Need some advice for another full detail

LikeaRock

...Dreaming on an E92....
Hey guys,

It's time for another full detail on my sister's 99 Dodge Ram. I first joined this site for advice on what to do, and I got the results I wanted, but I know I can do even better. It will all be done by hand, so bare with me here, lol...

Here's my process from the first time:

Wash with Dawn
Mothers Clay
Washed Gold Class
2 Coats "Z Best Wax" (It's that stuff they sell at fairs. For the money it does a great job IMO, but it could be better...)
Back To Black on all Trim
Front black facia got an extra coat of Stoners Trim Shine
Mothers Metal polish on Exhaust tips/Chrome
Invisible Glass

Pics:
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170327.jpg

170328.jpg

(I know I missed a spot down low...lol)
170331.jpg


I think it turned out pretty good for my first semi-major detail. Now that I've got some more products, it's time for another detail Here's my product asernal:

Mothers Clay
Mothers Cleaner Wax (Came in clay kit)
Klasse AIO (2 10 oz bottles)
3M Medium Cut Cleaner Wax
3M rubbing compound (Says Clearcoat safe, is it?)
Blue Magic/Mothers Metal Polish
P&S Product Ultracoat Polish and Carnauba Creme Wax (Reccomended by BeemerBoy)

When I washed it this morning, I tried a quick run with AIO on the right front fender, and it took out almost all the marring, even without a lot of elbow grease. Followed by 3M Cleaner Wax, and the fender looks great. Here's what I was thinking of doing, if anyone has any suggestions please tell me!

Wash
Clay
Wash
AIO
UltraCoat Polish
3M Cleaner Wax (Will this hurt the polish?)
Wait 24 hours, apply Carnauba Creme Wax, one coat (I was told that 2 coats or more basically cancels the other out with this stuff)

I think I can achieve good results with this method, I was her truck weekly for her (I do it for free, what a nice brother, 'eh?), and the paint is more or less in great shape.

Sorry for the long post...I have a habit of dragging things out I guess :crazy

Thanks for any help guys!
Dolan

EDIT: And there wil be pics again this time too. Before pics too :D
 
Nah, I'm not going to give any advice since you're working on a Dodge. :D J/K

Not sure you'll need both the AIO and the Ultra Polish. I'm not sure how harsh Ultra Polish is because I'm not familar with it. Try a section with whatever polish it is you want to use and see the results. If it didn't get all the marks or oxidation off the paint, then step up to a more aggressive compound. Remember you'll need to follow any compounding with a polish because some compounds leave a haze of their own. You're also doing it by hand so you can use a little bit of a more aggressive product and not remove as much paint as someone working with a random orbital or a rotary.

Also, if you're polishing the paint, then you won't need to use a cleaner wax. A cleaner wax is basically a polish and a wax mixed together. You're not going to polish the paint too well with it and you're not going to get that good of a coat of wax with it. It's the middle of the road of both and you have to make some sacrifices. Now, Cleaer Wax does have it's place and I use it often when customer's don't want to pay for a polish but really need it. Slap that cleaner wax on there and impress them. Get the nice shine going and add some protection to the vehicle.

You know what really makes a truck look good. Black Spray Paint! Go get some and spray paint the back wheel well black since most of them are metal from the bed and not a plastic liner. I know my truck has both metal and a black plastic liner in the back. I ended up painting all the metal in the back with a fresh coat of black paint. Also, see that ugly grey trailer hitch in the back. Get under there and paint that thing with a nice coat of black paint. It will seriously make a HUGE difference in the looks from the back. A good detail job is in the small details.

I remember with my old truck after working on the paint all day it would look nice but after I dressed all the trim so it was nice and black it looked 50x's better.
 
Thanks Intel! I'm not a dodge fan either, but something about her truck really gets my attention, IMO it's a great looking truck :)

I was told by the guy at P&S that the Klasse would probably cancel out the UltraCoat as well, but I also heard that the UCP followed by the Carnauba Creme Wax gives AWESOME results. We'll see though. If the truck looks good enough after the AIO maybe I'll skip straight to the final topper instead.

As far as the fenderwells go, Dodge used a black plastic liner on all four. I usually just soak them with Simple Green for a few minutes then wash em out. After that I use No Touch tire spray to make them black (Gregcavi's tip, thanks!). It makes them look great!

Keep it coming guys, thanks again
 
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