Ultimate Detailing Item - Must Have!!

[David Fermani]

I saw this lighting system in a shop here in West Palm Beach, Fl. It shows every single imperfection possible. It`s almost like detailing an interior outside & you can identify swirls easily, even on this white Lincoln. The shop custom made it, and has a combination of 2 types of lights. It can me rolled around the shop and just plugs into an outlet. Totally sweet setup.

[imported_Detailing Technology]

What two lights were they?

[deadlock32]

looks like flouresent and holigen (spelling errors on both those)

[BigAl3]

http://autopia.org/forum/attachments/car-detailing/10975d1163820231-ultimate-detailing-item- http://autopia.org/forum/attachments/car-detailing/10977d1163820268-ultimate-detailing-item-

[imported_Frugle]

seems easy enough to make, just costs a fortune in lights.

[David Fermani]

Thanks for posting a pic the right way. I`m still trying to figure things out.

[paul34]

That is pretty clean... have to give props to the company for taking the time to neatly route wires and build a frame for it.



I could use one, but I might be disappointed by what I see... :(

[Neo62381]

that IS awesome.....sucks that us weekend guys can`t afford anything like that

[imported_Suprchargd]

Thats kind of weird because when I use a fluorescent light on my car it just hides swirls :nixweiss , all I get is glare if I stare at the panel where the light is hitting. If I look at it from certain angles than I can see the imperfections, but I`d rather just use my halogen rather than bending around all awkward. Halogen works great at revealing imperfections though.

[Zet]

Fluorescents are great for all round work light, I have several in my shop. Plus you can get them in daylight color temperature, which shows colors more acurately/naturally. I also have halogens and a xenon flashlight though, for defect hunting ;)



Looks like a nice system though. Just don`t tip it over, as that would mean paying for a lot of new tubes, and possibly a big dent in the car :nervous:

[Accumulator]

Fluorescents are great for all round work light, I have several in my shop. Plus you can get them in daylight color temperature, which shows colors more acurately/naturally. I also have halogens and a xenon flashlight though, for defect hunting..




when I use a fluorescent light on my car it just hides swirls..



Yep, it`s not like one light source is best for everything.



That contraption is pretty cool, but I honestly think I`d rather have something more compact and adjustable (with different light sources too). That thing would up a lot of room when not in use and I`d still need something more direct for the front/back ends of the car. I always end up positioning lights at a certain specific angle/distance anyhow; e.g., trying to spot micromarring down by a rocker panel can be a royal PIA and fluorescent light is the last thing I`d want turned on when I`m doing that. I have to turn out *all* the (dozens of) fluorescent tubes in my shop to spot fine marring, even combining it with my other light sources doesn`t work; I need "point source" illumination to spot marring and having any other light turned on only makes it harder for me.

[David Fermani]

I`d still need something more direct for the front/back ends of the car. I always end up positioning lights at a certain specific angle/distance anyhow; e.g., trying to spot micromarring down by a rocker panel can be a royal PIA and fluorescent light is the last thing I`d want turned on when I`m doing that. I have to turn out *all* the (dozens of) fluorescent tubes in my shop to spot fine marring, even combining it with my other light sources doesn`t work; I need "point source" illumination to spot marring and having any other light turned on only makes it harder for me.



The nice thing about this setup is that you CAN see every little defect, like marring, in the paint. It`s unreal. No need to have additional lighting. It`s almost like looking at a finish under fluorescents at night, but more distinct. These lights show the true color of a vehicle too. It`s just like looking at a vehicle in a paint both, but mobile. These light aren`t just oridinary fluorescents, their for paint booth applications. The owner described to me the 2 types of lights, but I forgot(metal halide or sodium halide maybe?). Each one compliments one another to bring out the finish. He`s tried several different combos, and this set up seems to work best. I wish I could have taken closeups of this Lincoln`s finish. The part that was just compounded and polished showed faint swirls. The guy was getting ready for the next step to work them out. White has to be the hardest color to point swirls out on and this showed them perfectly.

[imported_chpsk8]

You know.... I bet you could make that out of PVC pipe. Just use 1.25" pipe and fittings. If you want to route the wires you could easily run them through the pipes.



Looks like 12 flourecent 4 footers, what are those $5 at Home Depot? Then get 6 halogens for $10 each. $30 worth of PVC and you`ll have yourself the same thing. :D

[imported_paradigm]

just line your garage walls with those lights...don`t bother with the frame. :)

[Accumulator]

The nice thing about this setup is that you CAN see every little defect, like marring, in the paint. It`s unreal. No need to have additional lighting..



OK, I`m sure not gonna argue with you :D so I`ll just say that I`m surprised. Wonder just what specific lights he`s using....I`ve played around with this stuff extensively and I`ve never been able to spot fine stuff under light like that, even with magnification :nixweiss



Maybe it`s (at least partially) *my* eyes. My painter has a "perfectly lighted" (his opinion) paintbooth and I don`t see any of the light marring under his supposedly special fluorescents. But yeah, the right ones, like they use in art galleries, do show true colors and are great for evaluating texture too. Same with the metal halides is another shop, stuff just doesn`t jump out at me. A car looks *perfect* until I spend five or ten minutes setting the lights up back in my shop and then *zap* I see all that "hey, nobody sees that anyhow" type of marring.



My Jag`s a perfect example. I *know* where it has marring, but in all the time we`ve gone over it (I`m having a little paintwork done) neither I nor my painter has *ever* seen the flaws that I know are there. Even his Brinkman and 3M hand-helds just don`t make it jump out but it`s not like it`s magically fixed itself :nixweiss Once I get it back in my shop it`ll look like a horror show again, but right now, in *his* place, it looks swell.



As long as somebody has something that`s working for him, that`s what counts :xyxthumbs



Ah, something has occurred to me! Bill D has said that white is different from other colors when it comes to this topic. According to him, white responds better to fluorescent light than most other colors and as I recall it worked OK for me back when I had both a white car and a shop with fluorescent lighting. If you get a chance to check out some other paints under that light, let us know how it works on them. Heh heh, I find the whole "what light to spot flaws under" topic endlessly fascinating and if I can find a new solution I`m all ears.