How To Detail Your Ride

That's good, enjoy!

 

Great Thread! Here's where I buy my detail products.

http://www.griotsgarage.com/home.do

 

Ok, I know everything one could want to know about washing my car now!! But there is one part that is missing....how to dry it?

 

http://www.autogeek.net/exterior.html

at the bottom.

heres a vid how sheeting works, using the water to remove most of the water from the surface.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=UW6BcLr5rdg

 

i use the waffle weave drying towel, autogeek.net has some...work amazingly can dry like 3 cars with one towel, great product, streak free...seriously streak free..and my black tahoe is very stubborn when it comes to streaking, and this thing is badass

http://www.autogeek.net/cobra-waffle-weave.html

 

Exactly what tast101 & Trend Setta plus compressed air...

First - use the flooding method (works best on well maintained paint) to remove the majority of the water.

Second- remove the remaining water off the paint with a Waffel Weave towel. Use either the blotting method or wiping method (see the drying section in either the Pinnacle or Wolfgang video here) Which ever way you do don't apply pressure when drying. Applying too much pressure can and will cause scratches & swirls.

Third - use a compressor, shop vac, etc to remove water from crevices, emblems, trim, mirrors, etc.

 

so my trucks getting a brand new paint job soon. what would u guys recommend for its first wash and detail??? thanks.. like a list or whatever would be great, bcuz i dont wanna screw it up

 

Ask the body shop how long before you can wax it...typically it's about 30-60 days.

The best thing and the most important thing is proper washing and drying with good quality products and towels.


My website has a section on proper washing/drying that can help reduce marring it also has a list of products I use and recommend: http://paintcare-n-detailing.com


Here is a short list to get started:
5 gal bucket with grit guard
good quality car soap
wash mitt (I prefer sheepskin)
Waffle Weave and good quality microfiber towels

 

Okay, I'm taking a 4 day long weekend next weekend and it's supposed to be 74 and sunny so I just went out and spent $279 on detailing stuff. Bought a new random orbital and pads, hand applicator pads, microfiber cloths, Meguiars clay bar kit, 3M swirl remover for dark colors, 3M Ultraglaze, Mother's 3 step system, Meguiars Ultimate Quick Detail, Meguiars NXT wash, new mits and buckets.

I think I got just about anything that I could possibly need :lol:. I've been reading up on it for two weeks. I'm going to kill those swirl marks.

 

after fiddling with stuff i think is complicated. i just shelved all the fancy stuff, went to target and spent A WHOLE THIRTY DOLLORS wow: :rolleyes2: ) on a MR . Clean auto dry system. works better than all the car wash places, and even better than all the crap i bought earlier, now i will still have it pro washed waxed etc every three months but to fill in the blanks of a twice a week wash i will use the mr clean auto dry.

 

HAHA sound like me after looking at trends truck.

 

Some powers that be should make this a stick as there is some good information here.

 

Haha, yeah ever since I saw his it makes me sick to see mine in the sun. The 2004 is the only one that has the swirl marks thank god. I'm so careful to not get them on the Z71 and Escalade now that I know what a pain they're going to be to get out. Between trendsetta, z71tahoe-suburban.com, and autopia or whatever, I think I finally know what I'm doing. Key word: think :lol: .

 

Sounds like a good start...like I tell everyone when they first start out - Be sure to do a test spot to get comfortable with the machine and polish. Also make sure to break down the polish completely (another reason for the test spot), take your time and check your work as you go under direct (halogen or sun).

Good luck!

That is funny :lol: I said that too......once

 

Haha, that figures. What do you mean by breaking down the polish completely?

 

http://paintcare-n-detailing.com/xmt_lsr.html


You can see what it look like as he first starts out, then towards the end you can see what it looks like. Sure paint can explain it better.

 

All abrasive polishes need to be worked in and broken down for them to remove marring and leave a gloss finish.
If not worked in properly, under direct light, the polish will leave the paint hazy.

Here is a side by side example of not working a polish in correctly or breaking it down properly on the left and worked in correctly on the right:



Without direct lighting this is barely noticeable (just like spiderweb type swirls/scratches)...that is why lighting is so important when polishing.

I have several videos and pictorials about polishing that might help on my website:

http://paintcare-n-detailing.com

Charles

 

I really apreciate it man. That cleared up most of the questions I had. I still have one question about claying, though. I've heard some people say to use the clay bar like you're washing the truck with it, when people make their lubricant out of soap and water. They say to spray the lubricant, use the clay bar, and then rinse it off. The Meguiars Clay Kit that I bought came with a Quick Detail spray that they say to use as a lubricant. If I do that should I just spray the Quick Detail, clay, then wipe it off and not rinse it? I'm guessing that two 50g clay bars will be enough for a 4 year old truck thats never been clayed before, right?

Haha, I'm sorry that ended up way longer than I intended. I just want to get it right .

 

No problem, I'm glad it helped.

Claying after washing before drying saves some time by being able to go over the whole car without having to spray, clay, wipe clean each section. You can do this method and substitute the clay lube instead of car soap....just rinse and dry after.

The only problem with using car shampoo is some clay bars react with certain car soaps and will break down and deteriorate.

Yes more than enough. Cut the bar in half and knead it after each section or when it becomes dirty. Discard when kneading no longer produces a clean surface.

 

Alright sounds good, thanks again. I could spend all afternoon on your website ha ha, good stuff. Keep it up.