High quality production detailing by Mike Phillips

[Mike Phillips]

High quality production detailing by Mike Phillips (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/ask-expert-featuring-mike-phillips/76337-high-quality-production-detailing-mike-phillips.html)


Normally the words high quality and production detailing don't go well together. Production detailing is the type of slop-n-glop work performed by people with little to no training and working under tight time requirements with low quality pads, products and tools.

The problem is not how to create a show car finish in the least amount of time, that's not production detailing that's show car detailing and that's not what I'm talking about.

What I'm talking about is how can a detailer do as few as steps as possible and still turn out a quality detail job that they can be proud of and their customer will love.

And... how can a detailer do this on clearcoated black daily drivers?

The normal procedure historically for doing production detailing is to use a one-step cleaner/wax for the paintwork after the normal steps of washing, drying and claying if the paint is contaminated.

While a one-step cleaner/wax, applied by machine might work well on light colored cars, the issue is this approach will tend to leave micro-marring or a light haze in the clear layer of paint on darker colors and the hardest color of all to work on and that's black paint.

The micro-marring tends to be caused by the abrasive technology together with the pad choice and even caused in part by the machine application as the action of the pad spinning and/or oscillating against the paint leaves a tale-tale sign from the process that shows up to our eyes as a hazy appearance.

Because most daily drivers tend to be trashed in the sense the paint is filled with swirls and scratches, in order to provide enough correction ability to create a visible and even dramatic visual difference, (in the eyes of your customer), some type of abrasive technology is needed together with some type of chemical cleaning ability plus any polishing oils and last but not the least important, some type of protection ingredients be they synthetic, naturally occurring or a blend of both.

Trying to clean, polish and protect a swirled out dark or black colored clearcoat finish is for the most part asking too much from today's available technology. It's pushing the envelope too far at least if one of your requirements is to put out high quality work you can associate with your name.


The problem
Doing more than two steps means investing more time into the exterior process and this is where too many detailers lose profit. As the saying goes, time is money. Doing two, three or more steps to the paint is fine if you're charging accordingly for it but high prices and production detailing are at the opposite end of the spectrum.

To be honest, at this time there isn't a perfect answer. So Here's a two part answer that might be just the ticket for you when you're asked to work on a trashed, black or dark colored daily driver.

The solution
Part of detailing cars is under promising but over delivering. This starts by you not promising to create a swirl and scratch free finish. Period.

Removing all or even a majority of the swirls and scratches out of any daily driver is a multiple step process and you need to charge for this type of work.

Instead, here's a pretty good solution to the problem and that's to do a 2-step where the focus of your attention is in the first step, removing "some" of the shallow swirls and scratches while restoring clarity to the clearcoat and the second step is using a spray-on wax to seal the paint.


Here's the project car, a daily driver, 2013 Chevy Tahoe. This Tahoe looks to be washed incorrectly all of it's life. I did not see any straight line scratches caused by being run through a brush style automatic car wash but there's still plenty of random cobweb or spiderweb scratches to go around.


http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_003.jpg



The owner asked me if I could cleaner her up with a wash and wax. He told me it's a 2013 that spends a lot of time in the garage so it's not that bad.

That's where everyone has their own definition of the word bad.


Besides being words apart on our definitions of the word bad, in a way, it doesn't matter because if the paint is horribly scratched or lightly scratched, in order to do just one machine application of some type of polish or cleaner/wax to a vehicle this size requires a certain amount of time because you can't simply run the buffer over the paint as fast as you can walk around the car.


So let me document the condition of the Tahoe as it arrived...

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_001.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_002.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_004.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_005.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_006.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_007.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_008.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_009.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_010.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_011.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_012.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_013.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_014.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_015.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_016.jpg


Pretty bad...


I cover this in my new how-to book!

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/watermark.php?file=83320


On Autogeek.net

How to use the Flex XC 3401 VRG Dual Action Polisher (http://www.autogeek.net/flex-polisher-book.html)
For both Production Detailing & Show Car Detailing


:xyxthumbs:

[Mike Phillips]

First thing first and that's to get this Tahoe clean by washing it using the normal wash approach using running water.

