Detailing Thread [For Newbies][ARCHIVED]

[madkatz]

*jon: i've tried claying, all it did was remove the rock hard top layer of the sap, and im left with a deep etch on my paint, the 4th picture i posted is its image without being clayed, and the 3rd picture where you could clearly see the etch was done with a UWS 3 step already. I guess i have no choice but to machine polish it, and maybe use some glaze if it helps to hide it a little. Any polish you could recommend? I remember you used power polish with great results, could you rate its cutting level? i think i've asked you this before but im trying to compare it or place it beside some of its Megs counterpart. Im looking forward to simply polishing and just reducing the unsightly blemishes, and as much as possible i wouldn't want to resort to something that has a lot of cut like using a compound or an intensive polish.

Oh yeah as for the lighting question, i use fluorescent, halogen and mercury lights.

Fluorescent light for revealing oxidation and spot blemishes on the paint and some light swirls

Halogen light for hologram and micro marring as well as scratches and swirls

Mercury light for mainly for swirls only.

[Lanchong]

*madkatz

Magpapa wax ako bukas para maalis ang swirls at scratches ng black City ko. They recommend me Step 1 and 2 for 1,600 the Polymer sealant for 900 then bigyan nila ako discount so only 2,300 na lang babayaran ko.

Tama ba yung nirecommend nilang gawin sa oto ko? how about yung price?

TIA

[Chikselog]

Sir jon I found this link in the megs forums
[SIZE=2]How To Remove Water Spots off Automotive Paints[/SIZE]

And it was mentioned there that Megs ScratchX also removes swirls..

ScratchX is a paint cleaner that uses Meguiar's Microscopic Diminishing Abrasive Technology to safely remove swirls, scratches and other below surface imperfections out of the paint.

I would like to ask for your opinion sir, have you used ScratchX in removing swirls? Was it effective? Does this mean that ScratchX 2.0 is also effective against swirls, because it is the better version of the ScratchX..

Because I am now considering on getting the ScratchX 2.0 instead of the SwirlX.. TIA sir!

[madkatz]

*Chickselog: ScratchX can remove more defects compared to SwirlX but it also removes more clear coat as compared to SwirlX, Think of ScratchX as a stronger version of SwirlX. But lets also wait for Jon's take on the matter.

[madkatz]

*Lanchong: May i know which shop you are planning to go to? Also would you know which products they would be using for their step 1 and step 2?

If the scratches are moderate scratches and heavy swirls then this would be the way to go, they actually recommended a 3 step process to you, that is if they mean step 1 being compounding and step 2 being polishing and topping it off with the sealant. but if its just light scratches and moderate swirls, i would recommend you just go for a 2 step process where step 1 being polishing and step 2 being sealing. See as much as possible i would recommend against the point of reaching the compounding part especially if you plan on keeping the car for a longer period of time, see the compounding part really takes off a lot of clear coat from your paint and i would only suggest this stage for drastic paint corrections, usually just by doing polishing and sealing/waxing there would already be a huge improvement in the paints appearance when done properly.

[jonjon_u]

*jon: i've tried claying, all it did was remove the rock hard top layer of the sap, and im left with a deep etch on my paint, the 4th picture i posted is its image without being clayed, and the 3rd picture where you could clearly see the etch was done with a UWS 3 step already. I guess i have no choice but to machine polish it, and maybe use some glaze if it helps to hide it a little. Any polish you could recommend? I remember you used power polish with great results, could you rate its cutting level? i think i've asked you this before but im trying to compare it or place it beside some of its Megs counterpart. Im looking forward to simply polishing and just reducing the unsightly blemishes, and as much as possible i wouldn't want to resort to something that has a lot of cut like using a compound or an intensive polish.

Oh yeah as for the lighting question, i use fluorescent, halogen and mercury lights.

Fluorescent light for revealing oxidation and spot blemishes on the paint and some light swirls

Halogen light for hologram and micro marring as well as scratches and swirls

Mercury light for mainly for swirls only.

I see. If you already have your Porter Cable 7424XP, then you could try the Mothers PowerPolish with a Lake Country orange pad.

Here's a pic of the hood of the Starex taken on 2007, where I used the Mothers PowerPolish and the Lake Country orange pad with the Porter Cable 7424. While the spiderwebbing issue had been addressed, there were deep etchings whose appearance could only be improved a bit. As the Starex was a daily driver, I didn't decide to go to the next level of using a more aggressive method to "remove" them.





Here's the link showing how the Mother's PowerPolish compares with the Meguiar's and Poorboy's World products - Question about Powerpolish.

Hope this helps.


