need tips on detailing by hand.

Texarkana

Texarkana

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My aunt got a hold of me a few minutes ago and asked me if I could detail her car. I told her no problem but I have no experiencewith machine waxing or polishing. She is going to buy all the supplies so I'll tell her to pick up a clay bar kit along with polish and wax.

The vehicle is a Audi A4, black paint and aluminum rims. The most I've done is wash, clay bar and apply spray wax to my vehicle so any tips or links to a good write up would be appreciated.
 
Texarkana said:
My aunt got a hold of me a few minutes ago and asked me if I could detail her car. I told her no problem but I have no experiencewith machine waxing or polishing. She is going to buy all the supplies so I'll tell her to pick up a clay bar kit along with polish and wax.

The vehicle is a Audi A4, black paint and aluminum rims. The most I've done is wash, clay bar and apply spray wax to my vehicle so any tips or links to a good write up would be appreciated.
Click to expand...

Audi is notorious for having hard paint that can be difficult to correct. If you are out to remove defects, I would say you NEED a DA machine, or you will either have to work for days at a time or you will have to accept sub par results.

If you are not out to remove defects, but just want to decontaminate the surface and protect it with a nice sealant and/or wax... then there are not too many tips I can give. Simply spread thinly and evenly over the paint (make sure the surface is cool, apply products in garage or at least in the shade). Use products as directed - meaning some are meant to apply and immediately remove while others are meant to be applied and left to cure for a certain amount of time until they are dry and ready to be removed.

Good luck!
 
Texarkana said:
My aunt got a hold of me a few minutes ago and asked me if I could detail her car. I told her no problem but I have no experiencewith machine waxing or polishing. She is going to buy all the supplies so I'll tell her to pick up a clay bar kit along with polish and wax.

The vehicle is a Audi A4, black paint and aluminum rims. The most I've done is wash, clay bar and apply spray wax to my vehicle so any tips or links to a good write up would be appreciated.
Click to expand...

I would invest in a DA polisher. Yes the price may seem steep at first but once you use it a few times and see what you can do with one you'll never look back. You can probably make your money back on it detailing a few friends or family cars.
 
Said above quite nicely. As long as your expectations are in line, I think you'll be fine. You can certainly cleanse and protect working by hand. FWIW, I just did so last month on my black Audi...(and the Mrs.' Lexi):

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You've got the basic steps in place...

Wash > clay > cleanse > protect

If you haven't yet directed the shopping, I'd go with a good paint cleanser versus a polish. You'll find it to be easier to apply and work by hand, and again, as mentioned above....you're not going to do much correction work on that hard clear until you step up to machine polishing.

Assuming you're after maximum protection, I'd choose a sealant over a wax...although with my favorite-on-black product, you'll also get the look of a wax. I know you didn't ask for any product recommendations, but if it has some value, this might be a good start:

Wolfgang Deep Gloss Total Concours Kit, exterior car care kit, wash, clay, polish, and wax

That would address everything but a good set of mitts, buckets, and if needed, a wheel cleaner or APC.

Good luck...
 
Wash, Clay, Black Fire Gloss Enhancing Polish, Total Polish and Seal and then maybe top with some Midnight Sun Wax. Will shine up nice, but like said earlier, won't do much if paint correction is needed. I did this to my truck when I first found AG and was amazed how much better the truck looked than my previous wash and waxes.
 
I would recommend Klasse AIO if working by hand.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2
 
I own a Audi A4, also black. I use Wolfgang everything on this car,if you go to my profile you can see the car. When I first bought this car I started with a good wash and striped it of everything old, then clayed it then wolfgangs 3.0 swril remover and topped it off with fusion. Then polished it with the Cyclo. You will love the results.
 
Sorry it took so long to reply everyone. My aunt was worried about the pollen so she told me the keys would be in the car and to come over whenever today. I tried to explain to her the proper process for an exterior detail but she just wants a hand wash and wax minus the clay bar and polish. I'll be heading over after my microfiber towels dry out, thanks for the tips!
 
Well I just got back, it came out pretty good despite my first time waxing. I bought Mequiar's gold class caranuba plus. Gave it quick wash, drove it into the barn and dried it off, then for the next hour and a half I slowly applied wax and buffed panel by panel. I wish she would've got the clay bar because even though the coat of wax is smooth as glass all the impurities underneath just make it feel ugly.
 
A great upsell will be the headlights on the next detail.
Also, sealants tend to attract less pollen than traditional wax.

Good job, btw!
 
Thank you. I'll see if she wants the headlights done. It'll take a little effort but I'm sure I can get them by hand.

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Looks great!

Definitely compound the headlights and then wax them... something is better than nothing and it will make driving that car at night much safer plus it will make your paint polishing work look better.


:dblthumb2:
 
Thanks Mike, those headlights do make take away from the paint. I might just pick up a restoration kit from Wal-Mart and do it out of pocket.
 
I'm glad you said that, I most likely wouldn't had even thought of it.
 
Since you've never been down any "machine path" yet, don't sweat it, nor lose any sleep.

IMO, one thing you don't want to do, is learn some of these processes on somebody else's vehicle, especially an expensive one. You don't want to learn the hard way, and have regrets for a long long time, that you made a bad mistake.

There's nothing wrong with simply doing a good wash, vacuum, interior detail, clean glass in and out, and apply a coat of a sealant, or wax, and be done.

That above can easily take 8 hard hours of work, and it will show. Lots of vehicles don't need full blown chevy vettefest details to look good, and I'm sure you don't want to spend 20-30 hours of work, and see little gain.

Aunts, Uncles aren't looking to place their vehicles in some Barrett Jackson Show Auction. They will most likely be tickled pink with the work that you will do.

They'll see a clean interior, no dirts-dusts all over the dash, door panels, clean glass, a nice shine, water beading, and a paint that you know will at least be protected for a few months time.

We don't know the condition of the paint, so it might be filthy, might be swirled, might be hazy, a few light scuffs here and there, tar, and sap stuck to the paint, tires that have never been realy clean since the day of delivery.

If you're looking to buy strictly over the counter, one good bet would be meguiars products. Have an all purpose cleaner on hand, the Megs, or Mother's Clay Bar Kit, and perhaps just a simple red bottle of Meg's Cleaner Wax for $6. If you want to get fancy, then a bottle of Megs Mirror Glaze #21 Poly Sealant for about $19-$20 is another good bet, real easy to apply and take off, and usually lasts a bit longer than their waxes.

Just the few products I mention above, besides some common stuff you might have on hand, like Windex, brushes, wash towels, all purpose cleaners, detail brushes, and other small handy tools, the costs above will easily come to $50 or maybe a bit more.

A vehicle that is drivem but not taken care of like a '67 Stingray show car. gets dirty quick. Filthy Door Jambs, Trunk, under Hood, Floor Mats, and Carpeting. Glass that hasn't been touched in months. You get the picture.
Mark

Have a few applicators, and microfiber towels to remove waxes-sealants.
 
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