02' Honda Accord, black... correction

[Dellinger]

Well, greetings ladies and gents.

The Preface:

I'll wade ever so softly into this sub-forum... with a spirit of humbleness and respect for enthusiasts and professionals, alike, who display their work here.

One request I do have for participants of this post, and that is- there will be a section at the bottom, below the parting shots... I'm going to display an image of an area/ surface, that I need 'help' on. If you would like to reply with some constructive criticism or how you would handle the situation, I would be greatful. If you do not opine... that's fine too! And by all means, criticism of anything you see, is certainly welcome. There are many, many great eyes and minds here with amazing talents. (I lack a lot of that and am using show n' shine posts mainly to learn and find ways to be better at detailing.)

Thank you in advance for reading and contributing.

warning: this is gonna be long and wordy...sorry.

Best regards,
-Gabe


The Story:

This 2002 Honda Accord (Nighthawk Black Pearl) was purchased by my wife and I about four years ago. As the title states, it is our family's primary mode of travel and my wife's daily driver. It has 169K on the odometer and the clear coat is failing on all horizontal panels.

It is the car that 'pushed me' to where I am today... an understudy, an amateur trying to better himself and skill set; an entrepreneur, looking to open my own detailing business (hopefully with a little success sprinkled in.)

I have four vehicles under my belt and still working on the website, organization, picture taking, technique(s), training, blah, blah, blah. I don't feel I'm yet ready to open the doors. I have been lucky that all the jobs I have performed thus far, have paid. Not true retail prices but enough to cover my products costs and some left over.


It looks decent under fluorescent lamps... (sorry, no sun for outside inspection. I live in the Pac. NW... sun is a rare commodity here in the winter!)







Obviously, as you get closer in, things get worse... (Type II & III water spots... some 'spots' can appear
to be water spots but are actually crow's feet joined in a circular pattern.)





As you can see, the paint was in poor shape. Probably the worst I've seen in person and definitely owned. The appearance of the car haunted me and I wanted to remedy this. BUT, my wife is an absolute bear with anything concerning vehicles! This includes breaks, tires, interior, etc... so I was hesitant about actually working the paint on it.
Then again, I knew I needed the experience.


The Condition (post wash/ decon):

Nothing fancy with the wash/ decon prep... (There was noted marring from the fine mitt BUT... A.) it didn't really matter because of the existing condition B.) I was going to correct it anyways C.) this paint is soooo stupid soft, more to this later.)

Products used:
+Dawn
+Megs Shampoo Plus
+Nanoskin Fine grade mitt
+CG Luber
+Megs MF wash mitt

The below are typical defects covering the vehicle. The trunklid shows more clear coat failure beginning (small circular spots...crow's feet similar to the hood and roof) and large Type II water spots.










The Process:

A three-step, exterior correction applied. First step- HD wool pad/ M100. Second step- B&S Orange pad/ M100. Third step- B&S Black pad/ HD Polish.
(A BIG hat tip to Mr. Thomas Dekany... more on that below.)

Products used:
+Megs M100
+HD Polish
+HD Poxy
+5.1" HD Black Lambswool pad(s)
+B&S 5.5" Orange pad(s)
+B&S 5.5" Black pad(s)
+B&S 5.5" Red pad(s)
+Megs Final Inspection

All photos below are 1 section pass with HD wool pad and M100... VERY SLOW arm speed






from another angle...








I apologize regarding the redundant photos but I was just so impressed with the performance of HD wool pad and M100 combo!

I ended worked M100 and HD Polish for two section passes per each of the three steps to complete the correction process.


Mr. Thomas Dekany: I emailed Thomas before posting this to ensure that I was following proper etiquette. Anyway, I had a spectacular chance when Thomas agreed to allow me to purchase some one-on-one training with him. It started last August but life was getting in the way. I was able to stop by in November for the session. He showed me some proper technique, advised me on all sorts of products, let me play around with a Rupes 21 and a Flex rotary. Obviously introduced me to HD black wool pads and the M100. Thomas is beyond professional in his demeanor, teaching, and knowledge. I enjoyed every minute of it and we are going to try and do some short session (if he'll let me) going into the future. Thanks Thomas for everything!


