nooB alert: Couple questions to make sure I understand before diving in...

hardisj said:
good points, guys.

With all that feedback, I'm looking at Blackfire Duo and Megs m21 sealant to round everything out. 4 orange pads for buffing and 2 white pads for finishing and sealant. Probably throw in a 4" orange pad for smaller areas. Sound right? I'll have to order up some nanoskin glide for the pad.

any specific suggestions on pad cleaners?



FWIW, I ordered and received the nanoskin pad already. That thing just looks cool. And all the reviews I've read on it since ordering tell me I made the right choice. Thanks for that suggestion, guys.

- Erin
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Make it a Blackfire trio and go with Blackfire Wet Diamond Selant. If you dont want that the go with collinite 845 cheaoer and just as great.

Pad cleaners I just use an all purpose cleaner and some dawn dish soap and clean them by hand. If you wannt a pad cleaner then DP makes one that good.

Get Optimum no rinse this can be used as a clay lube and you will have a no rise car wash now as well.

Make sure you get the right backing plate for the smaller pads.
 
Thanks, Evan. I edited my post. Would you mind looking at it again and letting me know what you think?
 
hardisj said:
Thanks, Evan. I edited my post. Would you mind looking at it again and letting me know what you think?
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Evrrything looks good. I would still go with Optimum no rinse you will get more for you money.
 
thanks for the feedback.

man, this stuff gets expensive! even when trying to maintain a budget. pulling the trigger on all of this stuff has been something I've not been entirely willing to do just yet.
 
If you want to stay in budget but not lose quality then I'd buy the following.
You'll get great results.

CG'S Hex pads Orange and white.
Meguiars Ultimate Compound. Good stuff and bought anywhere. Easier to work with compared to m105.
Meguiars 205 which can be bought right here:)
CG'S EZ Cream Glaze. Great product at a great price. Bought here.
Griots Paint Sealant. Bought here. It's all I use. Great protection and also gives you a great shine.
Meguiars GoldClass Paste Wax. 10.00 a tub. Gives you a dark, deep shine that last. Bought anywhere.
 
hardisj said:
thanks for the feedback.

man, this stuff gets expensive! even when trying to maintain a budget. pulling the trigger on all of this stuff has been something I've not been entirely willing to do just yet.
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Preaching to the choir there Erin. ;)
RE keeping it in budget. As has been mentioned, you could go with Megs UC, UP, and even Ultimate Liquid Wax (which is actually more of a sealant than a wax) all of them of course are available locally OTC.

Speaking of Megs OTC products, you'll do good to find the Ultimate Spray Wax (and even possibly their detail spray) because it is something you'd seriously want to keep in your trunk for day to day use. Durability tests have shown it to be very good overall. Megs 105, 205, M20, M21 etc. can also usually be found locally. Here for instance Advance Auto Parts has some of them but only at select locations. I have 4 stores within 20 minutes or so yet only ONE of them have the full selection. :dunno: The thing about OTC products though is you can always find them, even on vacation.

I have my family keep a bottle of drinking water along with a bottle of QD spray and a few towels in ALL our vehicles. Never know when you'll walk out to find a "bird bomb" that needs instant cleaning up. :eek: After putting all that work into getting the paint 'right', they better darned not EVER show up here with dried bird poop on a vehicle! (I tend to not let it go as easily as some would.) :laughing:
 
I've considered going that direction (the OTC stuff). Still, I have to order pads and something to spray for the clay process so I might as well get it all from one source, I suppose. Unless a local auto parts store has a good selection of pads.

I'm really eager to get to playing with this stuff but I'll have to wait out purchasing something for the nanoskin 'clay' process... unless I can pick up something OTC.
 
The Meg's Ultimate Compound and Polish are good and can be found cheap otc. Since you're going to compound anyway try using soapy water with the Nanoskin Autoscrub. I've read where people have had decent success doing that and if it mars no big deal just compound it out. To cut cost get three orange pads and green pads. Then apply the sealant or wax by microfiber sponge by hand. You only need the DA for polishing.

Since you've got a child to worry about, get a sealant or wax that will last a very long time over worring about finish. Klasse lasts a very long time but you'll need both the all in one and sealant. Wax wise, Collinite 845, lasts a very long time as well (just remember to tape if waxing). Although honestly, once you have the paint right (smooth) it doesn't matter what you put on it, be it Turtle Wax or high end Suveran Wax the results will be arguable on a narrow sliding scale (for at least the first month anyway). The prep work counts allot for the end results.

Hope everyone's input have helped.
 
Also, 303 makes excellent fabric/carpet protection and cleaner for the inside. You'll need it with a two year old. Wal-Mart sells basic seat/bench covers for cheap that will save your seats tons. Just look at the remains when you move the baby seat
 
Let me state up front: I get aggravated when someone asks for advice, I give it, and they don't take it. It annoys me when I see it in person and the likewise on a forum. Moreso, when I've vested a lot of time in to it.

That said, I took some of your advice and others' I didn't. But, I did heavily weigh all the options presented to me. The final decision was made based on availability locally should I decide I need more. Intrisically, these decisions were then made on budget constraints. I spent more money on pads than I would have cared to but I figure if I'm going to spend money, that's where it would be best spent. So, here's the final list. The order has been placed on this site using the new member discount (which saved about $30).

