Starter kit, what elese?

[philming]

Hi there ! I'm doing my shoping list for a DA. I've found this kit for starters :

http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=KES-DAS6KIT1

It comes with :

Kestrel DAS6 Dual Action Polisher x1
Meguiar's #80 Speed Glaze x1
Meguiar's #83 Dual Action Cleaner Polish x1
Meguiar's 2.0 W7207 Soft Buff Cutting Pad x1
Meguiar's 2.0 W8207 Soft Buff Polishing Pad x1
Meguiar's 2.0 W9207 Soft Buff Finishing Pad x1

I was wondering what else I should order. I allready have most consumer line products (SwirlX, Nxt Tech Wax 2, UDQ and UQW, plus many accessories like MF, water magnet, etc.

I'm not sure what the correspondancy is between the consumer line and the pro line (What is #83's equivalent in the consumer line i.e.)
Since I'm going to order everythingg at once, could you please help me out there and tell me what I should go for?

Thanx for your input !

[Ganesa]

Re: Stater kit, what elese?

looks like a complete deal, but dont think you would need the Meguiar's 2.0 W7207 Soft Buff Cutting Pad for the DA.. but if you could exchange the Cutting Pad with a Polishing Pad, it would be great at that price...

The #83 & #80 is the old combo that uses the Micro Abrasive Technology, while the #105 & #205 is the new combo that uses the Super Micro Abrasive Technology (SMAT)..
the difference in them is probably the time to break down the product, where the SMAT is faster than the MA :]...

It depends on where you stand... are you new to detailing??? if so I would order what you mentioned and some products from the Consumer Line of Meguiars such as:
-Ultimate Compound
-Smooth Surface Clay Kit (contains 2 clay bars, Supreme Shine MF, QD bottle)
-Gold Class Trim Detailer (for the trims)
-Endurance/Hot Shine Tire Gel
-Grit Guard's fpr washing (if you dont own)
these would be enough for a mild restoring and mild cleaning session, and would be enough to maintain your car..

but unless you want to do a full detail I would order:
Kestrel DAS6 Dual Action Polisher x1 / G220 Dual Action Polisher x1
Meguiar's #80 Speed Glaze x1
Meguiar's #83 Dual Action Cleaner Polish x1
Meguiar's 2.0 W7207 Soft Buff Cutting Pad x1 (try ask if you can exchange to Polishing pad if you can)
Meguiar's 2.0 W8207 Soft Buff Polishing Pad x1
Meguiar's 2.0 W9207 Soft Buff Finishing Pad x1
Meguiar's Mirror Glaze #105 Ultra Cut Compound
Meguiar's Mirror Glaze #205 Ultra Finishing Polish
Meguiar's Last Touch Spray Detailer (used for Claying and QD'ing)

I had a friend in Denmark ordering the G220 from www.cleanyourcar.co.uk but that deal you found looks more interesting :]

good luck

[philming]

Re: Stater kit, what elese?

OK so :
The clay I have
I'll ask if I can replace 80 and 83 with 105 and 205.
Last Touch is the pro version of QD if I understand well...
Shouldn't I go for several polishing pads? And - sorry to ask the question here - are the Megs really superior to the Lake Country i.e.?
I would probably need someting to remove rather deep scratches. Not sure if UC will do the trick, but what I intend to do is find a paint pen, fill the scratch if too deep, and polish on top. Would UC with hand application be OK?
As for the wheels, mine are painted alloy. Would the trim detailer be OK?

As for where I stand, I'm rather a noob to this world, and have only detailed my car once so far (check this thread http://meguiarsonline.com/forums/sho...442#post354442).
My car is light, silvery grey, and rather new, so It's quiet hard to see any swirls in the sun i.e.
I'll probably have to deal with a black 5 series BMW, and maybe a black S class mercedes.

Thanx for all, this forum really is helpfull !

[Ganesa]

Re: Starter kit, what elese?

yes try asking... I would definately agree with you getting more pads, maybe 4 polishing pads, and 3 finishing pads would be enough.. I haven't tried the LC pads, so I cant give any advice there, but heard good things about them

yes, Last Touch is the Pro Version of QD, and the good thing about it is you can dilute it 1:1, so it will last a loong time..

Well like I said, if you really intend to do a full detail on your car or any other cars, then the real combo would be #105 & #205, but remember the DA has its limits, so there are definately some defects that you need a rotary to do the job. And also if you intend to fix deeper scratches by filling in paint and wetsanding it, you would probably need a rotary :]...

for your wheels there are several options you could use, either the pro version of using APC/APC+ that you can dilute 10:1 (medium duty) or 4:1 (heavy duty) or you could use the consumer lines of Meguiars such as Hot Rims® All Wheel Cleaner and Hot Rims® Multi Piece Wheel Wash...

the trim detailer is for the plastic trims on the exterior on your car to make it look more rich and glossy..

Good Luck, the more you ask the better you get in detailing

[philming]

Re: Starter kit, what elese?

OK I mailed the guies at the shop and they'll prepare a special kit for me with the #105 and 205 instead. Great shop I must say. I'll be waiting for them to get RainX back in stock as well. I guess I will go for Megs regular pads, and go for one or two extra polishing pads. What'd be the use of having more than one finishing pad? Or more polishing pads ? I really have no experience with DAs so I dont understand how often I'll be supposed to change them.
Maybe be I'll go for a small back plate and polishing pads as well, that might come in handy...
As for the wheels, glass, tires and so on I'll get what I can ;-)
Oh and one more thing. What about windshield polish? I cant seem to find much on the store I mentionned above in this field. Any advice on what I'd need?

