Detailing Thread [For Newbies][ARCHIVED]

[mau2485]

IMO the Microtex Terry (orange cloth) is not as good as other MF but that just me. It is too soft that if you flatted the cloth, easily deforms when you drag it into your car. Ive use it with my QD. I can’t recommend for buffing off some excess wax. But for 90 pesos it had done its job for avoiding your car to have some scratch. I will still go for the plush for buffing

Microtex Terry for QD
Microtex Plush for Buffing
Zwipes MF (the one with Applicator Pads) for Drying

I still need to try its applicator pads. I have applicator pads. One for the glaze and for the wax. But i think this wont fail my expectations

[Chikselog]

IMO the Microtex Terry (orange cloth) is not as good as other MF but that just me. It is too soft that if you flatted the cloth, easily deforms when you drag it into your car. Ive use it with my QD. I can’t recommend for buffing off some excess wax. But for 90 pesos it had done its job for avoiding your car to have some scratch. I will still go for the plush for buffing

Microtex Terry for QD
Microtex Plush for Buffing
Zwipes MF (the one with Applicator Pads) for Drying

I still need to try its applicator pads. I have applicator pads. One for the glaze and for the wax. But i think this wont fail my expectations

Yup.. Best pa rin ang soft cloth like Microtex Plush for buffing ..Same tayo sir mau, terry for QD, plush for buffing..But I haven't tried Zwipes MF for drying yet..

BTW guys, what brand of car cover do you recommend? I'm planning on buying one for our paint-neglected civic EK..

[Chikselog]

double post

[Chikselog]

triple post!! WTH is wrong with tsikot?

[madkatz]

Of course its always best to use the softest MF towel for any job, but if you're buffing out polishes its always nice to use something thats just enough for the job that costs a lot less, the reason being is that when it comes to removing polishes, this stage is actually a lot more messier and you have to remove a lot more as compared to the waxing stage, thats why i recommended orange for buffing off polishes because its naps are deep enough to prevent scratches but also a lot cheaper than plush, and since its cotton you could clean this easier since its threads are larger meaning less particles can get trapped inside and you could just dump this in the washing machine and put it on high, another plus is that you should be able to use a whole lot more stronger soaps to clean the cloth especially since polishes tend to build up and really harden when it dries so i guess this is a plus when using cotton, now you might be asking, if polishes tend to dry up harder, contains abrasives and clump up larger as compared to waxes why not use plush for this stage? wouldn't it be safer? well based on my experience, polishes also take a whole lot longer to dry as compared to waxes so cotton terry would be safe just as long as you remove it still wet and as long as you keep turning to a clean side every panel. Cotton terry towels sadly have a lesser lifespan as compared to MF towels but since they're cheaper i would rather sacrifice them for buffing off polishes and just discard them or use them for other parts of the car once the threads are no longer that soft or once the threads start to thin out, rather than use plush, its just too expensive for me to use plush hehe, but if you'll be using plush for buffing off waxes and polishes, what you could do is use the thin side to remove the majority of the waxes or polishes and then use to soft and thicker side to buff to a nice shine.

oh yeah BTW did you guys know that Microtex had plush on sale during the christmas season for only 150 at selected Ace hardwares? and speaking of good deals, i also saw their pro kits on sale for only 450 bucks during that time, i took 2 different sets, their Elite for 695 compared that from 899 hehe, good thing the owner of Microtex told me about it, but thing is, some Ace hardwares still have their Microtex items still on orange tag prices, i just recently bought some from Ace North Edsa so you guys might want to check you Ace Hardwares near you or if you happen to pass by.

[madkatz]

*chickselog: hmm thats cheap! but yeah if its too soft then it might not be as safe for the paint, i guess i'll grab one and check it out, if it fails my expectations i'll just use it for applying tire creams, dressings and for using with an APC

*jeff: if you are a loyal TW customer then using a carnauba cleaner wax would definitely help in adding and improving the gloss of the paint, although there are others that are cheaper but sadly also more expensive. i would recommend you use a foam applicator or a thick MF towel at least, pranela's, once contaminated, have a higher chance of inducing swirls on your paint, and when using pranela's there's a lot less buffer between your finger and the paint.

