Ask a Professional Detailer
How much better is a rotary polisher over the 7424 or the flex xc 3401? Im interested in possibly switching to a rotary for using m105/205 and menzerna intensive and final polishes. I got to try out the flex this past weekend with some menzerna and over my 7424 i didn't see much of a difference at all other then the flex doesn't vibrate as much as the pc. Ive had my pc for 7 years and its starting to wear out my only concern with the rotary is having to constantly keep thinking if im not moving it enough and am going to burn the paint, whats your personal experience?
For tire dressing, I usually apply with an old microfiber towel that was dropped on the ground and will never be used for paint again. I just picked up several of the gray tire shine applicators from Detailed Image and will be trying them out.
As for wax, I'm not a big fan of waxes. I prefer sealants. But I'll give you my recommendations on both. Wax: Swissvax Concorso, or if you can afford it, Swissvax Crystal Rock. Doesn't get much better than those. Note, it DOES get more expensive than those, but not better IMO. Meguiars #16 if you can find it (epic wax), P21S 100% and Autoglym HD Wax are both good too.
For sealant, my favorite is Blackfire Wet Diamond, followed closely by Menzerna Powerlock, and Zaino Z2pro and Z5pro.
Hey Jeff, I have a question about cleaning the pads you apply LSP with. What is your process of doing this? I use either red LC cccs pads on the PC or the small oval red LC hand applicators to apply. The LSP I use is Blackfire wet diamond. My cleaning method is the Snappy pad cleaner, 1 pouch to about a couple gallons of warm water, let pads soak for an hour or so, then work the pads by hand in the water until clean. Then rinse and spin out the excess water on my rotary. I have 0 issues cleaning polishes and compounds out of the pads, but the Blackfire, no matter how long I clean, will not fully come out of the pads.While the surface of the pad is clean, I can never get them clean to a point where I cant squeeze out sealent. Its got me baffled. When I apply Blackfire, I never use an excess amount because a small amount of it goes a long long way, so its not like pad is overly saturated. So I dont get it
Kudo's to you for your devotion to this thread and patience. Your a true professional man and great asset to this forum. I often wanna pull my hair out trying to expain detailing procedures to those less knowledgeable as dealing with different skill levels can get pretty tedius, hats off to ya man.
Kudo's to you for your devotion to this thread and patience. Your a true professional man and great asset to this forum. I often wanna pull my hair out trying to expain detailing procedures to those less knowledgeable as dealing with different skill levels can get pretty tedius, hats off to ya man.
OR, sometimes I won't do any of that, and I'll use it 3-4 times then toss it and grab a new one lol. Cleaning pads is one thing I hate, so sometimes I just say screw it.
Thank you so much for the kind words. Even though my Fbody is gone, I love this place and as much as I have fun sharing the cool cars I get to work on, I wanted to contribute more than eye candy to this community and this seemed like a good way. I do have my good and bad days like everyone else, so one thing that will help keep ME happy is new posters reading through the thread before posting
Haven't got a duplicate question, but I'm sure it'll happen soon lol. I enjoy helping out, but I'm not encouraging laziness haha 
You're welcome
Neither, I always polish metal by hand. But either one is ok on the right kind of metal with the matching kind of polish. As long as it matches, you should be ok. Just never use a corded drill.
Launching!
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 296
Likes: 0
From: lee's summit, mo
on my next detail, im planning on experimenting with some of the zaino products. i'll probly take ur recommendation on the blackfire also.
like the other's here, i appreciate ur time on this thread
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Launching!
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 296
Likes: 0
From: lee's summit, mo
thats the plan. gonna go with a raptor hood unless i can somehow get lucky enough to come a across a superhawk
Jeff as always I enjoy reading your threads. Its tough for me to start out learning/trying to do something I really don't know anything about. I just want to be able to do it! It's like anything else, you have to start somewhere.
