234 replies to this topic

[Speed]

Yea, freezing is supposed to ruin some of the products, or so I've read. Seeing how much is invested, I never want to take the chance, so I store most everything inside. The shampoos and some of the dressings, along with the tools, pads, and towels stay in the garage.

Mothers FX liquid went bad over the winter and I'm not sure why. It's not a big deal - the stuff is very inexpensive and easy to find - but I would like to find out why it happened.

[bum]

Speed, on Mar 31 2009, 02:26 PM, said:

Yea, freezing is supposed to ruin some of the products, or so I've read. Seeing how much is invested, I never want to take the chance, so I store most everything inside. The shampoos and some of the dressings, along with the tools, pads, and towels stay in the garage.

Mothers FX liquid went bad over the winter and I'm not sure why. It's not a big deal - the stuff is very inexpensive and easy to find - but I would like to find out why it happened.

on the bottole it will say store at room temp that mean in side the house with heat not in the freezeing cold that and they list store between this temp and this temp etc... because it breaks down the chemicals in side it like hot glue in solid form it a stick when you add heat it turn in to a bloob of hot goo

[Aaron Clinton]

Speed, on Mar 31 2009, 05:26 PM, said:

Yea, freezing is supposed to ruin some of the products, or so I've read. Seeing how much is invested, I never want to take the chance, so I store most everything inside. The shampoos and some of the dressings, along with the tools, pads, and towels stay in the garage.

Mothers FX liquid went bad over the winter and I'm not sure why. It's not a big deal - the stuff is very inexpensive and easy to find - but I would like to find out why it happened.

Just saw an add with Chip Foose endorsing that product. I have not tried it yet, is it as good as the Mequires Tech Wax?

[Speed]

Aaron, on Mar 31 2009, 10:27 PM, said:

Just saw an add with Chip Foose endorsing that product. I have not tried it yet, is it as good as the Mequires Tech Wax?

I'm a big fan of Mothers FX. It has a very bright, wet look and its extremely easy to work with and remove. It's miles better than the original NXT. NXT 2.0 is a significantly better product. Its ease of use is on par with FX with similar longevity.

As a side note, now that Meguiars has been sold to 3M, folks are more enthusiastic about their products, myself included. Meguiars had a history of religiously biased hiring/firing practices that drove many not to buy their wares.

[Aaron Clinton]

Speed, on Mar 31 2009, 11:21 PM, said:

I'm a big fan of Mothers FX. It has a very bright, wet look and its extremely easy to work with and remove. It's miles better than the original NXT. NXT 2.0 is a significantly better product. Its ease of use is on par with FX with similar longevity.

As a side note, now that Meguiars has been sold to 3M, folks are more enthusiastic about their products, myself included. Meguiars had a history of religiously biased hiring/firing practices that drove many not to buy their wares.

Anything to do with Barry M's teeth or uber tan?

I will try the FX wax after I try the others in this thread after I run through the growing stock pile. But that is good news to hear about 3M. The Dupont teflon wax is interesting, but I only used it a few times and lost the bottle a few years ago when it first came out. I think Biglots had it cheap.

[Speed]

Aaron, on Apr 1 2009, 01:55 PM, said:

Anything to do with Barry M's teeth or uber tan?

<grin> Apparently, Barry felt that all employees should share his religious beliefs and went as far as to fire some of those who didn't. That resulted in a law suit which made the whole affair public.

Quote

I will try the FX wax after I try the others in this thread after I run through the growing stock pile. But that is good news to hear about 3M. The Dupont teflon wax is interesting, but I only used it a few times and lost the bottle a few years ago when it first came out. I think Biglots had it cheap.

The Big Lots near me is fully stocked with Dupont Teflon. The products weren't well-received on Autopia and I haven't tried them as a result. There are just too may fun things to play with.

If you have a Car Quest near you, I'd humbly suggest trying Duragloss instead of FX. The 105 sealant is fantastic with impressive durability. It rivals almost any sealant from a boutique manufacturer, or at least those I've tried. It can be maintained almost indefinitely with (Duragloss) Aquawax, a spray product that can be applied to a wet car after washing. They have other great stuff, too.

