milabfocker
03-09-2009, 11:38 PM
A co-worker recently purchased a black 2005 Corvette C6. He indicated the vehicle needed a thorough detail and asked if I was up for the task.
The process:
Cleaned wheels with Chemical Guys Sticky Citrus Wheel Gel.
De-tarred wheels with 3M All Purpose Adhesive Remover.
Cleaned tires and wheel wells with Meguiar's Super Degreaser.
Pre-wash with foam cannon; 2 oz Meguiar's APC (http://www.detailingbliss.com/forum/autolink.php?id=17&forumid=47&script=showthread) + 2 oz Meguiar's Hyper Wash +28 oz water.
Washed using TBM with Meguiar's Hyper Wash and lambswool mitt.
De-tarred lower panels with 3M All Purpose Adhesive Remover.
Clayed using Bilt-Hamber Autoclay soft.
Compounded using Pro Ultimate Cutter and Meguiar's burgandy foam cutting pad.
Re-washed vehicle.
Polished using Menzerna SIP and Lake Country CCS white foam polishing pad.
Finished using Menzerna 106FA and Meguiar's tan foam finishing pad.
Re-washed vehicle.
Sealed using Jeff Werkstat Prime.
Waxed using Z***l Titanium.
Polished exhaust using #0000 steel wool and Meguiar's NXT All Metal Polish.
Dressed tires using Zaino Z-16.
Cleaned and fed seals using 1Z (http://www.detailingbliss.com/forum/autolink.php?id=1&forumid=47&script=showthread) Gummi Pfledge.
This detail took the better part of 4 days and nearly 40 hours. It was accomplished at the owners house; him and his wife were extremely hospitable and made me feel right at home. My Makita broke right after compounding so I had to run to Harbor Freight and pick up a cheap Chicago Electric buffer for $35 to finish the job. Don't know what happened there, I switched the carbon brushes out but it still wouldn't fire up; I'm guessing the motor burned up. I always intend to take a lot of pictures when I accomplish a detail; however, time constraints and a lack of photography always prevent me from doing so. Anyhow, on with the photographs I did take.
This is the only picture I took of the vehicle in its entirety; receiving a well deserved bath.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6FoamBath.jpg
Don't have any before and after pictures of the wash stage. To be honest, the owner had recently washed the vehicle and photographs would not have revealed a significant turn around. Special attention was given to the wheels to get them looking new again; they turned out very well. After a wash and clay, the vehicle was driven into the garage where I could use the halogens to view defects in the finish. The vehicle was covered in swirls and RIDS from top to bottom.
The driver side front quarter panel.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6DriversSideQPUF.jpg
The hood.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6HoodUF.jpg
The driver side door.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6DriverSideDoorUF.jpg
The passenger side door. In this picture, the camera flash in the upper right hand corner does a better job revealing defects in comparison to the halogen reflections.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6PassengerDoorUF-1.jpg
The lower portion of the passenger side front quarter panel.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6PassengerQPUF.jpg
The passenger side rear quarter panel.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6PassengerSideRearQPUF-1.jpg
I completed a test section and discovered two viable options for compounding. 3M Extra Cut on a Meguiar's burgundy foam cutting pad delivered respectable correction and finished down semi-well; however, it was somewhat temperamental and dusted quite a bit. Pro Ultimate Cutter on a Meguiar's burgundy foam cutting pad also delivered respectable correction and was a dream to work with; however, it did not finish down well. I decided to go with the Pro Ultimate Cutter and deal with the excessive micro marring. I also tried Lake Country Purple Foamed Wool and a 3M double sided wool pad; however, the results weren't any better in comparison to the Meguiar's burgundy foam cutting pad and I hate wool lint. Multiple compounding sets had to be completed to remove the majority of swirls and RIDS. I expected the clear coat on this vehicle to be hard and it did not disappoint; however, it is not the hardest clear coat I have worked on.
The micro marring left behind via compounding is apparent in this 50/50 photograph. The left side has been refined via Menzerna SIP and a Lake Country CCS white foam polishing pad.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6PassengerDoor5050.jpg
I began to refine the entire vehicle using Menzerna SIP and a Lake Country CCS white foam polishing pad. Four inch pads were used for areas inaccessible for the 6.5" pads.
I periodically took photographs with the flash on to determine the presence of holograms. The Menzerna SIP finished down very well.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6CameraFlash5050afterSIP.jpg
The Menzerna SIP removed the micro marring and broke down nicely.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6PassengerSideRearQP-SIPinaction.jpg
A shot of the rear of the vehicle following refinement using Menzerna SIP.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6BackEnd.jpg
After polishing using Menzerna SIP I finished the vehicle using Menzerna 106FA on a Meguiar's tan foam finishing pad.
