Just did my first complete detail... evaluate me!

Z

zimmerDN

New member
I have questoins below. If you don't care to read the rest, skip it and go to the bottom. :xyxthumbs



I started at autopia about 2 months ago. I current drive a 04 mazda3 indigo blue. The problem with this colour is when it's dirty it turns purple. That's why I came to autoia.org.



Thanks to everyone's help, I had the line of products picked out. #80, #81, Reflection, ScratchX, Turtle Wax Bug & Tar Remover (liquid), a bunch of MF from patshak, sonus polishing towel (wunder towel?).



Anyway, this was a two day task. I started yesterday with the wash, clay and then some polishing. Today I finished off with more polishing, then glaze, then wax. Wanna know how long all this took me? I'd say roughly 20 hrs minus maybe 2 hours of break time. :eek:



OH MY GOD>>> The neighourhood thinks I am crazy, my mom thinks I've gone mad, gf got angry at me cuz I cared more about the car then her (just in the pass 2 days, I think that's what she meant anyway). :think: BTW, I did everything by hand. :faint:



Here's a break down

Wash - 1.0 hour

Clay - 5.0 hours

Polish - 6.0 hours

Glaze - 3.0 hours

Wax - 3.0 hours



But damn my car looks good now. :xyxthumbs No more scratches in most places and it's looks almost black at night (a very deep blue).



Where did the time go? :sadwavey: I can't understand why it took me so long, especially claying. I had a hell of a time and my fingers were sore.



Things I learned:

1. Never ever leave bugs stuck on your car (i knew this before i came here but never believed it)

2. Always use a clean MF to do the final buffing after glazing because it helps to remove any smeared oil from the glaze

3. Remove the glaze (#81) as quickly as you can after it's applied otherwise it's caked and it's hard as hell to remove

4. Remove wax (Reflection) 5 mins after it's been applied otherwise it's caked and it will be hard to remove



Things I question:

1. Will it take as long next time when I clay? Or would it much easier since all the contaminates will be removed with the wax.

2. ScratchX doesn't seem to be that much more abrasive then #80. I found that if I can't remove a scratch with #80, neither will the scratchX. Also should I use ScratchX the exact same way as #80? (keep rubbing until it's clear).

3. The hood has some weird oily smear marks after I buffed off the wax. How can I fix it? Is it from the glaze? #81

4. Would applying another coat of Reflection be benificial? Or does Reflection contain cleaner in it?

5. How long would this protection last me? Meaning how long would I have to repeat this entire process again?

6. Finally, how can speed up things next time short of buying a PC? I don't think I can do this again.
 
5 hours to clay a car. Now THAT'S impressive! :bow



zimmerDN said:
OH MY GOD>>> The neighourhood thinks I am crazy, my mom thinks I've gone mad, gf got angry at me cuz I cared more about the car then her (just in the pass 2 days, I think that's what she meant anyway). :think:
Click to expand...





Sounds like you got a lot of grief from everyone just to detail your car! :rofl
 
Well, my car is one year old never been waxed, never been clayed, filled with bugs at the front and on the side mirrors. I was doing it as quickly as I could but also throughly.



I have good endurance but others would say I am overly obsessive. haha :chuckle:
 
Hi and welcome!



I would say 20 hours is trying for a medal, that is a long time. A PC will cut your time down greatly and give you even better results. As for the smearing it could be the #81. I would use a good quick detailer with a MF towel and that should remove it.



With regards to how long it will last, probably a few months. I'd clean the car again when fall rolls around and it shouldn't take as long. Go to Lowes and get a PC, you won't regret it.



Paul :wavey
 
As you get more practice and develop better technique you will get faster. Getting a PC will speed up your polishing time and give you better results then you would normally get by hand.

Glad your car looks great, now enjoy it.
 
zimmerDN said:
Well, my car is one year old never been waxed, never been clayed, filled with bugs at the front and on the side mirrors. I was doing it as quickly as I could but also throughly.



I have good endurance but others would say I am overly obsessive. haha :chuckle:
Click to expand...



Better to take it slow and do a good job rather than rush through it and have to fix it later. :xyxthumbs



The fact that the car was a year old and hadn't been cared for in that time was a big factor. I once detailed a 5 year old Lexus LS400 that had never been waxed and it took me hours to get it in shape. By the time I got to the pizza sauce on the interior carpeting I was wishing someone would shoot me. :hairpull



Now that your car is clean it's just a matter of maintaining it. You can do that bit by bit. That's how I do it. One day I'll wash. Next day I'll put the wax on. Another day it's the interior. I find that much easier than going at it all at once.



:welcome to Autopia!
 
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