My Detailing Adventures

[television]

It was a tongue in cheek comment

Yours still looks good though. Do you wax or seal it?

That was my old SL, just Mcquires polish, I use the Autoglym best wax on the CL

 

[C350Carl]

As long as the car is polished properly then you should be able to achieve a good result regardless of what wax you use on it to be honest.

But darker colours do show the results a lot better.

 

[Arzaam]

At the OP,

Very good results. I've been amateur detailing for about 5yrs now and been charging people for the past couple.

I'm assuming yours doesn't have the modern ceramic clear coat on it? Mine is an absolute bar steward to correct if it gets scratched/swirls. The previous owner must have used car washes as it was really bad. The pics above flatter the current state of the car. It still has a few marks here and there and I intend to get a the finish the same as yours when using proper light on it.

It's just going to take about 30hrs of machine polishing and a 3 stage pass on the whole car to do so.

I did chuckle when I drove past a newly refurbished IMO car wash near me. Big sign outside saying it was new "scratchless" technology. I bet the likes of KDS, Miglior, Paul Dalton etc must be sh!tting themselves.

I was lucky enough not have scratches or swirls so I didn't require cutting

Yes it takes a lot of time of polishing but that's using fool proof DA polisher
It's much quicker using a rotary but then you run the risk of damaging the paint as well
And yes we should stay away from carwashes! Even the scratch less kind

 

[Arzaam]

Your car looks great Malcolm Sir

Basically in dark colours we strive when detailing for depth in paint while in light shades such as silver we strive for reflections instead of depth
That's the basic difference

Moreover flakes are even more prominent in lighter shades than darker shades

That said in my household apart from merc I have three black cars and one green one and dark colours are by far the most satisfying to detail

 

[C350Carl]

I was lucky enough not have scratches or swirls so I didn't require cutting



Yes it takes a lot of time of polishing but that's using fool proof DA polisher

It's much quicker using a rotary but then you run the risk of damaging the paint as well

And yes we should stay away from carwashes! Even the scratch less kind

I have both DA and Rotary. But I don't use the DA to be honest and haven't done for a couple of years now.

From a test I did I would still be looking at around 30hrs of polishing to remove 95%+ of the defects even with a rotary. I could probably cheat a bit and skimp on areas where it would never be seen. But it would annoy me.

 

[Arzaam]

I have both DA and Rotary. But I don't use the DA to be honest and haven't done for a couple of years now.

From a test I did I would still be looking at around 30hrs of polishing to remove 95%+ of the defects even with a rotary. I could probably cheat a bit and skimp on areas where it would never be seen. But it would annoy me.

did you buy the car as a used one? as sure its very hard to correct but its also very resistant to scratches and swirls in the first place, in short time span it should not have had these much scratches.

that said if its a daily driver car i wouldn't worry too much about scratches anyway, the paint should be smooth and slick thanks to polishing oils and protected and glossy via wax sealant etc which your is! looks pretty good to me swirls wont be really visible in lighter shades anyway, thats the headache of dark colours

 

[C350Carl]

Yes it was a used approved and the condition of the paint was part of how I haggled down on the price.

It's 3yrs old and I'm sure the previous owner put it through a car wash weekly.

 

[Arzaam]

my detailing "collection", what ever colour paint you got, whatever condition its in, whatever type it is i got it covered

this the main detailing trolley

IMG_1830 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

this is the everyday wash, wax cleaning etc detailing trolley

IMG_1838 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_1831 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_1832 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_1833 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_1834 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_1835 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_1836 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_1837 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_1839 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_1840 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_1842 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_1843 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_1844 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr


pressure and steam washers

IMG_1845 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

the red big spray tank i use for undercarriage degreasing

IMG_1846 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

heat gun, drill for DA power tool

IMG_1847 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

also have full size DA polisher

IMG_1849 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

i also got some other small tidbits here and there including lamps for detailing and stools to sit on while working or to reach roof easily

i am not a professional or anything just a amateur who started a year and a half ago, but mind you i learn fast

 

[Arzaam]

time to wax some before pics for now, as i am little busy this weekend

it has gotten dirty and doesnt pop as before, however the sealants are still there offering excellent protection and good reflections

DSC02544 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

DSC02545 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

DSC02549 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

 

[Arzaam]

a preview after first coat of wax, another coat and finishing wipe and touches remaining

DSC02609 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

DSC02608 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

DSC02613 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

DSC02605 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

DSC02614 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

 

[Arzaam]

some new stuff i got,

Mothers Carnauba cleaner wax, i didn't have a cleaner wax in my arsenal so i thought ill get this small bottle for the sake of it, it would be good for a car that has natural waxes no sealant on it or for refreshing the paint say once in 6 months, plus i never have tried mothers products so curios too