-------------------------------------------
Jon

My auto detailing experiences:
http://autodetailingexperience.blogspot.com/

[jonjon_u]

Sir jon I found this link in the megs forums
[SIZE=2]How To Remove Water Spots off Automotive Paints[/SIZE]

And it was mentioned there that Megs ScratchX also removes swirls..



I would like to ask for your opinion sir, have you used ScratchX in removing swirls? Was it effective? Does this mean that ScratchX 2.0 is also effective against swirls, because it is the better version of the ScratchX..

Because I am now considering on getting the ScratchX 2.0 instead of the SwirlX.. TIA sir!

I'm sorry, but I haven't used the ScratchX and the ScratchX 2.0 yet.

At any rate, what would you be working on? And are you going to apply the products by hand, or by machine?

I have read though that some have successfully used the ScratchX with the a PC 7424 to remove the spiderwebbing on their cars.

With regard to ScratchX 2.0, I can't comment if it's a better version as I have yet to try the product, but one thing could be said - that the 2.0 is significantly aggressive compared to the first. Here's a link showing, among others, the aggressiveness order of some Meguiar's products - Aggressiveness Order for New Consumer Products - This will surprise you!

But IMO, if you're going to do spot removal of certain scratches by hand, then i guess either one of the ScratchX products would do. If however you're going to spiderweb removal on the entire car via machine, you could still use both the ScratchX products, but considering the bottle size, it would be "economical" if you used the SwirlX, or even the Ultimate Compound.

Hope this helps.


-------------------------------------------
Jon

My auto detailing experiences:
http://autodetailingexperience.blogspot.com/

[Lanchong]

*madkatz

Auto Nexxus (shop dito sa Bataan). They will use Meguiars products.

Nagka damage kasi yung paint nung gumamit ang father ko ng 3M Scratch Remover (lalo lang nagasgasan). Nakakairita tignan kasi sa hood pa naman. 3 months pa lang yung oto.

Thanks po sa reply

[water]

madkatz

Kung magvacation ka ulit magdala ka na lang car cover para pag pumarada ka ulit under the trees eh iwas ipot kotse mo .

[madkatz]

*Lanchong: Then i would suggest you just have the car polished, going through the compounding stage is really not advisable especially since its just 3 months old, my innova is nearing 2 years and i also don't want to have it compounded yet since it would be too early. If you're having your car polished and if they're using Megs you could ask or request they use Megs 83 Dual Action Cleaner Polish, its very effective in removing swirls and light scratches.

[Lanchong]

*madkatz

I've just decided to DIY. Is Megs 83 Dual Action Cleaner Polish available in Blade? Anong pwede kong isunod sa kanya? Thanks alot for your help

[madkatz]

*Lanchong: By DIY i assume you would be doing it by hand right? See the Megs 83 Dual Action Cleaner polish is actually used with a rotary or an orbital polisher. If you're planning on doing it by hand then i would suggest you use Megs SwirlX, this product can be used by hand, it can remove light to moderate swirls and light scratches in one pass, if you're tackling heavy swirls and moderate scratches then you might need to do a double pass, this is also available in blade, i've used this product with great results, just be sure to top it up with any wax or sealant after using the SwirlX. Mothers and Megs are both available in blade and both have nice waxes, for Megs NXT and Gold Class are nice, For Moms the UWS Step 3, FX Synwax and Reflections Advance Wax + Topcoat works well for me. Of all of them i like the Reflections 2 step system best.

[Chikselog]

*sir jonjon & ma'am madkatz
Thanks po sa inyo, I'll stick with SwirlX na lang

BTW guys, may bagong products ang microtex, I saw this last thursday sa ACE sa SM San Lazaro..

Microtex Edgeless Wax Applicator (a microtex suede wrapped in a sponge-like thing) for only 50 bucks.. But still IMO, a foam round applicator is still better..

And the Microtex Terry Auto-Detailing Cloth (Orange Colored Cloth, I think the surface looks like the back of the microtex plush, yung maninipis yung microfibers) for 95 bucks..

I think intro price lang tong dalawang to..Orange ang color ng price tag eh..I took a picture of it on my phone but I can't upload it cause its memory card can't be read by the card reader

[badbadtz.carlo]

*Lanchong: By DIY i assume you would be doing it by hand right? See the Megs 83 Dual Action Cleaner polish is actually used with a rotary or an orbital polisher. If you're planning on doing it by hand then i would suggest you use Megs SwirlX, this product can be used by hand, it can remove light to moderate swirls and light scratches in one pass, if you're tackling heavy swirls and moderate scratches then you might need to do a double pass, this is also available in blade, i've used this product with great results, just be sure to top it up with any wax or sealant after using the SwirlX. Mothers and Megs are both available in blade and both have nice waxes, for Megs NXT and Gold Class are nice, For Moms the UWS Step 3, FX Synwax and Reflections Advance Wax + Topcoat works well for me. Of all of them i like the Reflections 2 step system best.

