order of detail steps

rtbrick

rtbrick

Hoping for a sunny day
Gentlemen (and ladies), I intend on claying, polishing, using SMR, and applying UPP. I also have the UPP pre-cleaner. Could someone help me put the steps in order. I have a PC and will use it to the fullest extent possible (my laziness...err efficiency showing).

Here is my guess base off what I have learned from this board:

1. dawn wash (optional, I know, but a safe bet)
2. clay
3. SMR (3M for light/dark? Not sure. I'll end up doing both of my vehicles)
4. polish (not sure what kind yet)
5. UPP pre-cleaner
6. UPP

Is this ok? Am I defeating myself anywhere along the way? Any steps I missed or steps that can be omitted?
 
hey rtbrick,

steps look good. the only thing i would skip would be the polish after the 3m smr. i typically go straight from the smr to the upp or which ever wax/sealant i'm going to use. i've found smr to make a great final polish.

nice truck. i have a 98' gmc sierra z-71. it's black with the extended cab. lots of fun to detail. :D
 
nothing really. smr is a polish. a very mild polish at that. i go straight to waxing after smr but a lot of folks use a paint pre cleaner in between polishing and waxing.

the word polish is used on a lot of products. to me a polish is a product that uses a light mechanical abrasive to smooth out and clean the paint. heavier polishes are normally called compounds and non-abrasive polishes are called paint cleaners. of course these are not hard definitions and can be used differently for different products.
 
After SWP i can go in 3 directions
1. Put Machine Glaze then Wax
2. Put AIO or Platinum cleaner then UPP
3. Zaino

jeff
 
Ok, so SMR is basically a polish. What is the benefit of using SMR (like the 3M for dark/light cars) and then following with a milder polish? I would guess not much. Maybe if I had bad swirls on a dark vehicle I could see the extra steps. If that's the case, I think I will go straight from SMR to cleaner then UPP.

How about pads for the PC? Should I just use a polishing pad for the SMR and cleaner?
 
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