a couple questions...

[Michaelwdes]

1st off, i finally read thru the ebook...whew!!!! but it answered a lot of ???`s Thankfully. now i wont have to bug all of you so much....lol.



ok, i went shopping and found these prices at the local shop.....tell me what you think, fair, average etc.

***DID NOT PURCHASE*****



Meg`s:



QD: 3.99

Gc wax: 8.99

all purpose cleaner wipes: 4.99

Natural shine: 2.99 (seems too shiny for me)

Trim detailer: 2.99





and all the Detailer`s Choice brand stuff even though it sed 100% cottom...made all oversees...these are NOT good things to buy correct?



chenile mitt # 2-301: 2.99

MF cloth #6231: 2.99

wash mitt #2-300: 3.99



am i heading down the right path?......



so far i HAVE purchased:



Back2black

PS21 washer additive

Gold Class shampoo

1 bucket

stolen 3 cotton towels

endurance tire gel

1 Adams blu MF towel

1 home depot MF towel (2.85)

scratchX

Maas polishing creme

megs step 1 cleaner

The Absorber

clay magic bar w/lube spray

Coats brand qd miricle mist

[imported_BretFraz]

The prices on the Meguiar`s stuff seem low.



Dunno anything about Coat`s.



Detailers Choice stuff is cheap if that`s what you want.



If I were you I`d buy my microfiber from Ian at Microfibertech.com. He`s in the SD area and you could prolly go and pick up the towels and save on shipping.



Doesn`t Back to Black and Megs Trim Detailer do the same thing? Why buy both?



All those wipe products on the market suck. Use the proper cleaner and towel or brush to do a good job. Don`t waste your money on any kind of wipe unless your wife uses them.



"Maas creme"? What`s that?



I see no wheel cleaner or tire cleaner.



Here`s a tip: Instead of buying whatever product grabs you when you`re at the store, create a list of products and tools you need to do specific jobs. For example, what products and tools do you have and need to clean wheels and tires? What products and tools do you have and need to wash and dry your car? See what I mean? Think of what job you need to do and not about what product you need to buy. That way you won`t waste money on worthless products that you will never use.

[Thomasfl]

you have the meg`s step 1 cleaner, now you will need a glaze/polish, like the #2, but spend a couple more pennies and get the #7 ($8) if you can or skip this and just get a wax, then you need a decent wax, the GC wax look shiny but has no depth and loses it`s shine after a week or two, I would get some #26 ($10) or S100(at your local harley dealer, $15)



The clay bar looks good

The endurance works pretty good

GC carwash works great

the meg`s or mothers QDs are good for the price

the scratch-x is good but the use is very limited

for the price the natural shine isn`t bad but it is very shiny.

glass cleaner? try stoners invisible



My suggestion is that after you finish your car ask around and see if you can do anyone else`s car to make a little money to buy more products.

[Michaelwdes]

thanks for the tips....didnt know there was a local shop:Microfibertech.com so i will definately check them out.



the top list is JUST prices that i found at a local shop....havent purchased anything from the top list....now the 2nd list below that is what I ALREADY have.



i dont mind spending a bit for towels etc.

i do not have a complete list as you have pointed out....cant decide on a :



wheel cleaner

tire cleaner

POLISH *was thinking Zaino but i think my paint is too far gone for it right now. [but this seems to be the hardest decision]

wax: if i dont go with a synthectic poilsh

glass cleaner/polisher: have scratches



i have a megs proline catalog that i have been anotating (sp?) [red ferrarri on the cover]



Maas is a *fine* polishing creme for silver, brass. i use it to polish my belt buckle [im in the navy] and its also used to polish silver flatware.



then of course do i just wash/wax my aftermarket rims with the same stuff the car uses? this is what i have been doing so far. when the rims were not even on the car i wash & GC`s waxed them first....i was looking at the yellow bottle of rim cleaner from mothers.

[shaf]

Originally posted by flyby

....cant decide on a :



wheel cleaner

tire cleaner

POLISH *was thinking Zaino but i think my paint is too far gone for it right now. [but this seems to be the hardest decision]

wax: if i dont go with a synthectic poilsh

glass cleaner/polisher: have scratches

Get at least a dozen MF towels to have a comfortable balance between washing them and actually using them.



