One small clarification question. When you say tape off the plastic trim would that include the painted plastic trim vent inserts in the hood where the washer sprays are, and the chincy chrome plated plastic grille ? Or you just mean any black rubber weather stripping ?
Anything that is black or gray plastic trim, especially the curse of the detailing world, PEBBLE TEXTURED plastic trim.
I'd tape off plastic chrome trim too, it seems to scratch too easily to want to deal with the scratches is caused by accident.
Very detailed article here....
How to tape-off a car before machine polishing
Here's a video that shows tips and techniques....
Video: How to tape-off car trim before machine polishing
I don't mess around when ti comes to taping off ugly plastic as I hate trying to remove dried compound, polish or wax residue after spending anywhere from 8+ hours doing the work.
I'm not in complete agreement with your process.
First off, use FG400 instead of TSR 3.0. It will finish just as well and deliver more cut.
100% for sure the FG400 will cut faster as it's a true compound while TSR is a Medium Cut Compound.
My recommendation was targeted at helping the OP use
what he listed he had.... but by all means everyone should have a true compound in their detailing arsenal.
Second, Menzerna/Wolfgang polishes tend to leave a lot of oily residue behind. One or two wipes with Eraser may not adequately remove the oils. Therefore, if you're coating, it's always smart to do the final polishing with that brand's products. Use CarPro Reflect for your final polishing.
I agree... I'm a proponent and teacher of using a
Synergistic Chemical Compatibility approach to choosing chemical lines to buff out cars in most cases.
That said,
if the OP doesn't own CarPro Reflect they can opt to purchase it as the AG store sells it or just do a good job of removing the polishing oils off the paint.
Keep in mind that clearcoats are NOT very absorbent, if fact not absorbent at all. So the oils are pretty much sitting on top of the paint and can be wiped off using IPA or some other paint friendly solvent. Prep-All is a good panel wipe under the Kleen Strip brand and the formula was first created by none other than Dr. G himself when he worked for Kleen Strip.
Prep-All is a Panel Wipe
Anyone have any feedback on Dash's polisher of choice? I went to the Flex DA after learning my lesson on "hard" black Audi paint and now only use the PC7424 on tighter areas that require smaller pads.
Some of the hardest factory paint I've ever worked on has been Audi paint. So I agree 100% with you.
Some of the softest paint I've ever worked on has been Audi paint, incredibly soft. Even documented this with an article...
Audi Soft Paint - Making Generalizations about Hardness and Softness
I know that Ceramiclear can be a beast.
I always read posts where people say Ceramiclear paints are rock hard.
I 100% disagree. AT least none of the Ceramiclear paints I've buffed out have been rock hard. In fact I would say they are perfect. They are in the sweet spot where they are not too hard that they are difficult to correct and they are not so soft that they scratch easily just by wiping them.
Nice TNOG pictures... always good to see the TNOG's live on.... :dblthumb2:
Mike Stoops has really done a great job taking over the Meguiar's detailing classes. When I first met him I could tell he had the passion for both polishing paint and
teaching others how to polish paint plus he's a true car guy.
Sorry, yes I already have all the products from a previous project car but it was in REALLY bad shape and didn't have a ceramic clear coat like the new Benz does.
Don't let anything you read about Ceramiclear paints scare you as it relates to the hardness factor.
Wolfgang TSR and a foam cutting pad and your PC on speed setting 6 with good technique and a slow arm speed is more than enough to do the job and do it safely.
Please test me on this and report back with what you experience when you tackle this project.
I've never had a single problem removing swirls out of an MB Ceramiclear finish using only TSR, foam pads and PCs. Remember, read the DA Troubleshooting Guide before you start to refresh your memory on good technique.
Seeing as how I'm a bit unskilled as of yet with the polisher and the car, I'd rather err on side of 'a lot of work to get the right result' than on the 'too much polishing with too much cut'.
Nothing wrong with slow and steady... it's how the Tortoise won the race against the Rabbit.
Also, you don't want to break through the top layer of fused mica...
Ceramiclear Paints - Be Careful
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