Lexus RX 300/Acura MDX, 1st time using Jeffs Werkstatt line!

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sftempest66

New member
Hey guys, well I recently received my Prime/Acrylic Jett/Acrylic Jett Trigger and wanted to try them out on these two cars, first up was the Lexus...



Exterior:

-Wash with NXT Wash

-Clay with Pinnacle Poly Ultra Clay

-Polish with OP/Orange pad PC at 6

-White pad/Prime PC at 5

-Black pad/Acrylic Jett PC at 4

-Acrylic Jett Trigger Wipedown

-Wheel Wells/Engine got F21 as a final coat (Turtle wax tire foam)

-Tires dressed with Black Magic Tire Gel



I noticed that the Prime was extremely hard to take off if I let it cure for too long, the same went for the Acrylic Jett, I ended up using the Acrylic Jett Trigger as a "quick detailer" while wiping off the Acrylic Jett, is this ok??



Interior:

-Vacuum

-Mats shampooed/Pressure cleaned!!!

-Carpets cleaned with Woolite

-Dash got Poorboys Trim restorer

-Leather conditioned with Pinnacle Leather Conditioner

-NXT GLass cleaner



The interior was a lot worse than it looks, took me a long time to do, needed a vacuum and it was riddled with stains and such =/



Befores

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Afters

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Its been a long day, I'll post the Acura later when I feel up to resizing/hosting all the photos :ignore Oh, and one more thing, I charged $150 for this job, do you think thats overpriced at all? I spent about 8 hours on the vehicle....
 
Wow! Great transformation! $150 is definitely not too much. If anything, I think your detail is worth more than that. Great engine detail also!
 
Blake said:
A Buck-50 is a steal on that kinda work. Your customer should have been extremely happy with that price. He got one heck of a deal.
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Alright, I'm really not sure what to charge sometimes, I've just turned 18, and I'm still in high school so I try not to charge too much but at the same time I'm very particular and I do spend a lot of money on materials, I also don't "half-***" anything...



One of the main things that keeps me from charging xxx amount of dollars is that I'm not sure if I could consider my work "professional" I also think that some people might only look at me as a kid and think "Oh my god, how can he expect to charge that much and ever get my buisness again!"
 
Great job. When applying AJ you have to apply it super thin and basically do a small area and just keep rubbing until it disappears. I still don't have it mastered and it takes me a while to apply/remove it. But it looks good when you are done.



As far as your pricing goes, you charge what you feel is right. I think you are under charging. When you think of professional you think of an autopian, most "professionals" out there are not doing as high quality work as you are. Your customers should appreciate your work and level of quality. If they want a good job done they will pay the price. If they want a cheap job let them go to one of those places. Your age shouldn't matter, if someone brings that up all you have to point out is your knowledge of products and car care, the products you use, and let them see examples of your work. Anyone who questions your age/price after seeing your work is blind/ignorant.



Keep up the good work. :goodjob
 
sftempest66, since you're still young, I guess charging less is a good idea. I'm only 16, and I don't detail for money (I only do it as a hobby). Perhaps in the future, I can do detailing as a side job. It's a pretty good side job, much more interesting than working in a restaurant as a waiter or something... Since you're charging less, you can create a reputation for yourself, and slowly establish trust through referrals. Again, great job :)
 
audicoupej said:
Great job. When applying AJ you have to apply it super thin and basically do a small area and just keep rubbing until it disappears. I still don't have it mastered and it takes me a while to apply/remove it. But it looks good when you are done.



As far as your pricing goes, you charge what you feel is right. I think you are under charging. When you think of professional you think of an autopian, most "professionals" out there are not doing as high quality work as you are. Your customers should appreciate your work and level of quality. If they want a good job done they will pay the price. If they want a cheap job let them go to one of those places. Your age shouldn't matter, if someone brings that up all you have to point out is your knowledge of products and car care, the products you use, and let them see examples of your work. Anyone who questions your age/price after seeing your work is blind/ignorant.



Keep up the good work. :goodjob
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I did notice that the AJ came off easier if it was applied a tad thinner, Although, using the Acrylic Jett Trigger to help wipe it off worked well and it probably didn't hurt!



Thanks for the advice, I would have liked to charge in the ballpark of $200, it seemed fair to me, but I'm always afraid to "overcharge" my customers. I'm coming up on 50 cars here, so hopefully I'll be a little more confident with my prices from now on out!
 
sftempest66 said:
I'm coming up on 50 cars here, so hopefully I'll be a little more confident with my prices from now on out!
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Just curious, what did you use in the engine bay.......?



Your interior work is very good......:bigups
 
Thats really great work!



I'm 19 and I hear ya bout prices. I prob would have charged $150-170 for that job. You did the roof to, so that's worth a little extra. Most people I run into dont want the roof done.
 
Prime, work until it pretty much disappears. If it takes more than 3-4 passes to do that, you are using too much product. Acrylic Jett by hand, period. One section at a time, knock down any high spots you see with your foam hand pad (without adding more product), then remove. Use them like that and you will find Prime and AJ very easy to use.



Excellent job on the detail, it looks beautiful inside and out. Base your prices on what you feel is a fair amount per hour for your work. :)
 
Dave1 said:
Just curious, what did you use in the engine bay.......?



Your interior work is very good......:bigups
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I started off by running the car for a minute, opened the hood, degreased the engine with a Simple green solution 10:1, then I brushed the nasty parts, pressure cleaned the entire engine, and then I let the F21 Tire foam bake on, opened the hood on and just applied some AA to everything :)
 
DieselMDX said:
great job the AJ look real nice the paint is deff brighter





What vac do you use?
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I actually just use a small "mini" shop vac!



New Acura that the owner wanted cleaned up, ended up washing with nxt, Prime, AJ/AJT Trigger....Leather done with Pinnacle, tires with Black Magic, etc...sorry for the lack of pictures, it was getting dark

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Scottwax said:
Prime, work until it pretty much disappears. If it takes more than 3-4 passes to do that, you are using too much product. Acrylic Jett by hand, period. One section at a time, knock down any high spots you see with your foam hand pad (without adding more product), then remove. Use them like that and you will find Prime and AJ very easy to use.



Excellent job on the detail, it looks beautiful inside and out. Base your prices on what you feel is a fair amount per hour for your work. :)
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Thanks for the advice Scott, I'll definately be using the AJ more often so its nice to get a couple tips on a tricky product :2thumbs:
 
Prime should be applied thin enough so that there isn't any caked-on white residue after curing (thats the stuff thats hard to remove).



The AJT should be easier and surely nothing that requires a certain skill level to apply..Just spritz a panel, and buff till clear with a plush MF. You do not need to wait for the AJT to cure.
 
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