camp316

What kind of car do you have and how much was left in the bottle? I did a ram 1500 and have about 3/4 left. I actually did the whole truck with a swirl killer then buffed it out. pretty easy to buff off.

I feel like the sun is the best test for finding swirls and imperfections. In direct sun i like to walk around and look at it from many different angles. This light is good for indoor spot checking but the sun seems like the real test.

Side kick seems cool but not 80 bucks cool. Most of us have an air compressor in the garage, whats the big advantage to the sidekick? I know it has a heating element but does that really make all the difference?

I usually look for the Adam's kits. A lot of the product you get will come with a few towels for just a couple bucks more. And also mystery boxes always seem to have some in there. I know you can never have enough microfiber towels, but by doing this, im running outta room for all them. For what its worth, not just cause the is an Adam's forum, Ive gotten a few from other detail shops and Adams really do feel quality, especially the double soft.

Ahh, thank you. Now i gotta suck up the 25 bucks on the duster and buy some waterless wash. Learning curves suck.

wouldnt the waterless was drag particles too? Or does the moisture added make all the difference?

I just bought a new to me black 2014 ram and i wanted to look fresh. Long story short, i found Adams and the serious detailing community. Prior, i used to roll through the local car washes, then found out that's bad, pretty bad. So i began buying mystery boxes, kits, and some other stuff to build my arsenal, and on monday I finally got to bust it all out and get to work. Never did a write up of any kind, so if yous have any questions or something that i missed or especially advise, i would appreciate it. Heres my truck prior and during To start I rinsed the wheels off, I then hit them one by one with wheel cleaner and let it sit as i sprayed down the next. Then i went back to the first one and sprayed down the rubber, rim, and wheel well with all purpose and began to scrub. I used the short and long handled brushes i got as part of Adams winter washing kit. Then rinsed, repeat for all 4 tires. Sprayed the truck off with the hose then attached a foam gun filled with water and strip wash. Foamed up pretty good (pictured), but i assume the regular shampoo will do a little more foam. Then went over with the Adams wash pad. ( i have one of those micro fiber wash mitts, used both and really like the way the Adams mitt worked) I left the truck wet and started to clay bar. Halfway through i realized that it would of saved me of ton of detail spray if i just would have hit the panel i was about to start with the hose. It was hot and sunny and it really dried up pretty quick. I used 3/4 of my detail spray before i realized. Now was time to break out the Swirl Killer. Started on the roof (probally least visible spot on a big truck) with the orange pad and orange correcting polish. It didnt really remove any of the scratches but did the swirls. I move up to the blue pad and blue polish, after a couple passes i wiped clean to check, still the same result. As this is my first time with a polisher in my hands, i was kinda afraid to mess anything up. Went back to the orange pad and polish and went over the whole truck. Switched up to the white pad and polish. After wiping down, it was really a noticeable change, no swirls, really clear reflection, but im not sure that i got any decent scratches out of it. This is my first time so i know i wouldnt get things perfect. i kinda wanna get some more time with the polisher before breaking out the micro fiber pads and really going ham on the scratches. Overall, I was extremely happy with the way the paint turned out when i was done. Another strip wash and micro fiber towel dry VRT on all the plastic and trim as well as the tires. I really like the look of the tires right after applied but only really lasted two days. They still look good but not as good (rubber and tire cleaner will be in the future). The trim, as of today (3 days later) still looks great, but it also hasn't rained yet. After that i used 50/50 distilled/90 alcohol mix and wiped down the truck. Decided to move onto the paint sealant before glaze. Used the Swirl Killer and grey pad to put it down. This was the new Paint sealer and on the bottle it did not mention any kind of dry time. So i went over the entire truck, then wiped it down with a micro fiber. Pretty easy wipe down, and im glad i got the new seal, i hate licorice smell. Next to the red pad and glaze. Kinda surprised how thin and watery the glaze was. I probably soaked the pad more then i should have but, ill get it better next time. After the whole truck was glazed down, it started to haze up. Was a little difficult to wipe down clean but well worth it. Looked great when i was done. Now after all that, I went with a competitor wax and seal. I bought the bottle before i really knew what i was doing and getting into and kinda wanna get through it before i buy another. I wont give out the company but the product is called Top Coat. It went on pretty easy and wiped down easy too. Cant say it added anything to the look. After the glaze, not much would really be an improvement. So after all that, I was tired. About 9 hours of work, but i am loving my truck now. Sooo impressed, especially for my first go at it. Now, im hoping for a little while i can get away with weekly or everyother week shampoo and H2O guard and gloss for a few months. Maybe at the end of summer Ill strip it down again and try to get a few more of those scratches out. Bunch of my friends at work saw my truck and want me to come by and help them with their cars so I should get a bunch more practice in. The next morning i walked out to my truck, and the South Jersey pollen was ALL over my fresh truck. I bought a California duster, ran it down with that, finished with some detail spray and looks good as new. Really happy that i found this sick expensive hobby and found the Adams forums. I cant tell you how helpful everyone has been and such a huge help. I wish i got some pics while doing it but here are some of the end result.

thank you for your help, ill try to avoid the plastic as much as possible and use vrt should i add pain sealant, glaze, wax to the lights? glaze and wax to the windows and windshield ?

