Anyone into detailing cars?

halen

@mantis
Good gawd Batman. You need to get an Alfred or 50 of him. Question is. How do you take care of your shoes. I think a pair of shoes tell me much more about a person. Haha

halen

mantis

halen wrote: »

@mantis
Good gawd Batman. You need to get an Alfred or 50 of him. Question is. How do you take care of your shoes. I think a pair of shoes tell me much more about a person. Haha

halen

Whats and Alfred or 50 of him? Not sure what that means.
My Rims and tires are always clean. I wipe them down in-between washes. I hate when they get dirty. You can barely tell when they start to get dirty since they are black.

tonyb

Alfred....as in Bruce Wayne's butler. C'mon Dan....lol. Car looks sharp btw.

Mikey081057

Go here used by fanatical detailers all over

https://www.griotsgarage.com/

tonyb

Dang Mikey, too many processes with that stuff. How about one bottle solutions, for those of us who don't have a whole weekend to work on waxing a car.

Mikey081057

Or take it to a pro or have one come to your driveway

polrbehr

Does anyone have any info on a product that can be used in the air vents? Once upon a time, I heard about a foam that could be used to clean and deodorize the air ducts in vehicles, but not sure if such a thing exists? Thanks.

msg

What a bunch of great info here.
I hate getting started on this stuff, because I know it's going to take me hours, but like a lot of you, it's completely worth the effort and sore hands the next day. I find myself admiring the work for a few days after, especially that first night.

Laughed to Halen's note re: the perception of the vehicle driving smoother, faster and handling better when it's clean - I swear I notice the exact same thing! I don't think this can be debunked.

mantis

Once you get your car detailed by a professional, it's much easier to keep up on it. Dirt doesn't stick to it like when you have no wax on your paint.

recoveryone

Clay is the way to go, its just time consuming. Its hard to find someone that will do it now days unless you go to a highend detailer then it will cost you.

sgmsmg

polrbehr wrote: »

Does anyone have any info on a product that can be used in the air vents? Once upon a time, I heard about a foam that could be used to clean and deodorize the air ducts in vehicles, but not sure if such a thing exists? Thanks.

This is the stuff I think you were talking about.

https://www.amazon.com/nextzett-96110515-Klima-Cleaner-Conditioner-Cleaner/dp/B0002Z2MKO

[Deleted User]

Definitely clay it after you wash and dry it. Then after the clay, go over the car from top to bottom with Quick detailer spray. You're going to crap your draws when you feel how smooth the finish is with claying and Quick detail.****If you accidently drop your clay, throw it away. It'll pick up lots of crap off the ground that will scratch the hell out of paint.

Wax and buff it clean. I have a DA orbital and use Zano brand chemicals (I'm pretty sure Zano is a Canadian) or do it by hand with whatever brand you like. All Zano stuff smells great too. Google Zano and read up on their stuff.

After wax and buff, Quick detail it again, then wax/buff again followed up with another coat of Quick detail. Keep doing this as much as you can to build it up.

A California Duster and Quick Detailer will become your best friends after you get several coats of wax on there. The California Duster works better and better as it gets dirty so don't try to clean. Go over the car every night with these two and it will always look like it was just detailed. Your garage will always smell good too.

charley95

You have to be careful with a California car duster. I'll use it if the car has been sitting in the garage collecting dust but, I don't use it after I've driven the car in the elements. Of course my car is black and very sensitive to scratching, if you look at it wrong it scratches. Mother's has a substitute to clay,called Speed Clay 2.0. It works great and can be cleaned off if you drop it. I swore I would never own a black car but with all the improvements in car care products it's not a problem.

In the 35 years I've been detailing my cars I must say the most bang for your buck product I've ever used is Adam's polishes H20 Guard & Gloss. You spray it onto the paint when the car is still wet after you wash it and use it as a drying aid. It only works on paint that is already maintained and not an enhancer on paint that's not maintained.

mantis

I hear the rave over Adams products. I really wonder if they are any better then everything that has been made in the last 30 years?

I don't go wrong or feel the need for better with Maguire's and Mothers stuff. I do use 3M and some other professional stuff as I use to be a detailer and like the Pro grade stuff.
I might have to get a care package from Adam's to try it out. The Mighty spell of some products can lead you to believe the work better. We shall see.

mantis

Many years ago I strongly considered opening up my own detailing business but there just isn't a lot of money in it. Unless you have an array of car show and high end clients , the money simply isn't there. It's hard word and very time consuming.

tonyb

mantis wrote: »

. It's hard work and very time consuming.

Which, beats the pants off of me why anyone would want a product that time consuming. If you drive a Ferrari, I would understand, or a classic car in mint condition. Truth be told, we all probably drive every day cars, don't keep them all that long, and expose them to the elements.

Personally, I'd rather have a product easier to use, less time consuming, and do it more often than a process that takes numerous applications and hours on end.

mantis

Cleaning your car that you love is therapeutic in many ways. I enjoy spending the time.

charley95

mantis wrote: »

Cleaning your car that you love is therapeutic in many ways. I enjoy spending the time.

