Eric

I never responded to this topic, whoops!

As my first wash using Adam's products I did a Strip Wash and after washing and drying I clayed the whole car and i'm glad I did. I could feel a ton of contaminants on the paint. After that I applied paint sealant. I was very happy with the result

I've washed my car 2 or 3 times since then with the standard Shampoo and then followed up with H20 G&G and Americana Paste Wax. 

I'm thinking after my most recent wash (this Monday) the next one I may need to clay again. Unless there are better ways to remove water spots that are very difficult to remove.

Great write up! I just stripped and sealed my car on Sunday. It's been in the garage since I finished. Could I potentially go in tonight clean it up with some waterless wash (or even just detail spray?) and put a coat of glaze then Americana? Or does this process need to be done one after the other on the same day?

I'd be very interested in this Adam's Polishes Bible

I somehow missed VRT!

I think I'm ready to tackle the Mustang!

Thanks for all the responses and input. I understand it much better now! 

Eric, what kind of polisher do you own? I'm going to say do a plastic sandwich bag test on the car. Once you wash your car, rub a sandwich bag on your paint, if it feels gritty or sticks as you rub lightly you will need to clay.

 

I'm going to say clay the car, it's better to keep the contaminants off the paint then to leave them and follow with Adams H2O Guard and gloss for protection.

 

Eric remember today's orbitals are very user friendly, and are easy to use, there is nothing to be scared of. I know it seems like a lot to learn but honestly if you take your time and do one panel at a time you can master a orbital within a hour. A few key things when using a orbital always keep the machine moving, stay away from the edges, start and stop the machine on the paint, last but not least watch the adams videos and you'll be having a therapy session in your garage in no time at all.

So it's not absolutely necessary to polish if I'm going to Clay? As long as some sort of protection is going down? The person I spoke to reason was the clay can easily Mar the paint and introduce more scratches.

I was wondering, since I'm not yet comfortable polishing, should I skip the clay bar? Someone told me not to if I'm not going to polish. Any insight from you guys(and gals) is appreciated!

Not to hijack your thread, but in the interest of not starting another thread. If I'm already going to Clay then LPS is there any benefit to waxing under the LPS or not really? (I also plan to do H20 G&g on the next wash)

I have the same problem the solution is simple! To sign in just go to the bottom of the page and tap the profile button there!

That's a great solution! If it's possible it'd be nice to have a Remember Me feature, but I don't know how involved of a change that is.

Hi Eric, sorry about that! Which type of mobile platform are you using, Apple or Android and which browser? Can you take a screenshot and post it here for me to pass onto our developers?

 

Another workaround is if your device has an option to "Request desktop site" you could select that and the profile button should then be available for you.

Dan - I'm on Android and using Chrome. Here's a screenshot.

I did that in the past but found it kind of inconvenient. Tmccoy's work around is less so

Eric -

Not sure if this helps you, but I ran into a similar situation and was able to access the 'my profile' area by putting the device in landscape mode and having the device adjust the screen.

 

Anyway.. just a suggestion.

I never thought of that, that is a good work around. I'll do that in the meantime. Figured it's good to let them know if they didn't already.

Not exactly a forum issue but on the main mobile shopping site I cannot sign in because the black banner at the top of the screen hides the "profile" button. Is there a way to fix this? Also, is it possible to have a Remember Me so we don't always have to log in? Thanks!

Thanks for the replies guys. Yeah we had a light sprinkle Sunday night other than that sunny but gusty so it has dust and pollen and evidence of some rain mixed with dust. I really wish I could garage her. As far as the detail on Sat as cringworthy as it sounds I only did a one bucket wash with a different brand soap. Dried with a bath towel (I know! ????) Then waxed with a wax similar to buttery as far as consistency. That's about it for the paint. A poor wash after watching the way it's supposed to be done.

Needless to say my 2 bucket wash kit is already on its way. I may just do a full was the proper way and seal the paint.

Hey Guys,

I'm new here and will be getting my Adam's products soon enough. I just had a question.

I washed my car last Saturday. Unfortunately my car cannot be garaged and stays outside all day. Today the car as a good layer of dust and some other small items on it. Can it still be maintained at this stage or I need to wash it all over again?

I have very little fender gap so I'm not sure how I'll get the undercarriage spray up in there. Unless I remove each wheel.

Ok so I completely deleted my cart and started from the beginning going for some kits. This is what I have so far, I don't have the red mitts any more because they're not in the kits. I'll have to build my "collection" from here. 

Since i'll be using Adam's products for the first time. Maybe I should strip wash it to remove all of the "other" products off first? Then start from the beginning...

Procedure should be?

2 bucket wash

clay

seal paint

-insert here to give more shine-

then on the second time I wash it I'll use the G&G?

The ceramic coating is pretty durable and holds up a little better for me against wash-induced swirl marks on my Chevy SS (I've purposely been washing it with less-than-perfect technique to see how durable the coating is for testing purposes), but unfortunately even with it being coated, I've picked up 3 or 4 rock chips on the vehicle this winter. My township likes to use tiny pieces of gravel for traction on the hill in my neighborhood rather than salt or ash, and the sticky factory tires like to throw those little rocks all over the place

Ah, OK. Rocks are my enemy. Even though I don't drive the Mustang daily my commute usually involves being on the freeway for ~20-25 miles in both directions.

