Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

[MTLian]

Hello! So I'm about to get my 7424XP in the mail anytime now and before I embark on the multi hour long project, I'd like to run my routine past the veterans for advice. My main hesitation is on two steps: IPA rubdown and the use of a Klasse AIO. I'd like to get this all done in one fell swoop so I can apply masking tape only once and do all the steps.

here's my planned routine after I touch up a few deep scratches with touch up paint a few days in advance:

1) wash with the two bucket technique with Autoglym car Shampoo
2) Claybar
3) quick wash to get rid of clay lube
3) wetsand touch up paint blobs or scratches in the clear and use M205 or UC to buff out the haze
4) use Ultimate compound on the front valence/lip to correct some of the dimples in the clear coat. It probably won't be perfect but I hope to improve it
5) do a test spot with m205 to see which pad to use (black finesse, white polish or orange cutting) to remove swirls. Repeat the process over the whole car

here's where I'm unsure if these steps are necessary:
6) 30% IPA solution rubdown to remove traces of polish
7) apply klasse AIO (machine)

Finally:
8) apply klasse sealant glaze by hand

since I'm polishing the whole car with M205 to remove moderate swirls, couldn't I skip the Klasse AIO altogether and go right to the sealant glaze? This process will already be very long and if I can skip the AIO it would help make the project feasible as a one day project. Could the AIO be a substitute for the IPA rubdown to remove any traces of polish before the application of the glaze?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

[The Guz]

Re: Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

1) wash with the two bucket technique with Autoglym car Shampoo
2) Claybar
3) wetsand touch up paint blobs or scratches in the clear and use UC to buff out the haze followed by M205
4) use Ultimate compound on the front valence/lip to correct some of the dimples in the clear coat. It probably won't be perfect but I hope to improve it
5) do a test spot with m205 to see which pad to use (black finesse, white polish or orange cutting) to remove swirls. Repeat the process over the whole car

6) apply klasse AIO (I would do it by hand since M205 is doing the correcting. KAIO will remove the polishing oils from M205 to set the foundation for KSG). Should take about 15 - 20 min which is not bad.

7) apply klasse sealant glaze by hand (Method 2 below works the best to apply)

So I modified your steps. No need to rewash after claying since you will be polishing. Just be sure the areas you wetsand are very clean prior to compounding and polishing. I have and used klasse. That is what is on my daily driver. It has been on the car for 7 months and it's still going strong. The klasse twins are meant to work together. KAIO will set the foundation for KSG. I would do both by hand. KAIO is non abrasive so it won't offer any correction like M205. You will only be using it as a paint cleaner to remove the polishing oils from using M205. That is why I would do it by hand. Apply and remove. No need to go around the car and let it haze.

KSG is finicky to use. I have learned 2 methods to apply it
1. Have a bowl of water and a micrfiber applicator. Dunk the MF applicator pad in the bowl and wring it out. You want it to be damp. Apply a few panels and then dunk it in the bowl as soon as you feel the applicator drying and dragging on the paint. Continue until you have gone around the entire car. Let it sit for 30 min and remove. If you find it hard to remove you probably applied it to thick. Just use some detail spray to remove.

2. Get a small travel size spray bottle. Put in about 2 ounces of KSG. You want to have the MF applicator damp. Spray a panel with about 1-2 sprays and work into the paint until KSG flashes. Then wipe off. No need to let it sit and have. This is more of a WOWO (wipe on wipe off) method. Works much better this way.

With KSG you want to do at least 2-3 coats to get the best look. I have 2 coats on my car and maintain it with sonus acrylic spritz and the acrylic glanz.

It's a long process but it does look great when you are done.

If you want to minimize time after using M205, I would recommend you follow up with one of Meguiar's sealants like ultimate wax, NXT or M21. The reason being it's all in the same family so no need for an IPA wipe.

This is what my car looks like with the klasse twins and after an application of sonus acylic glanz to boost the existing 7 month old klasse.

[davey g-force]

Re: Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

If you want to minimize time after using M205, I would recommend you follow up with one of Meguiar's sealants like ultimate wax, NXT or M21. The reason being it's all in the same family so no need for an IPA wipe.

This is what I was thinking.

A Meg's sealant would eliminate the need for an IPA wipe and/or a pre-wax cleaner. So you'd go straight from M205 to your LSP.

[MTLian]

Re: Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

Yeah, but my real last step product will be autoglym HD wax because I love the deep wet shine However, given the size of the task, I plan to at least get to applying the AIO since I don't want to drive around with a polished car with no sealant, even if for a day. I don't mind doing many steps it's just that I'm hoping to get from the initial wash to the sealant in one day for best results!