The process I used was pretty straightforward and also the steps I outline in my how-to books for the aggressive wash approach.

Step 1: Wash wheels and tires. In this case I machine scrubbed the tires to remove the brown blooming effect. Followed this by washing wheel wells. (See the Mothers Wheel Well Brushes).

Step 2: Start at the top and work my way down washing the Tahoe using Microfiber Chenille Wash Mitt.

Step 3: I decontaminated the hood and front tops of fenders with a Nanoskin Wash Mitt after FIRST washing and thoroughly RINSING off the entire Tahoe.

Step 4: Dried car using Guzzler Waffle Weave drying chamois and then moved the car into the garage.

While I used the aggressive approach to wash this Tahoe that doesn't mean I was careless and grinding new scratches into it, if you've read my how-to book you know it means I washing it THOROUGHLY because I'm taking a machine to it.


Work Stands Save Time
Werner Aluminum Work Stands are necessary anytime you're washing tall vehicles like SUVs. It's faster to have two one on each side instead of moving a single stand back and forth. Again, doing profitable production work is about saving time not wasting time.

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_019.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_020.jpg


I took a screen shot showing the time I started to wash and the products I used.

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_021.jpg



Here's a screenshot showing the time I finished including rinsing out all my tools, buckets, putting away all my wash tools and also putting away the water hose.

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_022.jpg



:)

[Mike Phillips]

Here's how the paint looked after washing and drying and then moving the Tahoe into the garage.

Again, my definition of the word bad is probably a little more specific as it relates and is in the context of what it would take to undo the damage.

I would call the paint condition on this 2013 Tahoe in category 5 as defined in my how-to book.

Page 37 - Paint Condition Categories (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/ask-expert-featuring-mike-phillips/51281-page-37-paint-condition-categories.html)


5: Severely Neglected
Paint in this condition has deep swirls, scratches, water spots and oxidation. Paint in this condition has normal day-in, day-out wear-n-tear plus no real regular maintenance. Vehicles in this category are rarely washed on a regular basis and when they are washed they are washed improperly or taken through automatic car wash.



Cobweb Swirls and Scratches
Paint that is severely neglected means that when viewed in bright, overhead sunlight, there are so many swirls and scratches that the paint has an overall hazy appearance which blocks your view of the true color.


Water Spots
Paint that is in the severely neglected category can have Type I, Type II and Type III water spots on all horizontal panels and even the vertical panels if caused by a sprinkler or some type of water spray.


Severe Oxidation
Paint in this category has oxidized to the point where the surface has a uniform dull appearance to the horizontal surfaces and to some extent the vertical panels. Clear coats do oxidize but usually slower than single stage paints and don't normally get the whitish, chalky appearance with a rough texture common to old, neglected single stage lacquers and enamels.



I'll let you all judge for yourself what category you would put the paint condition into.

Page 37 - Paint Condition Categories (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/ask-expert-featuring-mike-phillips/51281-page-37-paint-condition-categories.html)


http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_023.jpg



http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_024.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_025.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_026.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_027.jpg



:dunno:

[Mike Phillips]

Here's the after shots.


There are no "process shots" as I was moving fast to get this job done in under or at 4 hours.

I finished the job at 9:15pm. I started at approximately 5:10pm as I noted in post #13 of this thread last Friday night after I finished the job. Timestamp of the post is 9:30pm, shorty after the owner left with the Tahoe and I spent a few minutes cleaning up my mess and putting away the tools.

What are you going to detail this weekend? (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/auto-detailing-101/76237-what-you-going-detail-weekend-2.html#post1039841)


Here are the after shots, these were taken with the owner and his wife standing off to the side. They were on a tight time schedule. I told them it would take me 4 hours and they could pick it up at 9:00pm for the most part we both kept to our words.


http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_028.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_029.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_029c.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_030.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_031.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_031c.jpg


:)

[Mike Phillips]

Here's what I used...

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Black_Tahoe_Production_2_Step_032.jpg


Process

Wiped Tahoe dry after moving into garage.

Opened all doors and hatchback and wiped down all door jambs.

