Frustrated... Please Help!

S

suzGTI

New member
I've been trying to read through this site and find the answers to my questions by myself but I'm loosing my mind and I'm not finding what I need to know. :hairpull :wall



I've tried some detailing on my bike with not bad results. Just not good ones. Shown here http://autopia.org/forum/welcome-greeting-center/80297-whazzzz-uuuup-just-kidding.html



The products I currently have are:

  • Mr. Clean AutoDry CarWash
  • Simoniz wool wash mit
  • MiroTex MF (from Canadian Tire)
  • A dozen terry cloth's
  • Meg Plastix
  • Meg Cleaner Wax
  • Meg QuikClay wt. Quik Detailer
  • Meg Deep Crystal System Polish
  • Meg Deep Crystal System Paint Cleaner
  • Meg Gold Class Paste Car Wax wt. foam applicator
  • Simoniz Genuine Sheepskin Chamois

Soon I'm going to be detailing a 07' VW GTI (in Tornado Red) and I'm looking into getting better products along with keeping some of the things I already use. I can't afford a PC so I will be doing all of this by hand. I'm wanting to try and make it as close to "perfect" as possible by hand, and am wanting a deep dark wet look when I'm done.



What I'm looking at so far is:



For Exterior

  • Meg NXT Gen Car Wash (used wt a Simoniz wool wash mit)
  • A 5 gal bucket wt a grit guard
  • Sonus SFX Ultra-Fine Detailing Clay (used wt my Meg QD)
  • Stoner Invisible Glass Cleaner
  • P21S Gel Wheel Cleaner
  • Sonus Tire & Bumper Dressing Gel
  • (my Meg Plastix for lights)
  • Zaino Z-5 (wt ZFX?)
  • Klasse All-In-One
  • P21S Carnauba Wax
  • OXO Wash brush (for wheels, tires, lower plastic panels, wheel wells, and engine)

For Interior

  • 303 High Tech Fabric Guard
  • 303 Aerospace Protectant
  • Stoner Trim Cleaner
  • Small Detailing brush (for vents & other crevices)



What I'm still not sure of, (besides if buying the things above is a good idea):

  1. I wanted to use a sealant (Klasse) to get durable protection... Is this a good product wt the other things I was going to use?
  2. Would Zaino Z-5 wt ZFX be good for getting whatever little spiderwebs etc. will be on the new car? or could I just use my Meg Cleaner Wax or Meg Deep Paint Cleaner?
  3. On my bike, I tried the Meg Deep Crystal Syst Polish to get the spiderwebs out, and all it seemed to do was just scratch up the paint more?? Is this too strong of a polish, or did I just do it wrong?
  4. Is P21S Gel wheel cleaner a good choice, or is there something else just as good where I could save money?
  5. What is a good Leather Cleaner? and Conditioner/Protectant? (Autoglym?, Meg?,Sonus Cleaner?, Sonus Conditioner?)?
  6. MF... I was looking at PakShak. Will I need anything other than a large drying towel, a couple buffing towels, and one for the glass? (I have 8 or so cheaper MF for wheels, tires, lights, and the interior leather)
  7. Lastly, applicators. Is there a good kind or are they all the same? (what do you use)? (also will I need to buy an applicator for each of these?: the wax, sealant, polish, leather cond, leather cleaner, int plastic cleaner, int plastic conditioner, and tire dressing)?

Sorry for the long post but I hope I can get my questions answered and anything else you could tell me to help me out... Thanks very much...
 
First off you wont be able to get any imperfections out with just using your hands so save up the money and get a PC. You may be able to get some out but your arm is going to have to go very fast to create the heat needed to removed the majority of imperfections. Until then just get products that can cover any you do have.



I would use a different applicator for each product. I do that. I just went to the auto parts store and they have a bag of app. pads for like $5 I think there was 10 in the bag. For the tires they have a special app pad that you can get. I think they are like $3 you get 2 in package they are curved just like a tire and work very well.



I use armorall tire gel. I think it works great and it stays on about 2 weeks. Its around $6-7 a bottle. I bought that back in June I wash my car almost every week and I still have 1/2 bottle left.



I like the sonus line I have all thier polishes and think they are great so I would imagine the leather cleaner/conditioner is just as good.





I hope this helps you , going to have to have some other chime in cause I am still a newbie to all this detailing stuff myself. I usually just try to read here and learn.
 
I too use the armoral tire gel. Many people do not like it, but I think it has great shine and does not sling at all.
 
