Honda Civic 8-day marathon wetsand n buff

[zckid]

Hi friends

When you care for something, you want only for it. My buddy is of that breed. He came to see me as he wanted me correct his ride, a sporty Honda Civic. We then set a tentative date. His brother brought the car 2 days in advance. I was not at home.



The ride was well taken care of overall although with the alternate sun and rain prevailing, you can’t expect cars to be dirt-free.





I started the next day. A close inspection of embedded dirt revealed these.












The boss gives a meticulous demonstration, the job with his detailing brush, a toothbrush and Surfex diluted.















It starts raining heavily.




Washing in a bubble!





Claying
The real benefit of using clay is actually trying it out!







These are from 3 sections of a well kept car. Without claying, it would have been impossible to see the bonded contaminants!


To the defects now:




Lacking definition and depth










Extreme close-up

[zckid]

The rear bumper



The vertical panels






Orange peel city, helped by silver color! Not easily noticeable


Deep Scratches





Closer look




Flake-offs









I’d be very much grateful to know if anyone among you performs these touch-up repairs without using the kit.


Space conquest!

Ladies and gentlemen, fasten your seat belts.



We are going to land on the moon!













A whole side filled with moon craters and hills!

These need re-spray of course.



Surface prepping


Wetsanding using Megs sanding block and Mirka sandpaper - 1500, 2000, 2500 depending on the severity of defects









At this stage, the owner would be shocked/shocked seeing his car gone from bad to worst!





Final Wash n Clay






It’s taken me so many days to reach here, the paint being so uneven!

[zckid]

Ready for Fun



My friends

Makita 9227, Flex 3401 (I’ve started to love the Flex but this hasn’t decreased my love for the Makita)

Polishes: Optimum Hyper Compound, Menzerna ( PG (the ol’ one), 203S, and PO85rd)

Pads: Optimum Wool pad, Lake Country (FWP, White and Black)

Sealant: Menzerna Powerlock

Glass: Menz PG, DP Glass Polish

Plastic trims: CG new Look Trim Gel


My first players



I used both alternatives for the first step to compare. But it’s like comparing bread and apple.

So far Menzerna PG has worked fine for me but it dries so fast and lacks the friendly touch of OHC or Menzerna 203s. Optimum HC slings but the finish is so nice. Sometimes, I felt I needed no need for refining. (Wished I had Menzerna FG500 to try and compare it with OHC)







My pal




My pal and its allies



Just need refining now



I wanted to go the least aggressive way. Without a PTG, My strategy was: sand a little, machine-polish and inspect. Resand if improvement needed.





It cost me so much time, but the outcome was beyond what was expected.



Wait! Wait! It’s not easy to be a moonwalker!




New paint bulges appeared on this panel after I wetsanded. I wanted to get a more level surface but this cycle continued so I let it go. I explained to my friend that this panel needs respray. He told me that the guy who did the paintjob sprayed the paint and clear after without letting the primer cure properly. Still, one has to look very carefully to notice them. Silver colored car!



After polishing and refining





Unfortunately, I could take many pics. I had to move back and forth wetsand, polish, see results and improve. It is so difficult to find the lesser defects on silver-colored car.


Deep scratches remained





Dear friends, how you manage with deep scratches in the absence of paint touch-up repair kits. I mean if you only have the clear coat, hardener, custom paint (of same color) from automotive paint shops?



Glass

The windows were polished with Menzerna PG and LC orange pad. Around the corners, I used Detailers Pride Glass Polish with LC orange applicator pad. Results were very nice thanks God. The water spots disappeared.




After being polished, it has still to be wiped. I then cleaned it, in and out with Stoner Invisible Glass.

[zckid]

The Headlights

The headlights were wetsanded, 1000,1500,2000 and 2500 grit. Then they were compounded and refined using Menzerna polishes


LEFT SIDE
Before



After





A month later





RIGHT SIDE

Before




Its condition appeared same as the right but it was worse.





Close up



A small hole at the corner, water’s entrance










It was clear, but the glare was there. I couldn’t take the right shot. It still had some water drops inside.





Tail lights




It remained to be buffed with a microfiber

The glass, lights and paint were all cleaned with ONR and sealed with Menzerna Powerlock Sealant. Plastics were treated with CG New Look Trim Gel.

The work was finished at 7 in the evening, 8 days work per 7-8 h.



The only finishing pic I managed:



Almost a month later, my friend came to see me. I was focusing on the car. Yes it had changed since it first came here.



The right headlight is filled with moist and water.








Compared with what she looked before



Now









Craters invaded by shine

From this




To



close-up

[zckid]

The roof

Before






After





The hood

Before






After






The side








Thanking Almighty for having made this possible. I was exhausted in the end, but couldn't complain.


If you made it this far, thanks so much for reading :

Looking forward for your thoughts and words of advice

Thanks so much

Zaid

[sohail99]

Awesome!!!
Was really an extensive project with amazing results!

Loved the moon crater thing!

[kc's]

another awesomely documented detail Bonjour

thanks for taking so much of yr time to snap & share

[sportscarhiatus]

Wow...very impressive.

[zckid]

Awesome!!!
Was really an extensive project with amazing results!

Loved the moon crater thing!

thanks for your kind words Sohail.

It's taken me so many days to land there


As many friends pointed out that, the paint bulges need respray, once you try to flatten these, they become craters. I could wetsand to a certain point only. A completely flat surface will require a proper paint job.

another awesomely documented detail Bonjour

thanks for taking so much of yr time to snap & share

Thanks bro! it's the start of a long journey. so much still to learn, so much to conquer and it it requires s little ... and a lot of passion as u say

Wow...very impressive.

thanks for your encouraging word buddy, still learning!

[DetailedByPrecision]

impressive turn around for the craters.