New to detailing: What do I really need and what can I skip?

[13ms13]

Hi everyone, I’m new here! This post is long but I would be happy if you could help

I drive a 2004 MINI Cooper (light blue metallic w/ black roof & mirrors), which I would like to keep in as good a shape as possible. But what is equally (if not more ) important to me is to get that shiny, jaw-dropping look.

I have 250zl to spend (~$75 - I’m from Poland) and I would like to spend that money wisely - but I have absolutely no idea where to start and what to get.



What I already have:

Mr. Clean AutoDry - with the dedicated soap and demineralization filters for the final spot-free rinse (it actually works very well, but not perfect).

Cheap washing mitt, some brushes and sponges

Rim cleaner, tire dressing.



What I don’t have:

Waxes of any kind. Clay bar.

High-end car wash soap. Sheepskin mitt. Microfiber towels for final drying.

Black plastic trim dressing, chrome cleaner (my car has a lot of plastic trim and chrome and they look terrible!).

Rim sealant/detailer, metal polish, engine bay cleaning products (but I’ll skip those for now).



Meguiar’s has crazy prices in Poland (for instance, the $18 clay kit costs $46 here). Mothers prices are bearable. Some premium brands (like Poorboy’s) actually have good prices.



Anyway, here are examples of what I can get:

Mothers 3-step wax system - 125zl (or 35zl - step 1, 45zl - step 2, 60zl - step 3).

Poorboy’s Natty’s Blue Paste Wax - 70zl

Mothers clay bar kit - 100zl

32oz Mothers California Gold car wash - 37zl

Sheepskin mitt - 30zl

20�x16� microfiber towel - 13zl

Mothers plastic trim dressing - 30zl

Mothers chrome cleaner - 34zl (maybe I could clean the exhaust tip with it too?)



I was hoping you could point me in the right direction and tell me what I actually need and what I can skip. Thanks for taking the time to read and answer!

[Daky]

Hi,



I`m going to borrow this topic, becaus i`m in the same situation than the original poster. I am new to detailing and have no supplies exept 5 new microfibre towels (small), a cheap rotary polisher and an old orbital polisher. I have 4 cars that have never really been taken care of in terms of detailing and some are quite old. The cars are :

1: Renoult grand Scenic, metallic black

2: peugeot 307 estate, metalic silver

3: citroen c4, metallic red

4: mazda rx8, metallic red



And now i dont realy know what i need to buy and how much of it so i can do all of the cars? I was thinking of followint the 5 step program with these products

1: wash with some car shampoo (dont know whick yet)

2: claying

3: surface prep and remove scratches with Meguiars ultimate compound

4: polishing with Meguiars ultimate polish

5: sealant/wax with Chemical Guys XXX Hard Core Carnauba Wax



But i dont know if the products will be enough for all 4 cars?

Should i change the products so i can use the rotary polisher? or would the orbotary be better? If so what products should i buy?

Do i need a seperate applicator for every pproduct or can i reuse them?

What pads should i use for the rotary?



My goal is to protect the car paints and if possible make them stand out/shiny, especialy the rx8



My budget is about 100eur for everything (including aplicators,pads,towels,shipping)



I was thinking of ordering everithyng from Shinearama Home Page - Shinearama since its much cheaper than in my country. 13ms13 mybe u should also look at some uk shops, mybe it`s cheaper for u to



Thanks for the answers

[Ron Ketcham]

So, are you located in the UK or some other country? I gather not the UK since you refer to the use of euro`s for purchasing.

[Daky]

Nope i`m from Slovenia, but the car care scene isn`t really strong here so i`m forced to join other forums and shop abroad because the prices here are ridiculus

[SATracker]

My question is, do you have some sort of "polishing machine" (rotary or DA) or will you be doing this by hand? My process: 1) Wash with ONR, 2) Iron-X,

3) Clay, 4) AIO or finishing polish then sealant. I use ONR because- as I wash I inspect the paint & all the little crevices one panel at a time, Iron-X because it`s the only product I know, 3) I think any mild clay would do & I use ONR as a lube for the clay because it works well for me, 4) there are a lot of AIO products, see which gives the results you`re looking for. I think if you carefully wash, Iron-X, and clay, then any of the products you use will give good results BUT if you`re doing it by hand, swirl free results will be difficult (if not impossible) to achieve

[Daky]

Not sure if this is intended for me or the original poster, but i have a rotary and an orbital polisher.

But the problem i have is that i dont really know how the megiuars UC and UP will react to them since the`re made for hand application. I have seen videos in which they are used with DA polisher but they always use a lot of the product, whereas other people that use other products always use only a few drops and im scare that one bottle of meguiars wont be enough for all the cars.



Also i would like to ask you what u think about the sonax xtreme range? Because they are regulary available in my country but they are considered as cheap/bad products, however they are often praised abroad, so i dont really know what to do

[number50]

Hey Guys .



I just got into detailing myself and have searched the detailing forums for weeks and I might be able to help you get some product Answers based on what others have said in the last year on products.



If you want longer term protection you should use a sealant and not a wax. Sealants last months where Waxes actually last weeks. You always have the option of adding a carnauba wax on top of a sealant if you want more warmth to the appearance and not so much shine.



