I`ve become a Disciple of Yvan Lecroix

[Don]

I`ve been detailing at one level or another since I was 16 (almost 58 now). My 1st "Mentor" was stuck and rigid on processes and techniques for SINGLE STAGE paint, apparently oblivious that BC/CC paint needs to be handled entirely different. Needless to say, I picked up a lot of bad habits that stuck with me for years.

About a month ago, I discovered Yvan at DIY Detail on YouTube and Facebook. His approach and way of explaining things so that even someone with NO experience detailing cars can quickly catch on are amazing. I can`t describe just how much my game has improved in just a month. I now LOVE using a rotary, actually prefer it over my DA and am getting unbelievable results. It`s finally gotten through my head that it`s been MY EGO that`s been making things more difficult than they should be.

He tends to break things down to the simplest level, while at the same time, making total sense. When he explains something, it`s like: "Duh, that should have been so obvious from the beginning," but after years of listening to varied and numerous other detailers saying: "It HAS to be done THIS way, or you`re doing it wrong," I believed their hype.

Yvan does repeat the basics in almost all of his videos, but people like me tend to need that repetitive approach to get it through my thick skull.

 

[wannafbody]

The biggest issue with a rotary is splatter if you are running it at high speed. Be careful, I have a friend with 40 years experience with a rotary that has burned through paint.

 

[Don]

The biggest issue with a rotary is splatter if you are running it at high speed. Be careful, I have a friend with 40 years experience with a rotary that has burned through paint.

That`s the thing, Yvan endorses and really stresses using the rotary at its SLOWEST speed for polishing, saying the only purpose for high speed is to remove the solution from the pad after cleaning. I`ve done this on 3 cars now, and the final results are amazing. He also did a video to see which machine would burn through paint faster - a DA or a rotary. Using an identical pad, the same polish, at the same approximate speed (1 on the rotary, and 3.5 on the DA) on the same test panel. It took quite a while, but using a thickness gauge measuring in microns, the DA removed the most paint by far, burning through, while the rotary only removed the amount of paint that a moderate-heavy compounding would have in most cases.

 

[wannafbody]

It really depends on what you are doing. In a body shop environment the rotary is used for removing wetsanding scratches and you won`t do that at low speed. For general detailing low to medium speeds would probably work. Still, I like a forced rotation machine better.

 

[mc2hill]

Yvan is very knowledgeable. I have spoken to him many times, but mostly at AG`s old Detail Fest. - loved getting to watch demonstrations and ask questions.