richy
05-13-2013, 09:51 PM
This car was a referral from THIS (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/show-n-shine/42411-2003-mini-cooper-s.html) job. This customer had high hopes for his car and I did not want to disappoint. His brother had done some type of polishing on the hood and made it a bloody mess of swirls. (It took some work to get those bad-boys out, but more on that in a bit). There were quite a few chips from just being driven and the customer had brought the touch up paint that I had requested. This was going to be an outside only job. I had just taken delivery of my Sonax PF the day before so it was perfect timing to try it out. I was very curious what I was going to think about it as there seems to be a lot of hype about it-time to find out if it was true or not!
Here's what we were looking at:
BEFORE SHOTS:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0386.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0386.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0387.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0387.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0388.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0388.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0389.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0389.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0390.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0390.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0391.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0391.jpg.html)
First up was the wheels/tires/wells/barrels.
Here's a shot of me working away at a wheel:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0392.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0392.jpg.html)
The tires were cleaned with Zep 505. They had some dressing on them so I followed that up with LA Totally Awesome just to make sure.
The barrels were shot with Ken's Citrus at 4:1 and then a wheel woolie was used with soapy water.
The wells were cleaned with LATA.
The faces were cleaned with Ken's Citrus and a demoted wash mitt and DG 901.
Following the wheels, the car was foamed with a strong solution of Meg's Hyper Wash.
The car was then cleaned with DG 901. There was no beading after this effective duo.
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0393.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0393.jpg.html)
The car was then brought inside wet and the wheels and tires were blown off with the Master Blaster.
The paint and glass was then clayed with the CarPro clay block. There was a decent scratch on a lower panel. Here are a few shots of the hood swirls and the scratch.
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0394.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0394.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0395.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0395.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0396.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0396.jpg.html)
Next it was time to evaluate the paint. Even though this was softer paint then the last 2, I still was having no luck with a mf pad and the Rupes. I stepped up to my Flex and a yellow B/S pad with M100. That did it beautifully. There was a nice healthy paint thickness to work with too. The compounding stage was followed with my new Sonax PF with a white B/S pad and the Rupes at about 4.5-5. Wow. I love this stuff! Easy to use. Easy to wipe off. And for the BONUS round: Easy to clean out of the pad as well! Oh, yeah, and it looks stunning!
The scratch was filled in with a pointy toothpick and the touch up paint as were the chips in the hood. They were allowed to dry overnight for a period of about 12 hours. I figured it was such an out of the way spot, that I would work the M100 combo and see if I could level it. Wow, did it ever level nicely. The owner came by to check it out and decided to let me do the same to the spots on the hood. Most of them about completely disappeared too although it did pull the paint out of a few. That's the danger of it. It's a real fine line between leveling it and pulling the paint out.
First up to get coated with Opti Guard was the wheels. Here I am hard at work smoking a cigar...I mean coating the wheels!
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0397.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0397.jpg.html)
The grille on this car is really pretty. I worked some DG Squeaky Clean on it and it made the plastic chrome just jump prior to coating. Here's a shot of it prior to coating:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0398.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0398.jpg.html)
I coated the paint and the chrome using the air gun to speed up the curing process.
The tires were shot with DG Wet Shine from an air gun and leveled.
The exhaust tips were cleaned with Opt Hyper Polish (and 0000 steel wool where needed) and a mf and then coated.
Last up was to coat the glass. I used Fly-By-30 for the first time. Simple to use and since I do have an IR light, I used that to cure the glass. Here's some pics of the curing stage:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0399.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0399.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0400.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0400.jpg.html)
I was really enjoying the reflection shots of the IR light:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0401.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0401.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0402.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0402.jpg.html)
Here are some INSIDE shots of the finished product, some 14 hours later:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0403.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0403.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0404.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0404.jpg.html)
This shot shows the scratch repair. It was damned near invisible. There are a few outside shots of it too.
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0405.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0405.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0406.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0406.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0407.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0407.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0408.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0408.jpg.html)
Here's what we were looking at:
BEFORE SHOTS:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0386.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0386.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0387.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0387.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0388.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0388.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0389.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0389.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0390.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0390.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0391.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0391.jpg.html)
First up was the wheels/tires/wells/barrels.
Here's a shot of me working away at a wheel:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0392.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0392.jpg.html)
The tires were cleaned with Zep 505. They had some dressing on them so I followed that up with LA Totally Awesome just to make sure.
The barrels were shot with Ken's Citrus at 4:1 and then a wheel woolie was used with soapy water.
The wells were cleaned with LATA.
The faces were cleaned with Ken's Citrus and a demoted wash mitt and DG 901.
Following the wheels, the car was foamed with a strong solution of Meg's Hyper Wash.
The car was then cleaned with DG 901. There was no beading after this effective duo.
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0393.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0393.jpg.html)
The car was then brought inside wet and the wheels and tires were blown off with the Master Blaster.
The paint and glass was then clayed with the CarPro clay block. There was a decent scratch on a lower panel. Here are a few shots of the hood swirls and the scratch.
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0394.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0394.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0395.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0395.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0396.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0396.jpg.html)
Next it was time to evaluate the paint. Even though this was softer paint then the last 2, I still was having no luck with a mf pad and the Rupes. I stepped up to my Flex and a yellow B/S pad with M100. That did it beautifully. There was a nice healthy paint thickness to work with too. The compounding stage was followed with my new Sonax PF with a white B/S pad and the Rupes at about 4.5-5. Wow. I love this stuff! Easy to use. Easy to wipe off. And for the BONUS round: Easy to clean out of the pad as well! Oh, yeah, and it looks stunning!
The scratch was filled in with a pointy toothpick and the touch up paint as were the chips in the hood. They were allowed to dry overnight for a period of about 12 hours. I figured it was such an out of the way spot, that I would work the M100 combo and see if I could level it. Wow, did it ever level nicely. The owner came by to check it out and decided to let me do the same to the spots on the hood. Most of them about completely disappeared too although it did pull the paint out of a few. That's the danger of it. It's a real fine line between leveling it and pulling the paint out.
First up to get coated with Opti Guard was the wheels. Here I am hard at work smoking a cigar...I mean coating the wheels!
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0397.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0397.jpg.html)
The grille on this car is really pretty. I worked some DG Squeaky Clean on it and it made the plastic chrome just jump prior to coating. Here's a shot of it prior to coating:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0398.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0398.jpg.html)
I coated the paint and the chrome using the air gun to speed up the curing process.
The tires were shot with DG Wet Shine from an air gun and leveled.
The exhaust tips were cleaned with Opt Hyper Polish (and 0000 steel wool where needed) and a mf and then coated.
Last up was to coat the glass. I used Fly-By-30 for the first time. Simple to use and since I do have an IR light, I used that to cure the glass. Here's some pics of the curing stage:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0399.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0399.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0400.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0400.jpg.html)
I was really enjoying the reflection shots of the IR light:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0401.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0401.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0402.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0402.jpg.html)
Here are some INSIDE shots of the finished product, some 14 hours later:
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0403.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0403.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0404.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0404.jpg.html)
This shot shows the scratch repair. It was damned near invisible. There are a few outside shots of it too.
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0405.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0405.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0406.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0406.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0407.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0407.jpg.html)
http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t12/rhowitt/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0408.jpg (http://s156.photobucket.com/user/rhowitt/media/Detailing%20shots/DSC_0408.jpg.html)