Car Wash :

- Duragloss 901

- Optimum Car Wash

Both products are praised on the forums and are at a great price generally. Both are safe to clear coats and are safe on protectants (sealants + waxes)



Decontamination:

- ironX

- clay bars

- NanoSkin AutoScrub Fine Wash Mitt

- Speedy Prep Towel

IronX and products like it are great for helping break down some iron contaminants on the paint for rinsing off. Many people skip ironX and just do the physical decontamination. Some people are switching over to the polymer rubber towels and mitts over clay barring because they say its much easier, without having to worry about contaminants being stuck in clay, or dropping clay, etc. Some people say they experience less marring with the new products and some people say they experience more. If you are polishing after decontamination then it shouldn`t matter .



Polish:

- too many options

Basically you have to buy polish and pads based on the condition of your paint. If you have very light scratches and hazing you should be alright with a light polish and if they are severe scratches you might need stronger pads and a heavy cutting polish. If the paint is almost scratch/swirl free ... or you have a very light vehicle where the swirls are hard to notice, you can skip the polish step. As long as you decontaminated the paint you can seal with good bonding.



Protection:

- Wax

- Sealant

- Coatings

Waxes generally give a warmer look to the paint but offer the least length of protection. Sealants offer several months of protection and give a shine to the paint. Coatings offer Permanent protection and have the same shine appeal as sealants. Beware with using coatings because they are permanent bonds and the paint should be very well cleaned, decontaminated, and polished before doing so.

I have not looked into waxes very much but after weeks of research it seems Wolfgang Deep Gloss Sealants , Blackfire sealants, and optimum Sealants are overall amazing in appearance and very easy for a good application.

For permanent coatings it seems that most are opting for Optimum Opti-coat 2.0

[Dan]

UC and UP work great by machine, in fact they are even easier to use than their pro counterparts. They do cut about 10-20% less though.

[Daky]

Wow great replies guys, thanks



Also great so see that i can use them with my rotary



Any advice what pads i should use, foam,wool,microfibre?

I was thinking about using wool for UC and foam for UP, is that ok, or is it irrelavent?

[brownbob06]

If you`re new AND using a rotary, Wool and anything is a bad idea. Just go with foam, and remember, you don`t want to start with the most aggressive combo first (like wool and compound) but rather start with polish and a polishing pad and see if you get the results you want, if not, step your combos up until you`re happy with the correction.

[Daky]

Thanks for the advice



But here something i dont understand, i was told that i should use wool because it doesn`t get that hot so its safer for the paint (i cant burn it) and thus better for a noob. As for the polish, im not convinced that it could take care of the scratches, but ill give it a go



Ofcourse i will test everything on a door that is beyond repair so i cant do any damage

[brownbob06]

If you have a practice surface that`s a good step. Just remember if your practice vehicle is different from the actual vehicle you`ll be doing that paint hardness between manufacturers will make a very big difference in your technique.



I suppose you are correct about the Wool pad having less heat, but wool will also be more agressive than *most* foam pads. To be honest, as a beginner if you`re worried about burning paint you should really be using a DA. I started with a rotary though and never had any problems with it. It`s just more of a pain to finish out than the DA.



Just take your time and be careful and you should be ok. Like I said, I never had a problem with a rotary, just had to take my time and make sure I inspected everything before calling it finished.

[brownbob06]

Another thing to be careful with when using a rotary and Meg`s UC and UP is that they are filler heavy. The finish may look great when you`re done, but the filler will wash away and it`s possible holograms will start appearing down the road.

[Daky]

Thanks for the heads up, i was going to top it of with a wax, that should prevent the holograms right?

Or do u advise that i sould use some different products?

And one las tihing, i was looking up some foam pads and there are a lot of different ones, normal,waffle,hexa, and dodos fin pad which appears to be the best, is there really a difference between them or is it just marketing?



I did some researching, and would it be better if i swap UC and UP for:

1.) poorboys SSR 2 or 2,5 or 3 and

2.) poorboys polish with carnuba or poorboys professional pro polish



they basicaly cost the same as megs and i wonder wich would be better



Tnx for the answers

[brownbob06]

You would have to get other`s opinions on those polished and compounds as I`ve neer used ten personally and don`t know how they are in the filler department.



Wax won`t stop holograms from coming in. You create holograms with the compound or polish, they are essentially millions of tiny little scratches in a circular motion that create a hologram effect. They may be present, but with products like Meg`s UC and UP you won`t see them because the oils in the compound an polish will fill them in and cover them up. Once those oils wash away, which they will, you`ll see the true condition of the paint, which may or may not have holograms in it.



I honestly really recommend HD UNO and Speed. Not sure how expensive shipping costs will be to you though so it may not be feasible. I know they`ve opened up a warehouse overseas to help combat this but I`m not sure if it helps you or not.



As far as pads go, a lot I it is personal preference. Some of the Gus on here love and swear by the MF pads, unfortunately I haven`t been able to try them yet. I do just fine with yellow Über pads and orange über pads. Along with maroon meguiar`s pads on my rotary for the really heavy corrections. So, like I said, pads are really a point of debate. The best advice I can personally give you is read some of the existing threads. You`ll find all kind of views on pads as probably all the one`s you`ve named have been beat to hell as far as threads go on here.