I think that would be a smart move going with the gallon kit.

Great, I'll go with that then. 

Welcome Eric, sweet looking 5.0!!!!!

Thank you!

Welcome to the addiction, Eric! Beautiful ride. 

 

By asking for suggestions, you'll likely have every product Adam's sells recommended! Still, I'll offer my 2 shiny pennies...TRC and HGG (and borderless grey towels for application). Can't go wrong with either one. Make sure you check out the kits, too, since you can find some pretty significant savings while also using the current 17% or on-going 10% forum discount.

 

OK, a little more than 2 cents worth, but Mystery Boxes are an awesome way to start out. I also don't see any polishes on your list - are you not wanting to do that? 

Oh! I missed the TRC. I've been taking another look at the kits and have picked up a couple in place of the individual items.

Polishes... Honestly, i'm intimidated. I've never polished a car in my life. My washes have been pretty rudimentary as stated in my OP. A basic wash then wax. Before posting Ive spent quite a bit of time looking at each product, it's description, and it's video if available. I've watched the series and realized how badly I was doing these basic washes or details.

So now I want to stick to getting comfortable with the two bucket wash, and using all the proper products with the proper techniques first. Maybe then i'll get the courage to polish, maybe even drop the coin on an orbital. That will take more extensive research.

Welcome Eric!  That's a beautiful Mustang! 

Welcome! As others have said, that's an incredible looking Mustang 

Thank you everyone for the comments, i'm flattered! 

Welcome to the forum. Awesome car, awesome color. I'm holding out for a 2018 GT after I finish school.

 

Personally, I'd ceramic coat it and then maintain it with Ceramic Boost. Saves you some product to buy and will offer lasting protection and great shine.

The 2018s look really nice!

Might be a dumb question but, when it's ceramic coated will it help at all with rocks?

Hi Eric, welcome to the forum! Beautiful car and perfect color, but I'm a bit biased!

 

That cart looks like a great selection of products so far and has almost everything you need. If you're going with the Foam Gun, I would recommend picking up at least a 32oz or Gallon of Car Shampoo since you'll go through it fast with a foam gun setup (2-3 oz in the Foam Gun canister and another ounce in your wash bucket).

 

I would maybe add a Visco Clay Bar if you don't have a clay bar - we have a combo kit that packages the Detail Spray and Visco Clay Bar together to save a few extra dollars. The other item I would suggest would be either a Red Hex Grip Applicator or the Microfiber Applicator 2-Pack for applying the Paint Sealant if you don't have any applicators, or you could pick up the Paint Sealant Kit that comes with the applicators and a Double Soft Towel

 

Lastly, I like to have two wash pads - one for the top half of the vehicle and one for the lower portions, so I would maybe add a second Red Wash Mitt or a 10" Car Wash Pad, and our Short Wheel Brush for those awesome looking wheels!

Thanks!

I've made the changes based on your suggestions, thank you!

Welcome Eric,

I think since you are using PS I would trade the W&W for H20 Guard & Gloss - It will help extend the life of you Sealant.

And I would add WW and WW MF towels for in between 2 bucket washes.

Looks like you are off to a good start!

Noted! I'll swap those out.

Is the WW combo with the MF towels and gallon WW okay? I'm not sure how long the chemicals last before they begin to degrade, for lack of a better word.

Hey guys,

My name's Eric and i'm from the Bay Area, specifically San Jose but reside in Union City now. I own a 2017 Mustang GT I purchased it last December. Did my first "detail" on it a few days ago with materials i've used for quite awhile (none are Adam's). I've owned an Audi and on there a recurring theme on the forums was people using Adam's products and raving about how great they are (not to mention how awesome their cars looked).

My routine is quite crude and simple probably by your standards. Also, while watching alot of the very helpful video i've realized i've been doing things the wrong way. Usually I get up very early around 7am to beat the sun on my driveway, rinse the car down, use a car sponge and suds down the entire car including wheels and exhaust last (1 bucket only! Doh!), rinse it off, dry with a towel, proceed to wax the car, clean the glass inside and out, shine the tires, then usually pretty much done. 

With Adam's products I want to do more.(In the pictures you can tell the trim desperately needs VRT) I want to foam the car down to give me more lubrication, I had no idea I was potentially causing a lot of damage this way (including using only one bucket). I also learned that I was using wax when I should be using a sealant. I love my car and would treat it like a baby if I could. It doesn't get driven daily but in my current situation it is NOT garaged. So it is exposed to the elements day in and day out. I typically wash my cars every 3-4 weeks.

So guys what should my cart look like? So far I have:

32oz Foam Gun

Car Shampoo

Wash n' Wax

Aerosol Glass Cleaner

Red Wash Mitt 

5 Gallon Bucket w/ Grit Guard

Wheel Cleaner

Super VRT

Pro Tire Hex Grip Applicator

Detail Spray

Great White Microfiber Drying towel

Perfect Glass Cleaning towel

Liquid Paint Sealant

Anything i'm missing? Looking forward to the products and this forum.

Cheers,

Thanks for this thread, it answered my question!