Wow what an awesome and informative video

[disappoint]

On how to take care of the paint on your ride!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xJH_MGgbLw

 

[cKGunslinger]

That's a nice shine on the 'vette.

 

[disappoint]

That's a nice shine on the 'vette.

Yeah that color is awesome too. I also like the rims on that car.

 

[Howard]

best tip for noobs: get a flex 3401

 

[disappoint]

best tip for noobs: get a flex 3401

That looks to be the newest DA polisher on the market. Why is it better for noobs?

 

[jteef]

That looks to be the newest DA polisher on the market. Why is it better for noobs?

duh, because it's $250 more than something that works just fine. Your paint will hate you if you're a cheapskate.

 

[Howard]

That looks to be the newest DA polisher on the market. Why is it better for noobs?

Because you're still unlikely to burn paint and yet it's much faster than the PC 7424 family.

I don't like polishing my paint for that reason alone.

 

[disappoint]

Because you're still unlikely to burn paint and yet it's much faster than the PC 7424 family.

I don't like polishing my paint for that reason alone.

It looks to be a very time consuming process. I haven't done it yet just have seen online instructional videos to make sure I know what I'm doing before tackling such a job.

Anything that makes it easier and/or faster would be great but spending so much coin for a sparingly used tool seems a waste.

 

[FuzzyDunlop]

would have been infinitely better without music. But still a very good video.

 

[Howard]

It looks to be a very time consuming process. I haven't done it yet just have seen online instructional videos to make sure I know what I'm doing before tackling such a job.

Anything that makes it easier and/or faster would be great but spending so much coin for a sparingly used tool seems a waste.

If you can arrange for time on weekends to do it, the PC isn't a bad choice at all. Since I rarely have whole days to myself, I like to do one or two panels a day.

Not including washing, prepping (claying, drying, taping) and cleanup, with the PC you can expect about 3-5 minutes per square foot on average for moderate swirling. Scratches will take more time, obviously, and polishing is rather quick.

That all assumes, of course, that you use the right pads and compounds.

 

[jteef]

The porter cable 7424xp at around 70 dollars is a great value for this tool depending on how much you value your car finish. a "color correction" can take a professional detail shop 20-30 hours and cost the client $800-1500. This would entail basically a full car polishing with a coarse polish, then a fine polish, then 1-2 finishing coats along with care for the wheels and plastic. if you're able to clean your paint properly and prevent it from scratching/swirling/marring to that level, it's a lot easier and cheaper. it is time consuming, but a concours finish looks awesome, feels awesome and sells awesome.

The most important thing you can do to take care of your finish is to never use any towel, sponge, mitt, etc that has touched the ground or any other gritty surface. Next most important would be to use 2 buckets(one with clean rinse water and one with lots of suds).

 

[FuzzyDunlop]

The porter cable 7424xp at around 70 dollars is a great value for this tool depending on how much you value your car finish. a "color correction" can take a professional detail shop 20-30 hours and cost the client $800-1500. This would entail basically a full car polishing with a coarse polish, then a fine polish, then 1-2 finishing coats along with care for the wheels and plastic. if you're able to clean your paint properly and prevent it from scratching/swirling/marring to that level, it's a lot easier and cheaper. it is time consuming, but a concours finish looks awesome, feels awesome and sells awesome.

The most important thing you can do to take care of your finish is to never use any towel, sponge, mitt, etc that has touched the ground or any other gritty surface. Next most important would be to use 2 buckets(one with clean rinse water and one with lots of suds).

What brands and products would you recommend. I usually use mothers. Is that good?

 

[Howard]

What brands and products would you recommend. I usually use mothers. Is that good?

Wet sand with block up until 2000 grit (if removing orange peel or doing massive correction)
Meguiar's 105 until mirror finish (wool or yellow/hard pad), slight tracers/swirls OK
Meguiar's 205 until perfect (white/medium pad)
Wax is anybody's guess, but DG 105 or Collinite IW 845 are pretty good

EDIT: Quick detailing spray helps when applying M105 to reduce the amount of dust generated

 

[disappoint]

Wet sand with block up until 2000 grit (if removing orange peel or doing massive correction)
Meguiar's 105 until mirror finish (wool or yellow/hard pad), slight tracers/swirls OK
Meguiar's 205 until perfect (white/medium pad)
Wax is anybody's guess, but DG 105 or Collinite IW 845 are pretty good

According to a lot of detailer forums their favorite paint sealant seems to be Blackfire Wet Diamond. Often they leave it at this step because it doesn't really need a wax on top, it is that glossy, but Blackfire Midnight Sun Carnauba is what they will top it off with if so desired.

Collinite 845 or 915 (for darker colors) has the best durability but isn't as shiny as BFWD. Though opinions vary on this so there's not really one answer for everyone.

 

[Howard]

According to a lot of detailer forums their favorite paint sealant seems to be Blackfire Wet Diamond. Often they leave it at this step because it doesn't really need a wax on top, it is that glossy, but Blackfire Midnight Sun Carnauba is what they will top it off with if so desired.

Collinite 845 or 915 (for darker colors) has the best durability but isn't as shiny as BFWD. Though opinions vary on this so there's not really one answer for everyone.

Shininess is 95% surface prep, anyway.