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...that doesn't prevent me from giving it some TLC for the gf... perhaps "test car" would be a more honest evaluation :D Basically we'll be getting rid of this car soon so that the little lady can drive the WRX wagon full-time. In the meantime, I'll take my time prepping the 1997 Tercel...

Not me, thankfully, but over on the Wash & Wax section on s2ki this poor poor soul had his brand new black S2000 abused by the dealer, who refuses to take responsibility. Unfortunately, he's in Portugal and I know aside from RRacer, there probably aren't many Portuguese detailers here on autopia...

Just thought I'd throw this out there to see what folks typically do... Do you usually - or always - clay before using a machine to polish? How necessary do you think it is to clay before polishing? If not, what kind of contaminants would you leave to the polisher and when would you...

Noting a question in another thread about PB's SSR2.5 vs Menzerna IP (and FP2 as a finish) I decided to take the beat-up black 1993 Corrado's hood for a spin. It's got some reallly bad swirling and much deeper marks that aren't going to come out (note the obvious acid rain/exposure pitting, even...

After picking up my Metabo and getting used to it on a couple of junkers, I decided to give it a shot with this paid job. I used the PC in hard-to-reach spots and didn't really focus on complete swirl removal, just a basic polish and general cleanup. The interior was the focus for the owner and...

I'll post pics tomorrow - it's too dark now and I WISH WISH WISH I'd taken befores, but I decided to bust out the new Metabo on a customer/friend's Pathfinder today... I was a little apprehensive, but ran 1200rpm, white polishing pad and FPII. There was no sun all day until I was done, so you...

does this pretty well explain this concept? (i got bored and decided I wanted to draw) :D

I KNEW I should have looked closer at my car before leaving the restaurant... I went in to grab some food (to go) and a family of 5 came in right before I left. Well, up until that time there was no car parked next to me. Then when I went out, there was a big white Avalon parked closely next to...

I got out the studio lights to try and highlight some flaws in the paint, but decided instead to have some fun. This is what I came up with... 1600x1200 wallpaper version (275k) 1600x1200 wallpaper version (284k) Fun stuff. Now I just need a much larger, square softbox instead of...

Well, I did a test spot on the hood of my new WRX... Apparently it sat on the dealer lot for a little too long and was exposed, unprotected... I used a 4" SFX1 pad by hand, first with an application of SSR2.5, then IP (I was workin' up a sweat!). I have a PC, but it's late... The Metabo is on...

Anyone use these? Are there serious advantages to the more expensive models? It almost seems like a necessity for any serious polishing jobs where we're doing this: :buffing: :D $388 for the "mini" $439 for the ETG-1 $812 for the ETG-2

So I'm about ready to drop the cash on a rotary, but I need some suggestions for backing plates and wool pads. I've got a plethora of foam pads, have read some really positive stuff on the Edge wool pads, but none of the regular online detailing shops seem to carry them, just foam. Any place...

My neighbor is moving tomorrow, so I thought I better get around to shooting a few pics of this beast of a car that went from his daily driver to a dedicated race car. He got his license this year and has been racing, but is moving to Chicago tomorrow, so he has to cut his season short. I know...

I decided I'd take this lovely car that's been sitting out front for a while (needs some transmission and wheel bearing work) and use it as a test car. Befores: It's been repainted. I clayed this fender and it smoothed out the feeling of the paint considerably (you could hear the...

I set this up last summer and just got around to putting the pix into Flash and running them all together... I used my Canon 10D and the Timer Remote to fire off a shot every 15 seconds. This was using a 1-bucket method (I use a 2-bucket method now) and no microfiber. At least my rags were...

Just finished up another coat of Zaino (it's going to be an outdoor car :( ) and shot a few pics RIGHT before the skies opened up (got 'er in the garage just in time!) As I mentioned in another thread, I started with AIO to clean up the adhesive left over from the protective sheets and went...

I decided to prep my new WRX Wagon (WR Blue!) with ZPC. Interestingly enough, the polishing brought out defects in the paint I couldn't see before. I was almost 100% certain that there was nothing on the paint in terms of wax/lsp, but out popped water spots and a little etching. Ugh. IPA wipe...

Well, a friend recently got a nice dark blue 05 Legacy GT 2.5 wagon and I noted the moderate dealer-installed swirls and told him that the coat of #26 he put on, while nice, could be done better. Nice car, pretty quick. Diggin' it. He shows up today and says his friend will be coming by later...

So, a design client of mine whose cars I've detailed (graphic/web designer/photographer by trade) sends me an email saying he's trading his E55 that I just detailed a few weeks ago. He's getting a new 750Li and wants to know, among the three colors he's looking at, which should he get and why :)...

My brother was trying to describe this new paint that gives the illusion not just of color changing, but the look of liquid, real flames with motion as some sort of optical illusion. I can't find anything on it online, probably because I don't know quite what I'm looking for. Anyone heard of...