Confused, cynical and mistrusting the whole industry!

[bigmutt]

Hi,
I`m a new member from San Diego.
Been a do-it-yourself kinda guy all my life, especially with my vehicles. Owned probably over 50 cars & trucks ... and at least 15 motorcycles over the years.
I love repairing, maintaining and beautifying them myself .... for the bonding feeling but also this way I know the work`s getting done correctly.
But this detailing aspect of caring for my vehicles has me feeling frustrated and disillusioned a lot of the time.
There`s few industries that are as rife with incompetence, exaggerated claims and even fraud ... as is the detailing & exterior car care business.
I still don`t know the difference, for example, between sealer, glaze and swirl-remover products;
Likewise with polymer, acrylic and Teflon products.
This is after lots of on-line reading and talking with four different professional detailers.

Does anyone have a credible source of no-nonsense information?

[Swanicyouth]

Does anyone have a credible source of no-nonsense information?

I would check out this place called Autopia.

There is little or no BS there....

[Ronkh]

<---- Credible informant

Welcome

[RaskyR1]

Hi,
I`m a new member from San Diego.
Been a do-it-yourself kinda guy all my life, especially with my vehicles. Owned probably over 50 cars & trucks ... and at least 15 motorcycles over the years.
I love repairing, maintaining and beautifying them myself .... for the bonding feeling but also this way I know the work`s getting done correctly.
But this detailing aspect of caring for my vehicles has me feeling frustrated and disillusioned a lot of the time.
There`s few industries that are as rife with incompetence, exaggerated claims and even fraud ... as is the detailing & exterior car care business.
I still don`t know the difference, for example, between sealer, glaze and swirl-remover products;
Likewise with polymer, acrylic and Teflon products.
This is after lots of on-line reading and talking with four different professional detailers.

Does anyone have a credible source of no-nonsense information?

This may help a little. I know there are similar articles by Mike that talk about glazes and polishes too.

3-Categories: Waxes, Paint Sealants and Coatings

[heisenberg]

My biggest piece of advice would be to ignore a lot of that product categorization(oh, really, a multihybrid nano wax with EXTREME gloss enhancement technology? Pass.) and focus more on reviews and real-world results, plenty of which can be found here. There is zero regulation in the marketing and the ridiculous hype in detailing and it took me way too long to understand it. You can definitely learn a lot here.

The paint care cycle is:

1)Wash
2)Decontaminate
3)Polish
4)Protect
5)Maintain.

2, 3 and 4 are as necessary. You will learn the tricks of deciding when it`s time to do those. A sealer does what it sounds like and protects your paint. A glaze fills in minor imperfections, sometimes offers some protection, and is generally something to add to eek out some more gloss by providing a more uniform paint surface. Paint correction(swirl removers) are abrasive products that level your clearcoat in a permanent way.

[WaxAddict]

There`s few industries that are as rife with incompetence, exaggerated claims and even fraud ...

Can you give an example? "As Seen On TV" type products, sure, it`s a scam. But there are hundreds of great products that do just what they say. Don`t get discouraged. What are you looking for?

I still don`t know the difference, for example, between sealer, glaze and swirl-remover products;

Simply put...
A "sealer" is likely a sealant. This is a synthetic "wax". The common terminology these days is to call a synthetic wax a "sealant", and a natural wax, a "wax".
a "glaze" is a product that fills minute imperfections like "cobwebs" and very light swirls, but they have no protection abilities. It is an optional step and not needed on near-perfect paint. Even then it isn`t needed.
a "swirl-remover" is a polish, or perhaps a light compound. Or at least it should be. If it`s not a polish or a compound, it`s likely BS.

Likewise with polymer, acrylic and Teflon products.

Polymers, when used to describe a car care product, just means a man-made product or additive. Acrylic is a type of polymer. Acrylic may be part of a polymer-based car care product. When a vendor exposes that the product had acrylic or teflon, they are just elaborating on the polymer type. Many highly regarded products use acrylic. Same with Teflon. It`s just a brand-name of an additive that *may* enhance a car product. Teflon being a bit less trusted than acrylic `round these parts I recon.

[rwright]

Just wait until you start researching ceramic paint coatings...

[SouthPawCO]

First off, welcome aboard. This a great forum with a TON of knowledge. The best part is, none of that knowledge is hidden. Simply search or ask some questions. The group of people here are very helpful and will get you pointed in the right direction.

I learned more here in the first few days than I have since I have been driving. When I bought my truck new in December 2015, I wanted to learn how to care and keep it looking better than the day I bought it. My first mistake was letting the dealer `detail` it for me. I started searching online and it brought me here. I was introduced to a whole world of new products and ways to detail it. AG has a lot of information as well and they do a great job of telling what each product is intended for and how to use it.

[JSFM35X]

You need to educate yourself, once you do, you eill see through the BS.

If its too good to be true, it is!

I don`t buy anything a regular poster here has not used. If I do I run the risk of getting ripped off.

[top189h]

Welcome to one of if not the best forums around. Detailing can be as simple or as complicated as you want. Everyone here was a great help to me when I first got started.

[Old Pirate]

Hi,
I`m a new member from San Diego.
Been a do-it-yourself kinda guy all my life, especially with my vehicles. Owned probably over 50 cars & trucks ... and at least 15 motorcycles over the years.
I love repairing, maintaining and beautifying them myself .... for the bonding feeling but also this way I know the work`s getting done correctly.
But this detailing aspect of caring for my vehicles has me feeling frustrated and disillusioned a lot of the time.
There`s few industries that are as rife with incompetence, exaggerated claims and even fraud ... as is the detailing & exterior car care business.
I still don`t know the difference, for example, between sealer, glaze and swirl-remover products;
Likewise with polymer, acrylic and Teflon products.
This is after lots of on-line reading and talking with four different professional detailers.

Does anyone have a credible source of no-nonsense information?

Ask Ron!

[Stokdgs]

Welcome, Bigmutt !!!
This is a safe harbor from all the continual bombardment from many of those people you perfectly described...
We dont bombard or anything even close to that here.

Rather, we discuss openly and freely, our experiences, our failures, or triumphs, here with no worry about being treated differently because of the level we are in this huge world of Detailing..

We are so Blessed by the incredibly talented, and hardest working bunch of the most giving people who ever operated this Forum - Behind the Scenes - and don`t ever even ask for a thank you...Thank YOU, Autopia !!!!!!

We have seen many come and go, and some of us have been through at least 3 other Forums like this that eventually ended up here, when those Forums all went away...

You are going to find some really awesome new guys and gals that have come to learn and then go work really hard in their garages or shops..
They have all made huge steps forward in their learning intellectually and the physically hard work that goes with this craft..
I am amazed every day to see what they have learned and then reported back to us with incredible pictures and write ups...

These kids are Really Good !!!!!

So, get ready if you decide to stay on, to learn all you want from wherever you want to start... No problems, no pressure, no anxiety spoken here..
Yes, it`s really true !
Enjoy !
Dan F

[BlkToy14]

Does anyone have a credible source of no-nonsense information?

Whatever you do. Don`t ask Hillary Clinton.

[Ronkh]

Whatever you do. Don`t ask Hillary Clinton.

Well she did clarify Comey`s statement for her voters........

[rlmccarty2000]

Welcome! You found the Holy Grail of detailing sites. Folks here are willing to share credible knowledge. Most have no allegiance to any one brand and, like you, can sometimes be confused and amazed by the people selling products that promise the moon and the stars. Use the search function often and if that does not work post or pm (private message) a member of your choosing. We may not all have the same political views but every one of us loves a shiny car. Welcome to the Show.