mc2hill

I polished and waxed thie 1914 Renault earlier this year and the owner called me this week about removing some grease stains from these original 99 year old seats.

 
Needless to say I was a little nervous, but knew my Adam's products would not let me down.  Being cautious, I diluted some Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner about 60/40 with distilled water.  I sprayed that solution on a Edgeless Utility Towel and tried it on a less noticeable area.  There was no degradation of the material and the owner was very pleased with the preliminary results.  The grease stain was on the upright portion of the front passenger seat (the left hand seat in this car).  I cleaned the area and wiped it with water.  To see the progress, we used a hair dryer to remove the moisture.  The area looked better, but took 2 more applications to make in unnoticable.  There were a few stains in the seat backs of the rear seats in the picture that looked like water stains and another grease stain on the seat bottom.  I was able to remove the grease stain and make the other stains less noticable.
 
I have to say I LOVE working on this car!       

I polished and waxed thie 1914 Renault earlier this year and the owner called me this week about removing some grease stains from these original 99 year old seats.

 
Needless to say I was a little nervous, but knew my Adam's products would not let me down.  Being cautious, I diluted some Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner about 60/40 with distilled water.  I sprayed that solution on a Edgeless Utility Towel and tried it on a less noticeable area.  There was no degradation of the material and the owner was very pleased with the preliminary results.  The grease stain was on the upright portion of the front passenger seat (the left hand seat in this car).  I cleaned the area and wiped it with water.  To see the progress, we used a hair dryer to remove the moisture.  The area looked better, but took 2 more applications to make in unnoticable.  There were a few stains in the seat backs of the rear seats in the picture that looked like water stains and another grease stain on the seat bottom.  I was able to remove the grease stain and make the other stains less noticable.
 
I have to say I LOVE working on this car!       

That is a lot of Muscle for being so far from Detroit!

Wow, government officials that actually 'get' it!

I understand what Rich is saying, but I am with Ryan on picking "D" for its perspective. 

First day of kindergarten...where did the time go?!?!

The auto magic patent has expired. I confirmed this today. Apparently it happened on 8/1/2013. Canadian outlets are now able to ship to the us.

Welcome RC!

Went at it with the old 1-2 on this Blown Henry J's engine bay. Also polished upnthe exterior with PCP and microfiber pad. Finsished with Brilliant Glaze and Americana.
I also did polished up the wheels a bit.
Here's a quick before shot of the engine bay.

 
And some afters

Nice collection Jason!  My son was into this and still have several pairs of Jordan Retros.  He wore a pair of white/blue 12's into a local store that sold this type stuff and was offered the full retail price on the spot,

For pro detailers who don't sell/distribute Adam's products but do use them: Application with business name, location/region, EIN, etc.  Once part of the network, there would be vector logos available for websites & business cards and some sort of "starter kit" for purchase to kick things off - like a kit including gallon sizes of Detail Spray, Car Wash, Glass Cleaner, Super VRT, an Adam's banner, T-Shirt, and a physical product catalog. The Adam's Detailer Network could also have a tab on the site similar to the Dealers tab where folks could find an authorized Adam's detailer in their area.  Network members would also get to display business names, contact info, etc. in their signature and maybe have their own show & shine section on the forums as well.  Bad idea? Good idea?  Thoughts?

Lots and lots of great cars there Joseph!  Thanks for sharing.

I would guess that Brilliant Glaze may help with this too.  Check out this very useful thread from Dylan about caring for vinyl graphics - http://www.adamsforums.com/topic/13404-caring-for-factory-vinyl-stripes/

So I was doing a little shopping on the internet and as I was checking out there was an option to "round up" your order to the next dollar and they would donate it to your favorite charity. I thought that was a pretty cool way to drum up some donations.
 
I just remember Adam's doing a charity event for autism and thought it might be cool if a similar system was implemented here. Just a thought.

I have had good luck using Carpet & Upholstery Cleaner (I know you said you forgot this) to clean fabric headliners.  A diluted solution of APC (4 parts water to 1 part APC) may work.  As Brian said, spray it in the MF cleaning cloth, not on the headliner.      

