people using it, but this will give you an idea: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcFe-WrrNz4... Me, I made a slurry, applied it to a pad and went to work on the glass. In my case it wasn't a windshield, but a weird gash on a side window. Be careful about generating too much heat. Good luck! edit: it does take a while to polish. As someone mentioned above, it could take a few hours depending on the extent of the damage.
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Apr 25, 2016 06:38
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Kinfolk Jones posted:What speeds for the buffer is everyone using for UC/UP/Wax (845 in my case)? 3-4  that probably isn't helpful, about 30% from stopped on my Griots DA
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May 14, 2016 05:38
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Griots is ok. I like their Speed Shine and their vinyl and rubber dressing, but I feel like most of their stuff is pretty expensive for what it is and how much product it takes to get. CG can seem a little snake oil-ish sometimes with all of their different lines and whatnot, but I really like a lot of their stuff. I use their pads, interior cleaner, foam soaps (which are great) and am digging their 'black light' glaze. I tried their buffing compound sampler and while I like it I'll probably try some competitors before buying in.
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Jul 9, 2016 04:54
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fps_bill posted:Are some films better than others? How invisible are they? Yes, absolutely. Visibility is dependent on a number of factors including quality of the film, age of the film, the skill of the installed and the body lines of the car. Oh, and how dirty it may be at a given time (since dirt can sometimes get built up at edges).
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Mar 2, 2017 07:43
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jfreder posted:Looking for some pointers on wash/shampoo for matte finishes. I have a Challenger Hellcat with the satin/matte black hood option. So far, I have used Chemical Guy's Meticulous Matte wash in my foam cannon and buckets. I am wondering if anyone knows if Meguiar's Gold Class would be fine to use or if it has a bunch of glossing agents and/or wax that will change the satin look of my hood. Perhaps Meguiar's Deep Crystal cheap stuff is a better option? I'd stick with that CG matte soap, or look at one of their other soaps myself. Nothing against Meguairs, but CG's Honeydew snow foam is the best soap I've ever used in all of my years of washing cars.
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Mar 9, 2017 05:55
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Lowclock posted:Anyone have any advice on dyeing some interior fabric trim in my E34? I don't particularly know what it's made of, but I think its some sort of synthetic fiber. I have a few spare interior trim panels from another car that I want to try turning black, but between powdered, liquid, and sprayed dyes, I'm not sure what might work the best. I do remember a buddy in high school dyeing some carpet with some spray dye and it looked pretty good, but left it feeling harder and rough, and I'd like to avoid that. I've been meaning to respond to this... While I've never died car interior fabric, I have used RIT fabric dye (black) on a few non car items in the past such as a couch slip cover. It works ok as long as you've got all fibers that can absorb it, but anything synthetic like plastic thread won't take the dye and may show it. It can be messy too so you'd want to remove the panel from the car so you can dye and rinse it... And even then you could risk collateral damage of the rest of the panel if it's able to absorb any of the dye. Good luck, if you do it definitely post pics to the rest of us know it works or take caution from your experimentation
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Mar 26, 2017 06:28
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Armor All knows there target market, anyone that doesn't know anything about car detailing  Does anyone know of any Rupes Nano alternatives with better pricing ($500.. ouch!)? Manual buffing doesn't count! GentlemanofLeisure posted:Has anyone used spraypaint cans from paintscratch.com? I know the thread generally recommends Dr. Colorchip, but I'm getting new side mirrors and they're the wrong color. The paint on the car is pretty rough, so I'm just looking for something that would be ok for a driver. Basically, will this be ok for a couple years, or is it complete poo poo? I haven't used that specific vendor, but I did use Paint World to buy paint for a piece a trim for my old STI a number of years back (a piece in the bumper that hadn't been secured well after a clear bra installation popped out, so I bought a replacement that came unpainted). Important lesson learned for me was the quality difference between the good 3M/Dupont level primers, paints and clears and the value stuff. Don't get the 'Value/Economy' Kits, spring for the good stuff and the etching primer and you'll be surprised at how well it works (quite well IMO). If my Armor All comment is any indication I'm picky as poo poo about details like this, but with patience and a steady hand got a near OEM finish on that piece of bumper trip with paint from a rattle can. If you spend $70 you'll get at least driver quality, likely better.