Honda Soft paint:

I can honestly say... I'm thinking of selling this car right now. There's no way in the world I'm going to be able to keep swirls out of this paint. During the correction process I don't know how many times I scratched this Honda paint when wiping off residue (even with an Adam's Double Soft!) I even marred the paint with the red B&S pad and HD Poxy... I couldn't believe it!?!?

Marring from wax application (will re-polish hood and re-apply wax tomorrow.)



This was the only time in my life where I was VERY queasy about wiping off a coat of wax. Holly cow... I sat for 45 minutes watching the Poxy cure and was pouring over every possible thing in my mind on how NOT to scratch the paint.


The Parting Shots:

I would say 70% correction on the vehicle... what's left is what can't be removed safely. There are some major scratches on the rear bumper, what appear to be solvent popping throughout the panels (minor pin holes.) The pity is... my wife won't be able to see it in the sun because she leaves at 6am (dark) and gets home at 7pm (dark). Oh well.

In the end, it was a good experience and I enjoyed the challenge.
















HELP!:

So how would you go about eliminating these swirls/ scratches? I tried Megs UC on a mf cloth and an applicator... it didn't work!






Thanks for reading!

[pikiki]

Nice job brother!!!

[allenk4]

Great Work!

Nice Shop; very professional.

[House of Wax]

Don't sell yourself short....that looks like a million bucks compared to what you started with

[Mike@DedicatedPerfection]

Wow, beautiful transformation! Love the 50/50 shots between the door panels.

[Matt-erhorn]

Wow amazing job! I just did one of these recently and noticed the same thing as you, paint was insanely soft. I buffed all swirls out using Meg's ultimate polish on a 7 inch yellow Meg's pad. But even that combo left some da haze behind. But again kudos on getting it that amazing, especially given the state of the vehicle you started with.

[Dellinger]

Pikiki-
Many thanks for reading and replying!

AllenK4-
You made it through my small essay...thank you for the comments!

hoamskilet-
Glad to see you are here, as well. I appreciate your kind words!

Smack-
Thank you for replying and your kind response.

Matt-erhorn-
Yes, you have the 'detailing infantry badge' on one of these as well? Always glad to have another companion of which to downcast the "soft' Honda paint with! Thank you for your encouragement and words.

-Gabe

[EXTJosh]

You did a great job on the paint correction Gabe. I'd say dress the wheel wells and the window trim and the car will be looking brand new! Regarding your question, have you attempted to polish the swirls on the side moldings with a smaller pad? I've found a smaller pad works wonders and has no problem correcting those hard to reach/awkward areas.

[Dellinger]

Josh-

Thank you for responding with a keen eye!

Yes, I didn't dress the wheel wells.

However, I did dress the window trim... I guess the rubber is so neglected, it just didn't appear dressed. (Or I need to apply a second coat, or I need a trim restorer! Probably the latter!)

You know, I tried hitting the side trim with a 3" yellow Megs cutting pad and M100 but I failed to affect the defects. (I guess a rotary would be needed because a D/A machine just bogged down with the profile side of pad hitting the door and all that jazz. But, I don't have a B.P for a rotary that small... and not sure if I trust myself that much just yet with a rotary.)

Thank you for pointing the above out!

-Gabe

[EXTJosh]

Josh-

Thank you for responding with a keen eye!

Yes, I didn't dress the wheel wells.

However, I did dress the window trim... I guess the rubber is so neglected, it just didn't appear dressed. (Or I need to apply a second coat, or I need a trim restorer! Probably the latter!)

You know, I tried hitting the side trim with a 3" yellow Megs cutting pad and M100 but I failed to affect the defects. (I guess a rotary would be needed because a D/A machine just bogged down with the profile side of pad hitting the door and all that jazz. But, I don't have a B.P for a rotary that small... and not sure if I trust myself that much just yet with a rotary.)

Thank you for pointing the above out!

-Gabe

My bad!-- at first glance from my iPhone screen I couldn't tell you dressed the window moulding & trim but on a closer look I could for sure tell. Car cleaned up great after all your hard work. I know I was probably stating the obvious with the 3" pad/combo but I'm surprised it didn't correct that plastic molding...