I'm a diesel technician and work on RTD buses ( local transit buses). This past Saturday I was rebuilding and engine minding my own business in the corner of the shop when I hear this car come into the shop that sounded pretty mean. I turn around and there is a beautiful 1932 Ford! I immediately drop my tools to check it out.
 
I started talking to the Kevin , the owner of the car and he said he was getting ready to go to a car show. I told him to make sure and stop by an Adams booth as I knew they were gonna be there. Then he tells me yea I know Adams , this car is on their bottles! I knew this car looked familiar! Kevin began to search his car for a bottle and couldn't find one , so I ran to my box and grabbed a bottle . Got a few pics! It was nice to see the beautiful car in person! The owner was so nice he wanted me to sit in it and take pics but I was full of oil and grease lol

I will be working on my niece’s truck in a few weeks figured I'd ask a question here. She has a Buick Rendezvous with lift gate for her wheelchair. It's white, with a painted mural on the hood and some painted graphics on the sides, and I don't believe they are clear coated. When I looked at the truck over the weekend the graphics looks a little 'dull' and I was thinking of getting some Revive to clean the entire truck before applying MSW. Does anyone have experience with this type graphics and/or would the Revive work?
 
If it makes any difference I will be working with a PC.
 
Thanks in advance,
Mike.

I am a small engine mechanic/power tool repair technician/certified pressure washer technician, certified by BE Pressure in Abbotsford, Canada. So, I may be able to help you out.
 
Unfortunatly, there are virtually no Made In USA pressure washers left on the market. Almost every pump on the market is made in Italy. If it isn't made in Italy, it was made in China.
 
There are two styles of pressure washer pumps, Axial, and Triplex. Axial is much like it sounds. You have 3 pistons in a circulator pattern, that are driven by an offset wobble plate. This style of pump is the cheapest of the cheap, and designed specifically for low manufacturing cost, and high profit for the big box store selling it. The life expectancy of this style pump, regardless of brand, is around 300 - 400 hours. This style of pump is also seen on vertical shaft pressure washers. Always avoid vertical shaft pressure washers. These are the type of machines with a lawn mower type engine on them, and the pump mounted underneath the cart itself. These pumps, literally, are designed to last 20 hours. Yes, JUST 20 hours. The pumps themselves cost $22 to produce in China.
 
Triplex pumps are the real deal, heavy duty. They are designed like an internal combustion engine. There is a crankshaft with large bearings at both ends, connecting rods, and pistons. These pumps are a lot more money, but the life expectancy of a quality Triplex pump is 3,000 hours. 10 times that of an axial.
 
You have belt drive, and direct drive. Direct drive is like it sounds. The pump is bolted directly to the rear of the engine. This cheaper to produce, much easier to maintain. The downside is pump life. Because the pump is bolted solid to the engine, it is now absorbing vibration and heat from your engine. It decreases the life of your pump. Remember how I said Triplex pumps are rated for 3,000 hours? Yes, on a direct drive. On a belt drive, that same pump would last 4,500 - 5,000 hours.
 
What is the downside to a belt drive than? Cost, maintenance, weight, and size. Belt drive pressure washers are a LOT more money. For example, a 13HP GX390 with a General EZ4040 pump, 4,000 PSI @ 4GPM, will cost you about $1,100. Take that same unit as a belt drive, $1,600. Because the entire belt drive system needs a lot more room, the cart is usually a fair amount larger. This adds weights and increases the unit size. Even with 2 big guys, it is difficult and very hard on the back to lift a belt drive into and out of a truck. The maintenance aspect is also an issue. You need to keep a constant eye on the belt tension and condition. The belts stretch and loosen frequently. Once the belt starts slipping, it will chew through rubber in no time. It can be a PIA to tighten these belts, especially on a regular basis. For a time sensitive commercial operation, it is a time waster. The advantage is, like I said, you get an average of 1,500 hours extra life out of your pump. This is because the pump is not mounted to the engine, so it does not absorb engine vibrations or heat. The pulley on the belt drive pump also has cooling fins built into it, so it blows cool air over the pump as it is running. Belt drive pumps run 25% cooler than a direct drive on average.
 