Thanks very much for your recommendations! I will ditch the IPA since the AIO will probably clean off any residue if there is any. Once that is done, on another day I'm gonna go ahead and polish my lights and try and seal those as well as polishing my windows with the AIO. I wish I could polish the inside of the windows with AIO but I'm afraid it would wreck my tint...

[The Guz]

Re: Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

KAIO leaves behind some protection. It can last a couple months on it's own. With klasse I would not even bother topping it with anything else as it looks good with nothing else. 2-3 coats will give you that wet glassy look. I would pick up the 2 sonus products (acrylic spritz & acrylic glanz) to maintain klasse.

Another of my car with the klasse twins.


Silver doesn't get that wow factor like a black or red.

This is my brothers that had klasse but is now sporting meguiar's.

[MTLian]

Re: Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

My silver Honda looks like a spaceship when done correctly however, I've developed a critical eye and I know that when I use Autoglym super resin polish, I'm mainly filling in and hiding defects rather than correcting. Plus it takes ages to apply by hand so when I found the 7424XP on sale I pounced on it! Darn thing has been out of stock for weeks so I'm anxious to get it but it will hopefully give my touch ups time to cure.

honestly, I like pampering my car in the summer so I don't mind applying wax every few months but I want the hard Klasse protection under it! You should try the Autoglym HD wax, it is a blend of polymers and carnauba so you get the best of both worlds and it is more long lasting than pure carnauba!

Your ride looks nice but I'd try and touch up that front bumper cover! I deal with a paint shop that sells mainly to bodyshops but they'll sell a small nail polish sized jar of paint with clearcoat mixed in. It's way better quality than the dealers' touch up and it is long lasting. I tried both on my car and only the paint shop quality paint stayed on after the harsh Canadian winter.

by the way, are we the only two users on this forum? This feels like a private conversation lol!

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

With regard to the sanding you plan on doing, what grit are you going to be finishing with? You may really struggle trying to remove sanding marks with M205 and most likely will need to step up to something with a lot more punch, like M105, to remove even 3000 grit sanding marks with a DA and foam pads. Don't underestimate this process!!!

We also agree that there should be no need to rewash or even rinse the car following the clay step if you simply wipe each section dry after claying. After all, it's merely a quick detail spray being used as lube so there's nothing there that is going to impede your correction process.

Overall, having a plan that you rely on too heavily can be frustrating. You haven't done any of this on this car before so you don't yet know how it's going to respond to the correction step. Will M205 be enough to remove the swirls or will you need something like Ultimate Compound instead? That's what a test spot is for. Even if we knew the make, year, model and color of you car that's no guarantee of what will work best - we haven't worked on this particular car. We hear all the time that BMW Jet Black paint is some of the softest, most frustrating paint out there, yet we've worked on some Jet Black cars where the paint was pretty mainstream or downright hard as a rock. You just don't know until you do that test spot.

In light of the above, keep a "Plan B" or even a "Plan C" in mind as options. You might find that UC does an outstanding job removing the swirls and leaves the finish looking exceptional. In that case, a quick follow up with Klasse AIO would be the perfect prep to their Sealant Glaze, skipping M205 altogether (seriously can not believe that I just suggested skipping M205 as it is truly awesome stuff!). If you're really sold on the Klasse Twins, that's probably the best way to go with them, however.

[MTLian]

Re: Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

With regard to the sanding you plan on doing, what grit are you going to be finishing with? You may really struggle trying to remove sanding marks with M205 and most likely will need to step up to something with a lot more punch, like M105, to remove even 3000 grit sanding marks with a DA and foam pads. Don't underestimate this process!!!

We also agree that there should be no need to rewash or even rinse the car following the clay step if you simply wipe each section dry after claying. After all, it's merely a quick detail spray being used as lube so there's nothing there that is going to impede your correction process.

Overall, having a plan that you rely on too heavily can be frustrating. You haven't done any of this on this car before so you don't yet know how it's going to respond to the correction step. Will M205 be enough to remove the swirls or will you need something like Ultimate Compound instead? That's what a test spot is for. Even if we knew the make, year, model and color of you car that's no guarantee of what will work best - we haven't worked on this particular car. We hear all the time that BMW Jet Black paint is some of the softest, most frustrating paint out there, yet we've worked on some Jet Black cars where the paint was pretty mainstream or downright hard as a rock. You just don't know until you do that test spot.

