Hello - Newbie here (with a few questions. . )

[2FZ1]

Hi there ! :wavey :wavey



I just joined this forum which I found through another link. Did a bit of reading and it seems you guys know what you are talking about

Me, on the other hand have only limited knowledge on the products available these days :nixweiss

I know jut a bit, because I am a motorcycle nut who tries to keep his machines clean



Last week I got my first brand new car - a Black Mazda 3 Sport.

Here is what I did after I picked up the car at the dealership :



1.) Washed it with Meguiars Deep Crystal Car Wash (2 times)

2.) Dried it with my leaf blower (works great !!)

3.) Sprayed Plexus on cotton cloth and put on whole car

4.) Applied one coat of NuFinish (Soft Paste)

5.) 12 hrs after that I applied one coat of Meguiars Gold Class Clear Coat Liquid Wax.





I am sure I can do better than that - looked around in the garage and found that I still have S100 Carnuba Wax as well as Eagle One Wet Polish & Wax.



In case somebody is wondering why I put Plexus on the paint :

I use this stuff on my bikes after almost every ride. Hardly wash them with water and use either Plexus or Honda`s Spray Cleaner and Polish (I am almost sure it`s the same thing anyways).



I`d like to keep my car for a long time and want it to be the shiniest Black vehicle in town



Should I toss some of the products I have ? Was looking for NXT but can`t find it here in the great white north.



Also - what is Claying ? Never heard of this before. .



Any suggestions for an ignorant Newbie- who is willing to learn- would be highly appreciated :xyxthumbs

[Mr Monk]

Greetings 2FZ1! :welcome Glad you found us. There are lots of fellow "crazies" here so you`ll fit in just fine.



Congrats on the new Mazda 3. Nice car! You have your work cut out for you in keeping the black paint in perfect condition, but it`s worth it!!!



Ok, to some of your questions....



I can`t comment on Plexus. Never used it. However, NuFinish, TOSS IT! Give it to your Mother-in-law!!! LOL. On this forum NuFinish is a target of a lot of jokes. When you want to go to the next step in detailing you leave that behind and try some really great products that are available. You`ll get many differing opinions on the various products, so I`ll just give you mine.



Fo instance, Meguiars is a fine company. So is Mothers. You can` t go wrong with either of those, however, for black try stuff that will really make it shine. For Wax I`d go with Pinnacle Souveran. Yes it`s pricey but worth it.



I`m a big fan of Clearkotes Vanilla Moose. Leaves a nice clear wet look before laying down the Pinnacle. Poorboys products are top notch too. You`ll need to get some good swirl remover `cause you`ll see everyone with black. I`ll let the other guys give you some more advice.



That`s my 2 cts worth. Let me leave you with this...get yourself a PC orbital buffer. It`s a great tool and easy to use and will do a much better job than what you could accomplish by hand. I got one last year and I`d never go back to hand application.



Well, good luck with the new ride. Hope this helps.

[03COBRA]

:welcome 2FZ1,



I was in your shoes just 6 months ago. On my previous vehicles I had done nothing but wash them. Until I got my 2003 Mustang Cobra, and I didn`t want it to scratched and swirled and all of the crap. So I found this website much like you did, through another. Anyways, what ever you fear about detailing a car now, don`t worry to much, you will figure it out. I thought when I found this website I wouldn`t be able to do half the stuff I can do now!! So if you have friends with not so good paint, try your work on there car and practice. Everyone on here started somewhere, this is your start! One thing to keep in mind is, it;s all about the process, not so much the products. A great product is nothing if you don`t apply it properly. Quality product simply enhance your proper techique. And use the search button on here, just search for questions you have!!!



The single biggest thing I have done to aid me in my detailing travels is a Porter Cable (PC) Random Orbital Polisher. This machine really works well, very user friendly, very safe for you and paint. Do not get a rotary as a newbie, the rotary can do a lot of damage to a vehicles paint if you are not careful, or don`t have any experience.