[Ganesa]

Re: Starter kit, what elese?

yea thats a great shop giving you a special kit... but remember to always start out with the least aggresive cleaner..

well having more pads, gives you the time efficiency when one pad is filled with residue, and also gives you the option to use more cleaners with a different new clean polishing pad, this is usually useful when your making test spots..

so for example:
Polishing pad #1 - M105
Polishing pad #2 - M205
Finishing pad #1 - M205
Finishing pad #2 - NXT/GC wax

but i would recommend at least 2-3 pads for each product for a correction process to remove defects, because the pads will load up with both product and Clear coat or paint, and will therefore lose its cutting ability. which is why it is important to Clean Your Pad On The Fly after each panel...

before you get your DA, you might as well read these links:
Tips & Techniques for using the G110, G100, G220 and the PC Dual Action Polisher
How to apply product to the face of your foam buffing pads
How to use the G-100 to remove swirls

and when you get tired of reading, just hit youtube and search for G220 Dual action, there will be great videos on how to use the DA :]

for the wheels and tires you might want to try APC (All Purpose Cleaner) which you can dilute at a 1:10(medium duty) or 1:4(heavy duty).. it comes quite handy as you can also use it for cleaning the interior and plastic trims...

what do you mean window polish? cleaning the windows? or removing scratches?

I think all the Meguiars products for tires have been reviewed highly.. I currently use the GC Endurance Tire Gel, and its great... there are some here in this forum who uses All Season Dressing for their tires, comes out great too :]

good luck

btw,
"akimel" made a great thread with great links that you should also check out:
Internet Resources for Detailing Newbs

such as this thread is quite useful for DA users:
Machine Polishing By Dual Action Polisher

[philming]

Re: Starter kit, what elese?

Yes that's what I'm going for (GC Endurance Tire Gel).

I'm still hesitating between LC and Meg pads though.

For the glass, yes I meant polishing. As for cleaning I usually go for Nxt Glass spray and a coat of UQW on top, since I haven't found RainX yet. The drawback to yhis treatment is that all minor scratches and hits I wouldn't even notive beforehand just shine like stars when the sun hits the windshield. So I'm looking into trying to have them off before going for the hammer and call my insurance company ;-)

You know what? I guess I'll go for Meg pads for the big ones, and LC for the 4". Meg dont propose those anyway so... That'll be a good way to test and compare.

Thanx for the links btw, those are the ones I started with when I began looking into DAs...

So far that's my shopping list

Kestrel DAS6 Meguiar's Starter Kit (6 items) (special with 1 of each Meg pads + 105/205)
Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Foam Finishing Pad (7 inch)
Meguiar's Soft Buff 2.0 Foam Polishing Pad (7 inch) (x2, so that's 3 polishing pads global)

Lake Country Spot Pad Backing Plate for DA Polishers (85mm)
Lake Country CCS White Polishing Spot Pad (4 inch)
Lake Country CCS Black Finessing Spot Pad (4 inch)

3M Tape 3434 Professional Masking Tape 25mm (1 roll)
3M Tape 3434 Professional Masking Tape 19mm (1 roll)

Meguiar's Last Touch Spray Detailer (3.78L)
Meguiar's Hot Rims All Wheel Cleaner (710ml)
Meguiar's Deep Crystal Step 1 - Cleaner (473ml) (between polishing and waxing if I understand well)

Meguiar's Endurance High Gloss Tyre Gel (473ml)
Meguiar's Tyre Dressing Applicator (single)

Rain-X Windscreen Washer Additive (500ml)

[cardriver]

Re: Starter kit, what elese?

All I can tell you is that with most cars, you are going to achieve no appreciable level of correction with 7'' SoftBuff 2.0 Yellow Polishing pads on the DA on speed 5/6 w/ m105. I didn't check your list to see if you had any Yellow SB2's, but I suggest you look into some 5.5 Lack Country CCS pads...or at least anything that isn't a Yellow SB2. They, plus M105 combo have caused me much anguish in with no-correction-achieved.

[philming]

Re: Starter kit, what elese?

Strange. Seems to me most topics here indicate you should do the job with Megs polishing pad, regardless of the product you use... I must stress out that on my car, I either have deep scratches that wont be removable anyway, or light swirls... The car's rather new (late 06). The other car'll be a BMW, but I dont have it with me so I didn't have a chance to inspect it yet.

[Ganesa]

Re: Starter kit, what elese?

sounds like a complete and great kit to start off with...
but are you sure you would need the "Meguiar's Deep Crystal Step 1" ?? I think getting SwirlX + Ultimate Compound would be better, and even D151 - which is an All in one cleaner, that has the ability to even remove defects..

good luck with it, cant wait to hear your results ...

If your trying to clean the windows from water spots you could use the
Autoglym Car Glass Polish, its pretty good.. :]

But to remove minor scratches on the windscreen, the only option would be to use Cerium Oxide (try searching in this forum), but I have no experience with it..

[the_invisible]

Re: Starter kit, what elese?

These pads are barely enough. Get more. I just ruined one of my foam pads today by having it sliced around the corner of the blinker... Imagine the frustration of having no pad to use just because you ruined it midway.