[Aaron Clinton]

Speed, on Apr 1 2009, 02:41 PM, said:

<grin> Apparently, Barry felt that all employees should share his religious beliefs and went as far as to fire some of those who didn't. That resulted in a law suit which made the whole affair public.



The Big Lots near me is fully stocked with Dupont Teflon. The products weren't well-received on Autopia and I haven't tried them as a result. There are just too may fun things to play with.

If you have a Car Quest near you, I'd humbly suggest trying Duragloss instead of FX. The 105 sealant is fantastic with impressive durability. It rivals almost any sealant from a boutique manufacturer, or at least those I've tried. It can be maintained almost indefinitely with (Duragloss) Aquawax, a spray product that can be applied to a wet car after washing. They have other great stuff, too.

Barry a thumper?

I have kept my eyes out for Duragloss, and I will hold off on the other mentioned wax suggestions until I get the Duragloss. Either way, I have a good amount of product to use at the moment.

[Speed]

Aaron, on Apr 1 2009, 08:03 PM, said:

Barry a thumper?

You've got it.

Quote

Either way, I have a good amount of product to use at the moment.

I think that I'm all set for the season, too. My Meguiars order arrived today, and I'm expecting some (new) Final Polish from Optimum. That's all the product I'll be buying. I did order a very cool tool with the OFP:

http://www.autogeek.net/glmaproco.html

I also took advantage of CG's pricing on premium MFs, so I scored some of these, as well:

http://www.chemicalguys.com/MONSTER_MICROF...mic_1100_03.htm

http://www.chemicalg...p/mic_333_6.htm

[Speed]

I linked Chemical Guys' (ie. CG) MF towels above. CG, along with selling products under its own brand, also manufactures lines for other folks, like Adams and Poorboys. Essentially, anyone can give CG their specs and they'll come-up with a product and its packaging. Here is a new CG-manufactured line that's being advertised in the major auto rags:

http://addictedtoyou....com/index.html

Every entity on their site comes from CG, except for the prices that are quite a bit higher. Compare these:

http://www.chemicalg...p/mic_998_3.htm

http://addictedtoyou...l/dryer_24.html

CG charges ~$10 for 3 of these towels, but the reseller wants ~$13 for just one (!). The same concept applies to everything they offer.

[Aaron Clinton]

Wow, steep difference. Today is still over cast and gloomy. So will have to wait until the weekend it seems.

[Speed]

Aaron, on Apr 2 2009, 01:50 PM, said:

Wow, steep difference. Today is still over cast and gloomy. So will have to wait until the weekend it seems.

We hit 68 today. I did an ONR wash and tried the new Meguires Ultimate Spray Wax. After taking a good look at the paint, there's at least 10 hours of polishing ahead. I may be able to get away with a 1-step polish, depending on the technique and some luck finding the right product/pad combo.

[Speed]

I was organizing the arsenal earlier today and pulled out the starting products for the rally car. We made contact with an immovable object last June that required over $12K of insurance money and 3 months to fix. The car's passenger side was repainted, as was the hood. I got the car back in the beginning of October and the paint hasn't had a chance to fully off-gas and cure during the colder months. I'm going to wait until June or July to apply a sealant or a wax to the finish, and allow the paint to harden, but in the meantime I have to use bodyshop-safe products.

Above is the assortment of bodyshop-safe glazes and QDs; I'll take a pic of the polishes once I begin the process. Some notes of interest:

Ever taken your car to a bodyshop and got it back with the paint looking almost perfect until it rained or the car was washed? That's when the scratches/swirls came back, because the shop used 3M Imperial Hand Glaze seen on the far left. This product contains a tremendous amount of fillers. I've only used it on relatives' cars until now. They never want to allow for the time needed to do a full polish, so I give them a shot of this stuff topped with a durable LSP. I'm kind of looking forward to trying it on my paint.

The Presta Fast Wax is an industrial product given to me by my painter. I have 32oz of the stuff and I have no idea what to do with all of it, as I need 2oz max. It lasts longer than the glazes, sheets nicely in lieu of beading, and doesn't look half-bad.

