My first actual detail...

SoFlo1

SoFlo1

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So today I tried to detail my own car for the first actually time with my new supplies. I thought at first everything was going pretty smooth but I think I thought wrong....

I washed my car first starting top to bottom and I did not try flooding instead I used my 16 gallon wet/dry craftsman vac that has a detachable blower with it. (Actually works VERY well. Similar to the master blaster in a way). After I dried most of the water with the blower I used a MF cloth from harbor freight the 12 pack for $5.99 on sale. I used the ultimate quick wax spray by meguiars after with the same type of clothes but for some reason I noticed streaks/marks when I tried wiping it.

CONS: I noticed a lot of water marks on the windows, IDK why. Maybe I didn't try drying it in time, I'm not sure. Then I took my DA polisher that I got from harbor freight and used some of this all-purpose cleaner/waxer with it but for some reason it just didn't seem like it was coming out as planned. I started on the front hood on one section at a time, I put a X on the pad and when I started it flung my product everywhere like small splats EVERYWHERE. All over my mirrors, top of my roof, windshield etc. Such a headache!

Other than that, I put on wheelie clean on the tires and scrubbed them and they came out real well.

I guess it will take more practice!

But since I used the quick ultimate wax how often should I use that stuff on the car? And same with the DA and polisher? I didn't polish anymore than the front hood.

Not the best pics but here are a couple from today:

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your getting there, however I would definitely learn how to clay. Makes a big difference in almost everything you do later.

with windows, since you have a wet dry vac, try sucking the water up and blowing out all the cracks. I just use a leaf blower all at once

Spread your product out a bit and immediately work the product in, then start to correct=no splatter
 
Megs Ultimate Quick Wax is extremely easy to apply and wipe off. Did you spray too much of a product ? Did you work under direct sunlight? Or, rather, did you work under very cold weather conditions?

Watermarks are the stain. Some of the toughest stain you will ever encounter are watermarks. You will need to read, learn and apply special technique, using certain tools and products to remove water stains without damaging your glass or your paint.

Your car looks clean in the pictures and you can see better what it's true condition is when you look at it from closer distance and at various angles.

If you want to practice a bit, find a space/garage with proper temperature, good amount of daylight and experiment with various products and tools. Run "sandwich bag" test on your hood. Does it feel smooth or are there any irregularities on the surface? If so, you would need to clay the clear coat first. But make sure you don't have iron particles (if you do, watch the Mike's video , how to apply Iron X to get rid of iron embedded in your coat).

Once done with claying (or sandwich bag test), get your DA and find some good polisher. Again, this site is great for instructions how to polish your car, I found plenty of articles and videos here in the last couple of days that give ton of information what polish you can use and how to use it.
Polishing is very important. Wax (and sealant) will only give you a moderate gloss and "seal" what is underneath it. But if you want a deep mirror glaze you will have to first learn how to properly polish the car.
All above assumes your paint is still in fairly good condition and doesn't have major flaws that would necessitate use of rubbing compounds, rotary buffers and more complicated techniques to fix.

Good luck and have fun detailing.
 
I also forgot to add that a lot of rough bug spots are stuck on the front bumper. I used a special sponge that is suppose to be good for taking bugs off. Is frank all purpose good for that?

I used the detail spray in cold conditions today. And I might have sprayed too much. The hood is not in the BEST shape but its not the worse. It got a lot smoother after I put the QD on and used the DA but it didn't seem perfect.

The very bottom of my doors and along the bottom edges I noticed dirt was still there after it was drying. Is that just because I am not scrubbing hard enough? I washed every inch on the car..
 
Brother keep watching videos, reading articles and practice you will be doing better every time try!!!
Love the civic ;)
 
pikiki said:
Brother keep watching videos, reading articles and practice you will be doing better every time try!!!
Love the civic ;)
Click to expand...

Thanks! :D But I don't want to wash it too much lol. I have a pick up truck and the hood is in pretty bad shape. The paint is real rough. I'm not sure if I can do anything with it? It has a bunch of white spots.
 
SoFlo1 said:
I also forgot to add that a lot of rough bug spots are stuck on the front bumper. I used a special sponge that is suppose to be good for taking bugs off. Is frank all purpose good for that?