[madkatz]

*chickselog: 2 video's that might help, you could check how he applies it in the video and just copy it, just be sure to frequently check the paint if the correction is already done, you don't have to stick to 2 to 3 minutes per panel, it might be shorter or longer depending on the gravity of the defect you are removing and correcting.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2L74hQWMBg"]YouTube- Ultimate Compound, ScratchX 2.0 and SwirlX from Barry[/ame]

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pp13dzlYl9I"]YouTube- Meguiar's SwirlX[/ame]

Hope this helps

[thx777]

Madkatz, good morning newbie question lang, almost 1 month na after new car paint protection sa BB, so first time ko pa lang magwa-wax. The car is not daily driven naman kaya once a week lang kung i wash ko and after washing i apply QD, the paint is still in perfect condition wala pa talaga scratches or swrills kase maingat talaga ko sa paglinis and I follow yun mga advice nyo dito sa auto detailing thread (thanks 100x). Yesterday I bought Moms step 2 and 3 both in liquid sa Blade, gusto ko sana un step 3 na paste para matipid kaso wala daw available. The car is 1 month old, ang question ko is same lang ba and safe i apply un step 2 at 3 dun sa wheel well (fender??? - yun ata tawag dun) made of plastic, same lang naman ang ng body color pero parang mas smooth un nasa metal body na paint compare dun sa nasa plastic. Eto po un picture



Gusto ko lang maka sigurado before ako mag apply ng wax, and complete naman ang gamit ko may wax applicator na din ako made of foam covered with mf cloth and mf towels for buffing. And yung preparation before waxing na back read ko na din. Thanks sa mga tips nyo. God bless.

[jeff]

*chickselog: hmm thats cheap! but yeah if its too soft then it might not be as safe for the paint, i guess i'll grab one and check it out, if it fails my expectations i'll just use it for applying tire creams, dressings and for using with an APC

*jeff: if you are a loyal TW customer then using a carnauba cleaner wax would definitely help in adding and improving the gloss of the paint, although there are others that are cheaper but sadly also more expensive. i would recommend you use a foam applicator or a thick MF towel at least, pranela's, once contaminated, have a higher chance of inducing swirls on your paint, and when using pranela's there's a lot less buffer between your finger and the paint.

paano ba tamang pag apply nung scratch & swirl remover sa buong auto, saka anong applicator ang ginagamit talaga para dito para makabili ako? btw yung foam wax pad kailangan ba basa ng konti bago gamitin? pasensya na at dami kong tanong first time ko kasi mag wawax ng auto. thanks!

[Chikselog]

*chickselog: 2 video's that might help, you could check how he applies it in the video and just copy it, just be sure to frequently check the paint if the correction is already done, you don't have to stick to 2 to 3 minutes per panel, it might be shorter or longer depending on the gravity of the defect you are removing and correcting.


Hope this helps

Thanks for this hmm, I guess Microtex Plush is okay when buffing off SwirlX? Or is the terry towel also okay?

[madkatz]

To All: My mistake, the Microtex Orange is actually made of Microfiber material despite being called terry towel, the difference and what i misunderstood was that the orange towel was woven and designed like the majority of the cotton terry towel but it is made of Microfibers, Sorry my mistake, i misunderstood what the owner of Microtex told me.

[madkatz]

*thx777: Congrats on the new car! BTW is that the new Everest? Im sure it is safe to use Step 3 on that part, but i would recommend you use the step 2 less, see if that is the plastic type thats not smooth, its either that its a painted plastic, or its a colored plastic/fiberglass it depends on the manufacturer, im not that well knowledgeable about these, but i forgot in what training i was told about this, i forgot if Megs or Moms, but one of those recommended to me that as much as possible lessen the use of polishes on these plastic parts of the car, the reason being is, if its painted plastic, chances are the paint in this section is a lot thinner compared to that of the paint panel, based on the picture my bets would be that its a painted plastic, so yes its safe to use Step 2 but be lighter on pressure or if its still in good condition you can skip this part and buff it only if its necessary. As for those special cases where its made of fiberglass or plastic with a nice clear type resin, sometimes using step2 might actually haze the appearance and glass like properties of the fiberglass, but these are usually only used on show cars and those with really nice body kits.

Also if your car is just about 1 month old and is still in great shape then you might want to just do step 3 only, step 2 contains mild polishes that might reduce a very very VERY small amount of clear coat, and in the process this might nullify your paint protection since the sealant would be removed by the polishes. I would recommend you do just step 3 for now, and in a few more months lets say about 3 to 6 months after the paint protection, at this point the paint protection should start to wear off, then this would be a nice time to apply step 2. or if you want to remove certain swirls or further improve the gloss of the paint you could apply step 2 but chances are you would be removing the sealant in the process, then again if you're applying step 3, your paint should have enough protection, its just that the sealant would go to waste if its gonna be removed, so i would recommend applying step 2 after 2 more months.

Hope this helps

[Chikselog]

^
Does step 2 (Mom's Sealer and Glaze) really contain mild polishes? Whoa.. Parang nakakatakot na rin palang gamitin ito ng madalas.. Though the package says that "after using step 1 (once or twice a month) you can use step 2 and 3 for as much as you like!" with the exclamation point pa sa pagkakatanda ko hehe.. Pero I didn't know na may mild polishes pala ito..Buti na lang once every 2 months ako nagdedetail..

