Hey guys what are your top tips?

M

mike_gregory

New member
Hey guys im after a few top tips that are a must know for detailing.



Have any top ideas or tips if you dont mind please share them.
 
Mike:

One on the biggest "mistakes" the average do-it-your-selfer new car owner makes is trying to wash their vehicle using the wrong techniques, products, and equipment. You will need to invest some decent (2) five-gallon buckets with Grit-Guards®, (2) good wash mediums like a grout sponge or sheep-wool mitt (one for the paint and one for the wheels and tires), a good car soap like Optimum Car Wash or Duragloss 901, and decent waffle-weave microfiber towels for drying. EVERY Professional Detailer within this forum will tell you most of the "problems" they correct on daily-driven cars are from owners who do not know how to properly wash a vehicle. Using Tide soap and your old bathroom towels to wash and dry your car, while they may get the car clean, will leave less-than desireable results.

If you are determined to take car of your new vehicle on your own, take the time to search this forum for "how-to's" on this subject and then invest in the products and washing equipment as recommended by those in the know. Don't be surprised if your investment comes up to $200- $300, just for washing your car! A job worth doing is worth doing right and if you've spent $20,000 (Or more!) on that new vehicle, the money you've spent on car washing supplies is small by comparison.



That leads to another of my "hints". I get dinged on this all the time by suggesting that you leave paint correction and waxing to the detailing professionals. I am not saying YOU can't do it! Again, it comes down to investing in the equipment and chemicals that will be needed to keep your vehicle looking brand-new (or better than new). It's a major capital (AKA, serious coin) outlay. Do you have the resources to do so? Or would I be better to pay someone to do it for me? That's a question you're going to have to answer. I just want to point out that there are ALOT of good-intentioned do-it-your-selfer's who see the car-show perfect pictures of vehicles in car forums and then attempt to make theirs look just like that, again, with less-than desireable results, or worse yet, induce damage that will take some serious coin to correct. I am not trying to scare people into thinking they cannot get results like they see in this forum, but many do not realize that GREAT car-detailing is a skill that requires experience and proper application of techniques to be done correctly. There's far more than slapping on a thick coat of Turtle-Wax on new car and wiping if off with that old soft T-shirt from the rag bag.
 
In a nutshell: Understand the subject.



This stuff isn't rocket science, but any aspects that aren't intuitively obvious need to be studied and thoroughly thought out.
 
AeroCleanse said:
Clay the glass.
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And then apply the same sealant to the glass that you use on the body.

I use BFWD on the body and glass with great results. Windows stay cleaner and look more 'transparent'.
 
hplaceap said:
And then apply the same sealant to the glass that you use on the body.

I use BFWD on the body and glass with great results. Windows stay cleaner and look more 'transparent'.
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I would use a dedicated glass sealant, but thats just me.
 
paint brush - 2 inch, horsehair, duct tape wrapped around metal ferrule, handle cut back to fit in shirt pocket without falling out easily. Used for nooks and crannies, seams, wheels, door jambs, logos, vents. Always in shirt pocket while cleaning car, never back pocket.

-John C.
 
JohnZ3MC- I keep my paintbrush-style BHB in the wash bucket and the ones for wheels in the wheel bucket (the little one is tethered on a nylon line)...too wet to keep in a pocket and I want to keep them soaking anyhow.
 
Acc, great minds think alike. I have a wheel bucket too! I never thought of tethering the little one to the bucket but I just might do that too. Do I have to pay a royalty fee for the idea?????



Another tip. Check out this set of Eimann Fabrik brushes for wheels.



Eimann Fabrik Wheel Woolies
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I picked up the three piece set for the coupe's wheels. The roadstars on the M coupe have the deep dish feature and are crazy wide and the wheel/rotor gap is rather miserly so this summer I'll give these brushes a good workout.
 
My main hint: take your time to do it correctly. Sometimes I feel rushed and, inevitably, I'm not pleased. Be clear in your own mind what you want to accomplish, how you plan on doing it, and take your time to do it correctly.
 
Top tip? Keep it simple. Wash, clay, correct, wax or sealant. You don't need 6 different LSPs on your car. Find the one you like best and use it as often as needed.
 
JohnZ3MC- Heh heh, roger that on the "Great minds" :chuckle:



I'll be interested to hear about those wheel...uhm...mitts-on-sticks. I have something similar I got for the S8 but I haven't used it yet. I'm concerned with the material retaining abrasive [stuff].



I tethered the brush after its handle fell off (guess that's how it became "little") and I got tired of sloshing around in the wheel bucket to grab it.
 
Scottwax said:
Top tip? Keep it simple. Wash, clay, correct, wax or sealant. You don't need 6 different LSPs on your car. Find the one you like best and use it as often as needed.
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Bah! How can you sleep at night and let the OCD rest knowing your car has been blanketed with only a single LSP. :nervous2:



More seriously, a tip I picked up here is applying VRT / rubber trim after applying wax but before buffing off. Then you buff off overspray VRT from the paint at the same time.
 
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