Ask a Professional Detailer
On The Tree
Joined: Sep 2009
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Jeff, saw the McLaren intro video on your site. What wash mitt are you using? Is it the Pinnacle one? I figured if it's good enough for a McLaren then it should be good enough for my goat....also have you ever tried the Shmitt? I hear nothing but good things about it.
Anyone use a steam cleaner in their lineup? I was looking at a few models and some of them are upwards of 700-1300 dollars.
I don't want to drop that kind of coin for one.
Anyone have one they use with good results that isn't an arm and a leg? I've been pretty impressed with some of the videos I've seen on the net with the cleaning of some of them.
I don't want to drop that kind of coin for one.
Anyone have one they use with good results that isn't an arm and a leg? I've been pretty impressed with some of the videos I've seen on the net with the cleaning of some of them.
Interesting video, no doubt, but this kid is asking for trouble imo. No lubrication whatsoever? He's asking for swirls/marring imo. I love my steam cleaner for my engine bay, door jambs, wheel wells, sometimes even badly caked wheels, but I would NEVER "wash" my car like that!!
I'm curious to hear Jeffs thoughts on this.
I'm curious to hear Jeffs thoughts on this.
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 449
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From: Bay Area
Jeff laughs everytime I text him about the guy at the local cars n coffee uses those on cars there.
I would think it would scratch because 1. Paint gets hot so it gets soft 2. No soap 3. The towels the people use are horrible
I would think it would scratch because 1. Paint gets hot so it gets soft 2. No soap 3. The towels the people use are horrible
Yeah, I don't want a industrial sized piece like that.
I'm mostly interested in one that I can use for the interior. Carpets,Seats and Jambs. Just something that can clean it well and won't leave a huge mess or make the detail last even longer.
I hate taking my carpet cleaner outside and going over and over the carpets and mats (when I don't have a extractor). The carpets seem to get wet and stay damp and thus they dry all weird and sometimes smell.
Steam cleaner would be a quick and easy way to deodorize the interior and I've heard they work well with leather since it softens it up and the pores open up nicely for products to clean easier and conditioner to absorb.
Anything else like wheels and under the hood would just be an added bonus!
I'm mostly interested in one that I can use for the interior. Carpets,Seats and Jambs. Just something that can clean it well and won't leave a huge mess or make the detail last even longer.
I hate taking my carpet cleaner outside and going over and over the carpets and mats (when I don't have a extractor). The carpets seem to get wet and stay damp and thus they dry all weird and sometimes smell.
Steam cleaner would be a quick and easy way to deodorize the interior and I've heard they work well with leather since it softens it up and the pores open up nicely for products to clean easier and conditioner to absorb.
Anything else like wheels and under the hood would just be an added bonus!
I bought one of these threw Kohl's for around 80 bucks.
I had read good reviews on it and for that price I figure it would be worth a try. It makes a lot of steam but doesn't have enough pressure to blow the dirt away like in door jambs. The main reason I bought it was for cleaning around emblems. Needless to say I'm looking for another steam cleaner. I know I'm going to have to spend some money to get a good one.
I had read good reviews on it and for that price I figure it would be worth a try. It makes a lot of steam but doesn't have enough pressure to blow the dirt away like in door jambs. The main reason I bought it was for cleaning around emblems. Needless to say I'm looking for another steam cleaner. I know I'm going to have to spend some money to get a good one.
I bought one of these threw Kohl's for around 80 bucks.
Amazon.com: McCulloch MC-1275 Heavy-Duty Steam Cleaner. Model is made for 120 Volts only.: Home & Kitchen
I had read good reviews on it and for that price I figure it would be worth a try. It makes a lot of steam but doesn't have enough pressure to blow the dirt away like in door jambs. The main reason I bought it was for cleaning around emblems. Needless to say I'm looking for another steam cleaner. I know I'm going to have to spend some money to get a good one.