Hand applied Tuf Shine Tire Clearcoat so it could dry while I buffed out the paint. Wiped chrome wheel covers with glass cleaner to remove any Tuf Shine overspray.

Machine applied Optimum Polish using a combination of 5" and 6.5" Hybrid White Polishing Pads on speed setting range of 4-5. Also made a quickie pass over the side glass and then polished the glass clear during wipe-off.

Wiped polish residue off paint.

Hand applied Optimum Car Wax, this is a spray-on wax so it's fast and easy.

Blew out the inside of the car using the Tornador Car Cleaning Gun. Ran out of time or I would have vacuumed but the interior was actually rally clean and the Tornador with all doors open made fast work of what little debris was on the floors, console, dash and seats.

Done.

Not my best work and not even the kind of work I like to do but I wanted to offer an alternative to trying to use a one-step on black clearcoated cars that was still very fast while providing pretty good results.

I can guarantee you there are still swirls and scratches throughout the paint. I did not promise the owner I would or could remove them all in the time I had and they new this and understood this. All they wanted was the car cleaned up.

Note I did spend extra time on the hood and it was about 90% scratch and swirl free as this is the major gloss panel on this vehicle as described in the second edition of my how-to book and as recommended in my how-to book you should always pay a little extra attention to the major gloss panels and gloss points because your customer will plus this is the part about over delivering that makes your work look good and even better than the guy down the street.


http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2276/Wheel_Tire_Cleaning_Tools.jpg


:)

[ken tuep]

This is very similar to the majority of the jobs I do. Most of my customers don't want to pay for a full detail, and a quick wash, and aio, topped with a spray wax is were its at.

A vacuum/ tornador and wipedown inside including windows. Done! Quick and pays well.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using AG Online

[Dr_Pain]

Good Lord Mike! You are a BEAST!

To make it under 4 hrs you had to have forgotten to do the roof, or as I said in runrun's thread you had to have created a dual Flex cyclo polisher. 13" of polishing power in one pass ROFL!

Great turn around....... and I bow out of trying to match that!

[10secdream]

Wow a Tahoe in 4 hours. Very impressive Mike!

[A2D Signature]

"It's not that bad" I'm not saying that. The owner is. I wonder what his definition of bad or even worse, very bad would qualify as


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[KS_Detailing]

I don't know how you polished a large SUV in 4-5 hrs. The time it would take me to wash, clay, tape off the car, polish, clean pads, inspect work etc. would take me 8hrs on 1 step. Maybe I'm slow :dunno:When I did mobile work we didn't even offer polishing. We did wash, wax & spent alot time on the interiors. I am planning on doing some more mobile work in the spring and I think I may stick to that same plan. If they want anything beyond a wash, clay & wax the car is going to need to be dropped off so I can work in a garage where I can have proper lighting & take my time. I thought focusing on interiors during mobile jobs were important since people spend most of their time inside their cars driving. In my experience customers cared more about interiors than exteriors.

[Mike Phillips]

Good Lord Mike! You are a BEAST!



Well I didn't take any breaks and believe it or not I move pretty fast, my artificial leg is not what slows me down when moving around a detailing project.






To make it under 4 hrs you had to have forgotten to do the roof,




And just to be honest, you're partially correct in that I did not buff out the roof but not because I forgot it but because I was limited to only 4 hours.

I washed it VERY good. Actually washed the entire Tahoe very good, it was ####-n-span clean after washing and drying.

When I got up on the Werner work platforms to wash the roof the first thing I noticed is that the paint was filled with massive larger water spot rings over the entire roof.

So not only did I not buff it out but it doesn't look like anyone else ever has either.


So to be fair I wanted to buff the roof out using the Optimum Polish and then seal with the Optimum Car Wax but I didn't have the time after taking care of the entire rest of the outside.

I did buff the top outside visible edges and also told the owner that I didn't get to the roof and he was okay with this.

Remember, all he wanted was for me to clean her up. He's going to trade it in as soon as the 2015's arrive.