Not sure what claying is huh? Go out to you car, you can either use the back of your hand, or put a plastic sandwhich bag over your hand, then run your hand along your paint. You will probably here a rough noise. That is contaminents, dirt, grime trying to get into the paint. The clay removes the particles and makes the paint nice and smooth. Now you have to be very careful with this, you have the keep the paint surface very wet, or you can scratch the paint very bad. What you want to use is when you make a fresh bucket of car wash, dip a spray bottle in it and fill the bottle up with the car wash solution, before you wash the car. Then wash the car. Then you want to do a section at a time, not a panel. Make sure it`s very wet, run the clay over the very wet section. Do not use any pressure, let the clay do the job. When you have the clay, before you use it. Pull a chunk off, roll it up like a ball, then flatten it with your hand. And go to work, make sure the surface is very wet, wet, wet. And as you go, you should hear the noise of the roughness of the paint go away. After you are done with the entire car, wash the car again and dry. then feel the paint, it will feel oh so good. I like that you use a leaf blower, me too!! Check out this link, notice the upper part of the pics is clear, and the bottom has little specs. Things like that is what you are tryng to get out.

http://autopia.org/forums/showthread...threadid=46830



Since you have Black, you will see everything from what I have heard. One thing you will want is a good swirl remover. My personal favorite, as with a lot of people, is the Meguiars`s Dual Action Cleaner Polish (DACP), or Poorboy`s SSR 2.5. This stuff is a great product for removing defects, light scratches, minimizing deep scracthces, and making the paint squeaky clean paint surface. This is something that you maybe do a couple of times a year, if that. This removes some of the clear coat of the car to make the surface smooth of scratches again. Now don`t let this scare you, it`s not as scary as it sounds, trust me!!



After the Paint cleaner, you want to use a nice polish! I have now found my favorite polish, which is Menzerna FP II. It is a low abrasive polish that leaves the paint very polished and a nice wet look. The above paragraph talks about the DACP, sometimes the DACP causes a little bit of hazing, due to the cutting action. Polishes like this remove any little bit of hazing that may occur. As with the last 2 paragraph of paint cleaner and polish, you want to work in the polish until it almost disappears. You want to do a little section at a time, no an entire panel. Work the product until it`s almost gone. Then buff off the little excess with a quality Microfiber towel.



After you have polished the paint to prefection, this is where it can get a little tricky. This is where most people start doing things by hand. Most people like to apply a high quality sealant after polishing, and before the top coat of wax. I recently found my favorite sealant, as I did my polish. I highly rec. the Wolfgang Deep Gloss Paint Sealant. This stuff is a breeze to use, cake to apply, and easier to remove. It takes less than an ounce of product to do 3 cars, a little goes a long way. This is where you seal the paint. You gotten all of the swirls out, polished it nicely, now you want to seel it to give a nice durable base to apply your top coat of wax.



Product topper. Well since you have black, I would highly rec. Pinnacle Souveran for yours. Like the above mentioned reply, it is expensive, but a little goes a long way. And it works great, smells great to. It gives the Paint a very deep, dark, wet reflection. I, like SCOTTWAX, like to apply a coat of Poorboy`s Natty`s paste wax over the Souveran to give an extrem wet look.



So in the end, the process id the most important thing. I say get a Porter Cable polisher, products, and some pads for the Porter Cable. I will post a link to some sites where you can get everything. I highly rec. Premium Auto Care.



Sorry for my rambling, just like to help out people that are nervous, and who are in my shoes from just a few months ago! Here is a product list for you, I would rec. these to you:



Clay:

--Mother`s

--Clay Magic



Swirl Remover/Paint Cleaner:

--Meguiar`s Dual Action Cleaner Polish (DACP)

--Poorboy`s SSR2.5



Paint Polish:

--Menzerna FP II

--Meguiar`s #80 Speed Glaze

--Poorboy`s Polish w/Carnauba

--ClearKote Vanilla Moose Hand Glaze

--Klasse AIO



Paint Sealant:

--WolfGang Deep Gloss PAint Sealnt

--Poorboy`s EX-P

--Poorboy`s EX



Carnauba Wax:

--Pinnacle Souveran

--Poorboy`s Natty`s Paste Wax

--Meguiar`s #16 Pro Paste Wax

--ClearKote CMW



Porter Cable Pads:

--Meguiar`s 6.5" Pads are my favorite!



Porter Cable-- Lowe`s has them for about $100



Websites to get all of the products:

http://www.premiumautocare.com/premiumautocare/

http://autogeek.net/



Here is some of my work!!

http://autopia.org/forums/showthread...threadid=46925

http://autopia.org/forums/showthread...threadid=46059

http://autopia.org/forums/showthread...threadid=46391

[imported_The Uncle]

BTW, is it safe to put Meguiars Gold Class on top of Nufinish? I would think that the solvents in the GC would degrade the Nufinish. Am I wrong?

[2FZ1]

Thanks for all the help guys :up



Went out and bought some supplies (unfortunately before I had a chance to read those replies / advice. . .