The process:
Cleaned wheels with Chemical Guys Sticky Citrus Wheel Gel.
De-tarred wheels with 3M All Purpose Adhesive Remover.
Cleaned tires and wheel wells with Meguiar's Super Degreaser.
Pre-wash with foam cannon; 2 oz Meguiar's APC (http://www.detailingbliss.com/forum/autolink.php?id=17&forumid=47&script=showthread) + 2 oz Meguiar's Hyper Wash +28 oz water.
Washed using TBM with Meguiar's Hyper Wash and lambswool mitt.
De-tarred lower panels with 3M All Purpose Adhesive Remover.
Clayed using Bilt-Hamber Autoclay soft.
Compounded using Pro Ultimate Cutter and Meguiar's burgandy foam cutting pad.
Re-washed vehicle.
Polished using Menzerna SIP and Lake Country CCS white foam polishing pad.
Finished using Menzerna 106FA and Meguiar's tan foam finishing pad.
Re-washed vehicle.
Sealed using Jeff Werkstat Prime.
Waxed using Z***l Titanium.
Polished exhaust using #0000 steel wool and Meguiar's NXT All Metal Polish.
Dressed tires using Zaino Z-16.
Cleaned and fed seals using 1Z (http://www.detailingbliss.com/forum/autolink.php?id=1&forumid=47&script=showthread) Gummi Pfledge.
This detail took the better part of 4 days and nearly 40 hours. It was accomplished at the owners house; him and his wife were extremely hospitable and made me feel right at home. My Makita broke right after compounding so I had to run to Harbor Freight and pick up a cheap Chicago Electric buffer for $35 to finish the job. Don't know what happened there, I switched the carbon brushes out but it still wouldn't fire up; I'm guessing the motor burned up. I always intend to take a lot of pictures when I accomplish a detail; however, time constraints and a lack of photography always prevent me from doing so. Anyhow, on with the photographs I did take.
This is the only picture I took of the vehicle in its entirety; receiving a well deserved bath.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6FoamBath.jpg
Don't have any before and after pictures of the wash stage. To be honest, the owner had recently washed the vehicle and photographs would not have revealed a significant turn around. Special attention was given to the wheels to get them looking new again; they turned out very well. After a wash and clay, the vehicle was driven into the garage where I could use the halogens to view defects in the finish. The vehicle was covered in swirls and RIDS from top to bottom.
The driver side front quarter panel.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6DriversSideQPUF.jpg
The hood.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6HoodUF.jpg
The driver side door.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6DriverSideDoorUF.jpg
The passenger side door. In this picture, the camera flash in the upper right hand corner does a better job revealing defects in comparison to the halogen reflections.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6PassengerDoorUF-1.jpg
The lower portion of the passenger side front quarter panel.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6PassengerQPUF.jpg
The passenger side rear quarter panel.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6PassengerSideRearQPUF-1.jpg
I completed a test section and discovered two viable options for compounding. 3M Extra Cut on a Meguiar's burgundy foam cutting pad delivered respectable correction and finished down semi-well; however, it was somewhat temperamental and dusted quite a bit. Pro Ultimate Cutter on a Meguiar's burgundy foam cutting pad also delivered respectable correction and was a dream to work with; however, it did not finish down well. I decided to go with the Pro Ultimate Cutter and deal with the excessive micro marring. I also tried Lake Country Purple Foamed Wool and a 3M double sided wool pad; however, the results weren't any better in comparison to the Meguiar's burgundy foam cutting pad and I hate wool lint. Multiple compounding sets had to be completed to remove the majority of swirls and RIDS. I expected the clear coat on this vehicle to be hard and it did not disappoint; however, it is not the hardest clear coat I have worked on.
The micro marring left behind via compounding is apparent in this 50/50 photograph. The left side has been refined via Menzerna SIP and a Lake Country CCS white foam polishing pad.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6PassengerDoor5050.jpg
I began to refine the entire vehicle using Menzerna SIP and a Lake Country CCS white foam polishing pad. Four inch pads were used for areas inaccessible for the 6.5" pads.
I periodically took photographs with the flash on to determine the presence of holograms. The Menzerna SIP finished down very well.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6CameraFlash5050afterSIP.jpg
The Menzerna SIP removed the micro marring and broke down nicely.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6PassengerSideRearQP-SIPinaction.jpg
A shot of the rear of the vehicle following refinement using Menzerna SIP.
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n169/milabfocker/C6BackEnd.jpg
After polishing using Menzerna SIP I finished the vehicle using Menzerna 106FA on a Meguiar's tan foam finishing pad.