In light of the above, keep a "Plan B" or even a "Plan C" in mind as options. You might find that UC does an outstanding job removing the swirls and leaves the finish looking exceptional. In that case, a quick follow up with Klasse AIO would be the perfect prep to their Sealant Glaze, skipping M205 altogether (seriously can not believe that I just suggested skipping M205 as it is truly awesome stuff!). If you're really sold on the Klasse Twins, that's probably the best way to go with them, however.

wow thanks for the advice! I found a place to buy M105 and M205 and I was gonna go for that but after reading on the Meguiar's forum about how M105 is tricky to use for beginner detailers, I decided to go with a UC and M205 combo since the later is more abrasive than ultimate polish. I especially read a MOL article on a black honda Civic that was tough to correct. Very good read. I planned on wet sanding by hand with 3M at 2000 or 2500 grit which I hope that I will be able to clear with UC on an orange pad which would be the most aggressive means I have at my disposal.

I actually planned on using UC for the front valence since it is very rough and damaged. I don't want to sand there because I don't want to put even more stress on a clear coat that is already taking a beating.

I also planned on using UC by hand to remove sanding marks and then just going over the whole car with the M205, or the least aggressive pad/compound combo that offers the amount of correction I want. However, I fear that places that were compounded and then polished might have a different look/reflection/finish than other surrounding surfaces. Is this a valid concern, or can I assume that polishing a whole area will blend in an area that was first compounded with an area that simply needs swirl removal?

[Top Gear]

Re: Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

I won't argue about the product choices, MTLian, but I will chime in to say you can't know how long this is going to take, depending on interruptions, light, location, back pain, and so on. Compounding is particularly time-consuming, and will be frustrating, demoralizing, and repetitive, so it could easily take days' worth of work to get the whole car right. This is why we do not do a full correction every weekend, or even every month.

So, I'd start with a clean car, of course, and then focus on one panel or two for the day, going through each step for that panel or section alone, as needed for that panel or section, before moving on to another. Trying to do the whole car for each step in one day will almost certainly not work out - as I've found out - unless you have unlimited time, light, energy, and concentration

Edit: Oh, to add regarding your question about uniformity, the compounding might not be necessary on every inch of the car, but to make sure all the paint surfaces look uniform, I recommend you definitely at least polish them all before waxing. A panel or section where you don't have to compound will save a lot of time, but the look of the polish will be the same.

[MTLian]

Re: Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

I won't argue about the product choices, MTLian, but I will chime in to say you can't know how long this is going to take, depending on interruptions, light, location, back pain, and so on. Compounding is particularly time-consuming, and will be frustrating, demoralizing, and repetitive, so it could easily take days' worth of work to get the whole car right. This is why we do not do a full correction every weekend, or even every month.

So, I'd start with a clean car, of course, and then focus on one panel or two for the day, going through each step for that panel or section alone, as needed for that panel or section, before moving on to another. Trying to do the whole car for each step in one day will almost certainly not work out - as I've found out - unless you have unlimited time, light, energy, and concentration

Edit: Oh, to add regarding your question about uniformity, the compounding might not be necessary on every inch of the car, but to make sure all the paint surfaces look uniform, I recommend you definitely at least polish them all before waxing. A panel or section where you don't have to compound will save a lot of time, but the look of the polish will be the same.

Thanks for the great suggestions! So I guess I'll try compounding before I even attempt the polish.

if I understand correctly, you recommend doing all the steps from say, claybar to sealant on one panel at a time? That sounds like a good idea although, I bet my car will look goofy with a very shiny polished door and the rest looking dulled

so thanks to you suggestion, I'll claybar, wetsand and compound some scratches days before I attempt to polish the whole car. I'm still on the fence with the one panel at a time technique though

[The Guz]

Re: Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

My silver Honda looks like a spaceship when done correctly however, I've developed a critical eye and I know that when I use Autoglym super resin polish, I'm mainly filling in and hiding defects rather than correcting. Plus it takes ages to apply by hand so when I found the 7424XP on sale I pounced on it! Darn thing has been out of stock for weeks so I'm anxious to get it but it will hopefully give my touch ups time to cure.

honestly, I like pampering my car in the summer so I don't mind applying wax every few months but I want the hard Klasse protection under it! You should try the Autoglym HD wax, it is a blend of polymers and carnauba so you get the best of both worlds and it is more long lasting than pure carnauba!