I agree! It's more of a hobby to me and isn't as expensive as most hobbies. Does it make the car worth more at trade in time?!, probably not. It drives me nuts people that pay 40,50 & 60k for a car and really don't make much effort to take care of it. I've always wanted take care of things like it's the last one I'll ever buy when it comes to bigger ticket items. If I have a newer car I'll usually keep it a minimum of 10yrs. or longer.

motorhead43026

^^One of the many things I don't let get to me, is how other people take care of their cars.

pitdogg2

motorhead43026 wrote: »

^^One of the many things I don't let get to me, is how other people take care of their cars.

Right i have a friend that only lets mother wash the vehicle.....

mrbiron

pitdogg2 wrote: »

motorhead43026 wrote: »

^^One of the many things I don't let get to me, is how other people take care of their cars.

Right i have a friend that only lets mother wash the vehicle.....

She never gets the wheel wells nor cleans the inside of the windshield..... Lazy Batch!
I found she covered my truck in leaves during a late night protest. They'll blow off on the highway

nooshinjohn

pitdogg2 wrote: »

Right i have a friend that only lets mother wash the vehicle.....

Stop hanging out with Norman. Nothing but trouble.

Clipdat

I enjoy detailing, but I don't do my car very often since I have to park it outside 24/7. Always an uphill battle and frustrating when it gets dirty again two days after I spend 5+ hours working on it. Echoing what others have said, clay is essential. I've also had good luck with this product, Tech Shine: https://www.amazon.com/Wet-Applied-Coating-5-Minute-Application-Exterior/dp/B015OW1Q56/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1509377448&sr=8-1-spons

Here's a few pics of my most recent detail back in September:

charley95

motorhead43026 wrote: »

^^One of the many things I don't let get to me, is how other people take care of their cars.

Not literally for me but, at least make some effort to maintain your expensive purchase.

polrbehr

sgmsmg wrote: »

polrbehr wrote: »

Does anyone have any info on a product that can be used in the air vents? Once upon a time, I heard about a foam that could be used to clean and deodorize the air ducts in vehicles, but not sure if such a thing exists? Thanks.

This is the stuff I think you were talking about.

https://www.amazon.com/nextzett-96110515-Klima-Cleaner-Conditioner-Cleaner/dp/B0002Z2MKO

Thanks for the link, that is probably exactly what I need. I'm not sure I can
open up the A/C intake though? I think the drain hose got blocked up awhile back
and now the air coming out is stale and moldy smelling, ugh. This may require a trip
to CarzMedics, local guys who supposedly do good work.

Keep the tips coming though, I have a lot more I could probably do to the exterior of my cars too.

halo

I've always used Meguiar's car care products. They used to have a guarantee on the bottle stating if you weren't happy with the results, send back the unused portion & a copy of the receipt for a full refund. That no longer appears on their product bottles.

This was the last car that I owned, a 1972 Buick Skylark 2-door post coupe. It belonged to my uncle and sat in a garage attached to a barn in Wisconsin for a very, very, long time. It was covered in mouse turds and godonlyknowswhatelse when I bought it. I always got good results with Meguiar's products; I used their 3-step Deep Crystal System on this car after washing the outside with Megiuar's Deep Crystal car wash. I also detailed the interior. After I was done, I was happy with the results.




I used the same 3-step Deep Crystal system on my '79 Olds Cutlass as well:



My wife & I purchased my an '09 Outback from my mom and we cleaned it up with Meguiar's Ultimate products (compound, polish, wax) a few weekends back with my brother's help:





I owned a lot of cars over the years, too many to share here, but once I discovered Meguiar's I really didn't feel the need to go with anything else. Always used car wash soap with a wash mitt, along with using a squeegee & an Absorber brand synthetic chamois to dry the car. Have had an orbital 9" buffer (Craftsman) since '91 and it still works today. I tried different pads (terry cloth, microfiber, foam, & wool) and found that the terry cloth works the best for my applications. Clay bar works well but it takes forever and if you drop it you have to toss it in the bin. Cleaning compound worked well for me unless the paint had a problem spot that required the clay bar.

Tony M

I forgot to ad a tip from the former detailer that told me about double waxing. After I just wrote this addition, maybe it was that Rolls re-painter that told me. It's been 10 and 20 years since I learned this test.

One of them said if your finger nails, while sliding across the paint surface, scraped like a chalk board on the car or truck paint, it needed waxing.
After waxing, your finger nails will slide effortless across the paint.
I know new cars clear coating will be slick for a very long time !

Over the months after double waxing, I'd notice the hood and trunks would start to be less slick but the sides always stayed slick.

Clipdat

Would describe this for needing to claybar, and then follow up with wax.

Tony M wrote: »

I
One of them said if your finger nails, while sliding across the paint surface, scraped like a chalk board on the car or truck paint, it needed waxing.
After waxing, your finger nails will slide effortless across the paint.

SCompRacer

Tony M wrote: »

I know new cars clear coating will be slick for a very long time !

You still have industrial fallout to contend with. Also depends if car parked outside, garage kept, etc. A hand in baggie dragged across a washed/dried finish will reveal all.

SCompRacer

halo wrote: »

Clay bar works well but it takes forever and if you drop it you have to toss it in the bin.

Now they have clay mits! I'm old school, still love the clay bar. Flatten a portion of it like a pancake. Just don't drop it. Do the glass too. I use sealer on the glass too, including windshield. No wax though.