As far as engines go, nothing can beat a GX Honda engine. All pressure washers with a 7HP or smaller engine, will have a 3/4'' key shaft. All engines larger than 7 HP will have a 1'' key shaft. The two best engines on the market is the 6.5HP Honda GX 200, and the 13HP Honda GX 390. When a 15 year old Honda GX engine comes into my shop and the pump is shot, we test the compression, find it is 85% of a new engine, slap a new pump on and you go another 15 years. STAY AWAY from Honda gc series engines. Honda gc engines have plastic internal gears, GX engines have steel gears. I throw at least 4 or 5 GC160/GC190 engines in the scrap bin per month, because of broken internal gears.
 
The 3 most popular brands of pumps is Comet, General, and Cat. Cat pumps have the reputation of being the best out there, but I disagree. From my experience as a Technician, General has the best system, here is why. General pumps generally have half as many parts as a Comet or Cat, and last longer. Parts are cheaper, and easy to find. Cat parts are VERY expensive, and can be hard to locate. Cat pumps have a 1 piece cast body, which is good to prevent oil leaks. However, it makes the pump more time consuming to rebuild when you do, simply because lack of space. Comet makes a good pump, it is a good balance between being cheap and still having some quality to it.
 
Unloaders, internal or external. Cheaper pumps come with an internal or "Built-In" unloader. This is NOT the way to go if you want a machine to last you for 20 years. They are more difficult to repair as they are located inside of the pump manifold. When your pressure washer is running, and you are NOT pulling the trigger, water is recycling, looping, inside of your manifold. Let's say you stop for a minute to move your ladder, but do not shut off your unit. Water is looping inside the manifold, obsorbing heat from your pumps metal components. In just 90 seconds, you will melt down your seals, and there is a good chance your pump will need a rebuild after that. Pumps these days come with a Thermal valve on them. Once the water reaches the temperature of 172 degrees F, it will trigger this valve and start spewing water. This is NOT a system designed to save your butt. Like a low oil pressure light, once this valve triggers, it is almost always too late. These valves can not be reset. Once it goes, it must be replaced. Normal cost is about $15. The reason they cannot be reset is because of warranty. Manufactuers started doing this because people would claim warranty on a burnt out pump, and they had no way to prove it was the customer abusing the product. This way, as soon as your unit goes in for warranty, and they hook it up and see your thermal valve leaking, it is an instant decline, you idled too long.
 
External unloaders are just like they sound, mounted on the outside of the pump manifold. They usually come with a 2 foot piece of rubber hose on the unloader, that is hooked back into the low pressure feed where the garden hose is connected. This will still loop water in your manifold, but gives you a larger window of time to idle, because the water has 2 feet of hose to go through. This gives it some time to cool down. Still, this is not ideal. You extend your time from 90 seconds to maybe 3 minutes at best. The best way to configure an unloader is to discharge water to the ground. What I mean by this is when you let go of your trigger, water will run out of the unloader hose, onto the ground. This happens at garden hose pressure, not 4,000 PSI. This means your pump is always getting cold water. With an external unloader setup configured to discharge to the ground, you could literally leave your machine running for hours without pulling the trigger, and it will not hurt a single thing.
 
A lot of people think the unloader with the big knob on it, also controls the pressure. You turn this knob and you increase or decrease pressure, wrong. The unloader knob controls volume, which in turn controls pressure. If you decrease your volume, you have less overall water to make pressure with. So while you may think you are decreasing your pressure, you are also decreasing your volume as well. Volume, or Gallons Per Minute, is what really has the cleaning power. GPM is more important than PSI.
 
