Detailing cars starts with the brain - not the buffer -Mike Phillips

[Mike Phillips]

Detailing cars starts with the brain - not the buffer -Mike Phillips





A few years ago I started saying this in my detailing classes as I told a real story about my experience teaching detailing classes at Meguiar's for all the Corvette clubs in California.

Most of the owners of the Vettes were like my dad, that is older and retired. These guys would show up early Saturday morning for the Detailing 101 class and there would always be a couple guys that would say,

Give me a buffer!

I would politely state that the class started in the classroom, not the garage where we would be going over a brief Power Point Presentation to make sure everyone is on the same page when it comes to the foundational basics of detailing a car.

It led me to say,

Detailing cars starts with the brain - not the buffer -Mike Phillips


These guys and lots more like them were simply excited to be at Meguiar's for a detailing class and enthusiastic about getting started.


But the quote is true and accurate. Detailing a car starts with the brain, not the buffer. Knowing a little bit about what I call,

The Three Ps

That is,

1. Paint
2. Products
3. Procedures

Paint
You need to know or understand a little bit about the material you're working on. You need to know it's thin, scratches easy and because it's thin there's not a lot of room for mistakes. You also need to know it's easily dulled down using inferior products. And while it can take hours to remove all the swirls and scratches it only takes SECONDS to put them back in again.


Products
Anyone that's been reading any of my articles on this forum, on FB or my replies on this forum or FB knows I harp on the topic of always using products that use GREAT abrasive technology. I would say from experience interacting in the real-word and the cyber-world that most guys think getting great results has to do with their technique. This is though process is ego-driven and also my experience with detailers in general. That is, because most guys are self-taught or learn most of what they know from forums like this or YouTube, they get filled with pride and thus think it's the way they move the buffer that creates the results.

Technique is a factor but now days with current abrasive technology it's the least important factor. I've taught people that have NEVER detailed a car in their life let alone run a buffer how to get professional results their very first time - this means the only technique they have is what they were just shown seconds before turning the buffer on.


Procedures
This category is all the steps in the right order, things like starting with a clean work environment including a clean place for your towels and buffing pads. Properly washing a car starting with the wheels and tires first, not starting at the top and working down. Chemically decontaminating the paint followed by mechanically decontaminating the paint and then inspecting and doing a Test Spot before choosing the frist step product and process.


But yeah... I've met a lot of people that say,

Give me a buffer... I show you how it's done...

And to them I politely say,

Detailing starts with the brain... not the buffer... now let's start by going over some of the basics before we start working on a car.

[Mike Phillips]

Here's an example of one of those early classes....



This would be my point of view standing in front of the class looking towards them...




This would be sharing the "brain" part...






Here's the buffer part - this one dated April 3rd, 2004


North County Corvette Club Detail Day at Meguiar's


Here's yours truly doing a demo with a vintage Porter Cable 7424 to my friend Alex Fong's Corvette




Good crowd for an early Saturday morning...




I can probably find one from 2003 with a little cyber-digging. The first Saturday Detailing 101 class I taught at the Meguiar's Garage was July 31 2002 and then everything snowballed from there which is a topic for a book I'm writing on the history of car detailing through my eyes.


Note this thread is on Peachparts.com's forum as at the time of the first Saturday Detailing 101 class Meguiar's did not have a forum. Peachparts used to be Mercedesshop.com - sometime over the years there must have been a change. Good to see the original forum still exists to this day.


SoCal Mercedesshop, Meguiars Detailing Day In August


The pictures from that day are missing, it's a coding error. I actually still have them on an old laptop and moving forward I will locate them and replace them.


Good times.... and lots of them...

[Dr Oldz]

Very true. The “hands on” is the fun part!! Most people don’t like to read instructions and jump right into the job or task.
As I have gotten older I haven’t necessarily gotten any smarter but certainly wiser as now I reasearch or read before accomplishing a unfamiliar task. Same principle as you mention here!

[UncleDavy]

I always tell people that auto detailing is evolutionary and not revolutionary. A passion for shiny cars has existed in many of us for years, however the products, techniques and procedures have evolved over the years. The products and procedures that we used in the 70s and 80s would never be used by a smart detailer today. We definitely have to take time to think about how engage a project with the right products or the right procedure. Will a rinseless wash be good enough today? Maybe I can remove this slight scratch by hand. Maybe this new car shampoo is better than what I have been using for 20 years.

[PaulMys]

The process of paint care is something I have learned being here on AGO. Mike, your expertise and countless articles are incredibly helpful. They were when I was just getting started, and they still are today.

Thanks to Mike, and also to everyone else who has helped me along the way.

