So i just started to get into detailing and wanted to hear some of the gross mess ups and such that people have done. I mean, im sure some of you have used, lets say turpentine instead of polish. stuff noobs like myself should avoid doing at all costs.. lets hear them. I know there are a million "how do u detail" threads out there, but lets hear some "how NOT to detail" stories.

 

Make sure if you're clay -barring, that it doesn't "track" or stick. It will leave a nice streak mark on the car. Ugh.

 

I've seen some pretty bad mistakes with wool pads. Also ran into a guy who got a little overzealous with his wetsanding and ended up down to bare metal in no time.


-Mike

 

heard about a guy tried buffing a painted peice of trim after it was installed on an escalade...the buffer caught it on the edge and ripped it off the truck onto the floor.

 

Don't get the clay bar dirty! My brother did this without realizing it, and fu#$ed his car up pretty bad.

Also, don't use the same mitt to wash your car and wheels / tires.

 

Use a amature porter cabel if you like your paint...


DONT WASH YOU CAR AT A DIY places....OMG! my new paint on my dsm got so man swirl marks its not even funny...worst day of my life!

 

I stay away from claybars, i drop things alot....just use some dish soap to take off alot of the old wax..works for me, and its safe for the clear

 

i've heard many stories dealing with claybar. If you drop it AT ALL you might as well throw it away (unless you want a lot of scratches on your paint lol) With my old car i made the mistake of trying to wipe dried-up bird crap off the hood of my car by wetting a rag and wiping it off....left UNBELIEVABLE swirl and scratch marks. I used swirl remover, many many layers of Meguire's NXT Generation wax, and it still is noticable. NEVER EVER try to clean off bird crap unless you are washing your car and even so, be very careful!!!

 

Worst one is when dudes use the buffer on grey plastic trim and totally fark it up. Or waxing that grey trim, it'll never look right again.

 

got to close to a radio antenna on 2200 rpm, and it went flying.

 

no .. dish soap is not safe for the clear coat ..

and clay bars remove more than just old wax..

 

saw a guy once use a DA sander to try and wetsand orange peel ..

 

I have a detailing horror story...cleaned a jeep and right when I started on the inside the owner stated he got it from a police auction. It had been setting in the inpound lot for 7 months. They originally found the jeep with a dead girl in the drivers seat, shot in the head......yea I had to clean it. It was after it was decontaminated but still had some interesting stuff inside and the smell was not nice. Thats a detail horror story for ya.

 

thats the nice thing about maggots, they clean up the messes left behind

my story, i got my cowl hood painted. waited 3 months to wax/polish it proceeded to put the wax on. came out looking great. after i put the polish on SWIRL MARKS. this was done by hand with nu finish polish.

 

now THAT is wicked nasty!!!

 

I've refused a couple of those "Pulp Fiction" jobs during my two years of doing detail work. I told a guy who threw up all inside a Camry(with cloth seats) and let it sit outside in the sun for a week that it would be $400. It was real bad, puke all over the console, both front seats, carpets, headliner, down in between the seats He told me to go **** myself, I told him if he throws up in there again from the smell, it would be $800 and to have a nice day.

 

Why not wash your car at a do it yourself place?

 

Dont go to a drive in carwash if they have nylon bristled brushes. horse hair brushes are what you should use. And even then, you should rinse them out with the high pressure very well because they catch alot of dirt/sand. I still dont even like using those brushes. they scare me.

 

I hear ya man ... some places got wicked pressure washers .... and who really knows whats in their soaps, ect.

 

cleaning the back seat of a sunfire last year and the whole interior was absolutely gross. there was a puddle on the floor and i asked the lady if she had spilled something. this is the reply she gave me: "No, I didn't spill anything, but we were on a 4 hour road trip yesterday and my kid pissed himself." nuff said.

also saw a co worker buffing a jeep and not paying attention basically cut a hole through the plastic fender flares.. ouch