Look what I get to do this weekend

[Coach Steve]

One of my neighbors decided he's going to trade in his DD work truck and asked me to "really make it look good". The first words out of my mouth were, "You do know I'm not a wizard, right?" :laughing: He has a tree and landscaping biz and his truck is usually always muddy to some extent and pretty much looks like doo-doo all the time. I really couldn't say no due to the fact that I give him grief all the time about how much he abuses his truck and am forever telling him that he should let me do the truck sometime. "Sometime" came today when he strolls into my driveway while I'm doing the final wipe-down on an 87 VW Vanagon Westfalia (absolutely perfect condition, and again, another pre-sale prep job) and starts the conversation with, "Alright Stevie, How much are you gonna charge me?" I thought he was joking at first but quickly realized he was serious. I glanced across the street at the truck which was filthy as usual and had one of those "What have I done?" moments. Anyway, the pics below are after washing and claying it. This is what I get to "really make look good". Lord help me! :eek: http://i1271.photobucket.com/albums/jj628/jrnyman1978/duh.gif (http://s1271.photobucket.com/user/jrnyman1978/media/duh.gif.html)

http://i1271.photobucket.com/albums/jj628/jrnyman1978/IMG_0098_zps5c414092.jpg (http://s1271.photobucket.com/user/jrnyman1978/media/IMG_0098_zps5c414092.jpg.html)

This is what the last "detailer" did to it.
http://i1271.photobucket.com/albums/jj628/jrnyman1978/IMG_0094_zps0471bbd3.jpg (http://s1271.photobucket.com/user/jrnyman1978/media/IMG_0094_zps0471bbd3.jpg.html)

http://i1271.photobucket.com/albums/jj628/jrnyman1978/IMG_0093_zpsb48e4f22.jpg (http://s1271.photobucket.com/user/jrnyman1978/media/IMG_0093_zpsb48e4f22.jpg.html)

http://i1271.photobucket.com/albums/jj628/jrnyman1978/IMG_0091_zps73866d84.jpg (http://s1271.photobucket.com/user/jrnyman1978/media/IMG_0091_zps73866d84.jpg.html)

http://i1271.photobucket.com/albums/jj628/jrnyman1978/IMG_0090_zps980ffd77.jpg (http://s1271.photobucket.com/user/jrnyman1978/media/IMG_0090_zps980ffd77.jpg.html)

http://i1271.photobucket.com/albums/jj628/jrnyman1978/IMG_0089_zps98b1df00.jpg (http://s1271.photobucket.com/user/jrnyman1978/media/IMG_0089_zps98b1df00.jpg.html)

[oldmodman]

Yep. That's a real pile.

I hope you have let him know that it will take two days. And still won't be "perfect"

Do you have a plan yet? Or are you going to try a "best method" approach and he get what he gets.

I did a neighbor's beater a few years ago and I just hit it with Klasse AIO
Nowhere near perfect but such a huge improvement that he even had the badly leaking exhaust gasket replaced before he put it up for sale. It only sold because it was decently clean and didn't sound like it was going to blow up. I don't think anyone would have even wanted to test drive it the way it was before.
And it smelled terrible too.

[Coach Steve]

Yep. That's a real pile.

I hope you have let him know that it will take two days. And still won't be "perfect"

Do you have a plan yet? Or are you going to try a "best method" approach and he get what he gets.

I did a neighbor's beater a few years ago and I just hit it with Klasse AIO
Nowhere near perfect but such a huge improvement that he even had the badly leaking exhaust gasket replaced before he put it up for sale. It only sold because it was decently clean and didn't sound like it was going to blow up. I don't think anyone would have even wanted to test drive it the way it was before.
And it smelled terrible too.
Luckily, he's going out of town for the holidays tomorrow and I'll have several days to work on it before he gets back so that's not a problem. As far as my plan.... He lives directly across the street from me and is a close friend so he's been present and seen what can be done with regard to paint correction - in fact, I did a Benz he sold a couple of months ago that was also black and had serious swirl issues, road striping paint, etc., which turned out beautiful, so he knows what I'm capable of. However, knowing he's taking it to the dealership as soon as he gets back, I'm going to do as little as possible to gain thje best results. Meg's UC and a single, thin coat of wax/sealant - haven't decided which one yet. Skipping the polishing step and basically just making it shiny enough to make the black pop a little bit to help him get as high of a trade-in appraisal as possible. The truck is going to go to the auction and will never be on the Dodge dealer's lot so this whole process is just for him to have peace-of-mind that he got the most he could for the thing due to him cleaning it up as best as it could be.

And, for what he's paying me.... I really don't mind doing it since I have 4-5 days to do it so I'll do it in my spare time. The crazy, strange thing about Arizona is trucks hold their value higher here than in any other state because they're in high demand here. Even old beaters with high miles demand ridiculously high prices. Don't believe me, just take a look at Craig's List for the Phoenix metro area. Nuts!
And as bad as the exterior is, the interior is insanely clean! :laughing: Can't figure that one out. :scratches head: :laughing:

Aside from the rotary burn marks on the side of the bed, the real challenge believe it or don't, is the GD water spots. They take on a whole different existence here. First our water is unfathomably hard due to the enormous amount of evap that takes place leaving the minerals behind year after year after decade after.... you get the idea. And secondly, the climate here is so arid - especially in the summer (humidity in the low, single digits a lot of the time) water dries almost immediately then seers into the paint. It's a big issue for those of us who detail in AZ.
Every once in a while, you'll see a vehicle that has been waxed in the sun or the owner, detailer, whomever... forgot about a section that was probably in the shade when the wax was applied and then the sun hit that section and perma-bonded the wax to the finish..... just makes you cringe.

