FloydSummerOf68

The easiest polish to find OTC, that is quite effective, is Meguiar's Ultimate Compound and Swirl X

Ultimate Compound is similar to M105 and SwirlX does a good job of cleaning up the finish as a last step if used on a softer pad like a Lake Country Green or Gray.

TysonJones

When you wash your car with blue dawn, your getting rid of all wax/polish to my knowledge. Your paint will be instantly ready for rejex. Hell, I washed my car, went over some areas with meguiars detail spray to touch up some drying that I didnt get to in time, applied to coats or rejex, then some carnauba wax. Paint is flawless and beautiful. Im not a believer in all that extra stuff some people do to their cars, just wash, wax/polish, maintain. I get compliments every day on even my DD about how much they shine.

FloydSummerOf68

I don't believe that for a second. A car might be very smooth/slick to the touch after the LSP is applied, but that does NOT mean that the surface is clean of contaminants or that you're getting the best shine possible. Unless they are stored in a vault, they will pick up contaminants in the clear.

Even BRAND NEW cars benefit from being clayed due to transport.

Z06seal

Those are machine. not hand

I just talked to someone about a professional detail on my car.

he does paint correction and he told me he will take the rims out, the taillights, and allll the things you can imagine and it would take him about 3 days. but the scratches/swirls won't be hidden with sealers, instead they'll be gone. it would be about 800 bucks on the low side he said so figure around 1000 bucks. he is also 200 miles away from me, so that's about half a tank of gas on cruise controls at 70. lol

He told me the corvettes are hard to work with and it would def take time to bring back that new like finish.

this is a mood killer to me, and makes me not wanna wax it now. because apparently no matter what I do, i'll have the spiderwebbing unless I spend a grand on the detail job...

I guess I'll just do a basic clay/cleaner/sealant and just be happy for now until tax return time comes, and take it to someone like him and have him detail the the hell out of my paint.

FYI, this is his website: he has some pretty happy customers:

http://www.richiescustomdetailing.com/

and some of his work:
http://www.teamspeed.com/forums/memb...e-carbone.html

TysonJones

I've found swirl x to be useless on the corvettes hard paint. However Meguiars nxt 2.0 or gold class will hid any accidental swirl marks.

FloydSummerOf68

You can apply polishes by hand, it just takes a LOT longer.

You can get a detail for cheaper that isn't quite as thorough but still includes full paint correction with multi-step polishing.

FloydSummerOf68

SwirlX is not meant for removing heavy swirling in the clear of the C6. It is mean to followup M105, Ultimate Compound, Menzerna SIP, or anything of that nature to clean up the light marring that the heavier compounds/polishes leave behind.

SwirlX by itself will do VERY little unless working it in with an agressive pad combination.

TysonJones

Why would I lie? Trust me, I've never clayed a car in my life and I'd be happy to let you feel the surface of all 8 of my vehicles. The surface on my 83 must have stayed pretty darn clean over 27 years to still look brand new... And isn't that the point, to make sure your paint stays looking beautiful for years? My method sure did work without a claybar. Its black as well.

TysonJones

It does wonders on alot of my other cars being applied by hand, just hardly does anything on the vette.

TysonJones

Can you provide pictures of your car so we can see kind of what your working with? No need to drop a grand on something you can do for much much cheaper. Theres some very friendly people on this board that would do it for much much less if it came to that.

Z06seal

Here are some pics of the car







As you see, she's still in great condition. if you on one of the shots, you can see the spiderwebbing on there. that's the only thing annoying me.

My car's paint condition is comparable to this car i'd say

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/car-...m-handjob.html

I have been looking for someone that is local willing to do that as well, but I just can't find anyone. I'm shocked because this is South East FL and alot of expensive, exotic cars here that people would want professionally detailed. I don't need the wheels taken out, or lights or anything. just touch the paint up. That link I have up there is exactly what I want minus taking the wheels out and cleaning a speaker box and touching up any lights. he paid 350 for that, which is a steal but that's what I want. I do know that the corvette's paint is very hard to work with and there isnt' alot of room for error because it's very thin

I thought about buying the stuff and doing it on my own, but honestly, the equipment would cost me around 300 bucks with pads, waxes etc. I figured I do the best I can with hand, and leave the more detailed stuff to the pros.

I'll try to get better pics of the spiderwebbing. but it's really just your usual spiderwbs from washing the car improperly. and it's a 8 year old car...

Z06seal

ok, I got meguiar's claybar and swirl X. I also picked up the auto glym HD wax.

I was thinking maybe putting on a coat of rejex after swirl x and before AGHD.

I know the swirl X might not work well, and if it doesn't I'll just return it. I got it at walmart.

my scratches are so fine though, it just might work.

does rejex before a coat of AGHD sound good? or should I stop at pepboys and pick up the Auto glym super resin polish?

btw - walmart had the autoglym HD wax for only 20 bucks... apparently this is a STEAL. this is supposed to be a boutique class wax that sells for around 60-70 bucks

FloydSummerOf68

Autoglym HD is a very good wax, and I was surprised when I saw that walmart was going to begin carrying it.

I won't be picking any up for a while...I have about 30 different waxes/sealants already, so unless I sell some off I don't need to get anything new for a while, lol.

I don't think you would lie, I just think you might not be completely informed about the necessity of claybar.

You can absolutely go without claybar and have a good looking car that feels slick to the touch, but it will never have the same quality as a car that has been fully detailed.

Z06seal

as far as clay bar goes, I will use it. you can usually just look at the clay bar and see it picking up all sorts of junk.

0Killrwheels@Autogeek

You are correct that the initial cost of buffer and pads can add up. It however is reusable so cost is spent over a longer period of time. Any true detailer will charge a base charge and hourly increments. You should be willing to spend 250-500 on most professional details. Now using good washing and drying techniques will help avoid need for additional polishing but with your own tools a quick and light polishing can be done in a couple hours.

If you are looking for a local detailer in South Florida, I might suggest using our forum to come up with some names. But again, expect to lay out a couple benjamins for first detail.

Z06seal

Couple benjamins is understandable. Several benjamins or a dozen of them is not

There was a post here that someone made (I think I linked it) that got what want (plus more) and he paid 350... I know that was a steal but for what he had done, I would have paid 500 no problem

FloydSummerOf68

I would say that 300-350 is about normal for a full exterior detail with two step paint correction for a vette (that's what I've always charged for an 8-9 hour detail).

More than that and you're either getting into a degree of wet sanding, removing wheels/trim/decals/etc... or something else.

Learning to do it yourself is very valuable and can save money if you ever get more than a single detail done, but what a lot of people don't factor in is just how labor intensive it is. Completely detailing a car is a very exhausting endeavor if you attempt to do it over a single day. A lot of people will buy all of the tools and then decide it isn't worth their time.

Some people get it and really enjoy it though. I bought all of the stuff to detail my own car and LOVED doing it, so I started doing other cars on the weekends for a little extra cash and now I've done a few dozen other cars. At the same time I have WAY too much stuff for just personal use now though, lol. I have an entire closet filled top to bottom with products :P

If you think you'll stick with it, it is certainly a good investment to get the products/tools yourself. With a random orbital polisher you WILL NOT damage your car like you can with a rotary. It is a user friendly tool and you will actually have to learn HOW to remove defects rather than try not to remove too much.