LC-55-COMBO - 6 Qty 5.5 Inch Lake Country CCS Pads- Yo 44.99
M-2116 - 16 oz. Meguiar's Mirror Glaze #21 Synthetic S 24.99
G-3626 - 26 oz. Meguiar's Ultimate Wash & Wax Anywhere 14.99
M-10508 - 8 oz. Meguiar's Mirror Glaze #105 Ultra-Cut 10.99
M-20508 - 8 oz. Meguiar's Mirror Glaze #205 Ultra Fini 8.99
G-1900 - Meguiar's Headlight & Clear Plastic Restorati 29.99

For the pads, this is the breakdown:
Pad 1 : Orange
Pad 2 : Orange
Pad 3 : Orange
Pad 4 : White
Pad 5 : White
Pad 6 : Blue


I was going to go with a couple 4" pads but the additional cost made me reconsider. I'm new. I don't want to overload myself. I don't want to invest a boatload of money in something that I'm really unsure of. I think I made the reasonable decision. Maybe not the best products per se, but I think the value is high and it's a good start based on the feedback here.

I went ahead and picked up the headlight restore kit because one of my headlights looks like someone sprayed five layers of clear coat on the inside of it. That's how bad it is. ;)

I'll really need to work on my windshield; it's got some nastiness that needs attention but I'm going to put that off for now.

Thanks again for all of your help. I'll be sure to post my results. I'm really looking forward to getting started.
 
Alright, so tell me how bad I jacked this up....

I got everything in today. Rather than try to do it all at once, I wanted to break it down in to steps to make sure that I do this right. The first step was the 'clay' using the nanoskin pad. I taped off an area about 1.5x15.ft on the side of the car. Probably should have started with a more obscure location but hindsight is 20/20. :rolleyes:

I put the DA on a speed of about 1.5 - 2. I applied very little to no pressure and SOAKED the panel in a 10:1 solution of nanoskin glide per directions.

I've attached the before and after. Sadly, my after looks worse. :(

I fail. Tell me what I did wrong.
 
that's better news.

I was afraid I didn't do something right. I read the directions for the nanoskin pad at least 1500 times before I even opened the package. I've re-read it a few times more since I posted this and I don't see anything that I did wrong. The pad was brand new. I guess my concern is going forward is this something I should expect or do I need to re-evaluate my first step process? I was kind of hoping the glaze is pretty much the norm until polish/finish is applied.

Thanks again for all your help. This may wind up becoming a nooB's sticky at this rate. :/
 
Three things. One did you break the pad in on the windshield? You soak the pad then use on a very hard surface like glass until the shipping protection coating is removed. The rubber coating should feel rubbery with grip to the touch when ready. Second, the Glide should be diluted at 7:1 ratio, 10:1 is for use as a detail spray and is too thin. Then also make sure to put the solution in a spray bottle to spray on the surface as your working. Three, make sure your using the fine grade pad and not medium. The fine grade pad will have a blue foam center.


I'm working from a cell phone right now so the pictures are not the best. I don't think it's maring from what I'm seeing. Try spreading on water and wiping with a microfiber cloth to see if it washes off. I'm going to guess that it is the protective coating that ships on the Autoskin pad. When breaking in it looks kinda milky. Although it could be maring due to too thin of a solution but I kind of doubt it. If it is, like previous posted it will compound out.
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Also You Tube has great instructional videos on how to do each of the steps. Just Google it under videos tab. Watch a couple of the videos before doing anything else. It is a fantastic resource for those like me who prefer to see over read.

Using the Autoscrub should have been spray Glide then around three light to no pressure passes and then a spray with distilled water and wipe off the dirty residue with a micro fiber cloth. Then clean the pad with light soapy water and then rise with water.
 
Out of everything I've read, I can honestly say I didn't see the bit about breaking in the pad on the windshield. And that's probably what hosed me. Hopefully some polish will clear me up. But before I use the pad anymore I'll be sure to do the break in.

I did purchase the blue pad. At least I did something right. :mad:

Thanks, again, for the feedback.
 
hardisj said:
I did purchase the blue pad. At least I did something right. :mad:
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Hey, don't beat yourself up. Your learning, nothing that can not be corrected. If my hunch is correct, you just need to wipe the panel. The pad break in info was in the helpful tips section . . I think right below the instructions.

Complete how to videos:
autogeek - YouTube

Autoscrub how to video:
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DEWl3R6TPLo&desktop_uri=/watch?v=DEWl3R6TPLo

Good luck! I look forward to seeing the finished results! :xyxthumbs:
 
alright, I broke in the clay pad and chose to start on the trunk lid today since that had some serious scratches on it. this is my first attempt. I still have some imperfections and light scratches but there's a significant difference with polish/finish. I didn't put sealant on yet. I wanted to wait to see what you guys said about it before I locked it in, so to speak. Should I hit it with another round of polish/finish?

I must say, I'm pretty dang excited. I feel like I actually did something right here. I know it's not perfect but the fact that there's still paint there and fewer scratches makes me feel pretty dang happy. :D
 
Looks great! If you are 100% satisfied with the way everything looks the go ahead. If not the try another section and see if you can get better results than what you have.

It all comes down to what your happy with.
 
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