Your ride looks nice but I'd try and touch up that front bumper cover! I deal with a paint shop that sells mainly to bodyshops but they'll sell a small nail polish sized jar of paint with clearcoat mixed in. It's way better quality than the dealers' touch up and it is long lasting. I tried both on my car and only the paint shop quality paint stayed on after the harsh Canadian winter.

by the way, are we the only two users on this forum? This feels like a private conversation lol!

The entire car will eventually get painted as I will be keeping it for a very long time. I bought it off the Pontiac dealership new in 1999 and the California sun has beat up on it since it sits outside 24/7. The front bumper has faded which is common on these cars. The rear bumper has the signs of clear coat failure. Another common problem. The front drivers side fender is also exhibiting signs of clear coat failure. The front bumper is an add on piece and I'm not to concerned with the chips. That's part of being lowered and driving on the highway here in California. I can always remove it until I get it painted if it really bothers me.

As far as trying out autoglm, I have M26 which is also a hybrid wax. I use that as my wax. M26 is also known to have the highest D.O.I (dstinction of image). I'm not knocking klasse. It's a great product and I tried it to see what the hype was all about. It lived up to it. I could easily go another 2-3 months with it and claim close to a year of protection. I would use it again if that is all I had. But I will be going back to my Meguiar's line up. They give me a better look and I enjoy the ease of use. Not to mention that I like to wax/seal after polishing without the additional step of a paint cleaner. I'm a fan of the M21/M26 combo.

On a side note I detailed my 02 Camaro that sits in the garage and I took about 2 weeks to finish it. I would do a panel here an there when I got home from work. The luxury of the garage and this car not being my daily. So you could work on your car in pieces.

Post pics of you car when you are done.

[MTLian]

Re: Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

Post pics of you car when you are done.

Will do but I'm getting my polisher only the 2nd of May because of some retarded NAPA mess up here in Canada :/ . I see you are keen on the Meg's for ease of use but do you think it could come close to the protection and durability of the Klasse? One reason I'm high on using Klasse is that in the winter here in Canadastan, I end up having to drive around with an absolutely filthy ride or get it cleaned by the butchers at the car wash ! So I like the idea of having that extra protection.

[The Guz]

Re: Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

With ultimate wax I have gotten 6 months of durability. Southern California doesn't have harsh winters so I can't compare both products and how they handle the snowy elements.

[stilltipping3]

Re: Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

Hello! So I'm about to get my 7424XP in the mail anytime now and before I embark on the multi hour long project, I'd like to run my routine past the veterans for advice. My main hesitation is on two steps: IPA rubdown and the use of a Klasse AIO. I'd like to get this all done in one fell swoop so I can apply masking tape only once and do all the steps.

here's my planned routine after I touch up a few deep scratches with touch up paint a few days in advance:

1) wash with the two bucket technique with Autoglym car Shampoo
2) Claybar
3) quick wash to get rid of clay lube
3) wetsand touch up paint blobs or scratches in the clear and use M205 or UC to buff out the haze
4) use Ultimate compound on the front valence/lip to correct some of the dimples in the clear coat. It probably won't be perfect but I hope to improve it
5) do a test spot with m205 to see which pad to use (black finesse, white polish or orange cutting) to remove swirls. Repeat the process over the whole car

here's where I'm unsure if these steps are necessary:
6) 30% IPA solution rubdown to remove traces of polish
7) apply klasse AIO (machine)

Finally:
8) apply klasse sealant glaze by hand

since I'm polishing the whole car with M205 to remove moderate swirls, couldn't I skip the Klasse AIO altogether and go right to the sealant glaze? This process will already be very long and if I can skip the AIO it would help make the project feasible as a one day project. Could the AIO be a substitute for the IPA rubdown to remove any traces of polish before the application of the glaze?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

When u wet sand u will need to use M105 to get the sanding marks out. Then use 205. After u finish the polishing step u could either use ipa mix 30/70 alch/h2o to clean the oils or u can use the Klasse AIO as that is what it is for. It will clean ur paint to get it ready for ur sealant(KSG) or coating(OPTI COAT). The Klasse twins should be used in that order.

[MTLian]

Re: Correct steps for cleaning, polishing, IPA rub and sealant

When u wet sand u will need to use M105 to get the sanding marks out. Then use 205. After u finish the polishing step u could either use ipa mix 30/70 alch/h2o to clean the oils or u can use the Klasse AIO as that is what it is for. It will clean ur paint to get it ready for ur sealant(KSG) or coating(OPTI COAT). The Klasse twins should be used in that order.

since the paint on Honda's is so soft, I was thinking of using Ultimate compound to remove the wet sanding marks. You don't think it's strong enough?