Welcome suzGTI :wavey



I’m not very good at answering questions like this, so I apologize. But my advice to you is to buy as little as possible when starting out. I’m sure every Autopian has bottle after bottle of products they are never going to use again or needed in the first place. Learn the process before investing in products, especially when you don’t have a PC. If I were you, I would buy the products listed below and then decide latter what you want to add to your kit. Forget about wheel cleaner, they aren’t needed. Normal car soap works very well. You will need a wheel brush for the GTI, there is a metal plate behind the rear brake rotors. I’ve cut my hands 10+ times before I learnt my lesson.



List:

Bucket/grit guard

NXT wash

Jeffs Werkstatt Prime and Acrylic Jett

Clay

Poorboys Spray and wipe

303 Aerospace Protectant

Meguiars Endurance Tire Gel

Assortment of MF from Excel detail



(Does anyone want to add to my list?)
 
I have to disagree about not being able to remove defects by hand.I and several others on this forum have hand polished for years,with very good results.



Of course,the end results won't be as good when compared to machine polishing,but that is not to say that it can't be done,you can still get respectable results by hand.



When i hand polish,i always use either Einszett Paint Polish and Metalic polish,or Autoglym Super Resin Polish,applied by foam applicator,or Microfiber.These products work very well for removing(not just filling) defects by hand.



However, the paint on the VW that you describe is notoriously very hard,so do not expect to get things perfect,because it won't be possible.You could try using a terry cloth towel first to apply the polish,see how that goes,then follow up with a foam applicator.



I don't really like to tell people what products they should buy,but i wan't to point out that the Klasse AIO and Z5 you have on your list,are not going to remove any defects,which is why i recommend the Einszett/Autoglym polishes.



The other items you have sound fine,as i'm sure you will add to them as you progress,you won't go wrong with any PakShak microfibres,get plenty for Buffing (the ultra plush/fine are good) and some WWs for drying.The P21s wax should work well over the Einszett/Autoglym,if you decide to purchase them.
 
Agreed, Z5 will not remove any defects, neither will AIO. Wise 85, is right on using Einzett or Autoglym if doing by hand. I had been doing that for years, before aquiring a pc. It is hadr work that requires patience. It would take me a couple of days to prep (hard paint) many times. I would also suggest trying some Meguiars Sratch X that you can get locally. I do have to say, if you can do it, buy a pc. It is worth it and not hard to learn.
 
Thanks for everyones responses so far, especially:



Wise 85, I haven't yet looked into Einszett Paint Polish or Autoglym but I will be... I wasn't sure of how much I would have to be polishing. Thinking because it is a new car, I somehow was figuring that it would come without most of the marring and spiderwebs stuff on it? Maybe that was just wishful thinking. Would the Klasse still be good for a sealant under the P21S?



lucaszcpm3, I haven't heard of Jeffs Werkstatt Prime and Acrylic Jett yet either... I have read about the MF from Excel and people seem to say that they're possibly just as good and cheaper then PakShak, so I'll look into those too.



I do appreciate everyones help and opinions, so please keep them coming. :)
 
suzGTI, i know what you mean about the new car thing,(lack of spider webs/swirls) just never really seems to be the case unfortunately.



Really try and get the Einszett, or Autoglym stuff, as i am sure it will work very well for you.To be honest, if it was me, i wouldn't bother with the Klasse AIO, because if you get the Einszett/Autoglym polish, it becomes redundent anyway.Either PakShak,or,Excel microfibres are good,whatever one suits you best for ordering.



As an example; if you went with paint polish(if needed,moderate swirls etc) followed by metallic polish,and then topped that with P21s, i think that you would be surprised by the results.
 
There's a nice thread around about hand removal of defects comparing different products.



For a new car, limited budget, hand only, and what you already have, I think you can really get by with a minimal cost and still get good results. I think the OTC market is where's it's at for those criteria..



Of course that never stops us from buying new things haha..



Clay bar..sonus or clay magic

NXT or Gold Class Wash

Meguiar's Scratch X for any bad spots

your Meg's DC Paint Cleaner (DC1)

your Meg's DC Polish (DC2)

NXT Tech Wax

Meguiar's #26 (if you really want a wax topper..great on red!)