Being an Autogeek is a lifestyle.

[Aaryn NZ]

Great article Mike.

It's like the whole "least aggressive method" theory, I see it all the time where people jump straight to the compound but a medium compound/polish or a finishing polish would have done the job & probably yielded better results faster. As much as it's job security for me, the body shop industry here are notorious for always going for the BIG guns first & then wondering why there once shinny paintwork looks average with holograms everywhere, there just isn't any thinking being done.

I'm trying to teach this at the moment in the shop with interior detailing too. About how to look at the situation & not to just simply go through the motions. I guess it's a little different but also alot the same.

Helpful article indeed Mike, thank you.


Aaryn NZ.

[LEDetailing]

Mike,

I started out detailing when working at my dad’s car dealership when I was 14, which was 20 plus years ago. I learned very early on to assess most situations before jumping right in. I figured a lot of things out on my own through trial and error.

One thing that saved me at times from my poor technique or inferior products was always working clean. I started using Grit Guards early on and my cotton towels and pads were always kept clean. I’d hate to go back and look at my polishing with any sort of high intensity lights. Luckily, I was very AR and checked the panels from all angles and rarely saw any holograms.

Great information/thread.
Bob

[Desertnate]

Great article, Mike.

When I read the thread title the first thing that popped into my head was, "yeah, you must be slightly insane"...and then I opened the link to start reading!

[Mike Phillips]

Very true. The “hands on” is the fun part!! Most people don’t like to read instructions and jump right into the job or task.

As I have gotten older I haven’t necessarily gotten any smarter but certainly wiser as now I reasearch or read before accomplishing a unfamiliar task.

Same principle as you mention here!

Recently I removed the lid on my Dell Laptop and replaced it because the lid cracked where the hinges were located and the power button was incorporated into the hinge, thus it no longer worked. (dumb idea).

Before ordering the replacement lid I first searched to see if there were any how-to videos showing how to safely and correctly remove the lid and replace it and there were numerous videos available. I FIRST watched the video to make sure I was capable of the task and to see what if any special tools I would need. After watching it, (starting with the brain), I then had the confidence to order the factory replacement lid and then successfully replaced it myself.

When I was younger - I probably would have started by removing the lid.

I always tell people that auto detailing is evolutionary and not revolutionary.

I agree.

I've seen more new technology introduced in the last 10 years than in my entire life in this industry.

This is also why I dislike the term and word,

Expert

With so much new technology being introduced at break-neck speed there's no way to know-it-all and thus I don't believe anyone can ever be an expert. My preferred way of descrbing myself is,

Perpetual Student

Always learning, always open to new ideas, neo products, new techniques, etc.

The process of paint care is something I have learned being here on AGO. Mike, your expertise and countless articles are incredibly helpful. They were when I was just getting started, and they still are today.

Thanks to Mike, and also to everyone else who has helped me along the way.

Being an Autogeek is a lifestyle.

Thanks Paul... and I agree, being an Autogeek (passionate about detailing and learning), is become a lifestyle or culture. This was never more apparent to me then while attending SEMA this year and meeting and talking to so many people from around the country and around the world that stopped into the AG booth to introduce themselves and tell me the story behind their car detailing journey.

Great article Mike.

Thanks Aaryn..

Like some of the articles I write - it's something I just pulled out of thin air.

Actually the quote, detailing starts with the brain not the buffer is something I've been saying for a long time but have never had time to get it down in print or pixels and for whatever reason, yesterday was the appointed time to take action.

One thing that saved me at times from my poor technique or inferior products was always working clean.

Great information/thread.
Bob

So important. And to give due credit where credit is due, while I always work clean it was Mike Pennington at Meguiar's that queued me in on the importance of sharing and teaching this idea and practice as he always stressed it in any class he taught that I was a part of.

One thing I practice and teach ALL THE TIME NOW is what I share in the below article and video. I introduce the practice of inspecting your towels (or anything that touches the paint), by saying,


It takes hours to buff out a car to perfection and only seconds to completely destroy a finish... -Mike Phillips

If you have not read this article, looked at the pictures and watched the video... take a few minutes to do so...


How, why & when to inspect your microfiber towels when detailing cars

Great article, Mike.

When I read the thread title the first thing that popped into my head was, "yeah, you must be slightly insane"...and then I opened the link to start reading!

Yeah you got it right the first time...

[JustJesus]

The first Saturday Detailing 101 class I taught at the Meguiar's Garage was July 31 2002 and then everything snowballed from there which is a topic for a book I'm writing on the history of car detailing through my eyes.

A book I'm looking forward to reading. I enjoy reading those articles that give us a bit of history