Tips to cut down on time

Bill1234

Bill1234

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Often I get the usual, hey can you clean my ride and such. Okay great, they say its in not that bad shape----the maurie show determined that was a lie and its a trashed vehicle and im in over my head. Things that have helped before hand are at least having bottles prepped, cabinet organized, supplies cleaned and I think thats it I know of so far, anyone else have any tips as to what I could do about trying to shave off 30 minutes to an hour without becoming a hack and cutting corners?
 
Have a powerful DA Like the Flex 3401 or Rupes. I just posted a comment about Menzerna FG300 and that saved me quite a bit of time too. If you are using a weak DA, that alone extends your correcting time. I know I have a PC7424XP. I still use the PC but it is my mini-DA and my wax/sealant applicator. The Flex 3401 was a God Send to me. My guess any of the Rupes or well known power house can save you time too!
 
1. Keep your polisher nearby at all times. [meaning you shouldn’t be walking any distance to have to set it down after every buffing cycle]

2. Have plenty of fresh pads on deck. [trying to squeeze every last breath from a pad eventually results in taking more time due to gradually less effective results]

3. Once your test spot is done, put down your swirl finding light. [chasing complete perfection after every buffing cycle chews up alot of time. Half of it is spent on wiping away any missed polish/compound residue. You’re better off saving it for last during a final spot check]

4. Detailing cart. Keep your essentials on it. Towels, compound, beverage, etc...

5. Try to stay off your phone. This can be a huge distraction and chew up alot of time. Even using it to play music can be detrimental because you’re constantly trying to skip through songs till it plays what you want. It wastes time.
 
6. Try to limit the amount of time you have to keep bending down/climb up if possible. This is a major contributor towards fatigue... If you don’t have a level spot to place your polisher then you might resort to placing it face up on the ground after every buffing cycle. Having to constantly bend down to grab it will get you tired in a hurry, leading to you getting sluggish + working in pain.

Likewise, using a normL ladder instead of a step platform will get you tired quicker and you’ll be paying for it the next day when you wake up sore.

If polishing vertical panels i.e. the doors, have your step platform handy so you can sit on it while polishing. Or maybe you can use a creeper stool, anything beats trying to lean over or crouch down while polishing because that will wear you out in a hurry, leading to you slowing down and taking longer than you should on a job. Work smart.
 
Eldorado2k said:
6. Try to limit the amount of time you have to keep bending down/climb up if possible. This is a major contributor towards fatigue... If you don’t have a level spot to place your polisher then you might resort to placing it face up on the ground after every buffing cycle. Having to constantly bend down to grab it will get you tired in a hurry, leading to you getting sluggish + working in pain.

Likewise, using a normL ladder instead of a step platform will get you tired quicker and you’ll be paying for it the next day when you wake up sore.

If polishing vertical panels i.e. the doors, have your step platform handy so you can sit on it while polishing. Or maybe you can use a creeper stool, anything beats trying to lean over or crouch down while polishing because that will wear you out in a hurry, leading to you slowing down and taking longer than you should on a job. Work smart.
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what sort of step platform are you using?
 
I now have a power washer, gorilla platform which I basically stole from home depot and a decent craftsman mechanics stool
 
mwoywod said:
what sort of step platform are you using?
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These ones. They’re worth bringing along to mobile jobs even if you’re not working on a tall vehicle because not only can you sit on them while polishing, but you can use them as a substitute detailing cart to set things down on.

ec3dd2db54177b987cdb509c4c4070e9.heic
 
yes, I posted that here and people went wild for them for being 40 dollars off on black friday
 
Bill1234 said:
yes, I posted that here and people went wild for them for being 40 dollars off on black friday
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I got one those as a Christmas gift based on your post I believe:) I used it a few weeks ago for the first time. It was awesome
 
To start with don't accept work or at least give a quote before you have seen the car with you own eyes. Then you quote accordingly to the time you think it takes.

Have your products dialed in for the different tasks that you can be faced with. Iron remover and tar remover and bug remover that is effective is time savers too. And to have clay alternatives cuts down the claying time alot. The new GG BOSS foaming system seems promesing with both prep work and decon washes.

The detailing eqiupment you seem to have dialed in. You can get so you don't have to move them from side to side. Which could save a little time. And the little things ads up to when you have finished the work.

The polishing part you have gotten awesome tips on already :)
 
Bill1234 said:
Often I get the usual, hey can you clean my ride and such. Okay great, they say its in not that bad shape----the maurie show determined that was a lie and its a trashed vehicle and im in over my head. Things that have helped before hand are at least having bottles prepped, cabinet organized, supplies cleaned and I think thats it I know of so far, anyone else have any tips as to what I could do about trying to shave off 30 minutes to an hour without becoming a hack and cutting corners?
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Lots of great insight in this thread. My thoughts are this:

Products, Machine, pads, etc.: Get them dialed in and set up. My go-to for polishing are a couple Flex 3401's and now a Rupes Mille. Forced Rotation is a HUGE bump in speed. I'm OCD and set up a polisher on both sides of the vehicle so I don't have to move equipment. Product wise, I love Blue/Purple Wool Pads and ClearCut. Combined they knocked off HUGE loads of time in corrections. Dial in your polishes and pads too. Keep plenty of clean ones ready to go.