If you'd like you can replace the DC 1, 2 and Tech Wax steps with Werkstatt Prime Strong and Acrylic Jett Trigger



I'm rarely impressed with wheel cleaners, especially the boutique ones..I find a dedicated mitt/brush and your car wash (be sure to do the wheels AFTER the paint)..works just as well on normal grime, and maybe some Eagle One A2Z on any nasty spots



With the money you save, you can put it toward a PC..and then you can really start spending some money LOL
 
But remember, VW paint is stereotypically pretty hard (correct?) so he may have a little bit more difficult time trying to fix the paint than a normal person would on a normal car.
 
Wise 85 said:
I have to disagree about not being able to remove defects by hand.I and several others on this forum have hand polished for years,with very good results.



Of course,the end results won't be as good when compared to machine polishing,but that is not to say that it can't be done,you can still get respectable results by hand.
Click to expand...



i agree. All i ever did prior to getting a pc and now a rotary was buff n polish with my good old hands, but now that i have them - my god . . . thinking about polishing by hand makes me feel immense pain . . .



props to you die hard hand buffers . . .



sounds like your lineup will work. obviously, there could be improvements, but i would make due with what you have, take your time, use fresh applicators for everything, and have some advil on hand for those arms . . . .
 
sspeer - thanks for your post... I did read the thread you mentioned about hand removal of defects using different products, and I will take your advice and just use the car wash with a brush to clean the wheels.



So, a few other things I was wondering about:



1. asharna - you mentioned that it could take a couple of days to prep "hard paint"... does this entail: washing the car, claying the first day, then polishing a few panels, leaving the car right from that point; (Then I would be using the car the next day and getting it dirty/winter grim on it); then the next day, just washing it again and polishing more panels (and so on) until finished; and then only after all of that, finally using a wax and/or a sealant when all done?



2. Wise 85 - I've been searching, and I really like what people are saying about the Einszett paint polish. (not so much the Autoglym because it seems that it might have more fillers (which in my mind, less fillers shows how corrected the paint actually is), plus I'm not sure where I could buy it from anyway).



3. About the Werkstatt Prime Acrylic Jett Trigger, I like what I've read, but it seems as far as i can tell to be mostly a cleaner? So I was wondering... would this really be any "better" then my Meg Deep Syst. Cleaner? And, would either/or be good to use after the Einszett or should a cleaner only be used before? (because it has some fillers in it)



4. Lastly, would polishing waxing, etc. be that much easier (ie. worth the money) to buy the “Lake Country Manufacturing Pad & Handle Kit� when working by hand, (are their pads better than others?) or does it not really make that much of a difference, so using any foam applicators would do the job sufficiently? (especially since the VW paint, as it's been said is notoriously very hard)?



Like always, thanks for everyones help...
 
suzGTI, asharna is right about taking a couple of days to prep 'hard' paint.Because of the time involved, and if you are going to use the car the next day,you will have to polish in sections at a time.



After you wash the body,wheels,fenderwells,tires,and clay the car, decide how much time you have left to concentrate polishing one or two areas at a time,get these areas how you want,then wax those areas.If you are using the car regularly,then say for example the next week,after a carefull wash,you set aside some time to polish a couple more sections of the car,and so on until the whole car is completed.



I know this doesn't sound ideal,but i have done it this way before on daily drivers and it works out alright when you don't have the time to do the whole car in one go.



Your best bet for the Einszett products, would be PakShak,or PARTSFOR vws,as at the moment,they don't have any Canadian retailers.



The Werkstatt Acrylic Jett Triger is the sprayable version of Acrylic Jett,which is a sealant,you wouldn't/couldn't use this in place of Meguiars Deep Crystal Cleaner(DC1) because they are two different products,the Meguiars DC1 is a very mild chemical and abrasive paint cleaner,and if you do get the Einszett products,you wont need this.



I think the Lake Country Pad and Handle Kit is a good idea for hand polishing, more so if you haven't done a great deal of hand polishing before,because you will find it more comfotable on your hand/arm muscles,but it is not essential.
 
If you're polishing by hand, some mild fillers isn't necessarily a bad thing IMO.



I've always found DC1 to be a decent paint cleaner chemically, but very light on abrasives.



I'd also recommend waxing or sealing your wheels..that will help with the brake dust, but those wheels look very easy to clean!



What are peoples opinions on using an inexpensive Random Orbital that you can get at any department store versus hand use? I know it's weak compared to a PC, but I'd think it'd be better than nothing. I remember using a cleaner wax and getting rid of some scuffs and very light scratches (on a Tornado Red jetta coincidentally) during my pre-Autopia days
 
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