Going to be detailing for the first time want to make sure I have everything I need

T

Trackman

New member
Hey Autopians,

I've been reading and learning for a while and finally ordered some detailing supplies. I bought a Kalapana Black 1999 Eclipse last weeks, and its being shipped about 1000 miles so I'm guessing its going to be pretty dirty. I just want to make sure I have everything I need get it cleaned up and that I do it in the right order.

-Wash with dish detergent

-Meg's Quik Magic Clay

-Meg's Medallion Paint Cleaner

-Meg's #7 Show Car Glaze

-S100 Wax

I'm planning on doing this by hand and just taking my time. I have acess to a PC but have never used one before, so I'll wait a while if I and see if I need to use it. I'm also going to be detailing my Dad's chrome yellow Mustang with the same stuff. Anything else I need to do to get the cars looking good and protected?
 
I definitely would not make it a habit of using dish detergent as it is too harsh for your vehicles paint. Add some good microfiber towels and you are set. Good luck!
 
Thats a pretty good combination, it should work great when you're done. One thing I'd suggest over dish soap is using Meg's NXT soap and just mix it very heavily (its a strong soap, and when mixed at like 4 times the reccomended diltuion or so, it will get stuff clean without the harshness of Dawn). The #7 is a little tough to work with, but it does leave an awesome result. You might want to consider picking up some QD to make removing it easier.
 
Using the Medallion Paint cleaner minimizes the need to degrease with dish soap. Any good shampoo will probably be all you need. Polymer sealants require rigorous degreasing before application, so you dont need to be a careful with the products you have selected , IMHO.:xyxthumbs
 
Yes, stay away from the dish soap, too harsh. The claying will remove any old wax anyway. Add a bucket and sheepskin mitt and you are on your way. Keep in mind a black car that old is going to have major swirls unless the owner was a detailing fanatic or hired one to do his car. With black you should seriously consider making the investment and get a PC 7336 or 7224 buffer, usually under $100 a Lowes and then picking up some pads and backing plate for about $30 and some polish like Meguiars #80 and #83 or 3M's FPII.



Check out this picture of a hood that was half buffed with a PC buffer and Meg's #80. This is a black 2002 MB C240, newer than yours and it was swirled so bad it looks gray.



http://www.autopia.org/forums/attachment.php?s=&postid=563219
 
The Eclipse came in and it has some marring and scratches, but overall not too bad. I washed, clayed and then applied the MPPC by rotary. I know its not made to use with a rotary, but that was all I had and I wanted to get some practice in with it since I'll be using the rotary down the road and the MPPC has very light abrasives. After that I applied #7 by hand and put S100 over that. Here's some pictures after one coat of S100:

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Unfortunately I got caught in the rain bring it back from getting emissions tested :argue but it did bead up nicely.



I'd like to fix the rock chips and scratches but I'm not really sure what to use. I'm planning on getting some touch-up paint for the the rock chips and theres a deep scratch where the door hit something then either wet sanding or going to stright to the rotary with #83 or #84. I'm not sure what to use so I posted some pictures, any help would be greatly appreciated ;)



Rock chips:

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Scratch:

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Theres also this defect. I'm not sure if it is even fixable but I thought I'd post it and hopefully someone can help:

000_0036.jpg




I'm not sure how to resize my photos either :nixweiss , let me know if they're too big
 
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