getgoing- Welcome to Autopia!
Some sorta-random thoughts follow:
The fact that you asked about combining wax + sealant, and that you mentioned what people are doing on YouTube and those ratings on Amazon makes me think "uh-oh, he might actually think that Detailing on the Internet is like doing it in Real Life!" (OK, I`m being a little facetious
) Just remember that online sources aren`t always, uhm...reliable. Yeah, that`s obvious to everybody, but when I see that somebody used Optimum Car WAX with a clay towel, well...
I strongly advise you to never do *anything* without a specific understanding of what you`re doing and why. I consider this utterly crucial. You need to really *KNOW* what it`s supposed to accomplish, and *how* it is supposed to accomplish that. Only then can you turn to figuring out just *how* to do it.
Sorry if the above sounds condescending or even insulting, I sure don`t mean to come across that way and I apologize if I did. I just want to head off any potential "oops!" situations that`ll make for more work (at best). Kinda like health care- "first, do no harm".
I can`t help with Interior Products that provide a shine (I basically never "dress" my interiors anyhow), but turning to some of the other topics...
INTERIOR PRODUCTS:
-Products that don`t get rinsed off are usually best for interiors that aren`t very dirty. In those cases a "one product does it all" approach can work OK. Otherwise, I`d clean, rinse, then apply your dressing/etc.
-To figure out "what the products do", look to the labels, but be leery of that "this one thing will do all those jobs like magic!" claims. That can work fine with Interior Quick Detailers, but only if the surfaces are pretty clean to begin with (FWIW, that`s usually what I do to my interiors), otherwise I`d clean them first
-There are a few Interior Cleaners that do *not* need rinsed off, but again, I reserve those for mild cleanups
POLISHES:
-Different people/companies use the word "Polish" in all sorts of different ways, it can get confusing! Here at Autopia we generally consider "Polish" to mean "mildly abrasive product". Those are used to correct marring (scratches/swirls/etc.) by "sanding" the paint down like sanding a scratch out of a piece of wood. This is a rather complex subject that can`t be dealt with succinctly, but yeah...you`d want to use a Polisher rather than trying to do much by hand. Note that marring is purely cosmetic; if it doesn`t bother *you* then it doesn`t matter.
IMO you might do better to look into All In One ("AIO") products. Those do a little abrasive polishing (not much, usually won`t completely remove any swirls let alone scratches), and a lot more chemical paint *cleaning*. They also leave a tiny bit of protection behind (but not much at all). I suggest that after you Clay/etc. you use an AIO and then apply the Collinite 845. That`s what I`d have you do if I were setting this project up.
(There are some relatively new products, including one from Turtle Wax (of all places!) that do both polish and protect well. Worth considering if you`re not bound and determined to use that 845,)
APC:
-What do you need it to do? Some people use Degreasers for jobs other than, well...degreasing, whereas I only use it when I need to emulsify grease/oil/etc.
DECONTAMINATION:
I don`t decontaminate a vehicle unless it needs it; others do it frequently but I see zero point in doing that. Similarly, I don`t use Ferrous Contamination Removers (e.g., IronX) unless the vehicle has ferrous contamination. That is much more important on light-colored vehicles that`ll show rust-blooms/etc. than it is on darker colors.
-Some of us (myself included) greatly prefer to use a dedicated Clay Lube when claying. Others are happy using ONR or even regular shampoo mix
-The clay should glide across the surface on a film of lube, not actually touching the paint. As it bumps into contamination, it shears it off. While the clay does a *LITTLE* "pulling contamination off", that`s minimal; the shearing is what it`s supposed to do. For it to work that way you have to be *VERY* gentle (which will also help minimize clay-induced marring)
-The Claying process will usually leave some residue (clay lube, a bit of the clay itself). This can often just be washed off like other kinds of dirt, not necessitating a product like Eraser
-IMO most people fail to knead/replace their clay often enough, by a huge margin. Remember that the instant clay picks up some abrasive contamination, it turns into sandpaper
-I always tear my claybars into small pieces and use those instead of big chunks (let alone the whole bar). Besides providing insurance in case you drop it (if you do, unless the surface it lands on is operating-room-clean I`d throw that clay away!), it makes it easier to knead if you want to do that (I generally just retire the contaminated clay..maybe use it for wheels/etc...and get out another piece)
-If you clay, and *especially* IMO if you use a Clay Towel, you might oughta be prepared to do some polishing as it`s very easy to mar the paint even if you do everything right
COLLINITE 845:
-I have/use/like/recommend it, but it doesn`t always last as long as people expect. Note that it can almost always be used on black/etc. exterior plastic trim with great results, but you do need to clean such surfaces first
-As with almost all LSPs (Last Step Products, i.e., wax/sealant/etc.), you don`t need much and most people use a zillion times more than they need to (which can cause issues). A bottle of 845 oughta last the normal person at least a decade even if they`re doing huge vehicles all the time
SEALANTS:
-I myself use FinishKare 1000P (paste sealant, basically a syntethetic wax) on most of my vehicles. I *NEVER* top any sealant with wax; I just use one Last Step Product that`s right for the job.
OK...after all that, here`s where I think you oughta start:
Figure out what the car really needs. How dirty/contaminated/etc. is it inside and out? How much time to you have and how will you schedule this project (one big go or numerous single-day jobs that`ll do it incrementally). This stuff takes a *LOT* longer than most people ever imagine, especially when you`re starting out.
GET SOME GOOD INSPECTION LIGHTING. You simply have to see what`s going on to get good results. (No fluorescent lights for inspection! Although they`re fine for general illumination.)
The more I think on it, the more I think you might oughta look into that newer Turtle Wax product that Polishes and Protects. I can`t recall it`s name (I think it`s one of those "Ceramic" products though), but for a one-and-done it might be the way for you to go, at least this time.
Sorry if this lengthy post is a bit much, but there`s lots to cover and I *really* want to head off as many potential issues as possible.
and likely don`t need to.