Polish/Wax questions (newb)

[covert420]

Okay, I am detailing my car for the first time, ever... I am good about keeping my car washed, and sometimes get on it with some spray detailer, tire dressing, ect. Well, lately my cars clear coat has seemed to fade around certian areas (outside of the hood) and I have noticed more and more swirles/scratches all over the place. This last week I decided to go and research car detailing and what it would take to buff my car back into tip top condition. First thing I noticed is that a good polish/wax job can be done by hand, so this is the route I am taking for now (the cheap one).



Anyways, Here is what I have planned to do to my car, and I was looking for feedback as to if anyone would agree with the process.



1: Wash The Car w/Mr. Clean

does this include wax? because I want strip the previous wax so my polish job gets deep.



2: Clay Bar The Car w/Mother Clay Bar @ McGuires Quick Detailer.

Is the Quick Detailer what I want to use with the Clay Bar?



3: Polish The Car w/Tutle Wax Color Cure Polish

http://www.turtlewax.com/products/pages/colorcure1.htm

Any good? I like the idea of color matching for my green car.



4: Rinse The Car?

Good Idea pre-wax/post-polish?



5: Wax The Car w/Turtle Wax Super Hard Shell

http://www.turtlewax.com/products/pages/t-123.htm

I want something more then wax. I want a neer clear coat replacement. This is the only product that specifies a use of that sort (i.e. `super hard shell`, 1 year +, ect). Anything better?



6: Allow Wax To Sit For 48 Hours



7: Re-Wax w/Prestone High Protection Wax

Would this re-coat well? I want protection above all, and again, this is the only product that specifically goes out of its way to advertise this particular use (like Turtle Wax`s Super Hard Shell).



Anything I should consider? Add to the list? Do some of these things not mend well? Anything at all?



Also, how hard should I push down on the clay bar? On the polish rag? On the wax aplicator?

[Accumulator]

Covert420- Welcome to Autopia!



One reason why you haven`t received other responses could be that many/most of the products you`ve mentioned are a bit "consumer grade" relative to what most of us use. There *are* good products of this type, but you have to choose carefully. Be wary of advertising, ad copy is often all hype.



The best advice I can give you is to read the e-book before you start buying products.



A quick "my $0.02" on your list:



1) I`d use a regular wash, not the Mr. Clean. Study washing before you do this, it`s easy to mar your paint if you wash incorrectly.



2) I`d use the Mother`s QD that usually comes with their claybar. Or get the Clay Magic clay and lube.



3) Use something else. The "color matching" is basically BS. Meguiar`s Scratch-X is good and so is their Color-X.



4) No need to wash here.



5) Use something else. Just about anything else. Even a quality (Meguiar`s, Mother`s) cleaner wax would probably be better. Meguiar`s NXT should be a good choice.



6) Yes, good to let product cure before you "top" them.



7) I`d top with something else, again, most anything that doesn`t contain cleaners. Mother`s California Gold Carnauba, Meguiar`s #26.



Pressure: clay- *VERY* little, virtually none. Polish- not too much, let the product do the work. Wax- very little.



Use very soft MicroFiber (MF) cloths to remove product. I`d even use them (or soft foam) to apply product. Ixnay on using a "rag", it`ll scratch your paint.



But I strongly encourage you to do plenty of research before you start. This stuff isn`t rocket science, but it *is* a bit more complicated than you might think.

[covert420]

Well, I already got the following products...



Turtle Wax Color Cure Polish

Turtle Wax Super Hard Shell

Turtle Was Express Shine w/Carnauba

Mother Clay Bar

Meguiar`s Quick Detailer

Prestone High Protection Wax

Prestone Quick Shine Detailer

Mr Clean Car Wash

4 Foam Applicators

3 Large MicroFiber Rags



Unfortunately, this is what I have for my first time. My second time (in a month or so) I will go much better with my products. But these specified what I wanted and were name brands I (mr average Joe) knew.



I have done some research for the last 3 days on this subject, but havent pinned anything down at this point. Now, The biggest thing I noticed was that I am looking for a synthetic wax due to the hot climate in Florida. Ontop of that, I knew I wanted something thicker and harder, something synthetic waxes were not discribed as.



Because a Carnauba isnt ideal for my climate, and synthetic seems too thin, I went with what seemed to be a nuteral wax in the Tutle Wax Hard Shell, hoping it would give the protective barrier (not wax/shine) I was looking for. Is there a better replacement? I was gonna get the NXT stuff, but they only had the liquid, not the heavy wax.



The Prestones I got because they were 2 for 1 at 50% off, a steal. But, I had detail spray. Is there a better protective liquid wax out there? Whats the BEST, PROTECTION wise (detail sprays will give me my gloss).



The Clay bar and pads seemed to be good buys, along with the meguiars detail spray.



Thanks for the application information. Now, if I could just get some information on whats better next time for MY SPECIFIC NEEDS, as well as what blends together well (in a multiple application setup), then I would be in the gravy boat.

[ron gray]

Hey, didnt I already answer this question for you at ClubGP? ;)

[sQuashed]

From my experience here, you wont get too many responces when talking about Turtle wax and Prestone and Mr Clean. I personally have 40(or so) different detailing products and none of them have the above mentioned names. What you need is a PC and a good polish and sealant to get rid of the swirls and protect your paint. The learn button up top is an excellent place to start researching. By all means, use what you have now.

Wash

Clay

Wash- optional

Polish

Protect



No need to rinse after polish.. If you still have swirls after polishing, it is not working for you.



QUALITY microfiber is essential...Not microfiber "rags"..That word scares me.

Good luck and let us know the outcome with PICS!!