Amazon.com: McCulloch MC-1275 Heavy-Duty Steam Cleaner. Model is made for 120 Volts only.: Home & Kitchen
I had read good reviews on it and for that price I figure it would be worth a try. It makes a lot of steam but doesn't have enough pressure to blow the dirt away like in door jambs. The main reason I bought it was for cleaning around emblems. Needless to say I'm looking for another steam cleaner. I know I'm going to have to spend some money to get a good one.
While theres so many of you guys visiting the thread. Has anyone used the wheel woolies? Anyone recommend anything any better than them?
I'm also looking at buying some of the Auto Finesse Iron Out for the paint, heard it works really well, but I'm curious as to what the actual point of it is? Does this take the need for claying out since it decon's?
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Verdad Gallardo Thats my thing too. I don't mind spending money, but I really don't wanna spend 500 dollars on something that I'm not likely to use very often?
While theres so many of you guys visiting the thread. Has anyone used the wheel woolies? Anyone recommend anything any better than them?
I'm also looking at buying some of the Auto Finesse Iron Out for the paint, heard it works really well, but I'm curious as to what the actual point of it is? Does this take the need for claying out since it decon's?
While theres so many of you guys visiting the thread. Has anyone used the wheel woolies? Anyone recommend anything any better than them?
I'm also looking at buying some of the Auto Finesse Iron Out for the paint, heard it works really well, but I'm curious as to what the actual point of it is? Does this take the need for claying out since it decon's?
Wheel woolies are great. I have the Daytona speed brushes but find myself using the WW more. It really just depends on the type of wheel you are trying to clean.
The point of Auto Finesse Iron Out is it pulls any ferrous metal out of the clear coat. Claying just removes the above surface bonded contaminants. Rail dust, ferrous metals, fallout, etc. lands on your paint and sits there. When the vehicle gets hot the pores of the clear open up and the above mentioned bad stuff bonds itself into the clear.
I use Iron X and really like it. It doesn't take the place of claying but it can make claying easier. That's why I do a two stage decontamination process. You get the above the surface stuff with the clay and the stuff thats embedded in the clear is removed by Iron X or whatever product you use.
Check out this thread for a great explanation concerning paint decon;
http://www.autopia.org/forum/carpro-...ro-iron-x.html
http://www.autopia.org/forum/carpro-...ro-iron-x.html
Thanks I'll check that out!
http://www.detailersdomain.com/NanoS...nch_p_709.html
Would you ever trust one of these vs. the good ole fashion clay? They even make wash mitt's that you can use with some soap and it supposedly removes the particles like clay.
http://www.detailersdomain.com/NanoS...nch_p_709.html
Would you ever trust one of these vs. the good ole fashion clay? They even make wash mitt's that you can use with some soap and it supposedly removes the particles like clay.
Last edited by Screamin_99; May 4, 2013 at 01:24 PM.
Thanks I'll check that out!
http://www.detailersdomain.com/NanoS...nch_p_709.html
Would you ever trust one of these vs. the good ole fashion clay? They even make wash mitt's that you can use with some soap and it supposedly removes the particles like clay.
http://www.detailersdomain.com/NanoS...nch_p_709.html
Would you ever trust one of these vs. the good ole fashion clay? They even make wash mitt's that you can use with some soap and it supposedly removes the particles like clay.
http://www.autogeek.net/nanoskin-car-care-products.html
Since the price of clay has went up so much its given other manufacturers the opportunity to create new products. The great thing about nanoskin is if you drop it you can wash it off instead of throwing it away like clay.
I'm pretty sure there's a few people in this thread that have used the nanoskin mitts or towels.
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 449
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From: Bay Area
Jay is right the medium grade will marr, haven't really noticed much if any with the fine grade. But even the marring left behind the medium isn't hard to remove. I'd stick with the fine grade ones either in the mitt, towel, or block/sponge. The pads are nice for volume places I guess but make it a pain cuz u have to bring out ur DA just clay the car.
Remember to break it in on your window prior to using on your paint.
Remember to break it in on your window prior to using on your paint.