[madkatz]

*jeff: generally polishes like these, when hand applied, are applied using a Foam applicator pad. You could check or buy any foam applicator pad available in the market, if you could still find some Zwipes MF + 2 Applicator pads, thats a nice deal since its just 170 and you get a large MF and 2 applicator pads already, Megs cost 88 pesos i think, and SM arnolds cost like 70 to 80? but generally any foam applicator pad should be ok.

As for applying the product basically its the same as my advice to chickselog,

1. apply it on one small area at a time to ensure even pressure
2. use light to moderate pressure and always check from time to time if it has removed the defect.
3. as for this product i would recommend working the product from both horizontally and vertically, i wouldn't recommend overlapping circular motion with this product
4. try to follow it up with a milder polish if the finish is not as glossy
5. never buff dry
6. don't use too much product since using too much will also remove more paint and we don't want that to happen
7. always buff it out after working the small area to prevent polish build ups
8. always check for uniformity of results and always check the panel you've done
9. do it with proper lighting
10. this takes a longer time to work the polish so thats about 5 minutes per 2x2 ft area with light to moderate pressure depending on the defect you are correcting
11. always test on a small not so noticeable area to check if you are ok with the products result before doing an entire panel or before doing the entire car. there are some instances that some people are not happy with the finish and gloss of their polishes

You could dampen the applicator, but not too wet, just damp, to help it spread the wax easier and have less wax absorbed inside.

but i prefer using QD, if not i prefer going straight to the wax.

No problem, feel free to ask, Hope this helps

[madkatz]

*chickselog: yes it does contain polishes. "It also contains a super-fine polish that further improves the paint surface" this is from the product description of mothers. Actually Step 1 is the one thats considered as mild polishes. both of them contain polishes its just that step 2 is significantly a lot safer for the paint. Its actually safe to use Moms step 2 and even Step 1 just as long as you apply it and buff it off with moderate pressure at most. For Moms Step 1 i would recommend people use it twice a year only, and as for Step 2 about 4x a year only. If you use Moms Step 1 2x a year and Moms Step 2 4x a year, your paint should still be able to last up to 10 years without clear coat failure, but this would have to rely on proper application. of course its basic rule that the more pressure you apply on the polish the more paint it removes thats why i always say that people should apply them using light to moderate pressure only, this way using step 1 even more than twice a year would still be safe. I read somewhere that even if you use Step 1 using moderate pressure up to 30 times, you would still have enough clear coat. And the amount of clear coat reduced by Step 2 would be definitely a lot smaller as compared to step 1, the amount removed is so small that it should barely even register on the paint thickness gauge, its small enough to be considered negligible. But these are all based on assuming that the proper technique was used in applying these polishes.

So in a sense it should be ok to apply it NEARLY as much as you like, but! there's always the but, provided you apply it properly.

[madkatz]

*chickselog: and oh yeah, using microtex plush to buff off SwirlX would be ok, actually it would be better, but like i said, in working polishes(SwirlX) you have to remove a lot more compared to waxes, and the orange towel would be more than enough for this job, its soft enough not to induce scratches and still hold up fairly well in removing the polishes, if you're correcting the vios one orange towel should be enough already and i would rather you use orange for SwirlX and save the Plush for Waxing.

that is if you have only one orange and one plush, but if you have 2 plushes, then all the better use plush for both polish and waxing.

[thx777]

*madkatz: Thanks for the quick reply, yes its the new everest. I'll take your advice on using the step 3 for a while at least for 2 months, actually the sales clerk at Blade want me to get the carnauba cleaner wax but I opted for a separate wax system, kase as I understand medyo may abrasive un cleaner wax and it will be harsh to use in a newly paint protected car. I bought the step 2 because I want to add luster sa paint ko, but if it will compromise the paint protection of my car then step 3 muna for the meantime. Thank you so much.

[jeff]

*jeff: generally polishes like these, when hand applied, are applied using a Foam applicator pad. You could check or buy any foam applicator pad available in the market, if you could still find some Zwipes MF + 2 Applicator pads, thats a nice deal since its just 170 and you get a large MF and 2 applicator pads already, Megs cost 88 pesos i think, and SM arnolds cost like 70 to 80? but generally any foam applicator pad should be ok.