I used the detail spray in cold conditions today. And I might have sprayed too much. The hood is not in the BEST shape but its not the worse. It got a lot smoother after I put the QD on and used the DA but it didn't seem perfect.

The very bottom of my doors and along the bottom edges I noticed dirt was still there after it was drying. Is that just because I am not scrubbing hard enough? I washed every inch on the car..
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You will get most of the bugs on your front bumper after driving on interstate highway (where they hit your car at above 60 miles an hour).
Speaking from my past experience only, I will say that the better/the cleaner you maintain your car's surface the easier it will be to remove anything off it, including bugs.

You can try over the counter products such as bug and tar remover. You will need to spray it on and let it stay there to penetrate and soften what you need to remove, then you will gently wipe it off.

If weather is too cold you will have hard time doing any washing/cleaning and detailing. And you should not be waxing your car even after hours in summer, let alone anytime in cold weather conditions during the winter.

The smoother feel is not resulting just from a wax but mostly from a clean, flat surface of the paint. Put a sandwich bag on your hand , as a glove, and run it over the hood. Do you feel imperfections on surface (as if small particles touching your hand)? That's contamination and it will have to be removed before you get a smooth surface. Waxing a smooth surface will make it slick , but putting wax on contaminated surface won't get you results you want.

P.S. You don't want to do too much "scrubbing". One of the most horrible things I saw in automated car wash stations were the brushes soaked in some detergent that drivers would use to "scrub" their cars before running it through the car wash.
You must be easy on your paint. Try to soak that dirt, hose it off, put a wet towel over it, spray something on it and then gently wipe it off or search here for an expert advise how to remove a dirt like that from lover portions of the panels (usually not a big problem, since it's just a dried dust, but sometime it can be a challenge, if it's road tar or a paint).
 
I'm going to run the sandwich bag over with my hand here in a little bit and see what I feel. I want to also take a picture of my trucks hood to get some suggestions on that.

As far as the bugs on the front, I may try to 'Franks' general purpose cleaner that I bought here locally. My supplier told me that it is good for the inside of your vehicle and would help get bugs off.
 
SoFlo1 said:
I'm going to run the sandwich bag over with my hand here in a little bit and see what I feel. I want to also take a picture of my trucks hood to get some suggestions on that.

As far as the bugs on the front, I may try to 'Franks' general purpose cleaner that I bought here locally. My supplier told me that it is good for the inside of your vehicle and would help get bugs off.
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Make sure it's safe for the paint. I never heard of it, but sounds like a powerful, commercial grade , all purpose cleaner.

From prod. description:
Concentrated makes 21 gallons, non-caustic, heavy duty, multipurpose cleaner that cuts through grease, oil, road film, Hawaiian red dirt, volcanic ash, RV black streaks, bug residue, crayon marks and more. Quickly and safely degreases engines, wheels, tires, door jambs and fuel doors. Spot cleans carpets mats, fabric, upholstery, vinyl and convertible tops. Great for degreasing, spot cleaning, hard surface cleaning and high pressure cleaning. Not for extractor machines. Commercial Grade ! VOC COMPLIANT
 
As one said, claying is the most important step before doing any type of correction on the car.

Best advice I can give you is for you to read as much as you can here, so much good information at your fingertips.
Also, ask as many questions that you may have, we're all here to learn and to help each other.
 
The car has never been clayed I know that. Is the mothers clay bar from walmart good to use? I believe its around $20 for the kit and I have seen others.

Does a clay kit last for just one car?
 
I've used Mothers Clay but didn't care for it.
I much prefer Meguair's Clay kit, cost about the same.
The Mothers is just to soft for me, almost breaks apart on my while claying.
You can find both at Wal-Mart or any auto parts place that sells detailing supplies.

Tip.
The Meg's clay kit comes with two bars,break them in half, plenty to clay with, if you drop it you must throw it away because it would pickup crap from the ground which would scratch your paint.
Another reason to break them in half, that way you won't lose an entire bar.

Use plenty of lube to prevent marring.

You can clay many cars with one kit.

SoFlo1 said:
The car has never been clayed I know that. Is the mothers clay bar from walmart good to use? I believe its around $20 for the kit and I have seen others.

Does a clay kit last for just one car?
Click to expand...
 
OK I will be picking the Meguair's kit here shortly and I will make sure to watch some videos.

How often do you clay a year? Once a year?
 
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