Last but not least, do not leave old fuel in your machine over the winter. Fuel these days is loaded with ethanol, which breaks down very fast. After just two months, regular gasoline will start to form a hard varnish in your carburator, and the jet inside of it. The holes on the jet will plug solid, and the unit won't run. 7 out of 10 pressure washers that come to me because of no-start are because the machine was left with old fuel in it, or someone put old fuel into it, thinking it was still ok.
 
Do not confuse the degree pattern of your tips for the orifice size. I see people everyday who are looking for new tips, and they just purchase tips by the color. "Oh I need a yellow tip" I say, ok but what orifice size. Than I get the look like im speaking another language. The degree of your spray pattern, is only how wide it is. The orifice size of the tip, is how large the hole is in the tip. THIS MATTERS. You need to know your PSI, and GPM, to determine the correct orifice size tips for your pressure washer. Also, replace your tips every 500 hours or so of use. Water may look crystal clear but it isn't. Water out of your hose has a lot of minerals, and abrasives in it that the human eye cannot see. These are being forced out of your tip at high pressure. They will wear out your tips and enlarge the hole, slowly but surely. If you increase your orifice size, you will gain volume, but lose pressure. If you decrease your orifice size, you will lose volume, but gain pressure. Some people think they can just buy a tip too small to get an increase in pressure. No, you can't. If your tips cannot flow the GPM of the pump, water will be recycling inside of your manifold, even while the trigger is pulled. If your tips only allow a maximum of 3GPM to get through, and your pump is a 4GPM pump, you are recycling 1GPM of water without knowing it. Your pump will slowly start to overheat. One thing you can never, ever change, is the volume of your pump. You can never change the GPM of your pump.
 
Some people decrease the throttle on the engine to lower pressure, if they need a lower pressure for a specific task. Never attain lower pressure this way. The cooling fan for a small engine is bolted directly to the flywheel. The engine is designed to operate at full throttle, and to maintain proper temperature with the flywheel at max RPM. When your throttle your engine down, it is lugging, working hard to turn your pump. It is actually creating more heat at 50% throttle than 100%. Now you have twice as much heat, and only half as much cooling as the engine needs. Always run at full RPM.
 
Try to get as much water as possible out of your pump before winter comes. Blow through it with an air compressor. Any large water deposits left will freeze, and crack your manifold wide open. Your pump is now garbage.
 
My advice, always remember that you get what you pay for. I have people who walk into my shop and they are actually mad that their $300 pressure washer is junk. They just bought it a year ago. What did you expect? You purchased a $300 machine in a category where quality does not start until $700. Do not buy garbage. Buy quality products and they will take care of you. Spend the money once, maintain your things, and forget about it for years and years.
 
I hope this helps all those who want to know more about pressure washers!

Washed the Hot Wheel last night for today's Show Stopperz show at the fairgrounds.  We had 10 Camaros roll in together (including a 2010 Transformers and a turbo-charged V6).
 
I overheard someone in our group saying he wanted to try Adam's Super VRT.  I went to my trunk, pulled the 4oz bottle out of my kit, along with a block applicator and gave it to him.  "Merry Christmas.  You'll love it.  Try it out."  Hopefully made a convert...

Welcome Laurie!

Had an amazing day.  After my Grandparents passed away last year there was some concern that the family might drift apart so we've been trying to think of things to get us all together.  Well last month the whole family went in and bought a cabin on the river and after some renovations it was finally time for a first Sunday cook out.  It was great, we all got together and just had a good time.  I know Grandma and Grandpa were smiling down on us today. 

The term 'layering' usually means applying the same product multiple times (e.g. waxes or sealants).  Adam and Dylan do say that you can leave the clay bar residue on without removing it (some folks remove it, some leave it on).  Also the polishes can be applied on top of each other without removing too.  But BG hazing should be wiped before applying wax.

Fantastic shot Chase!  Congrats to you and your boy for displaying your skills.  

I would love to see the 36oz size of SVRT stay.  I know it does not make sense to only sell one item in that size, but IMO that is the product that is seems to work the best for.  The gallon is a little too much, and the 16oz is great for caring around, but the 36 is the perfect refill size.