Detailing question

[NineD1 Slug]

Hi. I have a 1991 Mustang GT with original paint that has been garaged 90% of it's life. I took off my GT side skirts and rear bumper and sold them to a friend. I purchased a set of Cervini's Cobra side Skirts and a rear Bumper which is currently being painted has we speak. Before I throw the parts on the car I'd like to clean up a little yellow oxidation that is on the door moidings and re wax it before I install the new parts.

I was thinking about using a compound on the whole car then adding wax. A friend of mine said I should join this forum and get information here first. He said perhaps someone here would recommend against it and go with a clay bar. Then on top of that point me in the right direction with what steps and products to properly use. So that is what I am looking for.

The car still has it's original WHITE (i believe it's oxford) paint job and it is honestly in good shape except for some yellow oxidation like I mentioned. I feel that since it hasn't had a good wax in years that it could benifit from some Meguiars products. I just am not 100% sure what to go with. I believe the paint is cleared and not a single stage if that helps. I do not have a orbital mainly b/c I never knew which one to buy. So I'd like the posters to know that up front and if I need one to point me in the right direction.

Thanks in advance for the help.

Judd

[Evan.J]

Re: Detailing question

Welcome to MOL!!!!!

Well your friend had a great idea by having you come here. Now, I know mike will be around to help you out but, what I can say is that you want to start with a good wash and dry. After you may want to get the smooth suface clay kit from you locak auto parts store. This will remove any bonded contaminants that may have bonded to the paint over the years.

I first should ask thought do you have a single stage paint or Clear coat? I asume clear coat but I clould be wrong. Anyway, with the clay kit you want to go over then entire care and get it to a smooth glass like feel. There is a huge thread on the five step system which includes the was clay paint cleaner polich then wax let me find that and ill post the link.

here is a thread for some one who is new you will see a post by Murr1525 he posted a few links that all new people should read: http://meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30865 Second post down

[NineD1 Slug]

Re: Detailing question

thanks for the reply. I am going to check out the link


I do not have a single stage paint. I have clear

thanks

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Detailing question

The yellow staining you're seeing is either topical, that is on the surface or under the clear.

If it's on the surface you can fix it, if it's under the clear you cannot fix it.

To check and see if the yellowing is on the surface, take any quality paint cleaner and apply to a small section with firm pressure for about a minute and then wipe off the residue and inspect and compare the color of the paint where you applied the paint cleaner to the adjacent paint and see if there's a difference in color.

Any of these would work great for your test and Ultimate Compound would be a great product to remove all the yellowing if in fact you find out it's topical.

Swirl and Scratch Removers
Ultimate Compound
ScratchX 2.0
SwirlX


Most aggressive to least aggressive -->




Afterwards, post back here what you find out...

[NineD1 Slug]

Re: Detailing question

So you would recommend using the Ultimate Compound over the clay bar then if it's topical. I hope it is. It's not dark yellowing or anything of that nature. It's just lightly showned which made me think it was pure oxidation that would easily be removed. I will let you know once I get a chance to go to the store and do this.

Thanks Mike. I remember seeing you on another board during a google search last night. I say this b/c if your Aviator. I think it was a Chevy suv/truck board. I see you get around

[NineD1 Slug]

Re: Detailing question

Mike, would you recommend me trying to use Deep Crystal System Paint Cleaner on the yellowish oxidation to determind it's under or above the paint surface?

thanks

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Detailing question

Mike, would you recommend me trying to use Deep Crystal System Paint Cleaner on the yellowish oxidation to determine it's under or above the paint surface?

thanks

Any quality paint cleaner will work, so yes, Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner will work but it our most gentle paint cleaner so you might need to put a little more passion behind the pad. Ultimate Compound is our most aggressive compound/paint cleaner and will definitely let you know ASAP if the problem is topical or not.

So you would recommend using the Ultimate Compound over the clay bar then if it's topical. I hope it is. It's not dark yellowing or anything of that nature. It's just lightly showned which made me think it was pure oxidation that would easily be removed. I will let you know once I get a chance to go to the store and do this.

Detailing clay is for removing above surface bonded contaminants, not really oxidation however it will remove oxidation to some level.

Normally you would clay paint first to remove the things on top of the surface followed by using your paint cleaner/compound to remove defects in the paint.

With oxidation on single stage paints it's usually okay to reverse the process so you don't fill your expensive and limited use clay bar up with dead paint.

So wash your car then feel the paint and check to see if you feel little bumps in both the area with the yellowing and might as well check the hood, roof and deck-lid, (horizontal panels).

Then before you do anything else, test the affected area with whatever paint cleaner you have and see if the problem is topical or on the surface and if you can remove the yellowing with some rubbing.

If you find you can fix the problem, and you're going to use the aggressive Ultimate Compound then you can probably skip claying this area, or at least claying it first.

Make sense?

Thanks Mike. I remember seeing you on another board during a Google search last night. I say this b/c if your Aviator. I think it was a Chevy suv/truck board. I see you get around

I have a 1975 Jimmy 4x4 and belong to a couple of 4x4 forums to do what people here do and that's get help from someone that usually knows more than I do about whatever the project at hand is. I also own an old Datsun 620 Truck and belong to a Datsun forum to pick the brains of the Datsun Gurus on how to keep it running.

As posted to the homepage of this forum,

Welcome to the Meguiar's Online Discussion Forum!
As the Internet has evolved, discussion forums have become the primary way like-minded people come together to share their passion and their interests.

Forums are great, you can find a niche forum for just about any hobby with a core group of experts always willing to help others. We're very lucky in that we have a lot of great members always willing to help others...

[NineD1 Slug]

Re: Detailing question

Any quality paint cleaner will work, so yes, Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner will work but it our most gentle paint cleaner so you might need to put a little more passion behind the pad. Ultimate Compound is our most aggressive compound/paint cleaner and will definitely let you know ASAP if the problem is topical or not.