One of the reasons I like reading your posts so much is you aren't trying to push a product on anyone. You say what works and what doesn't. I have been on Autogeek and Adam's Polishes recently and have learned a lot but I am skeptical about the products they use sometime. They are there to make money and I know that. It seems like every few months there is some new "super" product that will work better than anything in the past.
I have a few quick questions. Hopefully I won't be the first to re ask a question
1. I have watched Adam's videos on how to use the PC. With his products he said when they turn translucent the product is done and to stop working it. I saw you mention some of the stuff you use doesn't break down. How do you know when you stop using it?
2. My wife has a 05' Avalanche. It has the black plastic on the lids for the bed cover. What do you reccommend for that? She has tried probably 1/2 a dozen different products but they all either seemed to run or were washed away. None really seemed to soak in.
3. The tail lights on my Firehawk have some scratches in them. They are just scratches not gouges or anything. Whats the best way to get those out?
4. Can you explain why you like a sealant instead of a wax and what the differences are between the two?
5.(Last one I promise, for this post anyway) On a curvy front bumper like a Firebird how do you get in where the the holes are for the lights? I assume you just do it by hand?
Thank you again for your posts and this thread.
One of the reasons I like reading your posts so much is you aren't trying to push a product on anyone. You say what works and what doesn't. I have been on Autogeek and Adam's Polishes recently and have learned a lot but I am skeptical about the products they use sometime. They are there to make money and I know that. It seems like every few months there is some new "super" product that will work better than anything in the past.
I have a few quick questions. Hopefully I won't be the first to re ask a question
1. I have watched Adam's videos on how to use the PC. With his products he said when they turn translucent the product is done and to stop working it. I saw you mention some of the stuff you use doesn't break down. How do you know when you stop using it?
2. My wife has a 05' Avalanche. It has the black plastic on the lids for the bed cover. What do you reccommend for that? She has tried probably 1/2 a dozen different products but they all either seemed to run or were washed away. None really seemed to soak in.
3. The tail lights on my Firehawk have some scratches in them. They are just scratches not gouges or anything. Whats the best way to get those out?
4. Can you explain why you like a sealant instead of a wax and what the differences are between the two?
5.(Last one I promise, for this post anyway
) On a curvy front bumper like a Firebird how do you get in where the the holes are for the lights? I assume you just do it by hand?Thank you again for your posts and this thread.
FormerVendor
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 1,134
Likes: 0
From: Boulder, Colorado
The last few weeks there has been a lot of emails, PM's, and calls regarding wash techniques probably due in large to the fact we're starting to get nice warm weather in many parts of the world and people are getting their rides ready for shows, cruises, or just driving around and looking good!
So the common concern usually comes to me something like this.
"I washed my car today and the soap dried on the paint. Its about 89* out and my black paint was very hot. When I went to dry the car the soap didn't come off easily. I did it exactly like the video, why is it hard to remove the soap? Is this normal?"
The first thing to understand is that this is very much a case of "Just becasue you can, doesn't mean you should". The soap is designed the way it is as a measure of insurance, not an excuse to be careless. Ideally you never want anything to dry on your finish, but if its completely unavoidable or happens by accident the soap drying is far safer than the alternative. The soap serves to keep the minerals suspended and being pH neutral it will not etch the paint or introduce any damage.
Avoid allowing the soap to dry in the first place and you'll make life much easier on yourself, but what if it does get baked on? How should you proceed?? In many cases just the act of rinsing the area one more time with water right before you start your drying routine with a Great White Drying Towel and Detail Spray will be enough to 'reactivate' the soap and make removing it easy as you dry.
In the event you still have some soap residue that won't come cleanly from the surface try taking a small amount of soapy water, either from your soap bucket via a clean wash pad, or a foam gun if you're working with one. Essentially you will "re-wash" that panel to remove the soap.
Keep in mind that dried soap on your finish is MUCH better than the alternative which is dried water that could lead to stubborn water spots and etching. 2 conditions that will require claying and/or polishing to remove.
SOME TIPS FOR AVOIDING DRIED SOAP:
- Wash in the early morning or around dusk when the sun is low in the sky and much less harsh. The less direct sunlight leads to much lower surface temps and lower likelihood anything will dry on the paint.
