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IronEagle410

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Hello everyone! First I would just like to say thank you all for not only taking the time out to read this post but also for the endless detailing information you have all so graciously posted on these magnificent forums. I have scoured these pages for months now and have learned quite a bit and have all of you to thank. So thank you!

First let me give you guys some basic info. I purchased a used black 2011 lancer almost a year ago. The woman who owned the car previously should be imprisoned for the neglect and damage done to the paint! The swirl marks alone completely cover every inch of the car, after reading all I could here about swirl marks I have determined they are of the "spiderweb" type. There are Also some scratches of varying depth in different spots the car. Some areas of the paint look purplish and dull. I hope to get some pictures to better illustrate the issues tonight after work, rain permitting.

Now I would like to cover what i have been doing to wash, correct, and polish the car.

Washing: Two bucket method, cheap Walmart buckets, no grit guards, meg gold class soap (not much in the suds department with this soap) some type of Walmart plush soft wash mitt no idea the material. Maybe a synthetic fur?

Drying: Walmart xl drying towel (sucks) and a metric ton of cheap small microfiber towels.

Correction: clay the panel I'm working on first with the megs kit. First tried scratch x by hand, did nothing. So I then purchased the da power system with the Ultimate compound, ultimate polish, and wax. Results were good but not perfect. My issue with the DaPs is it takes multiple applications and takes me forever on each panel.

Polish and wax: again the Ultimate stuff from megs applied with the DAPS. Decent results just ton of work and extremely time consuming.

Hopefully that information is sufficient to help me. Basically what I need from you all is a detailed shopping list broken down in the different car care steps simplified for a beginner. With the sheer volume of products and tools I don't have the slightest clue what I should be buying. The only thing I have decided on is the griots polisher 6". Unfortunately I don't have an unlimited budget so anywhere we can save a buck would be great. Thinking about buying in stages unless a good bundle exists. Also would like to buy a few things if not everything from autogeek as I said before this site has been instrumental in taking care of my cars and would like to support the site.

I apologize for the wall of text, and thanks again for taking the time to read it. I look forward to your response.
 
budget wise i would stick with the Meguiars line of products, they can be bought at most auto parts stores locally.

Megs #105
Megs #205

use AG for the harder to get stuff

Good Microfiber towels, brushes, applicators. things that are not readily available local.
 
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Definitely upgrade to a "real" polisher.

Back about 20 years ago Meguiar's sold a buffing pad that fit into a drill and while a drill will do a better job than working by hand if you're serious about buffing out one car or multiple cars you'll never regret getting a real dual action polisher like the Porter Cable or the Griot's version of it.


:)
 
Thank you both for the responses! Yea buying a griots was the only thing I was certain about, unless the PC is better? Read about 20 different topics on that subject. Definitely grabbing some megs 105 and 205 after watching your round table discussion Mike, so than you refreshauto for the recommendation. And recommendation on the griots 6" bundles? Still a bit lost on the pad selection. Thanks again
 
The PC might be less money, same quality. I haven't seen the Groits, but PC makes great stuff, love my PC 7424XP. Got it on eBay for $80 and shipping.
 
CopperMtnGuy said:
The PC might be less money, same quality. I haven't seen the Groits, but PC makes great stuff, love my PC 7424XP. Got it on eBay for $80 and shipping.
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Would you say the reliability of the PC is greater than the griots? After all what good is a lifetime warranty if you have to keep paying for shipping to return a broken griots?
 
Mike is right, do yourself a favor and buy yourself a "DA" buffer if you can afford it.
You'll he happy you did.
Then we can help you more , get you on the right track in picking out pads, polishes, etc.
 
IronEagle410 said:
Would you say the reliability of the PC is greater than the griots? After all what good is a lifetime warranty if you have to keep paying for shipping to return a broken griots?
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Both the PC and the GG will be great workhorses for you. You'll definitely find a strong and vocal advocacy group for each DA polisher.

IMHO, I'd go with the GG. It's more powerful and GG is very good about warranty repairs.
 
CopperMtnGuy said:
The PC might be less money, same quality. I haven't seen the Groits, but PC makes great stuff, love my PC 7424XP. Got it on eBay for $80 and shipping.
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Depending on budget and needs, the Harbor Freight model is less than that. It's a great tool for the non-pro who will only do a few cars a couple of times a year. Slap a Lake Country 5" backing plate on it and you're good to go.
 
Buy a kit, get a polisher and wolfgang twins and throw in a sample of WDGS and call it a day. Or here is a complete kit:
Wolfgang Porter Cable 7424 Swirl-Free Kit
Less "complete" kit:
Wolfgang Duo & Porter Cable 7424XP FREE BONUS
Same price but with a Griots unit: Griot’s Garage Random Orbital Wolfgang Duo

All the kits will take out most of the swirls and leave a great finish. If you get one that doesn't have a sealant, get a free sample of the Deep Gloss stuff, a 2oz bottle will go a LONG way.
 
You guys are amazing! Going with the griots 6" meguiar perfect paint kit. Thank you all for the help and advice. Slowly picking out the rest of the items I need for washing and drying.
 
IronEagle410 said:
You guys are amazing! Going with the griots 6" meguiar perfect paint kit. Thank you all for the help and advice. Slowly picking out the rest of the items I need for washing and drying.
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When you call to order it see if you can get them to change out the backing plate to a 5" and supply 5.5" pads instead of the 6.5" pads. Also, you'll need more pads than most kits provide (estimate 4 for compounding, 3-4 for polishing, 1 per LSP for application)

Personally I don't care for kits as sometimes you get products you don't need and sometimes not enough of what you do need.

Just a thought--if money is tight shopping around and being patient can reap rewards.
 
So it's impractical to think I could correct the entire car with one cutting pad? Figure with the terry cloth trick I learned from Mike's video it would get me by until more pads arrive.
 
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IronEagle410 said:
So it's impractical to think I could correct the entire car with one cutting pad? Figure with the terry cloth trick I learned from Mike's video it would get me by until more pads arrive.
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Your pad will get wet or saturated. Saturated pads don't rotate as well and they also don't cut or correct as well.

You could buff out a car with just one pad but it will take longer as pad effectiveness drops off. It will also wear out the pad.

It's faster and a lot more effective to be able to switch to a clean, dry pad often. I always tell guys,

Let your budget be your guide...


Your time is worth something.

Also, you could just do a section of the car a day, wash and dry the pad and start fresh another day. Just recent there were a couple of threads on this forum about breaking up a car detailing project over time.



:)
 
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