Please help me with 'Car Detailing'

[mr_sikma]

Hey,

Had a look through some previous posts about this but I am a bit lazy too search too much and want to get a few of MY questions answered ;)

My car is metallic black, and the paint is about 2 years and was buffed about 6mnths ago but hasnt seen the road much since then so it should be ok. Although it has heaps of swirl marks in the sun. Whats the exact purpose of getting the car machine buffed? I reckon it looks crap after!

So the process is WASH, CLAY BAR, POLISH, WAX ???

I understand washing the car, but never used a Clay Bar but seen pics on here! How do you use one and do I need it?

I have only ever cut and polished an old acrylic paint car, i just put some on a cloth and rubbed in circular motion on small parts of the car. It was easy on a really faded paint job. Is it the same process on a metallic painted car?

And i have never actually waxed a car as alot of the car washes i have used say they have a wax in them. So how do you apply this and is it necessary?
I have read that waxing the car puts a 'protective' coat over the car, is that right?

Should i wash the car again after all of this?

Also i have heard good things about Meguiars so i may go and buy their products for this!

Basiacally there is a car show coming up soon and I want to remove all the swirl marks and small scratches, and try and make it a bit shinier, alhtough its not too bad at the moment!

Thanks :D

[mr_sikma]

Also i will be doing this all myself, without the use of any buffers etc and just good old elbow grease! Just incase that matters with any of the replies!

[Lt Ketch]

Firstly there is heaps of info on the web, so starting with some extra homework before doing anything helps a lot!

See
http://www.detailparadise.com.au/index.php (http://www.detailparadise.com.au/index.php)
https://www.waxit.com.au/default.asp (https://www.waxit.com.au/default.asp)
http://www.autopia-carcare.com/inf-paint-polish-clinic.html (http://www.autopia-carcare.com/inf-paint-polish-clinic.html)
http://www.properautocare.com/ (http://www.properautocare.com/)

In particular the detailparadise.com.au site has some good before and after show-n-shine pics of various coloured cars that their members have detailed, there are a couple of dark/black cars shown and the difference is amazing what can be done with a little elbow grease! Plus as I have found out they are very helpful (and understanding) with novices like me and our potentially dumb questions! – And its an Aussie site! – do a search on it and you should have your buffing/swirl question answered!

I started to use a clay bar about 12 months ago for the first time. I recommend you go and get one, follow the instructions making sure you use HEAPS of the lubricant that should come with it. Do one panel then wax and it’ll feel Sooooooo smooth you’ll wanna make love to it! J then once you have cleaned up and had a ciggy you’ll wanna make everyone one you know touch it just to show them how Smoooooooooooth you got it! After I do a panel on my car I make (force) my co-workers to go to the carpark to “feel” my smoothness!

[mr_sikma]

can you stuff up using a clay bar?

i always thought polish was supposed to smooth your car and i had never heard of a clay bar until reading some previous threads!

[Lt Ketch]

Firstly im a novice at the car detail thing so am happy to have any of my suggestions rebuked!


can you stuff up using a clay bar?

Its a harsh item by itself which is why you need plenty of lubricant, so I guess the answer is technically yes BUT probably not if used correctly, and to quote woody "a buttered monkey could do it!"


I always thought polish was supposed to smooth your car and i had never heard of a clay bar until reading some previous threads!

Me to until last year, BUT apparently there is "stuff" that gets on/in your paint that polishing wont remove!

[Petey]

Hey there,

I just clayed my car Monday morning as i had a day off work. First did it a year ago. It basically removes any bonded contaminants from the paint. If you move you fingers across any part of the paint you can feel little bumps & rough bits. The clay removes these & leaves your paint smooth as.

Wash the car really well first. Grab a clay bar & break it up into 4 pieces. Use lots of lubricant (meguiars quik detailer is readily available everywhere). Roll the clay into a ball & flatten it. Spray a section of a panel & move the clay gently over it back & forth till you've gone over that section. Look at it when you've done that section. It'll have bits of crap stuck in it. Thats what its removing.

Dry the section & move onto the next bit using the top side of the clay. Keep going till you've done the whole car BUT roll the clay ball up again & flatten again so you use a new section each time. If there are any larger bits of grit you can pick them out too.

