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mrbh22

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Hi! My name is Mike.

I have been a member for a little while and never took the time to introduce myself. I recently purchased a 2012 Cadillac Cts-V! its Black Diamond with satin graphite wheels. it is my dream car. I am now officially going to buy a DA and get everything ready for keeping the paint in optimum condition. I am a car enthusiast and love anything thats well taken care of, and or loud and fast.

I am in the market to buy the correct tools to keep the car clean and looking new. I have been trying to do my research on buying the best bang for the $. I have used a PC 7424 and liked it. but i have been reading on the GG 6in DA kit on here. i would like educated opinions on a good starter kit to keep the beautiful paint job on this car as close to new or even make it a tad better than from the factory.

where i get confused. (i understand the process and technique of using a DA)

1.) all the colors and names of the pads? what to use with what step?

2.) what are the correct steps after wash, dry, clay-->

3.) the car has Yellow calipers from the factory. how do I keep them clean?

4.) what kind of window cleaner should i use with tinted windows?


all help is welcome and appreciated.

thanks in advance!

Mike.
 
Hi Mike and :welcome: To Autogeek Online!! :props:

Basic steps in order are:

  • Wash
  • Clay
  • Paint Correction & Polish
  • Seal
  • Wax

I prefer to put my own package together. Take a look under Lake Country Flat Pads for a complete description of each pad, it's color, and targeted use.

Foam Pads

To simplify pad usage, I've given a generic usage of pads and products.

Compounding

Compounds or aggressive products are generally used on firmer pads, Yellow, Orange, and Green.

Polishing

The White and Gray pads are generally used with polishes.

Sealants & Waxes

Blue and Red foam pads work nicely for applying sealants and waxes.
These are a very good choice of pads for the Porter Cable stye dual action polisher..

Here's some great information that will help you if you need it.

Windows

I've settled on Meguiar's Glass Cleaner. It's a great product and because it's recommended dilution is 10:1 it is very economical.

Always clean the glass using two waffle glass towels. Towel 1 is used to clean the glass and towel 2 wipes it down leaving the glass streak free.

Sealants

Wax

 
Welcome from Memphis Mike!

Thats one sweet ride you've just purchased :drool:
 
thanks Bobby. I read through that same post in another thread! :)


cell phone shot! first day home
2012-01-09_17-19-09_712.jpg
 
Last edited:
mrbh22 said:
Hi! My name is Mike.

I have been a member for a little while and never took the time to introduce myself. I recently purchased a 2012 Cadillac Cts-V! its Black Diamond with satin graphite wheels. it is my dream car. I am now officially going to buy a DA and get everything ready for keeping the paint in optimum condition. I am a car enthusiast and love anything thats well taken care of, and or loud and fast.

I am in the market to buy the correct tools to keep the car clean and looking new. I have been trying to do my research on buying the best bang for the $. I have used a PC 7424 and liked it. but i have been reading on the GG 6in DA kit on here. i would like educated opinions on a good starter kit to keep the beautiful paint job on this car as close to new or even make it a tad better than from the factory. Both machines are very good machines...I have both and they both get used alot.

where i get confused. (i understand the process and technique of using a DA)

1.) all the colors and names of the pads? what to use with what step?
There are so many to choose from it can be confusing here are a few that I use

Lake Country Hydo-Tech Foam Pads, hydrotech polishing pads, pads for water-based polishes, buffing pads
Meguiars DA Microfiber Correction System 5 Inch Starter Kit, paint correction kit, dual action polishing kit
2.) what are the correct steps after wash, dry, clay-->compound,polish.seal and wax
some steps may not be needed in your case really depends on paint condition

3.) the car has Yellow calipers from the factory. how do I keep them clean?
I use an all purpose cleaner for Items like this....you may want to look at this-

Optimum Power Clean™ All Purpose Cleaner 128 oz. Refill New & Improved!

4.) what kind of window cleaner should i use with tinted windows?