Anyhow - Got myself a nice Wash Mitt from Simoniz (made from genuine Australian Sheepskin - imagine that )

Also I got the Eagle One Wet Car Wash and an *" Random Orbit Polisher (from Simoniz).

On top of it (I spared no expenses:scared ) I got Mother`s Clay Bar Kit.



The car was a bit dirty anyways and I decided to give the car and the bike a good wash.



Washed it twice and could actually see on the car that there was not a nice "beading". If this has something to do with the fact that on my previous wax job I applied Gold Class after a coat of NuFinish- I don`t know :nixweiss



On my bike however I had a nice beading . . .

That`s interesting because ( like I mentioned in my first posting) - all I apply on the bike is Plexus :xyxthumbs



Well - after I washed the two vehicles I dried it again with my leaf blower.

What I want to do next is the following :



1.) Apply one coat of Eagle One Wet Polish & Wax

2.) Let it cure over night

3.) Apply another coat of the same

4.) Apply one or two coats with S100



I don`t really need to go anywhere and the car can sit in the garage for a few days (still kept my old Ford Escort ).



I don`t really think I have to apply Clay on it now or do you guys suggest otherwise ? If Yes - please let me know quickly , I am planning to apply my first coat of wax in one hour or so. . .

[Hypnotiq04]

2FZ1,



Hey there and welcome to the forum. I was reading what everyone posted and couldnt think of a better answer for you except for my own opinion on product just like everyone else would give you. But i wanted to address your question about using the clay. When your thinking about using the clay bar you can use it whenever you feel the need to. Try doing some of the tests that were mentioned earlier by taking the plastic baggy and running your hand over the paint. If you hear the rough noise or feel it gritty then yes you need to clay it before you seal it and wax it becuase you will just be perserving that stuff in your paint. The dealer can never pay more attention to your car than you can so I am willing to bet it has never been done and you should probably do it. But once again the easiest way it to do the tests either with the back fo your hand or with the baggy and you will be able to tell for yourself. Glad your here!





Hope that hour hasnt come and gone before someone was able to answer that for you.

[MongooseGA]

Yes, clay it. The problem with claying it now though, is that it might strip the products already on the car.



BTW, when using clay, you don`t really "apply" it. You "clay" the car. Most people I`ve talked to in person believe that clay will make the car look better, but really what it does is makes the car feel better. Try not to get the terms (such as sealant, wax, clay, polish, glaze, etc...) because it can be confusing.



Oh, and congrads on the new car!

[imported_Burlyq]

After claying clean it with s100 or p21s cleaner or AIO, then seal it with Zaino before you wax with s100 paste. You cannot beat this shine. In most cases you can use menzerna fpII by hand and only buy that dual action if your dedicated. You gots a long way to go if your using new finish with a leaf blower.

:scared :shocked

[LT1Squirrel]

#16 and S100 are 2 great waxes for the money spent, around 15 bucks for each:xyxthumbs

[2FZ1]

Thanks for the warm welcome and suggestions.



Finally the car is finished and it looks very shiny and has this wet look to it.



I decided not to clay it , since the surface seemed really smooth the way it was (did the test with the plastic bag and back of my hand)



Therefore I did the following only :



1.) Washed it twice with Eagle One Wet Car Wash

2.) Dried it with my favorite Leaf Blower :xyxthumbs (don`t see why not. . . :nixweiss )

3.) Applied one coat of Eagle One Wet Polish & Wax

4.) 12 hrs later applied one coat of S100



I am thinking of also applying Plexus tomorrow on the paint.

The reason why Plexus is that I always had nice results on my bikes and it does not attract any dust it seems

If the bike would stand for a while in a dusty environment I simply

could blow of the little dust which settled. This never seemed to be the case with any other products I have previously tried (incl. S100).



I know this might be a bit of a lazy approach , but I can`t imagine the car looking even nicer than that . . . .



Let`s face it - after all it`s only a cage on 4 wheels

[JasonD]

I might be wrong but won`t Plexus negate some of the previous steps?

[2FZ1]

Originally posted by JDookie

I might be wrong but won`t Plexus negate some of the previous steps?

I don`t know:nixweiss Newbie here. . .

As I stated before I have good experiance with Plexus on Paint and could not see any negative effects.

However - I never tried to put a coat of Plexus after a coat of S100.

If it`s not a good idea to do that I will obstain of doing it , but I don`t really see why it would not work after the S100 cures

:nixweiss