Scottwax
12-19-2004, 08:31 PM
On another board I do to, we do a Secret Santa every year. Usually 60-70 participate, this year it is near 200!
Anyway, I made it known to the person matching members that if she were to give me someone in my area, I would be willing to do an exterior detail for a gift. She managed to find someone who lives a block from me! Small world...especially when you consider this board has well over 20,000 active members in the last 30 days.
Normally, we have no contact with our `elf` until after they receive their gift. Obviously, in this case, that was not possible. I called her up and made arrangements to detail the car today. I had a Land Cruiser and E320 that I had been trying to do since late October but rain in November and travel on his part earlier this month meant I had to take care of his cars first. I didn`t get started on this car until 3PM and didn`t finish completely until nearly 6PM with very little natural light left.
The car was not in good shape. It is obviously parked near sprinklers regularly because the hood was absolutely etched and the windows are so spotted it is like a coating. Claying, polishing with a cutting pad and compound and even a razor blade didn`t make a dent in the two front windows. :eek:
I had much better luck with the paint, although some of the deeper water spot etching and bird bomb etching wouldn`t come out completely on the hood, it does look a great deal better. I started with a QEW wash and clay. I then began working the paint, starting with DACP and a cutting pad, then stepped up to Clearkote`s test compound (which is somewhat more aggressive than DACP) with a cutting pad, then back to DACP and the cutting pad on the hood, then #80 with a polishing pad on the whole car. I then finished it off with EX w/carnauba. The sun had already set and I wanted to use my least finicky sealant in high humidity, cool temperature conditions.
This is what I started with:
http://autopia.org/gallery/data/500/878ss_before.jpg
This is after all polishing steps but before EX. I was loosing light quickly, no way I could wait to apply and remove EX. Yes, the picture is a bit clurry, I had to shoot it at 1/8th of a second in the low light. I must have moved slightly....and it was the last pic on the roll and I didn`t have time to pick up a new one before I had to start on the Civic. As you can see, it does look just a wee bit better. ;)
http://autopia.org/gallery/data/500/878ss_after.jpg
===================
2004 Hummer H2. I had polished it with PwC and a polishing pad and topped it with EX w/carnauba back in late August. It is normally driven mostly on weekends but it is driven in the rain, duly noted by how filthy it was this time. Paint still had noticable slickness and still looked real good, so I simply topped it with Nattys by hand.
http://autopia.org/gallery/data/500/8782004_hummerh2_side.jpg
Fenderwell detailing:
http://autopia.org/gallery/data/500/8782004_hummerh2_fenderwell.jpg
Anyway, I made it known to the person matching members that if she were to give me someone in my area, I would be willing to do an exterior detail for a gift. She managed to find someone who lives a block from me! Small world...especially when you consider this board has well over 20,000 active members in the last 30 days.
Normally, we have no contact with our `elf` until after they receive their gift. Obviously, in this case, that was not possible. I called her up and made arrangements to detail the car today. I had a Land Cruiser and E320 that I had been trying to do since late October but rain in November and travel on his part earlier this month meant I had to take care of his cars first. I didn`t get started on this car until 3PM and didn`t finish completely until nearly 6PM with very little natural light left.
The car was not in good shape. It is obviously parked near sprinklers regularly because the hood was absolutely etched and the windows are so spotted it is like a coating. Claying, polishing with a cutting pad and compound and even a razor blade didn`t make a dent in the two front windows. :eek:
I had much better luck with the paint, although some of the deeper water spot etching and bird bomb etching wouldn`t come out completely on the hood, it does look a great deal better. I started with a QEW wash and clay. I then began working the paint, starting with DACP and a cutting pad, then stepped up to Clearkote`s test compound (which is somewhat more aggressive than DACP) with a cutting pad, then back to DACP and the cutting pad on the hood, then #80 with a polishing pad on the whole car. I then finished it off with EX w/carnauba. The sun had already set and I wanted to use my least finicky sealant in high humidity, cool temperature conditions.
This is what I started with:
http://autopia.org/gallery/data/500/878ss_before.jpg
This is after all polishing steps but before EX. I was loosing light quickly, no way I could wait to apply and remove EX. Yes, the picture is a bit clurry, I had to shoot it at 1/8th of a second in the low light. I must have moved slightly....and it was the last pic on the roll and I didn`t have time to pick up a new one before I had to start on the Civic. As you can see, it does look just a wee bit better. ;)
http://autopia.org/gallery/data/500/878ss_after.jpg
===================
2004 Hummer H2. I had polished it with PwC and a polishing pad and topped it with EX w/carnauba back in late August. It is normally driven mostly on weekends but it is driven in the rain, duly noted by how filthy it was this time. Paint still had noticable slickness and still looked real good, so I simply topped it with Nattys by hand.
http://autopia.org/gallery/data/500/8782004_hummerh2_side.jpg
Fenderwell detailing:
http://autopia.org/gallery/data/500/8782004_hummerh2_fenderwell.jpg