Detailing clay is for removing above surface bonded contaminants, not really oxidation however it will remove oxidation to some level.

Normally you would clay paint first to remove the things on top of the surface followed by using your paint cleaner/compound to remove defects in the paint.

With oxidation on single stage paints it's usually okay to reverse the process so you don't fill your expensive and limited use clay bar up with dead paint.

So wash your car then feel the paint and check to see if you feel little bumps in both the area with the yellowing and might as well check the hood, roof and deck-lid, (horizontal panels).

Then before you do anything else, test the affected area with whatever paint cleaner you have and see if the problem is topical or on the surface and if you can remove the yellowing with some rubbing.

If you find you can fix the problem, and you're going to use the aggressive Ultimate Compound then you can probably skip claying this area, or at least claying it first.

Make sense?

Yes I do. I am going out now to buy the compound since that will let me know pretty quickly and with less effort. I will then report back here. If it comes off then do you advise me just to compound the yellowish areas, clay the rest of the car and the proceed to the next steps or should I clay the entire vehicle first, then compound the entire vehicle before moving on to the other steps? I understand now what compound and clay are designed for, but just looking for your best opinion.

Thanks _

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Detailing question

If it comes off then do you advise me just to compound the yellowish areas, clay the rest of the car and the proceed to the next steps

or

should I clay the entire vehicle first, then compound the entire vehicle before moving on to the other steps?

One thing at a time.

Before tackling the entire car, see if you can remove the yellowing first using the Ultimate Compound. Test the Ultimate Compound on a section of the yellowing paint and see if you can remove the yellowish appearance.

Let us know the results from your testing.


After you figure this out, Meguiar's recommends feeling the paint with your clean hand to see if in fact it needs to be clayed. If this car is a daily driver, parked outside at least a portion of each day and it hasn't been clayed for a while, then it wouldn't hurt to clay the entire car just to insure there are no bonded contaminants on any of the panels.

[NineD1 Slug]

Re: Detailing question

Ok I went to three auto stores and none of them had the compound product. They all just had the little old turtle and I did not want to get that. So I opt'd to buy Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner (step 1). I put some of that on a microfiber towel and rubbed it in a 2" square. Did this for about a minute and then used the other side of the microfiber to whipe away any of the stuff on there. After doing that for about 30 seconds I used a clean section of the microfiber and rubbed it again (in a circular motion). I looked at it and unless it's all in my head I believe it worked. The car was washed 2 days ago then parked and not moved since it's not my daily. After using the cleaner pretty much dirt came off so either I did not do a good job of cleaning it the other day or it really pulled some of it off.

Where should I go from here? I'm SURE your paint cleaner product that I bought is not indented solo for a job like this so I believe if I can find your compound product then it should work well.

[Murr1525]

Re: Detailing question

The DC cleaner is very mild (way below SwirlX in the above pic). The UC is very strong. So the results you saw are are what a mild product can do.

If you think you need stronger, you might just have to order online if you want to try the stronger products. Autodetailingsolutions.com is a good place, if you have to order it.

But you will still want to clay everything, then use the paint cleaner of your choice. (or Mike's choice...)

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Detailing question

Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner is less aggressive than the ScratchX pictured to the far right... it is the least aggressive paint cleaner we offer and "Yes", it needs to be followed with a wax as it's a dedicated paint cleaner, that is it leaves behind no protective coating.


Aggressiveness Order for New Consumer Products - This will surprise you!

Since we introduced these 3 new swirl and scratch removers in our Consumer Line and our new M205 Ultra Finishing Polish in our Professional line, many people have asked how aggressive these new products are as compared to some of our existing products that our forum members are already familiar with to help them understand the cleaning and/or abrading ability of these new products I've listed them in order of most aggressive to least aggressive reading from left to right.

(Apologies ahead of time if you have to horizontal scroll)

Most aggressive to least aggressive -->




That would be from most to least aggressive,

• M105 Ultra Cut Compound
• Ultimate Compound
• ScratchX 2.0
• SwirlX
• M83 Dual Action Cleaner Polish
• M205 Ultra Finishing Polish - M80 Speed Glaze (Different types of abrasives but close in cut ability)
• ScratchX (Current Version being discontinued)

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Detailing question

If Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner is removing the yellowish stain then go with it... if you want to remove swirls and scratches out of the rest of the finish then you're really going to want to get a hold of any of these,

Ultimate Compound
M105 Ultra Compound
ScratchX 2.0


All three are fairly aggressive when applied by hand with a little passion behind the pad.

The Ultimate Compound comes in a 16 ounce bottle, the M105 comes in a quart and the ScratchX 2.0 comes in an 7 ounce bottle.


Did you call Customer Care?

[NineD1 Slug]

Re: Detailing question

Thanks Mike. I appreciate you taking the time to help. No I did not call customer care. Which compound would you recommend (since you showed some others) for me since I am not a professional. I was going to grab the Ultimate Compound since you first told me about that, but like I stated they did not have it nor any other ones. So if I have to call customer care for it I will.

Thanks

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Detailing question

Which compound would you recommend (since you showed some others) for me since I am not a professional.

Any of the 3 products recommended will work, Ultimate Compound is probably the best bet due to being the right size for the job, (16 ounce bottle), but if you can't find it locally and don't want to order online then it becomes whatever you can find.

ScratchX 2.0 is getting good shelf-placement in retail store so it might be easier to find but you might need two tubes.

M105 must be purchased through a PBE store or online.

How to locate Meguiar's Professional and Detailer products in your hometown


The recommendation to call Customer Care is because they might be able to help you locate it locally as they usually have their finger on the pulse of product availability in the retail world.