Rare96LT1Formula

iTrader: (32)

Agreed!

LunarWillow

iTrader: (3)

I agree that it's more of a final glaze, I know they say it's a hybrid swirl remover/glaze/sealant/etc, but my intended use is more of a pre-LSP, such as a vehicle that I've fully corrected before that just needs the shine brought back up before my choice of sealant/wax is applied again. If I'm doing a full correction, or a coating like Opti or CQuartz, it wouldn't be used. But, once I get it in my hands and start using it, I'll see how (or if) it fits into my lineup.

LilJayV10

iTrader: (39)

Thought I would pass along that I used Pinnacle's glass polish for water spots. The car I'm doing right now has really bad water spots on the glass and paint. I tried the normal stuff for water spots but nothing touched it. I had picked up the glass polish and glass cleaner on special from AG a month or so ago and hadn't used it yet.

Pinnacle suggest using a polishing pad but it didn't touch it. I ended up using a Meg's MP finishing pad on the Rupes 21 and was very impressed. There were a few spots I got to go over twice but all in all I'm pleased with the results.

Screamin_99

iTrader: (5)

I know it's posted on the front page of the appearance section, but Detailers Domain is holding a Memorial day sale as well as most other company's.

I've seen anywhere from 10-20% off depending on where you go!

I did have another question regarding de-con removal. I think I'm going to buy the Nano Skin from DetailersDomain.. This is similar to fine grade clay, is it necessary to still use a medium before hand or would the use of iron-x or similar de-cons be sufficient here? Or am I going a little overboard?

Also, how hard is the opti-coat to apply and is it worth it vs a good coat or two of sealant and LSP?

LilJayV10

iTrader: (39)

Are you going to polish after the de con and claying? If not I would probably stick with the fine grade, some medium grade clay/nanoskin can leave marring.

Regardless of what grade of clay you use I would still use Iron X or something similar. It does different things than claying does. It will be easier to clay after you using Iron X.

OC is great but IMO it can be a pain in the *** to work with. There is a learning curve to it. Priming the pad IMO is the hardest part. Once the pad is primed its easy peasy. The most important part is to knock down any high spots before it sets up completely. If does setup you have to polish the high spots down which isn't a big deal unless you don't have a polisher and the polish to do it.

FWIW the only time I will OC a car is after a full correction. Reason being whatever is under the OC is there to stay.

I use Blackfire Wet Diamond Sealant and really like it. You can let it set up for up to 24 hours to get the best results out of it.

Rare96LT1Formula

iTrader: (32)

Well said Jason. Being an owner of a white vehicle, I'm a big advocate of performing an iron removal step in the decontamination phase. It makes a big difference, and cleans the paint up quite well for further work.

I've been meaning to try the Auto Finesse iron remover, but I'm still working through the last of my Iron-X & Wolf's Decon gel. Anyone tried this yet??

AWDTBSS

Stick with fine grade unless your just always doing cars that are almost never clayed.

LilJayV10

iTrader: (39)

A full decon is important, the whole car looked like this.

White.Lightning

iTrader: (53)

I finally got a chance to detail my car this weekend. This was my first time using the PC7424XP and all of the other supplies I acquired. I will say for those on the fence about buying a PC7424XP or similar, BUY ONE! I was amazed at how easy it was to use and the results that I obtained. Here was my correction process:

Wash w/ dawn
Meguiars Clay bar (blue)
Meguiars M105 w/ orange pad
Meguiars M205 w/ white pad
Meguiars Gold Class Carnauba paste wax

I even went as far as to remove my spoiler and tail lights and get under/behind them good......









I ended up taking a soft bristled brush and getting as much dirt loose as I could. Then I took some APC and carefully wiped away the dirt making sure it didn't come into contact with the hatch paint.

Here are a few pictures after cleaning off the major dirt, prior to detailing......




And this is the finished product. There were still areas that were damaged to the extent that detailing couldn't fix. All that I cared about was getting it a little cleaner than it was, even though most would never go through this process. More pics.....






No more dirt!!!!



*Also note, the oxidation/etc on my sail panel also came off when compounding/polishing. I'll grab a picture of that area too.

LilJayV10

iTrader: (39)

White lightening that looks great. Those tail lights are amazing. You should do a thread on your car. Very nice work and :thumbsup: for taking the wing off.

White.Lightning

iTrader: (53)

Thanks! I took a couple other pictures. I never took the typical before/after (50%) pictures with the tape lines. White paint is so hard to photograph. The paint was, however, in bad shape. I will try and upload some more pictures tonight showing the 'after'.

LilJayV10

iTrader: (39)

I hear ya on on trying to photograph a white car. I'm finishing up a white Mustang GT right now. The best way I have found to take pics is have the light source behind where you are taking a pic. For example when I was taking pics of the hood I had the lights above the hood off and the lights above the middle and rear of the car on. This gave the best reflective shots. Taking pics outside have proved pointless so far.

White.Lightning

iTrader: (53)

Here are a couple of more pictures. As you can see, the paint defect is gone in this area.

Before:


After:


And here are some inside finished pics. Trust me, the car is CLEAN. Pics don't do it justice.

LilJayV10

iTrader: (39)

It looks fantastic! In the first pic of the hoop it looks like its going into clear coat failure. But in the after pic it doesn't look like it at all.

AWDTBSS

Gah people on svtp swearing by dusters and zaino lol, Would hate to see their paint in the sun. Almost as bad as a recent thread on corvette forum about dusters lol


Your trans am came out great!

LilJayV10

iTrader: (39)

Whiskey
Tango
Foxtrot
?

RebelExtrm02

iTrader: (3)

Is it necessary to use a product like Iron-X on my car before a paint correction if I'm going to be claybaring and then cutting the paint with a polish like megs M105 or UC?

Rare96LT1Formula

iTrader: (32)

You really shouldn't polish before claying. Not saying it can't be done, just saying that the method you're describing simply isn't the right way of performing a paint correction. The devil is in the details, and surface prep is a huge factor in the end result. You're going to go through polishing your entire car, likely multiple steps, so let's assume 8+ hours, but not going to take the 45 minutes to deep clean the paint with a clay bar treatment? Seems very strange to me.

As Jeff and Jason have stated, an Iron remover will only make claying easier. It will also further clean your paint as you ready the surface for compounding.

Rare96LT1Formula

iTrader: (32)

I hate quoting pictures, so I only included one. THIS is exactly what a white car SHOULD look like! Fantastic attention to detail, and seeing the process out to the end. It goes to show that with the right research, materials, and practice, superb results can be achieved. You should most definitely do a writeup on your process. Well done.

RebelExtrm02

iTrader: (3)

You misunderstood me. I'm going to be cleaning, claying, cutting, polishing, and waxing my car, in that order, regardless of using iron-x. I was asking if it was necessary to use iron-x since i'm going to be claying my car then cutting and polishing the paint. My research suggests using iron-x will be beneficial. I wanted a professionals opinion before I purchased it.