VERY IMPORTANT if you drop it - TOSS it away as it will pick up a lot of grit & you will end up sanding scratches onto your paintwork! That's why you break it up into 4 pieces or so... When the piece your working on gets quite dark, toss it away too (try it on your glass if you like).

Thats all there is to it. The paint will them be ready for a good polish & wax or sealant. If you have swirls or spiderwebs visible in the sun the best way to remove them is with a random orbital buffer but it can be done by hand. Check out the web sites Lt Ketch posted. lots of great info there.

Sorry for the long post but using clay can be dangerous to your paint if your not cautious... But man what a smooth shine when your done!!!

My fave site is www.autopia.org for detailing. Lots of helpful info there. Bye.

[Apex]

Im no professional so i find trying to cut a car by hand can be very difficult and can often make the car look worse than before you started, I have found Meguiars Scratch X transforms the paint on dark coloured cars and is easy to buff by hand (amature) and its clear coat safe!

No I don’t work for Meguiars, but I do find this product very good, it’s the only Meguiars product I would spend my cash on, IMHO the best products are F1 Brand, they don’t cost an arm and a leg and available from Supercheap!

I polish my cars every 2nd wash, not sure if this is too much?, it keeps my cars looking new though.

my 2 cents.

[Tfer]

Hey there,

I just clayed my car Monday morning as i had a day off work. First did it a year ago. It basically removes any bonded contaminants from the paint. If you move you fingers across any part of the paint you can feel little bumps & rough bits. The clay removes these & leaves your paint smooth as.

Wash the car really well first. Grab a clay bar & break it up into 4 pieces. Use lots of lubricant (meguiars quik detailer is readily available everywhere). Roll the clay into a ball & flatten it. Spray a section of a panel & move the clay gently over it back & forth till you've gone over that section. Look at it when you've done that section. It'll have bits of crap stuck in it. Thats what its removing.

Dry the section & move onto the next bit using the top side of the clay. Keep going till you've done the whole car BUT roll the clay ball up again & flatten again so you use a new section each time. If there are any larger bits of grit you can pick them out too.

VERY IMPORTANT if you drop it - TOSS it away as it will pick up a lot of grit & you will end up sanding scratches onto your paintwork! That's why you break it up into 4 pieces or so... When the piece your working on gets quite dark, toss it away too (try it on your glass if you like).

Thats all there is to it. The paint will them be ready for a good polish & wax or sealant. If you have swirls or spiderwebs visible in the sun the best way to remove them is with a random orbital buffer but it can be done by hand. Check out the web sites Lt Ketch posted. lots of great info there.

Sorry for the long post but using clay can be dangerous to your paint if your not cautious... But man what a smooth shine when your done!!!

My fave site is www.autopia.org (http://www.autopia.org) for detailing. Lots of helpful info there. Bye.

I doubt whether anyone could have said it better :clap: Great info :)

[mr_sikma]

Im no professional so i find trying to cut a car by hand can be very difficult and can often make the car look worse than before you started, I have found Meguiars Scratch X transforms the paint on dark coloured cars and is easy to buff by hand (amature) and its clear coat safe!

If done by hand what bad affects have you had that has made your car look worse? And how was this caused?

I am trying to find out all the problems / mistakes before i try this!!!

[Petey]

if polishing your paint by hand,

1. make sure its clean, wash it first...

2. use clean foam applicators, cotton cloths or microfibre cloths.

3. take your time. don't rush it. (hand jobs = lots of pain afterwards.)

4. some say try to polish in the direction of airflow, not circles.

5. you will have to put some physical effort into it, after all your removing a tiny, tiny, layer of paint.

it can be done.

get yourself some useful tools.

there is a 4" plastic & foam applicator that you can buy (about $27) from www.waxit.com.au that will assist you plus allows you to change foam pads.

scratchX is good too but takes an awful lot of time by hand for the whole car!

there are other brand name polishes out there too.

best of luck Mr_Sikma...

[mr_sikma]

cheers guys

what causes buff marks then? and polishing is the only way to get rid of them?

[Petey]

they're caused by poor technique with a machine

polishing is the only way to get rid of them permanently

you can hide them with a glaze & wax temporarily

if you can avoid it, also dont let the "car wash business's " near your paint with their sponges & old chammies

avoid using the broom handles in DIY car washes too

otherwise you get swirls, scratches etc...