Meguiars #80 contains a mild polish, along with the glaze.

Each and everyone of these products will be removed after every wash for three reasons:

1. The wash will remove the glazes, regardless.

2. Seeing how I get sick of polishing after a day or so, it'll take me a few tries to finish a 2-3 step on the paint.

3. Since the product will be washed away, I might as well try a bunch of stuff for the fun of it.

[bum]

Speed, on Apr 4 2009, 05:33 PM, said:

I was organizing the arsenal earlier today and pulled out the starting products for the rally car. We made contact with an immovable object last June that required over $12K of insurance money and 3 months to fix. The car's passenger side was repainted, as was the hood. I got the car back in the beginning of October and the paint hasn't had a chance to fully off-gas and cure during the colder months. I'm going to wait until June or July to apply a sealant or a wax to the finish, and allow the paint to harden, but in the meantime I have to use bodyshop-safe products.

Above is the assortment of bodyshop-safe glazes and QDs; I'll take a pic of the polishes once I begin the process. Some notes of interest:

Ever taken your car to a bodyshop and got it back with the paint looking almost perfect until it rained or the car was washed? That's when the scratches/swirls came back, because the shop used 3M Imperial Hand Glaze seen on the far left. This product contains a tremendous amount of fillers. I've only used it on relatives' cars until now. They never want to allow for the time needed to do a full polish, so I give them a shot of this stuff topped with a durable LSP. I'm kind of looking forward to trying it on my paint.

The Presta Fast Wax is an industrial product given to me by my painter. I have 32oz of the stuff and I have no idea what to do with all of it, as I need 2oz max. It lasts longer than the glazes, sheets nicely in lieu of beading, and doesn't look half-bad.

Meguiars #80 contains a mild polish, along with the glaze.

Each and everyone of these products will be removed after every wash for three reasons:

1. The wash will remove the glazes, regardless.

2. Seeing how I get sick of polishing after a day or so, it'll take me a few tries to finish a 2-3 step on the paint.





3. Since the product will be washed away, I might as well try a bunch of stuff for the fun of it.

if your polishing on the car at all you could make swirl marks if the proper steps are not done. this is why i suggest wax only for use as a cleaner aka cleaner wax. btw in responce to three.


edit part: the reason i say it should be done in the proper steps some polishes are a three step prosses like extra cut / glaze/ and polish then finish off with a wax. the reason you use polish is you need to find some that is fine enough to take out swirl marks from a grity polish. if there is no swirl marks after one coat of hand rubbed carnuba wax /the cleaner wax let it turn white and take a dry rag and buff it off or you could use the high speed orbital polisher with just wax but remember to keep it moist with water in a squirt bottle and add polish/wax as needed to pad. then let that turn white and hand rub with a good terry cloth this way you can check for swirls before you use polish instead of creating them. it took about 45 minits to buff a 2 foot x 3 foot pannel to look good at 1600 rpm on the buffer what i will do is move from right to left or left to right but over lap the lines. you do buy like half way so half is over lap and the other is cleaning . btw keep it wet good luck

Edited by sadistic_customs, 04 April 2009 - 07:52 PM.

[Speed]

sadistic_customs, on Apr 4 2009, 10:38 PM, said:

if your polishing on the car at all you could make swirl marks if the proper steps are not done. this is why i suggest wax only for use as a cleaner aka cleaner wax. btw in responce to three

Thanks, S_C. As you may have gathered by the pic that I posted on the other page, I've had a little practice with with a dual-orbital. The rotary is new to me, though, and I'm looking forward to trying it out on the van. At this point, I've watched enough rotary instructional videos to make my head explode and it's time to get some action. It's just too cold outside.

Edit: this is a good rotary tutorial. Check it out, of you get a chance:

http://www.detailing...ead.php?t=66024

Edited by Speed, 04 April 2009 - 08:06 PM.

