my washing am i even close. alternative to wand

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Swirlbuster

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So I'm about to do a paint restore on my 01 corvette.
and i dont want to be back where i started after my first wash.

Here is what I use.

soft clean water

Slightly warm wash bucket full on suds

wash wand

squeegee windows

microfiber towels for paint

cotton for door jams- tires


I'm thinking about my wand. I like it because its quick and i never drop it. I like it because i don't have to touch the water. Some times its cold when i wash.

Should i replace it with something else?
 
Whoa Nellie! Most of us wouldn't use a brush like that. Most of wouldn't use that wash (even though it's got a 'Vette on the label). Most of us if the water is cold wear gloves.

Washing without inducing marring is a whole science that a lot of us spend a lot of time pondering and studying.

You're going to get a lot of suggestions, I'm just going to give you some basics.

Use the 2-bucket method with grit guards.
Use good wash media and rinse it often.
Use a good wash.
Blow off excess water.
Use good drying towels (not like the one you show), and use a drying aid if you like.
 
Building off of Setec Astronomy, get a good mitt. At this point I would recommend a MF mitt, they tend to be less expensive and less maintenance. You should use the two bucket method and ensure that you are using the grit guards.

Investment into the right MF towels is a wise decision. You don't need to go overboard, but if you take all the right precautions to wash your car, to only induce marring or scratches during the drying step would defeat everything you just tried to accomplish.
 
Cabrio said:
Building off of Setec Astronomy, get a good mitt. At this point I would recommend a MF mitt, they tend to be less expensive and less maintenance. You should use the two bucket method and ensure that you are using the grit guards.

Investment into the right MF towels is a wise decision. You don't need to go overboard, but if you take all the right precautions to wash your car, to only induce marring or scratches during the drying step would defeat everything you just tried to accomplish.
Click to expand...


so whats a good mf towel?

what i have seems to be 70% polyester 30% polyamide
 
Swirlbuster said:
so whats a good mf towel?

what i have seems to be 70% polyester 30% polyamide
Click to expand...

Rats...I can't seem to include the link. You could check out the Guzzler Waffle Weave. I tried to include the link to the different MF towels.
 
This is a bit of overkill:

Grit Guard® Dual Bucket Washing System - RED

I prefer 3.5 gallon buckets, and the lids are superfluous IMO.

You might also want to try just a rinse bucket and use one of these to soap the car:

Autogeek Quart Foamaster Foam Gun FREE BONUS

Some nice wash media:

The Bone is a soft, plush car wash sponge wrapped in microfiber for unbeatable softness. Use your favorite car shampoo with the bone microfiber wash

Supreme Micro-Chenille Wash Mitt, microfiber wash mitt, washing mitt

Sheesh, I'm doing a lot of typing could have just included this:

Car Wash Guide, Car Wash how to - easy steps to shampoo and dry your vehicle using paint-safe mitts and towels, plus sponges, the Grit Guard and

Couple of good washes to pick from:

Duragloss Car Wash Concentrate #901

Optimum Car Wash is a concentrated auto shampoo that washes away grime on your car & protects wax.

Drying towels:

The Guzzler Combo Kit
 
Setec Astronomy said:
This is a bit of overkill:

Grit Guard® Dual Bucket Washing System - RED

I prefer 3.5 gallon buckets, and the lids are superfluous IMO.

You might also want to try just a rinse bucket and use one of these to soap the car:

Autogeek Quart Foamaster Foam Gun FREE BONUS

Some nice wash media:

The Bone is a soft, plush car wash sponge wrapped in microfiber for unbeatable softness. Use your favorite car shampoo with the bone microfiber wash

Supreme Micro-Chenille Wash Mitt, microfiber wash mitt, washing mitt

Sheesh, I'm doing a lot of typing could have just included this:

Car Wash Guide, Car Wash how to - easy steps to shampoo and dry your vehicle using paint-safe mitts and towels, plus sponges, the Grit Guard and

Couple of good washes to pick from:

Duragloss Car Wash Concentrate #901

Optimum Car Wash is a concentrated auto shampoo that washes away grime on your car & protects wax.

Drying towels:

The Guzzler Combo Kit
Click to expand...

wow thanks
I'll check it out.
 
There's like 2 basic things...whatever dirt you have on the car, you don't want to grind it into the paint while you're cleaning it off, and you don't want grind anything you missed (hopefully nothing) into the paint with your drying towel, and you don't want your drying towel to do any marring either, so many members use a spray wax or QD as a drying aid as they are toweling dry (but I suggest using some type of blower to blow off the excess water first)--here's a couple worth looking into:

Duragloss Aquawax (AW) #951

Meguiars Synthetic X-press Spray Wax, X-press car wax, Meguiars X-press spray liquid wax, D156
or its little brother
Meguiars Ultimate Quik Wax, spray wax, synthetic spray wax, quick wax, meguiars quick spray wax, paint protectant, liquid wax, meguires, meguiars car

Also please machine wash your washing and drying media after each wash.
 
Mr Swirlbuster,

You left yourself wide open and a lot of suggestions are advising you to spend a lot of money. If I remember correctly you were struggling with correcting badly swirled paint and had to adjust to deal with that, so im guessing you're not particularly ready for this.

However, first things first, you stated "..I dont want to be back where I started...".. then the wash wand has to go, theres no two ways about that. Other than that are all the tools you have the ones shown in the pictures? Not so sure about the Armor All Wash & Wax either to put it lightly, I want to tell you to ... I want to tell you... just dont use it! Then again, if thats all you have for 'shampoo' then I suppose its better than straight water.

I have no interest in advising you to spend money, however when detailing it all comes down to 'a chain is only as strong as its weakest link', meaning, if one aspect of the detailing process is lacking or faulty then the whole process can be compromised.

If you properly corrected your paint then do some more research and planning. Theres no need to go overboard as you 'can' get by without some luxuries but if you dont at least shore up the 'Core System' of your detailing regime then you'll quickly degrade your paint system after doing alot of work to correct it.


Steve
 
zx10r Elle said:
Mr Swirlbuster,

You left yourself wide open and a lot of suggestions are advising you to spend a lot of money.
Click to expand...

I don't know if that was directed at me, I was simply trying to illustrate a range of products that would be considered acceptable practice, while abiding by the rules of the forum.

Use good wash/dry media, keep it clean, use a good quality wash, try to rinse off as much dirt as you can before touching, be gentle, etc. Just trying to get the basics across here.
 
Mr Setec Astronomy,

Of course my statement wasnt directed 'at' anybody. My goal was to convey empathy and understanding so that the OP wouldnt feel overwhelmed and choose a path of avoiding further advice which may seem as 'just spend more money'.

As a rank newbie to detailing I am doing my absolute best to help 'slow things down a bit' for others new like me who may end up feeling like theres no end to spending. As such my goal is to attempt to help advice requesters learn at their own pace.

As it is I dont even know if OP has fixed his paint issues on his 'vette, so he may not be done with that goal.

Of course there are definite minimum requirements to achieve any appreciable success when detailing a vehicle, however from my perspective some newbies get steamrolled, that would certainly turn me off.

Sorry for any offense, there was none intended.

Steve
 
i've added a 10 bottle of wash and a $7 mit

I probably needed new ones anyway. I've been using that same wand for many many years. lol i can save those for my everyday cars.
 
zx10r Elle said:
Sorry for any offense, there was none intended.
Click to expand...

None taken, I have done my share of trying to put the brakes on new members lest they join the "flavor of the month club" and wind up with more products than they will ever use (ask me how I know).

I also commend the OP for not wanting to undo whatever correction he has or will achieve.
 
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