[HateSwirls]

What a mess you have on your hands.
Please post some after pics for us.
I tell you it would take me two days to do this one and that would be me using my rotary and some WG Über Compound.
Not sure if you can get this one perfect but you sure can make it look a lot better.
Good luck with his one:)

[Mike@DedicatedPerfection]

This is going to be a good candidate for an extreme makeover. Please do post a thread about it.

[Coach Steve]

What a mess you have on your hands.
Please post some after pics for us.
I tell you it would take me two days to do this one and that would be me using my rotary and some WG Über Compound.
Not sure if you can get this one perfect but you sure can make it look a lot better.
Good luck with his one:)Oh there isn't a prayer that I'll get this one perfect - no way! Those pics were taken in my garage, at night, so they don't begin to show the true condition of the paint - and those were just the passenger side! I'll take a lot more pics today in the daylight and probably shoot some video as well.


This is going to be a good candidate for an extreme makeover. Please do post a thread about it.A thread just for this truck...?? Okay, what the heck?!

The only problem I have with posting my before/after pics is it's pretty intimidating considering how incredible some of the people are around here. And, knowing that there isn't the slightest chance that any particular section I do will be defect-free will make it seem like I could have done more if I would have used this or that or even this.... get what I'm saying? But, we'll see how it goes.

Let me ask you guys this...
Is there any hope of removing those rotary burns? If so, how? I've never faced that particular situation. I've been brought in to clean up and repair messes left by other "detailers" before but never anything as serious as that. And those weren't visible until after it was washed and clayed.

Thanks guys, for the encouragement. It's nice to know I've got a group of experts I can turn to at any time on any given job - no matter what the job might entail! :dblthumb2:

[drbll]

Nice challenge, I love those. UC and a nice yellow cutting pad will work wonders on that. You could always go to a AIO for the polishing sealant step, I go to Griot's One Step Sealant for that. Good luck, I am kind of jealous.

[GenesisCoupe]

This is going to be a good candidate for an extreme makeover. Please do post a thread about it.

For sure, i'd like to see the results.

Best of luck!

[Mike@DedicatedPerfection]

A thread just for this truck...?? Okay, what the heck?!

The only problem I have with posting my before/after pics is it's pretty intimidating considering how incredible some of the people are around here. And, knowing that there isn't the slightest chance that any particular section I do will be defect-free will make it seem like I could have done more if I would have used this or that or even this.... get what I'm saying? But, we'll see how it goes.

Let me ask you guys this...
Is there any hope of removing those rotary burns? If so, how? I've never faced that particular situation. I've been brought in to clean up and repair messes left by other "detailers" before but never anything as serious as that. And those weren't visible until after it was washed and clayed.

Thanks guys, for the encouragement. It's nice to know I've got a group of experts I can turn to at any time on any given job - no matter what the job might entail! :dblthumb2:

Dont worry about what others here think of your work. What matters is what the job entails and what you are getting paid for. You are not going for 100% correction on a concours attending show car. Your client uses his truck for what a truck is made for and provide food for his family. As this truck is going to a Dealer as a trade in im assuming, a good one step is all thats needed.

Yes there is hope in removing those rotary marks provided there wasn't any strike through. I would be more worried about getting great correction and finishing ability with one step rather than worrying about getting the halograms out. Your approach with UC should pull all halograms out.

Mike

[vet]

He's a friend. You can work on your own time schedule. As long as he doesn't expect perfection, it will look a lot better than it does now, and he'll be happy.

[parttimer]

Do you own a grinder? I'd start with that! I love cleaning turds up and getting that "damn I'm good" feeling when I'm done! Good luck and have fun!

[Coach Steve]

Nice challenge, I love those. UC and a nice yellow cutting pad will work wonders on that. You could always go to a AIO for the polishing sealant step, I go to Griot's One Step Sealant for that. Good luck, I am kind of jealous.Precisely what I'm planning to go with.



Yes there is hope in removing those rotary marks provided there wasn't any strike through. I would be more worried about getting great correction and finishing ability with one step rather than worrying about getting the halograms out. Your approach with UC should pull all halograms out.

MikeWhen I was writing the OP, I could not remember that word to save my life! Dontcha just hate that?! :laughing:


Do you own a grinder? I'd start with that! I love cleaning turds up and getting that "damn I'm good" feeling when I'm done! Good luck and have fun!Grinder?!?! :eek: :eek: Now, there's an approach I hadn't considered. Kind of like starting with removing the rear bumper and working forward to clean behind the front license plate. :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :eek: :laughing:

[kochdalton87]

Looks like you have a fun job on your hands! I enjoy working on vehicles like that because even the smallest effort put forth provides incredible results when compared to the original condition. Like said above, even if it's a small one, post a few pics up in a thread! Have fun!

[Pureshine]

Steve can't wait to see the finished product :). That by far is the worst paint yet and will be a lot of work :(

[jdscooby]

That'll buff right out