Need help with a few choices

D

dsms

New member
Dont mean to ask "which is better" but I need some help with making some decisions on a few products and which would be right for my needs. For a claybar I was originally going to go with Zaino's but found Pinnacles Ultra Poly clay and it looked good, I need something that is semi-soft and easy to work with and cleans deep, what do you suggest between the two? For wheel cleaners I have narrowed it down between P21S and Ultimas Tire & Trim Guard Plus. I will be doing a lot of work with BMW's and Mercedes' which build up a load of brake dust(p21s is reccomended). I need something thats got great brake dust removal and protection while and has long term durability and shine. Im thinking if I go with either I would maybe add a tire shine to the mix after the cleaning for a deep gloss. Next is interior leather, rubber and vinyl care. Im thinking Zaino Z9 and Z10 for the leather or Pinnacles Leather Conditioner and Leather/Vinyl Cleaner. I want a deep rich clean without super glossy finish. Lastly im stuck on which menzerna polish to use and the right pad to go with the polish. I need a good swirl/oxidation/light scratch remover but cant decide bewteen regular IP, SIP or 106ff. I am gonna be working on a 06' black BMW, 06' silver Mercedes and a bunch of other cars and need something that works with the ceramiclear finishes and fine paint jobs and pretty much everything else in between. Is it okay to use those types of polishes on non clearcoated paints in all colors and even old paint jobs (like an 84' red 930 Porsche turbo perhaps). Is the SIP and 106ff mild enough to work on paint with barley any swirls and just light oxidation and a non clearcoat or should I just stick with the reg. IP? FYI after the swirl removal polishing I will be using Z-AIO or Z-PC followed by Z2 pro as the finishing polish then ZCS followed Z8 last. Also when using an IP is the Lake country orange light cutting pad the pad I should be using? Any help would be greatly apreciated, thanks.
 
OK, as far as clay goes, I've used Zaino's clay and it is fine. Z9 and Z10 are excellent leather products. For Menzerna I have IP, SIP and 106FF and I never use IP. For pretty good swirls and scratches I use SIP and an orange pad, if it's not bad I'll use SIP and a white pad. If it just has marring, I'll use 106ff and a white pad. If I'm using Zaino, I'll follow up both products with Z-AIO on a white, blue or black pad. Z-PC is almost as strong as SIP so you shouldn't need that if you are getting SIP. I know I didn't address all of your questions, but I hope that helps... Basically you can't go wrong with Menzerna and Zaino. I use a lot of products from a lot of manufacturers and they are high on my list.
 
dsms said:
For wheel cleaners I have narrowed it down between P21S and Ultimas Tire & Trim Guard Plus. I will be doing a lot of work with BMW's and Mercedes' which build up a load of brake dust(p21s is reccomended). I need something thats got great brake dust removal and protection while and has long term durability and shine.
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You're not going to get an AIO wheel product to work in the way you describe. The Ultima Tire & Trim Guard Plus is a protectant, an LSP, not a cleaner, while the P21S is a cleaner, not a protectant. If you have dirty wheels, you need to do a cleaning (wash) step, followed perhaps by a polish/chemical clean step, and then finally a protectant/LSP step. After you do the wash step, you could use an AIO to combine the polish/protect steps, but the Ultima is not an AIO.
 
jshillin said:
OK, as far as clay goes, I've used Zaino's clay and it is fine. Z9 and Z10 are excellent leather products. For Menzerna I have IP, SIP and 106FF and I never use IP. For pretty good swirls and scratches I use SIP and an orange pad, if it's not bad I'll use SIP and a white pad. If it just has marring, I'll use 106ff and a white pad. If I'm using Zaino, I'll follow up both products with Z-AIO on a white, blue or black pad. Z-PC is almost as strong as SIP so you shouldn't need that if you are getting SIP. I know I didn't address all of your questions, but I hope that helps... Basically you can't go wrong with Menzerna and Zaino. I use a lot of products from a lot of manufacturers and they are high on my list.
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Thanks for the info. Its a good idea about using SIP with a White pad instead of an orange cutting pad if swirls and marring are just minimal. This is the pad set up im thinking of using.



SIP-orange pad or white depending on swirls etc.

Z-AIO- Green pad

Z-2pro- Blue finessing pad
 
BTW I was originally planning on buying a UDM but with all the recent problems people have been having im really unsure about it. Hoepfully a new batch will come out with all the bugs fixed but if not ill get a PC instead but I'd rather have the UDM.
 
So white for the Z-AIO is fine instead of green because I really dont need any more cutting pads after the orange and some SIP. Also still looking for some feedback on the Pinnacle ulta poly clay bar and their leather care products.
 
jshillin said:
As far as clay, I like Zaino and Sonus Clay.
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Be careful with the current versionof Sonus gray clay; it's the only clay that's ever marred paint for me and I've been claying regularly since the early '90s.
 
Accumulator said:
Be careful with the current versionof Sonus gray clay; it's the only clay that's ever marred paint for me and I've been claying regularly since the early '90s.
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The only sonus I used was the older green clay and it didn't seem bad at all.
 
jshillin said:
The only sonus I used was the older green clay and it didn't seem bad at all.
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The Sonus green is very gentle, doesn't even remove glazes like Meg's #5 if you use it properly/gently. The current version of the gray (v3.0 IIRC) is completely different stuff.
 
I think for clay im going to get Pinnacles ultra poly and some of their spray lube with it. Im just getting all the details down before I make my big purchase...im buying everything I need to start detailing for profit. I think this is what I'll be using, finnaly think this is it.



UDM or PC(depending on the UDM being replaced or fixed)

Vac n Blo vaccum



Z7 show car wash(w/ foamaster gun)

Pinnacle ultra poly claybar w/ pinnacle lube

Menz. SIP with orange or white CCS pad

Z-AIO with white pad

Z2 pro polish

Stoners glass

Stoners Int. shine spray

P21s gel wheel cleaner

Megs. tire shine

Z9 +Z10 for the leather

Megs. quick detail wipes for misc. parts.
 
I just realized that I dont have an outlet to plug a polisher into. My garage is too small to pull cars into for detailing, I could always get an etx. cord but if I go around to peoples houses to detail their cars and they dont have an outlet im screwed. Is there some kind of a really small portable generater or something that I could bring with me to power a polisher? Speaking of which I think im going to forget about the PC and UDM, I just found that AG carries the Flex XC3401 VRG and its looks great, I honestly think it would be worth the extra money but im hearing that CCS pads may not be the best choice for it. What pads are you guys using for your Flex?
 
they have converters from a cig lighter to a plug but i never used one. Don't know if battery will die, or if it will be enough power.
 
I thought about the cig. lighter but I think it will drain the battery easily and def. not have enough power, plus mobility would be limited. I thought about just being optimistic about things and hoping every car I do is near a usuable outlet, or even If I have to use a big extension cord. I am not spending hundreds on a portable generator though.
 
Im thinking I need a light to check for imperfections before and after polishing. Is the MaxFire Dual Xenon Rechargeable Spotlight any good?
 
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