Just some newbie advice please

[cartandpeg]

Hi,
reading through various posts here I am pretty sure I am going down the right track with what I want to do and probably this has been covered before,but I suppose each car and its owner is unique in the way it is looked after.

My car is coloured red hot/sting red, paint work is in very good condition,but,it has swirls and many scratches on it,not deep ones,but in the right light enough to annoy me to put me where I am going with it now.I am sure car has clear coat on it 2008 VE Omega Commodore.

I purchased a bottle of Ultimate Compound with the advice from Mequiars here in Australia,also purchased some of the yellow foam applicators,got home and could not wait so applied some UC onto the boot scratches with the applicators and buffed off with mf cloth,with only one pass the difference was amazing,so I intend to do another coat of UC to see of it will just get rid of those real fine scratches I have left.

I had some slight white hazing on the bonnet,I cautiously gave that a very light rub and the haze was replaced by some nice red paint.

My question,should I continue with the UC for the rest of the car and should I go to the "even coat mf pads"( the white ones) instead of the foam ones,I will be doing small sections on each panel,what would be the best polish/wax to finish it off with?

Apologies if this has been covered before,but by asking the above about my car I then do not have to try and decipher other posts to find some thing that is exact to my query.

Thank you for reading this.

[Murr1525]

Re: Just some newbie advice please

The yellow foam pads are good for everything.

Following up with Ult. Polish, then a wax would be good. Ult. Wax is an option if looking for the most durable (2 thin coats is best). Hopefully the hood was just temporary and mild... getting the Ult Polish and its oils on there will be a good thing.

Then Ult. Polish would be your mild cleaner/polish in the future when no defects to fix.

You may also want to clay if you havent done that before, either before the next time around with UC, or before the Ult. Polish then wax.

[cartandpeg]

Re: Just some newbie advice please

Thank you for the prompt reply,the car is going back in this week to have some warranty work done on it,I have three months or 5000klms and the car yard is going to give the bonnet a cut and polish,even though they could not see the slight haze,now I am in two minds if I should let them do it or just do it myself with the UC.

I like the idea of running a clay bar over the car,I may do that next time around.

Thank you again.

[Murr1525]

Re: Just some newbie advice please

If everything looks good now, I see no need to cut anything... esp if they are just going to go over it with a rotary. Probably just asking for more damage...

Even dealerships washing the car is often a bad thing.

[Detailing by M]

Re: Just some newbie advice please

I don't think you should change a thing. If it works, it works.
Not to say you shouldn't try new things. but if what your doing works then that is what works for your paint.
Also wax is your choice. I have 20 different waxes and use then according to the paint and my customers preferences.
The bigger question is what kind of wax is available to you.
You can't go wrong with anything Meg's.

[cartandpeg]

Re: Just some newbie advice please

If everything looks good now, I see no need to cut anything... esp if they are just going to go over it with a rotary. Probably just asking for more damage...

Even dealerships washing the car is often a bad thing.

Thank you to both of you for the replies,Murr in regards to above quote,do you mean for them not to do the cut and I do the hood with UC as I have tried it on the hood and it did remove some of the haze,only applied it lightly so there is room for improvement.

I am still trying to get my head around the UC that it will not be too aggressive for the paint,though what I saw from doing a section of the trunk,I think the UC might be the way to go,I suppose if I am doubtfull I can apply it with least pressure and go over it again if need be to remove swirls and the finer scratches.

Please Wash Me Detailing,I am still not sure on the wax,I was thinking of Ultimate wax or Nxt Generation Tech Wax 2.0 Liquid,then I look on Mequiars site and there more to choose from.

This is my plan:

Wash in Ultimate wash and wax

Clay bar

Go over car with UC

Polish car with Ultimate polish

Wax with Nxt or Ultimate wax.

I am open to any suggestions as I intend to purchase what I need this Friday,I would appreciate any advice in regards to the hood.As I said it is only a slight hazing and I am some what particular on how things are done.

Thank you very to you both for the input,this will be my first time doing a detail to this extent.

Cheers

Andy

[C8N]

Re: Just some newbie advice please

I have NXT (liquid) and Gold Class (paste).
Gold Glass was great but I did make a newbie mistake a slobbed it on. After it hazed, it was rather difficult to wipe off.
NXT was so easy to apply and it went by real fast. So fast that I almost forgot which panel was applied and applied it twice on some panels. Wiping off was a breeze as well especially this time I managed apply a thin layer.

Couple of things I have learned about waxing is that little product goes a long way and over applying can make life difficult unnecessarily.

In my observation, I think the Gold Glass had the deeper gloss. Since NXT is supposed to have the longer protection, what I did was to apply a thin layer of NXT and then the next day, applied another layer of Gold Class.

I also have Ultimate Quik Wax and this thing is fantastic and I would highly recommend this to use in between wax jobs.

