New guy in Massachusetts!

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Garnetmica

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Hello everyone!

I'm a long time amateur detailer here in Massachusetts. Though I have been extremely meticulous with my vehicles I have never ventured into the world of machine polishers so I could use some guidance. I was also looking for recommendations for paint sealant.

For the last 15 or so years I have been a loyal Zaino user on my toy, S100 user for my daily drivers. More recently I have begun layering S100 on top of the Zaino on my toy. I have a variety of over the counter cleaners, polishes and waxes and recently decided it was time to venture into the world of machine polishing so I picked up a harbor freight DA, a couple of cutting pads, polishing and finishing pads. I also picked up a few Meguiars Polishing pads, some 205 and Mirror Glaze Swirl Remover.

The toy is a 2009 Mazda MX5 which is stored in the winter months, has never seen rain or snow and has a nearly flawless finish. It's a dark blue, "Stormy Blue Mica" as defined by Mazda. The clearcoat on the car is very soft. Two years ago it was washed, clayed, washed, polished by hand and several layers of Zaino applied. The car is quick detailed after almost every run. There are very few visible swirls and light scratches in the clear coat. Over the last year, I have begun layering S100 on top of the existing Zaino.

Obligatory iPhone pic:
photo4.jpg


Side shot:
miata_0707_copy.jpg


Top shot:
miata_0238_copy.jpg


The car is usually top ranked at Miata specific shows and many have inquired about my routine but it's not as good as I think it could be. With the DA now on the shelf, I have been considering the use of a sealant once the paint has been corrected to lay the foundation for what ever I decide to layer on above it. I joined to solicit advise on what sealant might be a good start.

My thoughts are as follows. Though I am very good at detailing by hand, I have not yet corrected with a machine. I have the opportunity to practice on my daily driver (2010 Sterling Grey Ford Fusion), I'm concerned about getting the paint correction right and then sealing the paint incorrectly. With factory paint thickness in question and the soft clearcoat I want to make sure there are no halos or micro swirls permanently imbedded in the finish. I'm admittedly intimidated by the permanence I have read about with products like Opticoat and 22PLE. Can anyone else recommend a sealant that would help the durability of the finish without sacrificing depth and clarity? Thanks in advance!
 
Welcome to Autogeek. Where in Mass are you? If detailing your car is your hobby something like a coating might not be for you.
 
Thanks for the welcome! I'm in Auburn. Honestly, that was one of my concerns. Though I enjoy the detailing process, my primary interest was to reduce micro marring in what appears to be pretty soft paint. I've literally found scuffs in the paint from oak leaves hit the nose at speed in the fall.

I have to admit that my self diagnosed OCD and feverish detailing revolves around a desire for paint perfection more so than the completion of the process. If a sealant were to get me to 95% with only the occasional dusting and quick detail, I could probably live with that. But if there were products that could get me to 100% with less potential for the marring I am experiencing now, I would be thrilled.
 
Welcome from a fellow MA member. It sounds like you might want to look into using a wipe on walk away sealant. This will minimize your risk of instilling imperfections in the paint
 
Judge said:
Welcome from a fellow MA member. It sounds like you might want to look into using a wipe on walk away sealant. This will minimize your risk of instilling imperfections in the paint
Click to expand...

Any specific product you recommend?
 
Sure. I mean you can't go wrong here, as there are several good choices. I would recommend the Wolfgang Deep Gloss Liquid Seal. You can get that in an 8 oz bottle. If you're looking for a smaller bottle, you could go with Ultima Paint Guard Plus, which comes in a 4 oz size and is also very good
 
First off let me say, :welcome: to AGO!!!

Second, I must say the paint on your MX5 is outstanding from what I'm seeing in the pics you've taken and I can see why your's is recognized at shows.

Third and lastly, from what you describe I would have to recommend against a semi permanent coating. If you love detailing your baby as much as you say then such a coating may take the "Fun" out of it. Finding ways to work without instilling damage may be much more gratifying.
If after that you are still insistent on a coating and your nervous about applying the coating then you can go two routes.

-1) Ask a fellow forum member (There are a quite a few, Bobby being one of the more active, I don't think he details full time but I can be wrong.) and they may be able to help you with application and possibly correction as you will need to go by machine if you need to correct the coating or any blemishes.

-2) You could pay a professional to do it, it may seem expensive but with that you get a quality coating without any risk of messing it up. I may add since your car seems fairly flawless a simple fine polish may be all that's needed before application which itself will save you alot of money.

Coatings are actually easy to apply per say because the companies have made them rather user friendly so I wouldn't be too intimidated. The choice is yours in the end, I would do a little more research, YouTube is a hell of a resource that can help you out immensely. Which ever way you go, have fun with it because in the end that's why we do what we do. Ever need any help just ask, my contact info is in my signature :).
 
Thanks again for the warm welcome everyone! I've spent a few weeks now going over different products. As a perfectionist on a budget, I'm having trouble picking a sealant product.

Today I went to work on my Sterling Grey 2011 Ford Fusion with 50K miles. I started off washing, claying, washing, drying and testing my new Harbor Freight DA, HF cutting, polishing and the finishing pads. The car is washed frequently in drive thru brushed washes. The paint is fairly good with micro mars and less than frequent RIDS.

I started with the Meguiars 205 and the blue polishing pad. The system worked nicely but some of the deeper RIDS remained. I bumped up to the orange cutting pad with the 205 and was able to sort out most of the RIDS. Then went back to Blue and 205, then another blue pad and the swirl remover. All I can say is wow! With minimal effort, the finish looked better than new.

I then cracked open the S100 solid carnauba and applied it directly to the Black finishing pad. Once hazed, I removed the carnauba with a microfiber and it's shinning like new and buttery smooth.

I'm disappointed that it took me so long to try this. I was really worried that I would end up with halos, hazing, micro marring etc.

The HF DA had more than enough power to turn the pads and keep them moving at a good clip. I tested various pressures, pads and product and was impressed by how well it worked. The head did heat up a bit and I did observe degradation of the pads where the overhanging 6" backing plate velcro rubbed on the exposed pad.

I will probably stick with the HF pads for the daily drivers because they are cheap, plentiful at the HF two miles from my residence and they worked. I ordered a 5" backing plate today http://www.amazon.com/Astro-Pneumati...+backing+plate I'll probably order a few LC pads for the MX5 when I finally pick a sealant.
 
Finally had a chance to upload a few crappy iPhone pics. I'll preface that the condition of my paint was already excellent. Many wondered why I wanted to do anything with the paint. This first pic is of a test square I did on the hood of the car. I taped a square off on the driver side of the hood, polished the section with the HF cutting pad, Meguiars 205, then HF polishing pad and Meguiars 205, polishing pad with Wolfgang Finishing Glaze. The red arrows show the tape line:

IMG_2217a.jpg


The paint was instantly more blue. Right side polished:

IMG_2218.jpg


Polished outside:

IMG_2223.jpg


Polished, Wolfgang Sealant 3.0 (applied with finishing pad, removed by hand), Wolfgang Fuzion Wax top coat (applied and removed by hand):

IMG_2225.jpg
 
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