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May 3, 2017 02:58
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There are a few rubber cleaners out there that help take it off, Griot's is what I've been using lately, but I don't know that I'd necessarily buy it again over any of the others available. I still use a dressing, but specifically I use matte/flat dressing to avoid the armor all shininess and low quality (applied to a foam pad then applied to the tires to avoid any overspray onto the car or wheels).
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Jun 11, 2017 03:00
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Red_Fred posted:Applied the clay and compound, car looks awesome. I'm going to wax next, can I use my polisher to apply that? The bottle doesn't say. Absolutely, and I recommend it. You don't need as much product and it makes the process go much faster.
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Jun 18, 2017 03:26
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Depends on the condition of the rubber. I lot of people like 303 protectant and I have a bottle, but haven't gotten into it yet (though will when I finally detail my wife's SUV for the summer). I've used griots vinyl/rubber treatment for that too and I guess it's ok, though I like it better on tires. For wheels, I'm assuming they're clean (if not, Sonax), in which I case I don't treat them with anything wash to wash. I do however wax them before mounting them for winter/summer (when I'm mounting the set) with a decent synthetic liquid wax. I've yet to determine if that actually helps for more than a few washes... It's totally possible sonax wheel cleaner strips it off pretty quickly.
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Jun 19, 2017 04:51
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clay bar does have a mild polish aspect to it, but me, I'd rather have a little bit of a polished space (on a bra) than a big ol' bird poo poo outline. Maybe start where it's worst and see how it goes, then stop or proceed depending on the results? Good news, your clear bra fulfilled it's purpose so you can feel good about that purchase!
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Jun 20, 2017 02:37
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vigorous licking!
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Jun 21, 2017 05:28
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Hikaki posted:New to detailing here; I just did my first job but skipped the wheels. What's the verdict on wheel sealants? Is it worth doing, and if so what's a decent product? My friend put on something called McKee's 37 Wheel Coating on his brand new wheels and it feels like it didn't do poo poo for protecting against brake dust, so I'm a little skeptical. Do you mean sealant like sealant wax or sealant like the treatments that have become popular like gtechniq? If sealant wax, I've used regular car sealant on my S3's wheels with some success. I've yet to use the gtechniq stuff and in general I feel like there is a lack of information out there on it other than pro detailers saying it works on the Internet, but I don't really trust that. QuarkMartial posted:Wife's new car has some wax down in the black plastic trim. Is there a way to remove it or am I stuck using something like back to back to mask it? Mat_Drinks posted:vigorous licking! I hadn't actually heard the peanut butter thing, but had heard the "use some fresh wax" trick because it softens the hardened stuff up enough that you can get it off. There are a couple companies that sell wax removal spray too.
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Jul 1, 2017 02:30
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TheGoatTrick posted:Heh, I just bought Gtechniq Cystal Serum Light and Exo V3 today. Will report back. Please do. I'm interested to hear about your experience with application and finish, then durability. How experienced with detailing are you? Hikaki posted:Here's a weird question. After freshly applying wax, my car felt much softer to touch. It almost felt silky, and felt that way until today. I just did my first post-detail wash and that feel is gone now. Does that mean that the wax has been stripped? I used Optimum car wash which is supposed to be wax-safe, but I also applied the wax on top of a sealant so I suppose it wouldn't have bonded as well. Could it be gone already? Did you follow the instructions on the bottle (soap to water ratio)? If so, you're probably fine, if not, then you may have gone overboard on the soap and may want to rewax. Test using a knuckle drag and a bit of a water bead test. Usually when I wash my car I dry with a spray wax (my current favorite is meguiar's) as that helps prevent water sports, any issues with drying, but also touches up the wax. One wash shouldn't kill a wax unless you used wayyy too much soap, used simple green or dishwasher soap, or used really lovely wax, but even the shittiest of wax should last one wash. edit: it's worth noting that that soft feel to me is like when you buy brand new clothes, then wash them once. It's still good, it just doesn't have that straight-from-the-factory-and-full-of-chemicals-smell . Just because you wash em once doesn't mean they aren't still new and stain free.
