Barry,
Great post! I wish I could justify the Flex right. The griots will have to do I guess. Is there that much difference between the Flex and Griots? If I spend a little more time with the Griots with a 5.5'' pad...will that compare?
I appreciate your honesty Barry and I hope to find a product and combinations that work well for me.
I am open to other suggestions and combinations....will have to do some thinking
If you guys were to pick detail supplys from scratch from a start to finish detail...which would U use?
My thoughts:
1)Need to wash the car with some kind of soap (Suggestions)
-Ive also heard of P21S for a cleaner?
2)Going to dry with a leaf blower (need a drying towel suggestion)
3)Next is the clay bar (suggestions?) leaning towards pennicle green
4)Going with the Griots DA
5)Pad suggestions (I have some that prefer the Hydro and some the LC) Why do the hydro only have 2 options and the others about 6? Size of pad as been suggested 5.5'' but the backplate on the Griots is 6.5? right?
6)Deciding between the M105/205 and WGTSR-WGFG-WGPGS3.0?
-I read the WG products have less dust thus less possibly swirls due to my mistakes.
7)MF for taking off the polishes and waxes?
8)Final product after the sealant? Wax? What do you suggest?
Finally: Cleaning supplys? MF cleaner? Pad cleaner? Spur? suggestions please.
Thanks all for the help thus far!!
TO Barry---I actually love vettes as well. Buddy has a Black C6 that I am itching to drive. :dblthumb2:
To chose actual products there are basically two points of view you may get here:
1. the hobbist/enthusiasts working on his/her own car because they enjoy it.
2. the professional who is doing is to make a living.
While both want to end up with the same excellent results they usually tend to choose different products as their standard "go-to" products.
As a professional detailer I need products that are not only going to help me achieve excellent end results but also that are cost effective and come in larger sized packaging (which also helps make them more cost effective).
I can be using $50 worth of products on a standard $175-$200 detail job or else between cost of products and other supplies, time, insurance, electricity, water, etc, etc I'd make no money.
A weekend hobbist detailer is typically more willing to spend higher money on what I tend to refer to as "boutique brand" detailing products. I'm not criticizing or saying anything bad about the more expensive boutique brand products but generally a pro detailer has other factors to consider that the enthusiast working on his/her own car doesn't.
This is a main reason that probably 80-85% of the various products on my shelf are from the Megs Professional and Detailer line. From one supplier I can cover the vast majority of the products I need and they are cost effective and work excellent.
A complete list of pretty much anything you need could come from these two lines from Megs such as shampoo, body solvent, clay, clay lube, compounds/polish, sealants and waxes, dressings, interior cleaners and dressings, leather cleaners, all purpose cleaners, etc, etc.
On the other hand you can pick and choose "favorites" from various different brands.
One recommendation I do have is not to get too carried away on super expensive LSP's (waxes and sealants). There are products out there that can really take a hit out of your wallet.
When comparing various priced products like waxes from a $20/bottle to a $300/bottle of wax 99% of the people in the world aren't going to be able to tell the differences anyway because IF there is a difference it's subtle between all the difference products.
I'm strongly of the opinion that 99% of your results come from all the steps PRIOR to the LSP. The better the car is washed, clayed and than polished to level the paint and remove defects such as swirls, minor scratches, etc is where your end results come from. The LSP step, in my opinion, is really nothing more than a layer of protection.
Others may disagree and tell you that this wax or that wax makes certain colors look better or make metallic flake "pop" better or other differences but again usually anything like this is very, very subtle. The LSP step is really all about protection - protecting the paint you just spent all day or all weekend washing, claying and correcting. Besides, even the mose expensive wax only lasts a relatively short amount of time (a few weeks in most cases or a few months for a sealant) which means you need to reapply it again often over the course of a year. If you hesitate to spend $300 on a Flex buffer that would last you years how do you really feel about buying a $70, $125, or $300 container of wax that you need to put on 3, 4, 5 times a year??!!
Personally, even on my own show car, my '65 vette, I am thrilled with the results I get from Megs M21 sealant topped with Megs #26 wax and neither are particularly expensive products.
Leaf blower is excellent for drying the car - it's whgat i use all the time and it saves the physical wiping of the car with a towel which helps keep swirls down to a minimum
For pads, like I said in a previous reply, flat or CCS type is a personal choice. I use the LC CCS and I'm happy with them. others use flat pads and like them.
If you want to try the CCS pads I'd recommend getting at least 3 of each of Orange ( cutting pad for compounding or more aggressive polishing), White (polishing pad for less aggressing or finishing polishing) and Blue for applying glazes and LSP's.
I usually use Orange with the Megs M105, White with the Megs M205, and than the Blue pads for LSP's
*** BTW since I see you are considering the M105/M205 combo which is excellent something to keep in mind... The m105 takes a bit of practice to get used to using because it tends to dry out and dust up fairly quickly. You may want to try the Megs Ultimate Compound (UC) instead of the M105. UC has almost the same level of cut ability as M105 but it's easier to work with because it gives you a longer working time without drying out compared to M105.
The M205 is very easy to work with
Last, don't forget a good Quick Detail spray.
I have 3 different ones I stock from Megs but my favorite as just a QD is the Final Inspection. I also use Last Touch since used straight it's a nice QD spray and used 1:1 with water makes a great clay lube
The C6 vettes are awesome, I love them. our vette club sponsoring dealer has lent me C6 Z06's numerous times for the weekend for shows and that is a real fun car to drive! I always hate having to return it.
Especially compared to my older vette (a '65) the difference is night and day - power, performance, handling, creature comforts, etc
oke: 