G'Day from newbie who needs advice

[Chevy68]

I have been lurking here for a little while and I love this place!

I am an Aussie who has just finished a 5 year restoration of a 68 Camaro coupe. I found Autogeek when doing a little research on how best to maintain new paint and I can safely say the detailing bug has now well and truly bitten me (just what I need, another expensive hobby!) I never knew this world existed and I am now dying to get stuck into it. After spending some time lurking and absorbing all the great info, I now shudder when I think of what I have subjected my cars to previously.

Anyway, as I said I have just finished a resto on my Camaro. The car is a weekend cruiser during good weather. It lives undercover in a workshop when it's not out cruising. Given the paint is brand new (pearl base coat/clear coat), I have been researching how best to look after this which has led me to this great site. I am preparing to order a bunch of "real" car detaling gear after having thrown my supermarket junk in the bin. I am looking for feedback on some of my selections as well as my intended plan of attack. Please bear in mind I am completely green at this and I intend to do everything by hand at this stage. Following is my intended approach (abbreviated) along with what I have selected to buy at this stage. I welcome any and all feedback and advice:

FIRST AND MAJOR DETAIL
1. Wash (Duragloss #901)
2. Dry
3. Clay (Pinnacle Ultra Poly Clay & Lube)
4. Dry
5. Pre-Wax Cleaner (DJ Lime Prime Lite)
6. Wax (Still undecided)

IN-BETWEEN DETAIL
1. Wash (Duragloss #901)
2. Dry/Spray Wax (Duragloss Aquawax)

Now, my questions.
- Is a pre-wax cleaner necessary after clay bar or can I skip this and wax right after claying?
- What wax? I want my car to have that deep, glossy "wet" look so I am looking for some advice on a good, value-for-money Carnuba wax. Wife still hasn't recovered from the resto bill so I want to keep the price down. Some considerations have been DJ Basics of Bling (hybrid?), Detailers Max Wax, CG Pete's 53 or P21s Concours. This should give you an idea of my price range. Longevity not as important as looks/ease of use.
- Does color of the car affect wax choice? Following is a picture of the color of my car:
http://imageshack.us/a/img208/7506/img0071ob.jpg
http://imageshack.us/a/img339/1589/img0064lk.jpg

I look forward to your feedback and I really look forward to updating you on the progress of my journey into this brave new world. Be warned, plenty of stupid questions ahead.......

[psnt1ol]

Welcome!!!!!

You said your paint is new. How new?????

[Merck]

I'm new to this hobby as well so I too look forward to the replies.

[Chevy68]

Welcome!!!!!

You said your paint is new. How new?????

Car was painted 12 months ago. I assume 12 months is sufficient time to cure? Was told the paint (MIPA) is "soft"?

[psnt1ol]

Car was painted 12 months ago. I assume 12 months is sufficient time to cure? Was told the paint (MIPA) is "soft"?

I assumed that you already have wash&waxed it a few times by now. Right????

Questions for you.

what condition is the paint currently?

Since it is a repaint, does it have orange peel?

does it have swirls?

If so....How severe?

Lastly. What is your expectation?

[ihaveacamaro]

What is your expectation?

Most important question of all :xyxthumbs:

[davey g-force]

Welcome from one Aussie to another!!

psnt1ol is asking the right questions and leading you down the right path.

I'll hang around and throw in my 2c worth if needed :)

[Chevy68]

I assumed that you already have wash&waxed it a few times by now. Right???? Apart from a quick wash at the panel shop to remove dust before delivery, it has had nothing more done.

Questions for you.

what condition is the paint currently? Excellent

Since it is a repaint, does it have orange peel? Very little

does it have swirls? None that I can see

If so....How severe?

Lastly. What is your expectation? My expectation is a glossy finish and good protection

I hope that provides more detail.....

[psnt1ol]

Okay.

It's sounds like the car didn't have any protection for the last 12 months. I am assuming the car is garaged at all times. So I will start there.