Stoner Invisible Glass Aerosol Can: Professional glass cleaner used by more pro detailing shops! glass cleaner, aerosol spray glass cleaner, window or

Meguiar’s Glass Cleaner Concentrate, 1 Gallon, dilutes to make an excellent auto glass cleaner. Meguiars Concentrated Car Glass Cleaner is great for Both are tint safe.

all help is welcome and appreciated.

thanks in advance!

Mike.
Click to expand...

Hope this helps a little......And Mike:welcome: to AGO and enjoy your stay!
 
mrbh22 said:
thanks Tim. I am looking at a kit from AGO

Menzerna polishes for ceramic clear coat paint, Porter Cable 7424 dual action buffer, Nano polish, super intensive, Lake Country pads, Show car kit

I have read that this car has a ceramic clear. and i think that this would be the kit to do the trick? Any advice why or why not?
Click to expand...


I do not have much experience with the Menz products....I should but I do not.

you may want to start a new thread asking about these products and you will get a lot more answers.
 
I wouldn't go with that kit. Its been my expierence that Menzerna products work best with rotaries

I'm not crazy about those pads either..... or the machine
 
Flash Gordon said:
I wouldn't go with that kit. Its been my expierence that Menzerna products work best with rotaries

I'm not crazy about those pads either..... or the machine
Click to expand...

i bought a different kit. i wanted to get in on the end of year special.

- Porter Cable 5.5 x 7/8 Inch CCS Foam Pad


i bought some BOGO stuff and feel I got a good deal.

Pinnacle Bodywork Shampoo
BLACKFIRE Scratch Resistant Cl
Wolfgang Deep Gloss Spritz Sealant
 
mrbh22 said:
Hi! My name is Mike.

I have been a member for a little while and never took the time to introduce myself. I recently purchased a 2012 Cadillac Cts-V! its Black Diamond with satin graphite wheels.

1.) all the colors and names of the pads? what to use with what step?

2.) what are the correct steps after wash, dry, clay-->

3.) the car has Yellow calipers from the factory. how do I keep them clean?
Click to expand...

Hi Mike,

1 & 2 - BobbyG did a great job outlining things. (:xyxthumbs: BobbyG) In addition you might want to pick up Mike Phillips' Book. The book explains the whys, whats, and hows in an easy to reference manner.

The pad colors tend to differ between product lines. For Lake Country pads most people seem to use Orange, White, and Blue. You won't be needing Orange (Light Cutting) for a while. Your goal is to never need it. But life happens. If and when defects occur and then if less aggresive pads aren't cutting it, Orange wouldnbe a good bet. You will definitely want White pads for polishing. Plan on getting some of those. For wax/sealant application or super fine polishing ("jeweling") personal preference based on your experience should ultimately guide you. There's Blue, Grey/Black, Red, and Gold. Maybe start with Red and if you feel you might like a stiffer pad then try Blue or Grey. Gold might be too floppy. In summary definitely white, then choose a soft pad. If you'd prefer freedom from choice then you might want to start out with Lake Country Hydrotech pads instead of the CCS. There are only 3 colors: Cyan ("advanced cutting"), Tangerine ("Ultra Polishing"), and Crimson ("finishing"). You would want Tangerine and Crimson pads for now.

Most would advise you to get a 5" backing plate with that Porter Cable and then start with 5.5" pads.

3 - To keep your calipers clean you will want to keep them sealed or coated. A long term solution would be to coat them with Optimum Opti-Coat 2.0. If you don't want to mess around then you probably want to just do that. Take your wheels off and Opti-Coat those while you're at it. Then you can Opti-Coat anything else on your car that you want. You could do the glass and/or the whole car (once you get it polished where you like it).

