alexw

Busted out the Adams for a run through yesterday. Last year was my first, did a paint correction, full shebang. Stripped and waxed 2 more times after that in 2015. Running late this year, but got it done yesterday. Dawn soap strip wash with 2 bucket system and wash pad. Claybar & wipe down with Detail Spray Brilliant Glaze with Porter Cable on #2. Americana Wax with Porter Cable on #2. No wheels, no interior, no trim, no windows. About 3 hours with time outs, start to finish. This is a semi-daily-driver, 6 years old with several years of no garage. Still has paint correction that's needed, and I have to get a rim/tire kit eventually. However, 3 hours a couple times a year and it looks way better than I expect every time. Pics are artistically processed a bit, but you can see the shine. Mirror like in person. Not perfect, but good enough for me.

Yeah, that's how I see it. Mainly because I have to Thanks! Painted. Luckily I didn't have to worry about the matte stock stripes. Had those painted on after the first set of custom vinyl I had crapped out.

Some cellphone pics without processing to show the after. The after ones above look hazy, but it's not. Cloudy day, fancy photo effects give off that vibe. These aren't great either, but they show the gloss.

Hey everyone, Joined so I could share pics of my first detailing session (ever). Upon researching it all decided to jump in with Adam's, grabbed a good chunk of stuff which arrived yesterday. Jumped right in, and did a marathon 12 hour session (2 hr break). Needed some time to get familiar and I needed some muscle on the hood which took forever. Plus I had a car meet today and wanted to show up blinged out. Basically, have a 2010 Camaro, been washing it at a higher quality automatic car wash. Detailed every other year or so by someone else. Couple weeks ago, got some paint overspray which triggered me getting a detail. When it came back, I assumed the swirls would be gone, along with the overspray. Were not. Looks like it was clayed and waxed, no paint correction. *I now know what that is*. Instead of fighting and arguing, decided to just do it myself. So, I had to basically remove 5 years of dirty car wash rag swirl marks and daily driving. My process: Wash, stripped with Dawn, grit guard and Adams wash pad. Clay Bar, Adams big blue Paint correction -- Porter Cable (PC) Level 5, Orange Microfiber -- PC Level 5, Orange Foam -- PC Level 5, White Foam Brilliant Glaze, PC, Level 2 Paint Sealant, PC, Level 2 Americana Wax, Hand applied 2pm - 2am, 2 hour break for dinner. Every muscle in my body was spasming when done. I highly suggest doing this over 2 days, 3 if you add in wheels, interior, trim. Most panels were fine at PC Level 5, the 3 pads. However, on the hood, it was in bad shape. I had to do 5 passes with each of the 3 pads, on level 6 of the PC, with significant pressure. And there are still scratches. Swirls gone tho, so the chaos is gone. I can live with that. Mixed with the glaze and wax, you don't notice unless you look. I did not do the windows or trim, wheels. Plan on addressing that later, with another round of Adam's purchases. Wanted to focus on the paint since that is what was driving me nuts. Interior was recently done via the detailer mentioned above, so that's good. Things to note - prob best to get a 2 pack of pads, mine were pretty mucked up by the end, only got 1 set of the white/orange. Prob best to have 3/4 towels. I got 2 double softs, but they also were pretty grungy by the end. Great towels, but pricey so I didn't want to get 10 right off the bat. My set came with a black microfiber in place of a white one. I thought that was an error, so I didn't use it in my correcting. Buddy today said that was actually the white microfiber, they just use black foam now. Threw me off, so a step in the process was missed. Could have used that on the hood I think. So, all in all, great system, great results, super easy. It is work, and it will take 1/2 days of your time, but I wasn't confused on what to do or worried about damage. I've never used a porter cable or washed, detailed, or waxed any of my cars in the past. I was always a car wash guy and yearly "pay this guy to do it" detailing.. I am not anymore. My end result is not perfect. There are still scratches, fine and deep. even some swirls on the lower half, but that is because I was crapping out and just wanted to get done. It could have been better if I spread this out over 2 days and did things slower. I put a most of my energy into the hood and trunk areas, and overall "windows up". BUT, it is light years better than what it was, and doesn't make me angry every time I go in the garage anymore. So, here are some pics! *Please note, wheels, windows, trim not done. Wax spilled onto trim, will correct this week. After 12 hours of detailing and 5 hours sleep, I just couldn't attack it before my meet today. *Also note - the "after" pics all have fancy photo post-processing. That finish is mirror like, other than the deep scratches which I submitted to. The setup What I was dealing with on the hood. After: General shot After: Close up of hood stripes 1 After: Close up of hood stripes 1 After: Back After: Back stripes Thanks to Adam's for those great videos, and all the people asking and answering questions here on the forum. I used all of it a ton over the last week and even during the detailing session. Without those I wouldn't have pulled the trigger on this or been as successful. -- Alex