Wax or sealant (LSP) is a sacrificial layer and its main job is to protect whats underneath. While they do provide an incremental level of gloss, protection is the main goal. I say incremental because it is all dependent on how smooth or clear the paint is. The smoother the surface, the glossier it looks. Wax and sealant deflect light differently from my experience and it is a mater of personal taste. A good Sealant tends to look very shiny (almost synthetic) and last much longer but a good wax will gives you more depth. That's why many would top off a sealant with a wax trying to get the best of 2 worlds. As far as brands..... its like going to an ice-cream shop and picking out a flavor. Everyone has their favorites. All the House Brand sealants from PBMG are pretty good (Wolfgang, Blackfire, etc). CG 50/50 is my favorite wax to use. Just remember this when you are applying a wax/sealant..... Less is More. You are looking for a thin coat. You can always layer them up if you want. Wax over sealant is good. Sealant over Sealant is also good. Sealant over Wax.....Bad.

Getting a smooth surface
Start the decontamination process after a good wash (quality soap). You most likely will have to clay (fine grade) to remove the contaminants since nothing has been done to it. I don't normally dry the car before claying but I would move the car to the shades or inside the garage. I would use IronX prior to this step and it is an option that you might consider. The cleaner the surface..the better the bond a LSP will have on the surface which in-turn promote durability.

There are volumes of information on how to clay on this site so please read through them prior to starting. Be sure to get a good lube to clay with. I like ONR because it is so versatile.

Most re-paint are generally soft so be prepare to see some marring from the claying process especially if you haven't done this before. This brings up the next step.

Correction
There is not much you can do in regards to the Orange Peel since you are doing everything by hand. You could but it will be forever and you forearm will look like Popeye's afterwards.

The question you want to ask yourself at this point is....do I want to take the swirls out or do I want to hide it.

Remove
To remove swirls require some form of abrasives (chemically and mechanically). If the defects are slight to minimal, there is a good chance a cleaner wax could remove them. Most OTC waxes are cleaner waxes. When pair with hand pads, the result could be decent. I use the word "Decent" because this most likely will not get your car to look like the ones posted in this forum. Most cars posted here were machine buffed and in many cases 2-3 times over several days. You could try to remove the defects by hand with compounds and polishes but again....Popeye's arm and forever.

Hide
A Glaze will minimize the effects of the swirls. It fills the minor scratches and swirls and get you a smooth looking surface. This is your best option if you don't have the time or the energy to go all out. Once you lay down a layer then you can proceed directly to LSP. Keep in mind, this is temporary. The defects are still there and they will come back. I have great success with CG BlackLight. It is a glaze but it has traces of abrasives and it does offer a bit of protection as well.

I am pretty sure I am forgetting something since it's almost almost midnight here but I am sure other forum members will chime in to fill in the gaps. Just remember, it's not all about wax/sealant....it's about what came before it.

After all of this....look up 2 bucket wash or ONR wash for maintenance. Again, volumes of information here on those 2 subject.

Lastly, do yourself a favor and invest in some (dozen or so) good quality MF towels for drying and buffing. There are quite a bit to choose from on AG. I like Gold Plush and the Guzzler.

Good Luck.

[Chevy68]

Thanks Psnt1ol for taking considerable time with that response. This is just the sort of info that will arm me with the knowledge I need.

I understand your advice and I will try and provide some more background. The paint is in excellent condition as you would expect from a pro-paint shop. There is no visible swirls (not to my untrained eye anyway, but then again I haven't washed this yet myself). The car still needs some exhaust, suspension and engine work to be done, so there are still 3 workshops it needs to go to before I get it on the road. Once this is complete, (cue Barry White) I then want to spend some quality time detailing the car. I am well aware of the benefits of machine correction, but I need to crawl before I run and I want to see what I can come up with myself by hand with some decent product first. I certainly want to get to the level of owning and using a machine polisher, and that will be stage two.

