A few stupid questions after yesterdays detail

[Diesel1]

Okay, so what do you get the dade that has everything or if he doesn`t, he buys it himelf??? You guessed it, a free detail!



I decided to do the exterior for my old man for father`s day on his 2004 Black Expedition. Sits outside 24/7, sees tunnel car washes often, parked in Queens all day for work (FYI for those that don`t know, in Queens and the other NYC bouroughs, when you park you are obligated to bump the cars in front and behind you before placing your car in park...lol)



Needless to say, this beast took me a long time to correct and I now have a few questions.



CLIFF NOTES VERSION AT BOTTOM!!!!



My process was:



Wash, clay, wash

Dried via MF and leaf blower

Pulled truck on my front lawn (Only shady spot available)



Tested a few apps and decided to go with IP (30% RMG) with cyclo orange pads followed by FPII (30% RMG) with green cyclo pads and then FMJ.



Since I knew I would be running out of time, on the roof I went straight from IP to FMJ. The IP actually finished pretty well.



QUESTIONS:



1. I have seen numerous posts where guys say they go from a fairly heavy or non-finishing polish right to a LSP. How do you know you can do that. Obviously if the finish looks good, so be it, but wouldn`t a final polish make it better? How do you know that you can go straight to a LSP from a "heavier" polish?" Even on lighter colored cars, wouldn`t the finish benefit from a lighter polish?



2. What`s a good way to really get into those crevices where the badging is. I thought a MF wrapped around a detail brush may work, but is there a faster, more efficient way of getting in and polishing those areas. So friggin annoying.



3. What can I do to speed my times up? I feel like it takes me entirely too long to polish a car. I didn`t even touch the interior (except the glass) and I worked from 9-9 (In 90 degree stupid humid weather - A few stogie breaks, out to grab lunch and a quick BBQ dinner). I keep reading posts where guys like scottwax are getting multiple cars done (interior/exterior) in a day and can`t figure out why it takes me so long to do 1 exterior...granted a huge arse Expy in bad shape). I know pro`s who do it everyday will be faster etc, but there has to be a way to speed things up. Seems as though anytime I take out the cyclo, it`s an all day affair.



4. Can you use Menzerna FGAS immediately over FMJ or does the FMJ need to cure first? The directions on either bottle didn`t mention anything one way or another.



Yesterday I felt like the ideal process for me to get the results I wanted would be:

IP with orange pads

fpII with green

rmg or FTG with white

FMJ LSP



Instead I was able to do:



IP with orange pads entire truck

FPII with green (everything but roof)

FMJ





CLIFF NOTES:



1. How do you know when the finish is LSP ready

2. Polishing between badges (Letters, etc)...Best fastest way?

3. How to speed up polishing/detailing time

4. HGAS over FMJ....does the FMJ need to cure first?



Thanks in advance for the help!

[imported_Picus]

1) It there isn`t any micromarring then it is techincally "ready". I find finishing polishes definitely darken paint though, so I almost always try to use them. That said I`ve gone right from IP to LSP more than once.



2) Turn the PC; the edges of the pad on a PC won`t hurt the paint. If that won`t reach, by hand. ScratchX is your friend.



3) This question seems to come up a lot. I really don`t know without watching someone work. I like to spread product on a few panels so I don`t have to stop in between. I do one product over the entire car then another (no pad switching), I toss gummed pads for new ones a lot (clean em later). I`m not crazy anal about wiping residue off until polishing is done. I will wipe it off obviously, but I don`t go nuts with it. Otherwise I think it`s just getting into a groove. 2 cars a day for a month and you start really going into a weird "zen polishing state". :)



Oh, and a rotary helps a ton on time. I have not used a cyclo so I don`t know if it`s as quick as a rotary.



Little things save time too. Polish chrome and dress trim while FMJ is hazing, clean windows at the same time. I don`t dry wheels, I like them air dry (what? are you crazy?), because I always seal them with PB`s wheel sealant afterwards, and it cleans up any spots. Little things.



4) It doesn`t need to, but most people think it helps the durabilty. I buff FMJ off with HGAS and have not have a durability problem. Looks good too.

[Diesel1]

You are the man.



For getting in by the badges, does the lettering mess up the pads at all?



I also think I need a new boots, aka backing plates for the cyclo. One of them started flying off yesterday if it wasn`t against a panel.



So you Picus, you actually work a lil ahead of yourself by putting some polish on the panel first and not on the pads? It doesn`t dry up on ya?

[imported_Picus]

The lettering creates some dust when the pads hit it, but the pads seem to come out of it ok.



Ya, what I do is put a bunch of product on the pad, dab it on the car, then work it in at a low speed. I do this for 2-3 panels (so like both doors, a door and a fender, the whole hood, etc...), then I go back to the start and start really working the product. I`ve never had it dry up; just kind of keeps the pace moving quickly. After I`m done I`ll give it all a wipe and re-peat, then do the same thing for as many steps as I`ve got to do. I`m not sure how it is with a cyclo, but obviously with a PC you`re at the mercy of it`s ability to break down the compounds and remove marring, so anything to keep it on the paint and keep you moving is a good idea imo.

[Diesel1]

Makes sense! I Am going to try that when I do my expy in a lil while and my G if I ever get a free weekend! I can`t stand driving her or looking at her! Even after a wash she looks okay from about 20-30ft out and that`s about it! I can`t stand it anymore! LOL



I wish the cyclo was made with a clutch designed so that you don`t need to shut the machine off to apply polish. It would be cool if you can press a button to disengage the heads from turning, apply product, apply pads to car surface and engage the heads again....all without turning the machine off. Having to polish a small area, shutting machine, apply product, then start again is time consuming.



I have no idea why I didn`t think of using your method before. When I detailed boats we would do it the same exact way. We used compound straight out o fthe "paint can" (My boss used cheap garbage) and used a paint brush to throw some dabs on here and there.



Hopefully that speeds me up. Cutting out the stogie break may help too. If I can get into a good rythm, I won`t even need em!

[Accumulator]

1) If it looks OK to you then it`s OK. While I do final burnishing on some cars, I really don`t bother on most vehicles.



2)I focus on "effective" as opposed to "efficient" ;)



I do the tight spots around badging by hand using swabs, tufts of cotton wool pulled off Q-Tips worked with sharpened swab-sticks, whatever I have to do to get into the tight spots.



Consider the areas *inside* letters/numbers (like the hemispherical opening in a lower-case "e"). IMO you just have to get inside there with something and work it by hand (for a long time).



Running the Cyclo/PC against the edges of the badging on my XJS has worn said badging terribly. It did take years for it to happen, but it`s proof that you can`t always get away with it. I`ve cut pads on the edges of badges too, but it was seldom anything that mattered.



3) Same effective/efficient thing..it takes me as long as it takes me. Using the rotary for the aggressive work can shave off a lot of time, but I simply :nixweiss about how some people do things so quickly and I do what I have to do for as long as I have to do it. Removing marring with the PC/Cyclo just takes a long time because it`s so gentle.



Funny about the velcro boots on your Cyclo...mine are, uh, I dunno but they were among the first TOL ever sold back in the day. Still work fine, still very tight on the heads.