As for applying the product basically its the same as my advice to chickselog,

1. apply it on one small area at a time to ensure even pressure
2. use light to moderate pressure and always check from time to time if it has removed the defect.
3. as for this product i would recommend working the product from both horizontally and vertically, i wouldn't recommend overlapping circular motion with this product
4. try to follow it up with a milder polish if the finish is not as glossy
5. never buff dry
6. don't use too much product since using too much will also remove more paint and we don't want that to happen
7. always buff it out after working the small area to prevent polish build ups
8. always check for uniformity of results and always check the panel you've done
9. do it with proper lighting
10. this takes a longer time to work the polish so thats about 5 minutes per 2x2 ft area with light to moderate pressure depending on the defect you are correcting
11. always test on a small not so noticeable area to check if you are ok with the products result before doing an entire panel or before doing the entire car. there are some instances that some people are not happy with the finish and gloss of their polishes

You could dampen the applicator, but not too wet, just damp, to help it spread the wax easier and have less wax absorbed inside.

but i prefer using QD, if not i prefer going straight to the wax.

No problem, feel free to ask, Hope this helps

thanks!

[Chikselog]

*madkatz
Thanks for the info .. Parang natatakot na akong magdetail ng more than once a month hehe..

Maximum of once a month detail (step 2 and 3) pwede pa ba? Baka mamaya in 5 years time ubos na clearcoat ko ..

Nagstart kasi ako magdetail at natarantang bumili ng step 2 nung nakita ko isang araw sobrang faded na nung paint sa trunk sa part na nakalagay yung "1.3E".. Fortunately, na-restore yung shine ng color nung ginamit ko yung step 2..

[madkatz]

*chickselog: Hmmm i guess using step 2 every month for the next 5 years would still give you enough clear coat to last a few more years, but i would highly advise you NOT to do it every month.

See, using step 2 every month would be ok, but the condition is that the only polish you use is only step 2.

In the real world scenario there would be a lot of times that you might need to use step 1, lets say you got some bird dropping stains, watermarks on the paint, swirls, tree sap etchings and a lot more. For correcting these defects you already need to use step 1 to have enough cleaning and cutting power to remove these defects, these defects cannot be removed by step 2, thats why for these special scenario's we use step 1. The reason why im advising you not to use step 2 every month is because we need to save as much clear coat as we can to preserve the lifespan of your paint, because even if step 2 theoretically removes a very very thin layer of paint, step 1 sadly removes significantly more, and since we cannot control our environment we should just save as much clear coat as we can.

Lets put it this way, lets say in 10 years time your car was perfectly protected with wax and did not encounter any major etching, swirling or staining, then even if you use step 2 for those 10 years, you still end up with a lot of paint, of course this also taking into account that we have applied step 2 properly and with light pressure only.

But we all know that this is not the real world scenario, lets take into account my revo, pre-ceramiclear days, every summer we go out to different provinces and my problem here would be tree saps and bird droppings, so lets say that i use step 1 twice during summer, then rainy season comes along and brings water marks on my paint and since rainy season in our country lasts months, lets say i use step 1 twice again for the rainy season. Then lets say there's the inevitable swirls that i want to remove so lets add 1 more application of step 1. All in all if you are OC about the defects about your car, that would be around 5 applications of step 1 per year, given that scenario considering step 1 only then my car probably would not last 10 years. In your case since its a daily driver and since you park outside the chances of you having to use step 1 becomes higher.

Thats why they say that step 1 should be used at least twice a year based on mothers, and i try to stick with that, but i try to stick with the minimum which is 2x a year but sometimes i reach 3x a year depending on how abused the car was.

If you really want to use step 2 more often, why not just use it every other month? or every 3 months? The other thing you can do is you could use step 2 every month along with waxing but try to lessen the usage of Step 1, if you have unsightly defects you could just skip step 1 and use step 2 every month and over the course of time it would slowly remove the stain or etching in the paint. I mentioned above that your car is a daily drive car (correct me if im wrong ) and in this sense i would also understand why there might be a need to use step 2 more often, in your case i would recommend you use step 2 every other month, this would maintain the cars brillant finish at the same time give a nice balance for your need to use step 1.

If after a month and your paint still looks great, and gives out a nice shine, then you could skip using step 2 for that month. i just hope it permanently removes the faded part of your paint.

Another thing to note is that, once paint is properly prepared and properly maintained, you could actually go for months without using step 2 or any polish for that matter and your paint still looks great. The Innova pics i posted before was only treated with KSG and Collinite 915, that picture was taken with more than 8 months past since it had been polished and it still looks nice, its not great and excellent but still nice. Too bad it had tree sap stains all over it, sadly the stains can't be removed completly, and i have to remove a slightly more than normal amount of clear coat to be able to make them less noticeable. So im gonna have to try if Step 1 can remove it, if not SwirlX, if not Ultimate compound or i might have to hit it with M84 and a rotary polisher.


Hope this helps.