IMG_1976 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

my APC was finished and got this thing from a supermarket only costed around 2 pounds, i have found carpex a good brand for its price and wanted to try its APC to see if any good, even if it turns out to be unfit you could always use it around the house, which i do a lot with retired products

IMG_1979 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

this little thing was interesting, its for cleaning the grille of your car and is made out of micro fibre and has flexible prongs, it makes cleaning grills very easy, a part of car i always hated to clean and comes with a spare micro fibre attachment as well

IMG_1981 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

 

[Arzaam]

its time to wax again, month old single wax coat and 3month old sealant,

this time instead of doing just wax i also wanted to add more depth as i felt it could need more help there
i hide some of tiny swirls that are there on some lower panels like the rear bumper, i had never used compound on the car originally. anyway, instead of doing paint correction i am going to mask those blemishes and this would not interfere with the sealant layer.

going to go with three coats of dodo juice purple haze wax, this wax has no cleaners so sealant doest get harm but it has good layering and masking capabilities and even two coats in my past experience can be enough t hide tiny swirls. two layers can be done simultaneously and third one will do after 8 hour curing time.

after that will follow up with a new acquisition, DODO juice Supernatural spray sealant, its a water based sealant and i will use this on top of the wax to further enhance protection and give it that extra slickness. being water based it can be used on top of wax and doesnt require base prep, dodo promises 4 months of protection, ill be happy even if it lasts just a month or two.


these are the current pics of the car, will start work once weather gets a little better. and i get rid of my cold that i have caught!


20141220_132737 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

20141220_132748 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

20141220_132822 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

20141220_132844 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

20141220_132853 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

taken at night

IMG_2713 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

all are smartphone pics

 

[Arzaam]

swirls like this one on rear bumper i am talking about

IMG_2758 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

 

[Arzaam]

here are the chemical guys products i bought,

3xxx hard carnauba past wax, has excellent reviews all over the net

IMG_1938 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

diablo wheel gel especially to fight of mercedes brake dust, this is designed especially for that compared to other wheel cleaners

IMG_1928 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

barebones undercarrdige protectant spray and fabric guard, fabric protectant, it also makes the fabric hydrophobic

IMG_1929 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

merino wool duster xl no fear of scrathcing as it works purely by static electricity

IMG_1941 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

a smaller one for interior

IMG_1940 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

and a generic foam lance, although my pressure washer had a built in shampoo dispenser this makes really thick foam

IMG_1944 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

 

[Arzaam]

well its not going to be ceramic coated this month as i had previous stated due to the fact that i got very busy in studies and also have a few outside city trips coming up so no time, and also the fact that the nanoskin person who came from america wanted me to come to someone else house to do the car while we had originally agreed at my house and also wanted to take lots of pictures to market it which was not fine by me.

so until june probably the sealant will have to stay put and car would stay like this,

IMG_3706 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

IMG_3705 by Detailing Dreams, on Flickr

the sealant was applied six months ago and i reckon its still good for few months more then ill do the correction and apply the coating myself and have more sense of achievement.

 

[michiganstar]

Top work, the car's looking very good.

 

[Arzaam]

after a long time trying to get back into detailing, though i usually detail the cars annually i am way overdue and still see no sign of finding time to do a good job, still have the ceramic coating with me not opened. though i have tried my best to keep the cars still in good shape by matineince techniques and basically not driving a lot.
still the same sealant though topped with a water based spray sealant for extra protection and recently used Pinacle detailer spray to spruce it up a bit at least.


IMG_0667 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_0676 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_0682 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_0684 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr

IMG_0700 by Arzaam Bhatti, on Flickr


all pics are simple smartphones ones.

the undercarriage could use some work as well. but i really like the quality of german paint, although my other cars have gone through the same period and some driven even less this has held up the best with the best beading and resistance to swirls. even after a year almost zero swirls while on the other cars even after care some have appeared.

 

[Arzaam]

i was thinking instead of doing the coating myself on this car ill do that on one of the others and get it done from this establishment. i visited their "studio" and they claimed their coating is internationally the only one certified by SGS and internationally way superior to anything including gtechniq etc.

its called Ceramic Pro

heres a link

https://www.facebook.com/ceramicpropk

http://www.ceramicproamericas.com/productrange/


they say if you go for their 9H product it will have lifetime protection, they also want to keep the car for two days and are pretty expensive, whats your view on such a coating, especially a comparison to gtechniq, which is also launching in my country soon.

 

[V6Matty]

not sure if anyone here has had that done but I know Developer (John) had the GTecniq done on his previous 63 and rated it quite highly.

 

[daveenty]

not sure if anyone here has had that done but I know Developer (John) had the GTecniq done on his previous 63 and rated it quite highly.

It's been done on the current one as well. Still looks good, and saves a lot of washing a drying time.