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Jul 2, 2017 06:34
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Josh Lyman posted:Using a palm sander with a microfiber cloth to apply compound and wax: clever use of poo poo I have lying around or fast lane to ruining my car? Interesting. Are you going to wet sand? The good news about sand is that it's pretty cheap and since you mentioned cost was a concern you could get results without a lot of money. Since wet sanding doesn't take much water your lack of a hose wouldn't be an issue either, just get a cup from inside, throw a handful of sand at the car and sort of massage it in like a face scrub. You could also try applying the clay with a hammer. It'll ensure that the clay really gets in there and gets the contaminates out.
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Jul 16, 2017 06:43
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rdb posted:Thanks for the coupon. Has anyone tried their 5050 wax and/or jetseal? I live on a dirt road and see a lot of bugs, dust and bird droppings. I would like something that lasts more than a couple weeks. Protection and ease of bug cleanup is more important to me than gloss. I've been using Jetseal for about 1.5 years now, it's become my favorite synthetic wax (non sythn is Collinite). Easy to work with and lasts longer than most others I've used. The 30% off coupon is good. Anyone with a dark car that hasn't used 'black light' should check it out, it's good stuff. Josh Lyman posted:I'm reading online that I should wash my car every week? That seems like a lot to me, though I did get this gallon of Meguiar's Gold for $8 and 1 oz per wash means it'll last 2 1/2 years. At first I was going to kind of troll you again, but then I realized that I'm not being fair and am forgetting that when I was first starting out getting into car detailing in my late teens/early twenties I would wax my car then turn around and wash it the next week with so strong a soap that it'd all be stripped off. I didn't actually realize this until I took my first brand new car to a PDR place for a door dent and the guy asked me when the last time I waxed my car was "about two weeks ago" I answered. "That's weird" he says... "When was the last time you washed?" I respond "Oh, last weekend!". And then came the learning "How much soap and what kind of soap did you use?". I think that time I'd used Simple Green and the guy blanched in horror LOL. So how often do you need to wash? It varies wildly based on time of year and region. And really, how perfect you want your car to be. I'm in the Pacific Northwest and in early summer I wash weekly because the pollen is everywhere and even though I park in a garage at night and a parking garage during the day, the pollen gets on the car and looks like crap. But at this point in the summer, if my wax is holding up well I wash every 2-3 weeks. my car is at week 2 right now and it only looks ok, it's dusty and the front wheels are getting brake dust build up so it'll definitely need a wash next weekend. How often do you need to wax? Again this varies (see above), but for me, I usually do a full detail (wash, clay, correction if needed, glaze, wax) twice a year fall/spring. In the fall it's all about winter prep and synthetic wax (something durable that'll hold up to the winter rains), in the spring it's about depth and using something carnuba. I'll mess with different products in spring/summer so I'll sometimes do a detail or wax again, it just depends on how it's holding up. I also use Meguiars spray wax at every wash as I dry to prevent water spots and to touch up the wax, which I've found to work well. I'd be curious to hear what the other guys on here do that are into detailing, I know there is a pretty big variance among us since this isn't a *~*detailing forum*~* Oh, and to add more to this novel, the funny thing about detailing is a lot of the bad habits I learned as kid, I learned from my dad who was always sort of a car guy, but not into detailing. As I've learned about it he's gotten more into cars and I've shared my knowledge with him. He's now a committed ambassador to the two bucket method and Sonax. It feels good that I was able to pay him back for teaching me how to change brake pads, drop a tranny, etc. Mat_Drinks fucked around with this message at 17:39 on Jul 23, 2017 |
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Jul 23, 2017 17:19
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