[Murr1525]

Re: Just some newbie advice please

Thank you to both of you for the replies,Murr in regards to above quote,do you mean for them not to do the cut and I do the hood with UC as I have tried it on the hood and it did remove some of the haze,only applied it lightly so there is room for improvement.

Yeah... if it went well yourself, probably best do keep doing it yourself.

I am still trying to get my head around the UC that it will not be too aggressive for the paint,though what I saw from doing a section of the trunk,I think the UC might be the way to go,I suppose if I am doubtfull I can apply it with least pressure and go over it again if need be to remove swirls and the finer scratches.

The nice thing with UC is that you can apply it gently, and it will be extremely mild and really just remove some dirt. Or you can work it in with more passion/effort and get a lot more defect removal. Or up to a machine and go further in some ways.

The bigger concern is if the paint were failing, not wanting to work the paint too hard and cause it to fail. That is where maybe another mild/medium application, and then some polishing oils may be the place to start.

Please Wash Me Detailing,I am still not sure on the wax,I was thinking of Ultimate wax or Nxt Generation Tech Wax 2.0 Liquid,then I look on Mequiars site and there more to choose from.

Yeah.. lots of options.. but those two would be fine. No need to overthink it.

This is my plan:

Wash in Ultimate wash and wax
Clay bar
Go over car with UC
Polish car with Ultimate polish
Wax with Nxt or Ultimate wax.

Really the Wash n'Wax is a little bit of a waste... just going to remove the wax. Not a big deal, but a regular wash before a detail may be cheaper for you.

And 2 thin coats of wax.

[Murr1525]

Re: Just some newbie advice please

Gold Glass was great but I did make a newbie mistake a slobbed it on. After it hazed, it was rather difficult to wipe off.
NXT was so easy to apply and it went by real fast. So fast that I almost forgot which panel was applied and applied it twice on some panels. Wiping off was a breeze as well especially this time I managed apply a thin layer.

The Nxt and Ult. Wax will apply thinner, esp the Ult Liquid.. but also just experience getting the layer thinner.

Couple of things I have learned about waxing is that little product goes a long way and over applying can make life difficult unnecessarily.

There you go.

In my observation, I think the Gold Glass had the deeper gloss. Since NXT is supposed to have the longer protection, what I did was to apply a thin layer of NXT and then the next day, applied another layer of Gold Class.

Yeah, thats fine. Can play around with them some.

I also have Ultimate Quik Wax and this thing is fantastic and I would highly recommend this to use in between wax jobs.

Just to note, it does want a clean surface, so after washing, or QDing.

[C8N]

Re: Just some newbie advice please

Just to note, it does want a clean surface, so after washing, or QDing.

Right... I guess I missed to write that part.
I always wash before using UQW.

[cartandpeg]

Re: Just some newbie advice please

Excellent thank you Murr,you answered every thing I needed to know and more.

In respect to the UC,I will take it lightly on the pressure side of things,I am hoping once I get some decent polish and wax on the paint after the UC,most of these swirls,fine scratches will be rectified,well at least better than what they are now.Most people would not worry about them,though what I am going to do should be be beneficial for the car.

Thank you C8N for the info regarding your experience with NXT and the likes,it is nice to hear the do's and the dont's from somebody who has used the products I am looking at.

Not sure what you guys pay for your gear over there but for an example the NXT goes for AU$44.88 this way,okay thank you again,the weather says it is going to be around the 35 celcius this weekend, 95 F.
So up and at it early for me I think.

Cheers

Andy

[Detailing by M]

Re: Just some newbie advice please

$45 for NXT? For that price it is a good investment.
That bottle will last for years if you use very little at a time.
NXT is a great wax. I still have a full bottle and only went through only one bottle in a couple of years and alot of cars.

[cartandpeg]

Re: Just some newbie advice please

Nice to know our prices are okay this way this is where I buy most of my gear http://www.supercheapauto.com.au/#PR_Purchased

[cartandpeg]

Re: Just some newbie advice please

Bit of a change of plan,going to try the scratch x or Swirl X first( just thinking what Murr said about a lighter compound) and have the UC on standby,maybe a bit of double the work,but then at least I will have the swirl x on the shelf for any small rectifications need doing at later time.

[davey g-force]

Re: Just some newbie advice please

Welcome cartandpeg!

Unfortunately we don't have much of a choice when it comes to buying Meguiars over the counter here in Australia. It's pretty much either Supercheap Auto or Autobarn. There are a couple of Aussie online vendors that are a bit cheaper but what I do is buy online from the USA. Their prices are much better than ours.

If you wait till you need quite a few items and buy in bulk, it works out to be worth the shipping costs. Food for thought anyway.

BTW you may want to check out the results I achieved with UC and M21 (the professional version of NXT) on my Commodore:

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?57668-Detailed-Davey-s-Garage-Queen