Jay is right the medium grade will marr, haven't really noticed much if any with the fine grade. But even the marring left behind the medium isn't hard to remove. I'd stick with the fine grade ones either in the mitt, towel, or block/sponge. The pads are nice for volume places I guess but make it a pain cuz u have to bring out ur DA just clay the car.
Remember to break it in on your window prior to using on your paint.
Remember to break it in on your window prior to using on your paint.
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Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 449
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From: Bay Area
The Autoscrub pad was the first one to come out your right. The Sponges are a good bang for the buck since they still should last longer than clay plus you can still drop them and wash them off. The towel/mitt last a long time so they are a good value as well just steeper up front cost.
What polisher are you guys using? I still have a PC that I bought many years ago and it's still going strong. It works well, but I keep hearing good things about the others on the market and this question actually came up on another board I belong to.
I keep hearing positive things about the rupes LHR21 the 21mm throw seems very appealing.
Is it worthwhile? I just bought a ton of pads and a backing plate for my PC. Will any of this stuff carry over? Looks like the rupes is very easy to use and again I can't get over how much surface area it can cover.
My biggest question is, for someone like me who has only used a PC is there a learning curve for the Rupes or can I go straight into it? I've heard the FLEX and Griots is also a good polisher, but the FLEX is a straight shaft? And the Griots is a new gen DA, so really this isn't much different than my PC correct?
I keep hearing positive things about the rupes LHR21 the 21mm throw seems very appealing.
Is it worthwhile? I just bought a ton of pads and a backing plate for my PC. Will any of this stuff carry over? Looks like the rupes is very easy to use and again I can't get over how much surface area it can cover.
My biggest question is, for someone like me who has only used a PC is there a learning curve for the Rupes or can I go straight into it? I've heard the FLEX and Griots is also a good polisher, but the FLEX is a straight shaft? And the Griots is a new gen DA, so really this isn't much different than my PC correct?
What polisher are you guys using? I still have a PC that I bought many years ago and it's still going strong. It works well, but I keep hearing good things about the others on the market and this question actually came up on another board I belong to.
I keep hearing positive things about the rupes LHR21 the 21mm throw seems very appealing.
Is it worthwhile? I just bought a ton of pads and a backing plate for my PC. Will any of this stuff carry over? Looks like the rupes is very easy to use and again I can't get over how much surface area it can cover.
My biggest question is, for someone like me who has only used a PC is there a learning curve for the Rupes or can I go straight into it? I've heard the FLEX and Griots is also a good polisher, but the FLEX is a straight shaft? And the Griots is a new gen DA, so really this isn't much different than my PC correct?
I keep hearing positive things about the rupes LHR21 the 21mm throw seems very appealing.
Is it worthwhile? I just bought a ton of pads and a backing plate for my PC. Will any of this stuff carry over? Looks like the rupes is very easy to use and again I can't get over how much surface area it can cover.
My biggest question is, for someone like me who has only used a PC is there a learning curve for the Rupes or can I go straight into it? I've heard the FLEX and Griots is also a good polisher, but the FLEX is a straight shaft? And the Griots is a new gen DA, so really this isn't much different than my PC correct?
At first the Rupes seemed awkward and hard to control, (more power and 13mm worth of added throw will do that)buy the third panel it felt like the PC.
IMO, whatever that's worth, if you are going to upgrade from the PC the Rupes is the only thing out there worth going to. The small, if any, benefits you would see going to the new Groits, Megs or FLEX wouldn't be worth the cost of a new machine.
The Rupes is that good. It's hard to understand till after you've used it.
The pads will carry over to the Rupes as long as you buy the corresponding sized backing plates. The Rupes uses its own style of backing plate so that can't be carried over.
The PC is still good to have. There's some places that the 21mm throw is just too much and the PC works great.
The PC is still good to have. There's some places that the 21mm throw is just too much and the PC works great.
That's what I figured, but wanted to get some other input. So maybe I should keep the PC and look at getting some 3" pads for it to work with the rupes then or just get a few different backing plates for the rupes and call it a day. I've been considering buying a few interior brushes to use with my PC anyway. Might keep the PC around just for that lol.
Thanks for the info!
Thanks for the info!