Eagle One A2Z is a very strong but safe wheel cleaner. Just don`t let any wheel cleaner dry out on the wheel. The Mothers wheel cleaner in the yellow bottle is not quite as strong (ie, not "hose on, hose off"). EO`s tire cleaner is liked here, though I think Mothers works about the same.



Try not to confuse the term "polish" with waxes or sealants. Zaino still calls their stuff "polish" even though it`s non-abrasive and does NOTHING to restore neglected paint. It`s weird, I know.... You`ll need a real polish or compound to fix your paint, and then protect it with a wax or synthetic sealant (like Zaino). Check out the eBook or CMA`s website for some how-to`s that give you some idea of what real polishes you`d be looking at.

[Michaelwdes]

i choose the yellow bottle of mothers tire cleaner via reading, and b/c they are pricey rims and all i usually do to wash them is to use a cotton bath towel to wash them.....:nixweiss

[jerry@robs]

Based on the fact that you have a currently neglected paint... I would probably do these..



1) Sort out the needs:

- Wash Materials (Mitt, shampoo, bucket, brushes, drying towels)

- Paint Prep (Clay, tar remover, compound, polishes)

- Sealing (Wax or sealant)

- Final touches and Maintenance (QD, Glass Cleaner, Trim dressing, MF towels, etc)

- Other "nice to have if my budget allows" stuff.



One or two products per category should suffice for the time being until you start learning more on how each product reacts to your paint...



What I may suggest (since your paint is quite old according to your post), you may want to go the "easy route" by using a combo product like Klasse AIO, Autoglym Super Resin or Mother`s Reflections and the like... Then seal off with a basic wax... So your steps initially will be wash-clay-combo product-wax... the chances of error will be minimal...



To keep costs low, i would suggest you get a good all purpose cleaner like Meg APC+ or 3M APC to clean your wheels, tires, engine, interior etc...



Just my 2c

[shaf]

Originally posted by flyby

i choose the yellow bottle of mothers tire cleaner via reading, and b/c they are pricey rims and all i usually do to wash them is to use a cotton bath towel to wash them.....:nixweiss My personal view is that if you want to use a wheel cleaner at all, you might was well go strong enough to make it worth your while. The new A2Z is safer than the older version and I don`t think anyone has reported it ever ruining their rims. Regardless of what wheel cleaner you use, they all have the same danger - never let it dry out on the wheel.



If you want a "mild" wheel cleaner I agree with theveed that you should just use an APC.



Or you could just wax your rims and then treat them like the paint. (Of course don`t use wheel cleaner then or you will have waxed them for nothing.) Really, this is the safest route. Just a bit less convenient.

[Michaelwdes]

great responses people! i appreciate that. i think i will go in this case with less is more. and get APC + wax.

:up

[Scottwax]

Honestly, I haven`t used a wheel cleaner in years. I don`t see the need for one unless you completely neglect your wheels. Whatever you wash your car with should be more than sufficient, but make sure you wash your wheels last so you aren`t rubbing brake dust into your paint.



If you want off the shelf stuff, Meguiars #9 Swirl Remover and #26 High Tech Yellow Wax (either liquid or paste) would be great choices.



The Detailer`s Choice chenille pads are very nice and soft.



Autozone sells the Turtle Wax microfiber towels 2 for $4.99-you get one yellow and one blue towel and they are definitely quality towels. Best off the shelf ones I have found.



A good rubber/vinyl protectant is the Duragloss one. Nice lemony smell, too. It may be hard to find. Armor All is actually much better than most people give it credit for. It seems to have more of a satiny shine than it used to.



Meguiars #34 and Wax Shop`s Slick Stuff are both pretty decent QDs.



If you want to go online to order products, then I would recommend using Meguiars Swirl Free Polish and Clearkote`s Vanilla Moose, followed by S100 paste wax, JT International, PakShak or YoSteve microfiber towels, Clearkote`s tire treatment for rubber and Meguiars #40 for your vinyl and Clearkote`s Quikshine as your QD.

[Michaelwdes]

what do u do to protect the rims? just wax then with a wax. does it matter that i have a half painted/polishedlip rim?