I have spent a lot of time lurking on this site and I have watched almost every video here and on Youtube. I have also got a shopping list as long as my arm ready to order. By the time my order gets to me here in Australia, I should be ready to go!

[psnt1ol]

Thanks Psnt1ol for taking considerable time with that response. This is just the sort of info that will arm me with the knowledge I need.

I understand your advice and I will try and provide some more background. The paint is in excellent condition as you would expect from a pro-paint shop. There is no visible swirls (not to my untrained eye anyway, but then again I haven't washed this yet myself). The car still needs some exhaust, suspension and engine work to be done, so there are still 3 workshops it needs to go to before I get it on the road. Once this is complete, (cue Barry White) I then want to spend some quality time detailing the car. I am well aware of the benefits of machine correction, but I need to crawl before I run and I want to see what I can come up with myself by hand with some decent product first. I certainly want to get to the level of owning and using a machine polisher, and that will be stage two.

I have spent a lot of time lurking on this site and I have watched almost every video here and on Youtube. I have also got a shopping list as long as my arm ready to order. By the time my order gets to me here in Australia, I should be ready to go!

Sounds good. I like your approach " Look before you leap". Continue to do your homework and take all the time you need so you can "Do it Right".

Don't hesitate to ask questions. The AGO community is here to help. Good Luck.

[Chevy68]

OK, so here is another newbie product question. Given my situation (freshly painted car, hand application only, complete noob) what product do you recommend to apply between claying and LSP (DP Max Wax)? Looking to maximise gloss and shine. I was considering DJ Lime Prime Lite or BF GEP. Am I on the right track?

[BobbyG]

Once you've achieved your final goal it means you've completed all the steps in order and are finally at that gorgeous shine you've been anticipating. Now, where do you go from here is the question!

Wash

Washing is normal maintenance for any car. Due to a variety of contaminates, the finish should be washed with a suitable washing solution that will not degrade the sealant and wax you've just applied.

Dry

Drying the finish once it's washed and rinsed with clean water is another important step to avoid water spots. I like to dry using an electric leaf blower or something like Metro's Master-Blaster (http://www.autogeek.net/mema.html)

Drying using clean high speed air will quickly and easily whisk any water droplets from the finish leaving it pristine. Another HUGE benefit is you're not touching the paint and possible adding defects! :props:

Spray Wax & Sealants

Once the car is clean and shinny, this is the perfect time / opportunity to give the finish a quick layer of protection using a quality spray wax or spray sealant. There are literally a dozen or more great products sold here that will help keep that shine looking great and adding additional protection.

These are just a few of what I've tried and all work very well....


Optimum Spray Car Wax
Duragloss Aquawax
BlackFire Wet Diamond polymer Spray
Chemical Guys V7
Wolfgang Instant Detail Spritz

[davey g-force]

OK, so here is another newbie product question. Given my situation (freshly painted car, hand application only, complete noob) what product do you recommend to apply between claying and LSP (DP Max Wax)? Looking to maximise gloss and shine. I was considering DJ Lime Prime Lite or BF GEP. Am I on the right track?

Yes, for your situation you are. Those two are both non-abrasive polishes/glazes that will add depth and richness to the finish.

In my opinion, although you said the car has little to no swirls, I would still consider something like Meguiars M205 or Ultimate Polish, which have just a tiny bit of cut (even tinier since you are working by hand) but are still rich in oils and will fill minor swirls to some degree. IMO they will produce just as good, if not better results in terms of depth and shine as the two products you mentioned.

Good luck! :xyxthumbs:

[Chevy68]

Thanks again for the feedback guys. I have a couple more questions. Is there any other products similar to M205 worth considering? What are the pros/cons of a polish (abrasive) vs. pre-wax cleaner (non-abrasive)? I understand one removes minor swirls while the other hides them, but are there any other factors to consider?