My detailing plan of attack

[MickeyB]

Hi all, as stated in previous threads, I'm new to the world of proper detailing, and keen to develop my skills and knowledge. Having done a lot of recent trading and research, I'm now ready to delve into the dark science, and give it a red hot go. As such, I have formulated a plan that I feel is logical and hopefully safe (baby steps) to start learning the techniques and skills I need. Please feel free to comment or correct me if I'm on the wrong track!

My garage consists of 3 cars: my wife's Toyota Caldina that I imported for her from Japan:

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/11/21/3abbf39782b8ad824925e14dfae77762.jpg

My new (to me) daily driven Skoda Octavia:

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/11/21/7a1a16ed57bce4ce4fda9a390ca9f59f.jpg

And my financial black hole/third child (heavily modified) Nissan Stagea "weekend" car:

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/11/21/0c42315a15fcb2d5a7a53f4a1d806598.jpg

Up to this point, I've always been pretty fussy with all my cars, but have been content to give them a (what I thought was thorough until joining these forums) wash, and leave it at that, with the Stagea getting a professional detail once or twice per year. All are parked in either garage or carport at home, and my daily driver cops all the elements at work: absolutely no undercover parking available.

My plan of attack, as far as teaching myself how to correctly detail is this (please let me know if I'm on the right track):

1) basic cleaning- I already have some good quality products in my Arsenal, but I need to start applying them better.
I've purchased a Megs lambs wool wash mitt to replace my old and tired MF sponge, but it would appear I'll need at least one more for cleaning wheels/lower body panels.
This is the area I'm most comfortable experimenting with on all cars.

2) clay bar/decontamination- the Caldina will be my guinea pig, as we've owned the car 4 years, and it's never had a proper detail: there's a whole heap of paint imperfections (strange rust-coloured spots on the lower rear panels, tar, etc), plus the car initially sat on the Japanese docks for weeks before being shipped by boat. I am keen to see what sort of improvements I can make to the paint, because it's just begging for some attention!

3) polishing/waxing- I'm very inexperienced when it comes to polishing, and with that in mind, have asked the Minister for War and Finance (loving wife) to get me a good quality DA polisher for my birthday (next week). I'm undecided which car to start on, but thinking the Caldina: it's pearl white, so if I mess up, it will at least stand a chance of hiding my mistakes, but on the flip side, given the colour, it may be difficult to see how effective my work is... The other option is the Skoda: plenty of swirl marks visible, and some light fade on the yellow paint (it appears to have been neglected and say in the sun for a long period prior to me purchasing it), so improvements will be easy to spot.

4) waxing/paint protection: Skoda first, as it gets more exposure to the elements given the parking situation at work, and the fact that we're heading into a very hot (35-40deg) summer.

5) interiors- either/or: I figure it's more a matter of being systematic and applying the correct products, with less chance of damaging anything

Once I'm sufficiently confident/competent, I'll apply what I've learned to the Stagea, as it's the most important car to me...

Am I on the track here? Any suggestions are welcome!

Cheers,

Micah.


No battle plan ever survives contact with the enemy

[Paul A.]

If i can offer a suggestion...

You might want to pick one of the three cars to do A to Z on i.e. do everything to one car. That way you can see what the final result will look like. I would pick the yellow Skoda.

As part of your decontamination i would highly suggest an iron remover. Sounds like the Caldina would benefit greatly from it.

Additionally, i have 3 seperate wash media categories and equipment. My finest wash mitt for the top third of the vehicle, a seperate wash mitt for the bottom third and finally an assortment of brushes and another mitt for wheels, wells and tires.

Having suggested all that, you're on the right track, Micah. Once you start doing it you'll get the hang and feel of things.

[MickeyB]

Yeah: from my reading, it would appear that the Caldina is really suffering from metal contamination: before joining the forums I had no idea that metal particles could work their way into clear coat, but it appears to display all the hallmark symptoms.

The Caldina appears to have the worst condition paint of all the cars, but the sun fade on the Skoda is really beginning to bug me: I'm noticing it more and more; I've only owned the car for just over a month now...

*edit:* I should add that I have every intention of completing all steps on all cars, I was just planning on which to attempt each step first: I'm on holidays for another week or so, and have plenty of time to spare if I decide to wash cars "in parallel"...


No battle plan ever survives contact with the enemy

[Paul A.]

Your plan will certainly work too. Enjoy doing it!

[MickeyB]

Ok: getting there now: I just bought some clay bars, another new wash mitt, some QD, and ordered a bottle of iron-x (managed to find a local supplier) and have a DA polisher on its merry way to me.

I still need to get some pads for the polisher, but will do the rounds locally today...

I'm itching to get started, but am still waiting for parts/products to arrive, so I have to content myself with more research, training videos and "therapy spending"!

I am seriously considering purchasing a small (2.5hp) compressor for both light tool work, and the fact that I will then have an air gun attachment readily at hand. I have an electrician mate coming over this afternoon, as I've decided to finally fit suitable light and power outlets to my man cave (I have converted the space under my house to accommodate 2 cars and a good size workshop space), which will fit in nicely with my amateur detailing/light mechanical ambitions.

Once again, the weak Aussie dollar is putting a dent in my wallet, as I'm trying to source buffing/polishing pads, but I'm committed now, so it's no deal-breaker.

I've decided to take puckman's advice, and thoroughly work my way over the Skoda first: partially because I think the yellow will really pop (motivation for further work), and secondly because I personally spend the most time in it. I have also been considering getting the roof and bonnet vinyl wrapped, and would like to address the paint fade prior to having this work done.

I need some advice though...

Given the budgetary restraints, I have opted for the "Shine Mate ERO600" DA polisher, which I know will be considered sub-par in this company, but I couldn't find a brand name DA polisher (new or second hand) that was within budget (once again, the freight costs were obscene) and this one appeared to have the best reviews of the cheapies available. I am leaning towards 5.25" pads, but am unsure , after extensive reading, how to best attack the sun fade on the car. I've tried taking pics, but it's hard to get it to show. In my amateur opinion, I would describe it as "light" fade- you can see the fade in direct sunlight with your naked eye, but it's not really obvious in diffuse light unless you're looking for it. I guess it graduates over the panel, so it may be more bleached than I'm assuming...?

How do I approach it? Polish first and gauge the results? Or go for a light cut? I'm lost here, as I'm getting information overload as I research so many different aspects of detailing and get sidetracked!

Any advice from those in the know is greatly appreciated!


Cheers,

Micah.


No battle plan ever survives contact with the enemy