Pretty much any sealant or wax you might use on your car, you can use on your wheels and calipers. With your calipers and wheels coated and/or sealed what you use to wash your car is what you use to clean your wheels and calipers (just keep seperate wash water, mitt/wash/scrub tools, and drying towels.) I use cheap costco yellow MF towels as my wash and dry tools on my wheels and calipers. I've been following up with Meguiar's Ultimate Quik Wax. During or following drying. The Megs UQW keeps my wheels and calipers nice and slick. I don't need anything fancy or harsh to clean them. I've recently discovered ONR and Ultima Waterless Wash+ concentrate. Regardless of how far you want to take their usage, you will want to get yourself some of those two products. ONR cleans up my wheels and brake calipers nice and easy. The UWW+ does the same and leaves them slick, just like Megs UQW. I might not even need the Megs UQW any more.
 
BobbyG said:

  • Foam Pads

    To simplify pad usage, I've given a generic usage of pads and products.

    Compounding

    Compounds or aggressive products are generally used on firmer pads, Yellow, Orange, and Green.

    Polishing

    The White and Gray pads are generally used with polishes.

    Sealants & Waxes

    Blue and Red foam pads work nicely for applying sealants and waxes.
    These are a very good choice of pads for the Porter Cable stye dual action polisher..
Click to expand...
Mike,

Regarding the pads, BobbyG speaks from knowledge and experience. With the tools, the pads, and the products. Don't hesitate to follow his advice over mine. I haven't yet used my polisher and as such I don't speak from experience. I've only recently educated myself on these things and I'm sharing what I've learned...I also listed the grey pad as a wax applicator instead of a polishing pad, I'm sorry if I confused things there.

Bobby,

Have you tried hydrotech pads and if so, have you found them to work well with the Portercable? If yes to both, Mike might want to keep things simple and could just grab the Hydrotech Tangerine and Crimson pads?
 
Rix6 said:
Bobby,

Have you tried hydrotech pads and if so, have you found them to work well with the Portercable? If yes to both, Mike might want to keep things simple and could just grab the Hydrotech Tangerine and Crimson pads?
Click to expand...

I did buy a set of Hydro-Tech pads but have yet to try them. :o :o

I hear a lot of good things about them and having 3 flavors to choose from might be a whole lot easier...:props:
 
mrbh22 said:
1.) all the colors and names of the pads? what to use with what step?
The link below for this :
Learn how to use the Porter Cable 7424 dual action buffer with CCS Smart Pads by Lake Country. Polish swirl remover car wax polisher wax buffing pad

This explains everything about each pad and what to use for what step in your process.

2.) what are the correct steps after wash, dry, clay-->

Depends what your looking to do. If your going to correct your paint I would use the following steps.

1). Dry the car using a leaf blower or waffle weave. If your using a leaf blower I would spray detail the car when your done just to get it completely dry.
2). Clay Bar the car
3). Prep the car by taping off trim, headlights, markers, etc.
4). Begin your correction stages.
5). When I'm done doing my correction's I usually wash the car after.
6). Apply your Last Step Product (LSP) whether its a Wax or Sealant.

3.) the car has Yellow calipers from the factory. how do I keep them clean?
I would pull each wheel off and spray some All Purpose Cleaner (APC) on the calipers. If the brake dust is severly caked on then I would go deeper and get some Iron-X which is a Carpro products and this should do the trick. Then I would then apply a Wheel Glaze or Wheel wax. I've had nothing but great experience with DP Wheel Glaze. Link below:
DP Wheel Glaze cleans and protects all types of wheels! Durable wheel polymer wax coating protects wheels from brake dust adhesion and corrosion.

4.) what kind of window cleaner should i use with tinted windows?
Invisible Glass. I use this in the Aerosol version.


all help is welcome and appreciated.

thanks in advance!

Mike.
Click to expand...

:welcome: to Autogeek Mike! Congrats on your dream car man. Its a good one too.

I answered all your questions in my own opinion.Their are lots of great products and techniques that can be used in your process so I'm answering your questions based on my own opinion and experience.

Hope this helps
 
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