[bum]

sadistic_customs, on Apr 4 2009, 06:38 PM, said:

minits

dude i can not beleave i did that i know minute is minute prove i have been not getting enough sleep lol

[bum]

btw this is the cleaner wax i use at this link

http://www.mothers.c...5701-05500.html


it not the step 3 wax it just a cleaner to use after step 3 btw #2 if you use polish the reason most get swirl marks is it chunked up and dryed out inspots what i do is add water to the bottole and shake before i apply for one it add moisture back to the mix and helps prevent swirl marks any ways i know you got a ton of experince but just thought i would mention it maybe you could add it some were in there

[Aaron Clinton]

How funny is that. I applied a coat of the Mothers Cali Gold Cleaner Wax yesterday afternoon. I had forgot I had any left. Still 1/2 of a 4oz. bottle I believe. Goes on really easy and comes off even easier.

[Speed]

sadistic_customs, on Apr 4 2009, 11:11 PM, said:

btw this is the cleaner wax i use at this link

http://www.mothers.c...5701-05500.html


it not the step 3 wax it just a cleaner to use after step 3 btw #2 if you use polish the reason most get swirl marks is it chunked up and dryed out inspots what i do is add water to the bottole and shake before i apply for one it add moisture back to the mix and helps prevent swirl marks any ways i know you got a ton of experince but just thought i would mention it maybe you could add it some were in there

If you check out the pic on the first page, we used this product as an OTC option in the LSP durability test. It's not a bad LSP by any means, but it does work best when applied with a machine.

As for swirls, there are several reason for their existence:

1. Most common - washing and drying. Very few folks who aren't initiated Autopians have an idea as to how to wash a car correctly. It isn't rocket science by any means, but there is a technique that needs to be followed. FWIW, every major detailing store has a tutorial.

2. Drying/buffing media - if one isn't using high-quality microfiber, he's damaging the paint. It's as simple as that

3. Machine polishing - there's too much here to compress into a short paragraph. While it's difficult, but not impossible, to damage the paint with a dual-orbital, an incorrect pad selection, not allowing the product to break down if needed, a lack of technique, and not finishing with a milder product can all cause swirls and buffer trails.

S-C, as you seem to be interested in detailing, may I humbly suggest that you acquaint yourself with some of the proven techniques that sit as a staple in the high-end detailing community. I'm talking about the kind of paint work that you'd see at Pebble Beach, not the commonly seen result of $75 wash/wax. Honestly, forget everything you've learned and start here:

http://www.autopia.o...uide-detailing/

http://www.autopia.o...rticles-videos/

If you haven't done so already, look at your paint under a halogen light. You may be amazed by what you see. All those imperfections refract the light, greatly limiting the shine and reflection of the paint. By polishing the paint, we can minimize its refraction to the point where a sight source appears as a tiny dot on its surface. This takes a significant amount of time, as well as a an investment in tools and products, not to mention skill and experience. As a result, a "real" detail takes at least 2 days and starts at ~$500.

Most folks have never seen a correctly prepped car, except as a picture in a magazine. By using these techniques, your cars can look like that, too!

You know, I was one of those guys who'd look at the paint at a Concourse and wonder why my cars never looked like that. That is, until I decided to learn how to do it. If I can do it, anyone can. It's simply a matter of leaning how and there are many resources at one's disposal. The Internet is a wonderful thing.

[bum]

speed thank you for the links i will check them out. any ways that the classes i have been taking are for auto detailing after paint this is were the extra cut compound comes in the glaze and the clear coat polish comes in. this is were i was thinking to remind you the reason i do not like polishes is you can ware threw the clear coat very easyly. this is why the calli gold ays safe for clear coats. but like you said some times there is the inperfection of paint were you need it it better to use cleaner wax then to use polish in serevel steps unless there is that imperfection. but you are correct on the other stuff to that you listed. btw thanks for those link i will check them out.

[Speed]

Used the Flex for the first time yesterday. The weather wasn't with us, causing the polish to flash too early. The things bucks like a rotary; the machine definitely deserves respect. A PC is much easier to handle, albeit proportionally less effective. I did the van's hood, got rid of all the winter scratches, and laid down a coat of PB EX-P.