As an aside comment, I owned a 2004 Honda Pilot in black, bought it new in 2004 and for the first year I kept it up like a show car. After the first year, especially living in the Mojave Desert where it's windy and dusty, (sand everywhere), and finding out it was too much work to maintain a show car finish on a grocery getter. I did good the first year but after a year the excitement of the "new car" wore off as did my passion for machine polishing every square inch of an SUV.

I could do it for a 1957 Chevy, but not a daily driver, go to Costco grocery getter and towards the end of owning it I reduced my time waxing the roof to about ever other car wash/detail session. This means I would always wash it really well but only wax the roof every other wash.


The above all said, if I could have had the car till 10:00pm I could have easily knocked out the roof. Easily.

Had I had the time for the roof I still would have finished in 5 hours or less... no problem.

So I did what I could with the time I had and still made my customer happy and his wife too. Keep in mind in the next few weeks or months, the next time this Tahoe is washed I can guarantee you it will be taken through an automatic car wash.

This is why it's important to know your customer and don't promise to put a show car finish on a daily driver. It's a waste of your time, money and resources and your customer won't appreciate it anyways.


:)

[d-rob30]

I'm at awww, nice job, I have a simular job for myself. My Black Sliverado crew cab. Since it's my truck I would like to know the right products and the full process of getting all of the swirls out

[Mike Phillips]

The time it would take me to wash, clay, tape off the car, polish, clean pads, inspect work etc. would take me 8hrs on 1 step.



I agree.

If I had done all of what you just listed it would have taken a lot longer.

I didn't clay the entire car. I used the Nanoskin Wash Mitt on the hood and the tops of the front fenders. Remember, the owner said, "It's not that bad". Another way of saying this is he thought it was in pretty good shape. I took into account everything I would need to do to clean her up in 4 hours and did just what I could do, no more, no less.


For pad cleaning, I went through three pads, two 6.5" and 1 5". Mostly I used the 5" to do some edging and work the thin panels. To save time I hit everything with the 6.5" pads and had both polishers plugged in and on a car next to where I was working.

I also buffed out the plastic end caps, and the tail lights and headlights.

I didn't tape anything off, instead I was just very careful and there wasn't that much trim that would stain on this upscale model anyways.

Inspect my work? I buffed out he hood really good and did 5-6 section passes over the rest of the body including the lowest portions of the body panels and front and rear quarter panels.

The Flex 3401 is perfect for this type of production work as the pad won't stop rotating when you start pushing hard. The white Hybrid polishing pads are soft and Optimum Polish is a Fine Cut Polish, not a medium, but a fine cut, kind of teetering on being an Ultra Fine Cut Polish. Just enough cut with this pad and this tool to remove anything shallow while leaving behind a CLEAR surface. Not a scratch or swirl-free surface.

Part of how deep and dark the paint looks in the after pictures isn't because there are no scratches in the paint but because I restored clarity to the surface so the dark black paint can shine through to your eyes.

This is part of the goal when buffing out any clear coat, one-step or multiple steps. With clearcoat paints you need to restore clarity so your eyes can see the colored paint under the clear paint. With single stage paints you bring out the full richness of color.





Maybe I'm slow :dunno:When I did mobile work we didn't even offer polishing.



If you re-read what I wrote, what I said was that while in most cases and what is common is for detailers to use a one-step cleaner/wax when doing product work, which is the right thing to do, the problem is using a one-step cleaner/wax on dark and black CLEARCOATED paints might remove some defects but it will tend to leave micro-marring or haze in the surface of the clearcoat.

So as a way around this problem while still reducing your "time" investment, I show using,


A forced rotation, forced oscillation tool
A soft foam pad
A fine cut polish

The above won't leave the paint sealed but that's why I came back and sealed with a fast wax, or a spray-on wax.





In my experience customers cared more about interiors than exteriors.




Noting wrong with that either. If fact in all my classes I start my Power Point Presentation stating the second thing you do is ask your customer what's most important to them or if there are any problem areas they want you to tackle.

I mentioned this in my recent 2014 Corvette Stingray write-up. That was a 4 hour job also but a different type of customer and a very different finish.


:)

[Mike Phillips]

Just to note, this job here was less than 4 hours too....


