Professional Help Please !

[Brandin10]

I need an opinion from a professional detailer or someone who may know about the issue I am dealing with. I have a 2014 Corvette and I wanted to pull the cover off and give it a wash, clay, and wax to have it ready for spring.

I washed the car with Chemical guys citrus wash & gloss. I have never clayed before so this is my first attempt. I decided to use the Nanoskin auto scrub wash mitt in place of traditional clay. I used plenty of clay lubricant and gave it a gentle wipe down on my drivers side door. I wanted to try one panel first to see how it turned out.

After the claying was complete I wiped it down to dry the surface for wax application. But after inspection I noticed blotchy specs all over the door. Please see the attached pictures.

[Scott@IncrediblyDetailed]

That's marring from the clay/clay towel product.

You'll have to polish in order to remove it. It's almost unavoidable depending on the level of contamination and type of paint you're working on.

https://scontent-atl.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfp1/t31.0-8/10991641_560011340768331_2530027169127748638_o.jpg

BMW Jet Black Paint. Look at the A Pillar and Side Mirror.

All was removed after polishing.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpf1/t31.0-8/10997477_560011360768329_8000350268993215549_o.jpg

https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpf1/t31.0-8/10658800_560011354101663_8682974963621507799_o.jpg

Final Product:

https://scontent-atl.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/t31.0-8/11004565_560008130768652_6543123376170157052_o.jpg

https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpf1/t31.0-8/10989254_560008407435291_5733904212946080131_o.jpg

[Brandin10]

Does this happen with all paint after claying? I was afraid I would have to polish. I have never done it before and I'm a little nervous.

[Setec Astronomy]

Just out of curiosity, did you use the fine or medium Nanoskin mitt? And what kind of lube did you use? How often did you rinse the mitt, how much pressure did you apply?

[Brandin10]

It is a fine grade mitt. I tried to use really light pressure. I did the entire drivers door and spent maybe 2-3 minutes claying. I used Glide clay lube. I believe it's the nanoskin product. And I used a lot of it. But I only rinsed the mitt before the initial use and not during.

[Setec Astronomy]

To answer your question, no it doesn't happen with all paint after claying, but any marring is going to be more visible on black. Corvette paint is usually very hard. I know some of those clay substitutes it's recommended you break them in on glass first, I don't see that for the Nanoskin.

Not really anything to be nervous about in regards to polishing. Do you have a machine? What polishes do you have?

[Brandin10]

No machine. And no polishes yet. I was hoping I wasn't going to have to polish. But here is a list of procedure and products I was going to use.

-Wash with CG Citrus
-Clay with Nanoskin and glide lube
-Apply coat of CG Blacklight
-Apply coat of CG jetseal 109

Then I also got a bottle of hybrid v7 to use between washes as a quick detailer.

[Brandin10]

Oh and yes it did say to break in the mitt on glass with clay lube. Which I did and then rinsed.

[Setec Astronomy]

Why don't you try an application of the Blacklight on a test spot and see if that improves the appearance for you?

[Scott@IncrediblyDetailed]

Does this happen with all paint after claying? I was afraid I would have to polish. I have never done it before and I'm a little nervous.

Anytime I clay a darker colored vehicle I always required a polish afterwards to customers for this very reason. The damage isn't very deep at all, but you did scuff the surface. Not a big deal. :xyxthumbs:

Want it always in 75% or better condition with original shine and gloss?

I think you would be better off picking up a buffer like porter cable or the griots garage, along with an AIO (All In One, Polishes and Seals in one step) product, like blackfire total polish and seal. It's going to clean and polish the paint, and fill some of the other imperfections. Top it with jet seal if you'd like.

Taking care of a black car (the proper way) that you drive, can be a nightmare if you don't manage your own expectations.

If you want to keep it perfect it's going to be like taking on a part time job. Some people do it and enjoy it. Myself, if it's not a show car I shoot for best under the circumstances.

[Brandin10]

Why don't you try an application of the Blacklight on a test spot and see if that improves the appearance for you?

I did. The blacklight is actually applied on one of the pictures. Didn't see much difference. But I did not apply it with a polisher. Only by hand. Reading on the CG website they mention that blacklight can be used as a polish as well. Is it ok to use that or should I purchase a dedicated polish and try that?

[Brandin10]

Anytime I clay a darker colored vehicle I always required a polish afterwards to customers for this very reason. The damage isn't very deep at all, but you did scuff the surface. Not a big deal. :xyxthumbs:

Want it always in 75% or better condition with original shine and gloss?

I think you would be better off picking up a buffer like porter cable or the griots garage, along with an AIO (All In One, Polishes and Seals in one step) product, like blackfire total polish and seal. It's going to clean and polish the paint, and fill some of the other imperfections. Top it with jet seal if you'd like.

Taking care of a black car (the proper way) that you drive, can be a nightmare if you don't manage your own expectations.

If you want to keep it perfect it's going to be like taking on a part time job. Some people do it and enjoy it. Myself, if it's not a show car I shoot for best under the circumstances.
It's good to know that the marring is quite normal and that I didn't do any damage to the paint! Yes the black car is a bad idea if you are a perfectionist like myself. But it looks soooo good when it's clean. Any tips on polishing?? I have never done it before. I have watched a few videos online. It seems like they spend a lot of time on a small area. That makes me nervous!

Thanks for all the advice guys this really helps :props:

[Scott@IncrediblyDetailed]

It's good to know that the marring is quite normal and that I didn't do any damage to the paint! Yes the black car is a bad idea if you are a perfectionist like myself. But it looks soooo good when it's clean. Any tips on polishing?? I have never done it before. I have watched a few videos online. It seems like they spend a lot of time on a small area. That makes me nervous!

Thanks for all the advice guys this really helps :props:

Call me 301 - 800 - 5959 and I'll give you a brief overview and my opinion, then point you to the guy I learned from...

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/ask-expert-featuring-mike-phillips/23722-car-detailing-articles-mike-phillips.html

[LaFawnduh]

As a non-pro - trust me, nothing to be worried about. Best advice is, as it does take a long time to do it right (8-10 hours at a minimum depending on paint condition), break up the job into sections and do a panel of two a day. Then on the final day, do a full wash and wax.

Using an AIO is a huge time savings but be prepared that you are not going to get 100% finish. The recommend BlackFire total polish and seal is a really great product for newbies as it turns clear when the product is done working. It takes the guess work out of knowing if you stil have abrasives to be worked in.

If you want 100%, just start easy, get a PC DA polisher, some of the easy to use products like Meguiars Ultimate line or BlackFire, and begin the obsession.

And the community is BEYOND helpful. They have bailed me out on a couple occasions and helped me do a little work on the side.

[ronkh57]

Where are you located? There may be a member close to you that can show/help you