pardon my ignorance, but will the use of swirlX take off some clearcoats in the process? and the removal of the swirls and light scratches, are they permanently taken out of the surface or just masked na after sometime, babalik ulet?

thanks in advance, MadKatz and detailing gurus

[badbadtz.carlo]

sorry, double post

[jonjon_u]

pardon my ignorance, but will the use of swirlX take off some clearcoats in the process? and the removal of the swirls and light scratches, are they permanently taken out of the surface or just masked na after sometime, babalik ulet?

thanks in advance, MadKatz and detailing gurus

If you will use SwirlX to tackle swirls, spiderwebbing, and other mild scratches, then yes, you will have to remove some paint in the process. As to how much paint is removed would depend on factors such as the mode of application (by hand, or by machine), the applicator used, the pressure used in applying the product, etc...

SwirlX if used properly should rather remove and not hide the scratches. In other words, hindi na dapat bumalik yung scratches. If scratches later on appear, it's probably because of improper techniques in washing, drying, and quick detailing.

Hope this helps.


-------------------------------------------
Jon

My auto detailing experiences:
http://autodetailingexperience.blogspot.com/

[tool_46n2]

*Lanchong: By DIY i assume you would be doing it by hand right? See the Megs 83 Dual Action Cleaner polish is actually used with a rotary or an orbital polisher. If you're planning on doing it by hand then i would suggest you use Megs SwirlX, this product can be used by hand, it can remove light to moderate swirls and light scratches in one pass, if you're tackling heavy swirls and moderate scratches then you might need to do a double pass, this is also available in blade, i've used this product with great results, just be sure to top it up with any wax or sealant after using the SwirlX. Mothers and Megs are both available in blade and both have nice waxes, for Megs NXT and Gold Class are nice, For Moms the UWS Step 3, FX Synwax and Reflections Advance Wax + Topcoat works well for me. Of all of them i like the Reflections 2 step system best.

Available din and Meguiar's #26 Liquid Hi-tech yellow wax, i think this is bang for the buck at 950php for the 1 Liter... I'm planning to buy this, they've got good reviews at Autopia.org

[madkatz]

*chickselog: yup both are on introductory price, all orange tags on Ace and SM are promo tags. I've been fortunate to trial test these items before they were launched, The wax applicator is nice in terms that you could actually grab it and hold it comfortably but the downside for me is that is a lot harder to spread waxes especially paste waxes, its true to its claim that it doesn't absorb that much wax inside but at the cost of being easy to use im sticking with foam applicators, however this is a good alternative to MF covered applicators like the ones with Zwipes, its SRP is at 69.95 and it would be on regular price somewhere late january. As for the Cotton Terry towel, it comes in a bundle pack and this IMO is a bang for the buck, you could use this well for those dirty area's lets say dedicate one towel for removing asphalts, you could also use it for interiors and applying protectants and dressings, you can also use it for buffing off waxes and buffing off polishes, its also a reasonably priced, the price would be back to 125 to 130 by late January, so for those that are interested in getting these get them while they're still on introductory price.

BTW Microtex would be launching a few more of its new products by around February where the official launching would be at April, What out for these they have some nice products coming, although i can't disclose these yet, BTW im not working for them ok? i just know the owner personally.

[madkatz]

*badbadtz.carlo: I have the same take as Jon's, but based on experience its really a very versatile product, so when you apply it by hand try not to apply too much pressure and check the results and based on that, thats how you should determine how to tackle the whole car. See with just moderate pressure i can already remove moderate swirls, and with firm pressure and some more passes i could even go as far as tackle some severe defects already, so the pressure it applying the product is one main factor that is why i would recommend you use it starting with light pressure first. But when used with light pressure, lets say working the product for a good 3 to 5 minutes per big panel with the same pressure just like massaging/spreading the wax, i could already remove a lot of defects already. Also be sure to work the products and break down the product completely, because if you don't work it completely until its clear you might end up with a slightly hazed finish. Thats about the 2 most important tips i can give you but overall its a great product.

[madkatz]

*tool: thats the repacked version of Megs #26 from Simex, Its actually a good monthly wax, this wax is well worth its amount especially since its already 1 liter and you don't need as much to cover an entire car, its a nice wax all in all just as long as you wax monthly, its above average in all aspects of a wax except that in my experience it doesn't last as long, but for the price its well worth it, this is also the standard step 3 in meguiars detailing regimen, so basically if a detailing shop says its a 3 step process, chances are they use #26 for their step 3