How to use a one-step cleaner/wax to maximize profits (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/how-articles/58359-how-use-one-step-cleaner-wax-maximize-profits.html)


All too often I see people new to detailing get all caught up into performing elaborate, multi-step procedures to create show car finishes on daily drivers. Nothing wrong with this if you need experience or you're trying to showcase your talents. The problem however is that all too often you end up working for peanuts by the time you divide your time into your profits.


Below is an example of reducing your steps to a minimum while still creating dramatic improvement that will blow your customer away with the simple approach of using a one-step cleaner/wax.


Process

Step 1: Machine polish all exterior glass to remove road film and water spots.

Step 2: Clean and dress tires.

Step 3: Wipe vinyl top down and apply dressing.

Step 4: Wipe paint clean using clay lube.

Step 5: Clay paint.

Step 6: Clean, polish and protect paint using a one-step, cleaner/wax applied by machine.

Step 7: Machine clean and polish chrome at end of paint polishing process using same pad and one-step cleaner/wax.

Step 8: Wipe down door, hood and trunk jambs with a little cleaner/wax on a microfiber towel.
Done.
Less than 4 hours and I didn't rush. I didn't work slow but instead worked methodically through the above steps with each step building and/or adding to the forward progress of the previous step.


Car: 1970 Oldsmobile 442 Convertible W30




Before

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/722/Oldsmobile_442_W30_001.jpg


After

http://www.showcargarage.com/gallery/files/1/1970_442_by_Mike_Phillips.010.jpg


http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1694/One-Step-Cleaner_Wax.jpg



I was able to get away with using a one-step cleaner/wax for two reasons.


1. Single stage paint - It's a lot more forgiving.

2. Light colored paint



:)

[Mike Phillips]

This was a three step I did in under 6 hours. Now this was a multiple-step process but I didn't waste any time from start to the final wipe.


Christmas Detail - Ferrari P4 - Move over Rudolf (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/show-n-shine/58698-christmas-detail-ferrari-p4-move-over-rudolf.html)



This is a reproduction of the Ferrari P4. Ferrari only built three 1967 P4's all of these still exist today and are accounted for. In the late 1980's, Noble Automotive in England was commissioned to build a reproduction for a private collector and this is the Noble P4. It cost over $300,000.00 at the time of the build including a Ferrari 308 engine, Porsche 915 transaxle and 5-speed transmission plus 4 down-draft Webber Carburetors.

The paint is Rosso Corsa Red in single stage and when I arrived and inspected the paint every inch of it was completely swirled out. I restored the paint using the following 5 steps.


Wiped car clean using Detailers Waterless Wash.
Clayed the paint using Pinnacle Ultra Poly Clay.
Machine polished the paint using Wolfgang Total Swirl Remover/Flex 3401/LC 6.5" Flat White Polishing Pad.
Machine polished the paint using Wolfgang Finishing Glaze/Meguiar's G110v2/LC 5.5" Flat White Polishing Pad
Machine waxed the paint using Wolfgang Fuzion/Meguiar's G110v2/LC 5.5" Flat Blue Finishing Pad.
Here's a few before and after pictures...

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1668/Ferrari_P4_Detailed_by_Mike_Phillips_001.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1668/Ferrari_P4_Detailed_by_Mike_Phillips_002.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1668/Ferrari_P4_Detailed_by_Mike_Phillips_003.jpg


Wax on...
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1668/Ferrari_P4_Detailed_by_Mike_Phillips_004.jpg


Wax off...
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1668/Ferrari_P4_Detailed_by_Mike_Phillips_005.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1668/Ferrari_P4_Detailed_by_Mike_Phillips_006.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1668/Ferrari_P4_Detailed_by_Mike_Phillips_007.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1668/Ferrari_P4_Detailed_by_Mike_Phillips_008.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1668/Ferrari_P4_Detailed_by_Mike_Phillips_009.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1668/Ferrari_P4_Detailed_by_Mike_Phillips_010.jpg

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1668/Ferrari_P4_Detailed_by_Mike_Phillips_011.jpg


http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1668/Ferrari_P4_Detailed_by_Mike_Phillips_012.jpg


:)