Black Tailgate - my first use of the G110V2

[Bill Davidson]

2009 GMC Sierra Tailgate - before

-lovely reminder of the dealer sticker
-this was the condition of most of the tailgate (less the splatter marks)

After

Swirl marks - note: the tailgate was actually much worse than the before portion of this photo. I hadn't decided to make a tape line yet. It's tough playing photographer and detailer.

Well there you have it... my first use of the Meguiar's DA polisher.

I have to say thanks to the forum and the members that help answer my questions along the way. I'm sure I will still have a lot of questions. I put a lot of time into doing this tailgate and the rest of the truck is just as bad.

I'm starting to get a hang of it, but it truly is an art. I'd go broke if I were to do this for a living. I spent about 5 hours doing just the tailgate, playing around with different compounds and techniques.

There are still a few scratches here and there, but I think I'll get moving onto the rest of the truck instead of trying to get perfection on the tailgate alone.

[Markus Kleis]

Re: Black Tailgate - my first use of the G110V2

Great work Bill - and excellent work documenting your progress. Sure made one heck of a difference!

[RedSoxRacer]

Re: Black Tailgate - my first use of the G110V2

Very well done! What did you use for products?

[Tuck91]

Re: Black Tailgate - my first use of the G110V2

Very nice work.

Is this your truck?

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: Black Tailgate - my first use of the G110V2

Huge difference. The tailgate looks great. Stick with it. Your doing fine.

[Bill Davidson]

Re: Black Tailgate - my first use of the G110V2

Very well done! What did you use for products?

Ultimate Compound for the bad stuff
Swirl X (tried it but didn't use much)
205 with a polishing pad for most of it
205 with a finishing pad (to correct my mistakes)
Crystal Polish with a finishing pad
NXT Tech Wax 2.0 with a finishing pad

The damage done to the paint was from an automatic car wash. I'll post a lot more photos as I complete the detail, but it's unbelievable the amount of damage that was done. Our automatic car washes are not controversial, they are brutal at best.

That being said the damage isn't uniform throughout. The bottom lower corners of the tailgate we bad so I needed Ultimate Compound. I think I could have done most of the job with 205 alone with experience.

p.s. thanks for the compliments

[SVT Lightning]

Re: Black Tailgate - my first use of the G110V2

Nice work! When I first got my PC, I took it off the truck and into the house. That way I could lay it flat and have nice bright lights to work on it. It's usually the dirtiest part of the truck and I like to keep it like a mirror....so the people behind me can see themselves!

[Bill Davidson]

Re: Black Tailgate - my first use of the G110V2

Very nice work.

Is this your truck?

Yes it's my truck (original owner 2009). I feel like an idiot for taking it through an auto wash, but after the first oil change/service the dealer had already scratched it up pretty bad when they washed it, so I thought I had nothing to lose. I was wrong :-)

I showed the dealer what they had done, but they didn't seem to care. They did more damage too (to the interior). When GMC called me to review the dealer's service, I gave them a 1 out of 10 and said I'd give them a zero if it was an option.

GMC told me they would have someone contact me (months ago). Nobody called. Jerks.

[Bill Davidson]

Re: Black Tailgate - my first use of the G110V2

I like to keep it like a mirror....so the people behind me can see themselves!

Funny I was thinking the same thing. I did take it off and laid it flat in the box. I could access half of it and the turn it again :-). I was also thinking that if I messed it up, it would be the cheapest piece to fix.

[aris]

Re: Black Tailgate - my first use of the G110V2

Tail gate looks good...jsut a quick question..what is 205?

[Bill Davidson]

Re: Black Tailgate - my first use of the G110V2

Tail gate looks good...jsut a quick question..what is 205?

http://www.eshine.ca/meguiars_205_ultra_finishing_polish_32oz-1411.php?cat=12

Being you are Canadian here's a link to likely the easiest and cheapest place to get it.

Basically it's one of the least aggressive polishing compounds. Sort of a must have.

[aris]

Re: Black Tailgate - my first use of the G110V2

Thanks

[Autobrite]

Re: Black Tailgate - my first use of the G110V2

Bill, great work man. Lovin the black. I am a little partial to black Silverado's and Sierra's. lol