So im getting ready to start my first full correction and sealant and wax. Ive tried to watch as many videos as i can before i start, however one thing is still kinda unclear. When doing the lights and glass, do you use all the same products and steps as the paint? Ive seen where Adam uses brilliant glaze on the lights and wax on the windshield but do they all work the same across the whole car? It just seems a little reckless to run the polisher all over every surface of the car.

lol, i didnt realize

Saw the video where Adam puts glaze on the inside of the windshield. just curious of what exactly this does? does it help with condensation?

will do, so glad to clear this up, thanks again

Awesome info, i really appreciate it You guys got me on sealant then glaze then wax, was thinking about the lease aggressive approach first, correct me if im wrong in my thinking - was gonna start with the white pad and finishing polish (swirl killer) and break out the correcting polish and orange pad as needed, also have heavy compound with both the blue and microfiber cutting pads.

please help me clear something up. I bought a used truck that has some minor scratches everywhere. after reading a ton, this is what im planning on for my first major paint correction/cleaning/wax day 1. strip wash 2. cover with detail spray 3. clay bar with detail spray ? Do i clean again with strip wash or go right into polishing. 4. Polish with mainly two step, possibly spot polish with heavy compound on deeper scratches ? should i now strip wash again? or 50/50 iso/water or both? ? up in the air at this point, heard the debate about glaze then paint seal and visa versa, leaning towards glaze then paint seal 5. LPS would be a competitor wax/sealant in one, just cause i wanna use up what i have left, after i will probably go with buttery after all this im planning on maintaining by using shampoo and reapply wax as needed. this is my plan as of now, i hope to take some pics and do a write up, please let me know if im off the mark on any of this. I kinda feel like im going to be doing some overkill in the washing processes so please critique my list and any pointers would be great

So from what im thinking is the main differences are price and longevity. My question is exactly how much more shine does each offer and does the amount of shine justify the price. I am currently debating purchasing one of them for my daily driver, a black Ram 1500, and was hoping for some input. Also, after a polish, paint seal, and glaze, is it overkill to then add wax?

Did not think of that. Awesome idea man

will defiantly be looking out for the mystery boxes when they become available. It is a daily driver, 100% of time outside. my main agenda would be to wash and maintain but i also love to shine. my plan as of now is to get the paint as smooth as possible and sealed so that i can spend the remainder of the summer doing basic wash and waxes every week or two. I am also planning, depending on how my paint comes out to do the ceramic coat prior to winter (octoberish).

so im researching my butt off on polishers, wash kits, how to videos. right now im debating on the adams two step swirl killer 15mm advanced kit, and another competitors kit that has similar kit but lower price. my question is the adams does not include the finishing polish, doesn't the finishing polish a very important step? I think after polishing down the paint you'd want to really smooth it out at the end before sealing and waxing. i know i can buy the finishing polish separate but the adams kit is already pushing my budget. Also, as i have nearly nothing as far a detailing products, i need to build my arsenal. Im trying to spread out some of these purchases but get them in time for the south jersey weather to break usually the end of april. I would appriectiate your thoughts on this so far... 1 Adams winter washing kit 2. paint sealant kit 3. VRT

yeah man some are pretty deep, there is a few dents as well but all i can live with or at least deal with for now until i get my knowledge/skill up. Ill get some pictures up as soon as i get it back (on call for work till next wednsday).

i guess i knew what answers id get asking a detailers forum. lol. Anyway im sold, researching polishing kits now. thank you all, will update with some photos and progress.

awesome thank you!

thank you all I think i just missed the mystery box deal, hopefully they do it again soon

Just started looking into detailing, always liked to keep my cars clean but never given real thought into detailing until very recently. I am currently buying products little by little hoping to have enough to go nuts when this south jersey weather breaks for the summer. Just got a new to me truck, blacked out 2014 ram 1500 42k miles. Looks great when i washed and put some junk wax on it, but now its time to really get it looking good. Was used as a work truck prior to me owning it so it has a bunch of scratches ranging from light to heavy. My question is - would it be best to use my money to take it to a pro for paint correction and take care of it from that point on? or buy a polisher and tons of products and do it myself? Obviously the pro would hopefully do it better then me but i like the idea of having the products and pride of doing myself and being able to fix anything that comes my way or my familys way in the future. I just worried that going ham on all this detailing supplies only to screw up a my truck will really suck. any tips or suggestion would be appreciated.

Just started looking into detailing, just got a new to me black truck that looks great clean. After stumbling on the detailing community I feel bad for running it through the automatic car washes Learned a ton from lurking on here and watching the videos now I just gotta stock up on some supplies and make some posts