- Work indoors or in shade whenever possible. A kin to the first tip, reducing how much direct sunlight is on the paint while you're working is key to preventing drying and in turn makes everything easier. In the event you don't have a garage or cover to work under look into purchasing a pop up shelter. Many can be found for $150-$300 and collapse down for easy storage when not in use. Your entire care doesn't have to fit under it... position the shelter so it gives you shade in the areas you need.
- Avoid wetting/soaping the sides of the vehicle that are in the sun until last. Nothing says you can't wash the vehicle in 2 stages. Rinse and soap the areas that are on the shad side of the vehicle first then move to the areas in the sun. Keeping the 'sun exposed' areas of the car dry until absolutely necessary buys you significantly more time before anything drying becomes a concern.
- Spend more time on your initial rinse. 2 things cause drying - the direct heat of the sun and the indirect heat of the panel temperatures. You can reduce the surface temps of the paint by a large amount by spending more time in the initial rinsing of the panels. Soaking panels for more time with water drops the overall temps and buys you more time before the soap (once its introduced) will start drying.
- Most of all common sense! As stated in the beginning this is a case of 'Just because you can, doesn't mean you should'. If you absolutely must work in the worst possible conditions adjust your technique to compensate, work quickly, and understand that you are creating more work for yourself by working in unforgiving circumstances. Also, DON'T PANIC! The initial response is to grab a towel and start scrubbing aggressively... understand that dried soap is a surface problem that can be corrected with the gentle approaches given above. Scrubbing at them can potentially introduce bigger problems.
- Lastly HAVE FUN! Caring for your car is something that can be a joy or a real pain in the @$$... by choosing when and how you approach your wash you dictate how it will go... so choose wisely!!
What do you recommend for a Monterrey Maroon Metallic car for a hand wax/sealant and a quick detailer/ gloss enhancer? I don't mind spending a little bit of money, I recently bought the Americana Paste Wax, but I'm really not seeing much of a difference from the other store bought waxs I've bought. Looking to get something that enhances the color as best as possible, and a little scratch and swirl filler would be bonus. Thanks!
GoFast-
Thanks for putting this thread together. After seeing your work I have really gotten into the art of detailing cars. Every time I come to ls1tech I always go to the Appearance and Detailing section to see if you have posted anymore work. I am not a pro by any means but feel like I do a pretty good job.
Recently I got the opportunity to detail a family friends 66 Vette. This car has a single stage paint and was really nice to work with. My process was M105 LC orange pad, M205 LC white pad, and some Black fire wet diamond to top it off. The paint came out great, corrected about 95% of all the problem areas. I did run into a potential problem when I started to wipe the car down with alcohol before the sealant. I didn't dilute it and it started turning the paint white. Is that because I didn't dilute it or should you not wipe single stage paint with alcohol? Also the white walls didn't come out real great, what do you recommend for cleaning stained WW tires?
Forgive the crappy pictures. I couldn't get any outside because fuel was leaking from the bottom of the carb and I couldn't move it.
Thanks for putting this thread together. After seeing your work I have really gotten into the art of detailing cars. Every time I come to ls1tech I always go to the Appearance and Detailing section to see if you have posted anymore work. I am not a pro by any means but feel like I do a pretty good job.
Recently I got the opportunity to detail a family friends 66 Vette. This car has a single stage paint and was really nice to work with. My process was M105 LC orange pad, M205 LC white pad, and some Black fire wet diamond to top it off. The paint came out great, corrected about 95% of all the problem areas. I did run into a potential problem when I started to wipe the car down with alcohol before the sealant. I didn't dilute it and it started turning the paint white. Is that because I didn't dilute it or should you not wipe single stage paint with alcohol? Also the white walls didn't come out real great, what do you recommend for cleaning stained WW tires?
Forgive the crappy pictures. I couldn't get any outside because fuel was leaking from the bottom of the carb and I couldn't move it.