I also lay out my pads and towels in a long plastic under the bed tub on my main work bench. This keeps everything handy while working and allows for me to cover them up while working. No more having to go into cabinets or elsewhere for what I need for the job. Keep your buckets and tools organized. When I set up for a detail I line up buckets ahead of time including dirty rag buckets with solution mix ready to go so my towels for coatings don't harden.

Wash bucket (you may use multiple in your system, I don't)
Dry bucket - small 1 gal pale for my rinseless solution / rag for final wipe downs
Wheel Bucket - brushes, mitts and solution for cleaning wheels and nasty parts.
Dirty towel/Rag Bucket - another 5 gals ready with a solution mix handy to get my towels clean faster

Route your cords and lights too. Here too, I route my extension cords on either side of the vehicle so that my lighting is set up on both sides and I don't have to disconnect/reconnect things. Find a way to connect and store cords so you just need to flip switches to turn things on. I have a retractable cord system in the ceiling and one on the walls on either side of my garage so I can just pull out the cord and retract it when done. Each one has three outlets and will drive two lights and one buffer without tangling.

Keep your cordless drill / driver and bits for plates near by. Sounds silly but I have a dedicated spot in my tool box with bits and sockets along with my driver so I can make short order of removing plates and luggage racks, etc. Once you find the right size that works, just order up another spare one off Amazon and keep it set aside in a dedicated spot. No more lost or misplaced bits.

I also don't tape off trim. I know some will debate it but for me it works. Taping off seems and trim is a waste for me. I simple clean, prep and treat the trim first. I am very careful about not touching it but if I do, treated trim that hasn't been wiped off is a snap to clean. Upon my final wipe down I always wipe it off removing any dust. I also highly advise spending $25-$35 on canvas style wheel covers. I use them on every vehicle even if I'm just polishing. Keeps my cleaned up and protected wheels clean and dust free. Dust wise, get two old long beach towels and cover the cowling area before you start buffing. Again, I treat all that before buffing and it's so each to just close the hood on the towels knowing my work is going to stay clean.

Those are just a few things off the top of my head that are in addition to what others have listed. x2 for sure on the platform systems. I use it for doing roofs of SUV's but mostly I use it as a portable cart/table. Go pick up and old office chair on wheels and remove the back and there's your seat for when you're buffing the sides of vehicles and don't need to stand.

Wall mount a canister vacuum and buy one that supports upwards of 25'+ of hose. I relocated mine towards the front of my garage so I can use it inside the garage or on vehicles parked in the driveway.

Love my cordless leaf blower too. Makes short-work of drying off vehicles and no cords is a huge plus.
 
I like to breakdown each phase of work and arrange everything I need to efficiently work through it. For example, wash and decon equipment is all assembled and arranged together for very short reach and effort. Wash buckets, foam gun, iron remover, clay or nanoskin, GooGone or Acetone, Tar X, assorted rags/q tips/tooth picks/brushes etc.

When I move on to correction, again, everything I will need or even think I might need is loaded onto my cart.

I very very rarely have to walk more than a couple of steps to get something unforeseen at that phase of work.
 
Not a pro here, but I noticed in my 2 step last thursday, the most annoying thing besides my cord was setting down and picking my polish or sealant bottle. Do they make a belt or something like tool belts to hold bottles/mf towels?
 
I picked up a bunch of 4 ounce bottles I use for liquid products and simply toss it in my pocket. Even on the largest jobs I rarely use more than about 2-3 ounces.

I've never been a fan of detailing "belts" to avoid scratching or marring a surface. That may just be me, though.
 
Surgery scrubs, I have several sets of older scrubs from work that I like to wear. You can even pick up some from Wal-Mart for about $15/set.
 
Eldorado2k said:
4. Detailing cart. Keep your essentials on it. Towels, compound, beverage, etc...
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Been using mine more and more. Just yesterday, since I was working in the backyard, I saved a pretty good amount of time by putting everything I would need on the cart, and just making one trip, instead of 4-6.


Also, the platforms mentioned on here are great. I have one and want a second. I take mine to mobile jobs. Use them as a platform to stand on when needed, or as a small table to rest stuff on (bags with towels, flash light, tasty beverage or water, polisher tools, etc..). Also makes for a good seat for lunch time.

My detail cart as used for yesterday's "work"
 
Switching to a clay detailing pad that I can strap my hand to instead of a little clay bar has been the biggest time saver for me.
 
Belo said:
Not a pro here, but I noticed in my 2 step last thursday, the most annoying thing besides my cord was setting down and picking my polish or sealant bottle. Do they make a belt or something like tool belts to hold bottles/mf towels?
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Paul A. said:
I picked up a bunch of 4 ounce bottles I use for liquid products and simply toss it in my pocket. Even on the largest jobs I rarely use more than about 2-3 ounces.

I've never been a fan of detailing "belts" to avoid scratching or marring a surface. That may just be me, though.
Click to expand...

Far from a pro myself, but my first time machine polishing, man did I hate setting the bottle down (nearby table, ground, etc.) And having to pick it up constantly. Since then, I've started using a little cart (like a wagon). But even that was getting to be a PITA..


Now, I simply wear a pair of cargo shorts and keep the bottle in the big pocket on the thigh. The 16oz bottle sticks out enough to grab it easily, and it's always right there by my hand.

I also agree with Paul on the detailing belts. Not a fan of the idea.
 
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