cwp2016nd

Single stage paint just means there is no clear coat. It is only paint on the panel which is why it looked "ashy" from oxidation. The finish polish wouldn't do much of anything to the naked eye to be honest. The paint was so far gone all I wanted to do was get rid of the oxidation and bring some color back to the surface. The correcting polish got me there faster than finishing polish. For fun, I wetsanded a small part of the trunk and used heavy compound, followed by correction polish and it didn't do anything for the finish so my best guess is the paint has been beat up and neglected for FAR too long. There are a ton of bird drop etchings and deep scratches in the paint as well.

Hey guys! I had the pleasure to resurrect a 1981 Fairmont this passed Saturday. It is original single stage paint (besides the right side fender/door) and was SUPER hard paint. Took about 5 hours from start to finish on this one. Here are some pictures! Before anything was done Paint decontamination at work... Half of the trunk done with an orange pad and correcting polish A nice before/after on the drivers side door The final results!! Adam's products used... Correcting Polish Swirl Killer 21mm Swirl Killer 12mm Iron Remover Wheel Cleaner VRT Leather Conditioner (For vinyl top) Detail Spray Enjoy! It was about 90 degrees outside and I drank more than a gallon of water on this one and STILL got dehydrated. It came out nice though.

Hey guys, I have a bottle of buttery wax here I'm interested in trading for H20 G&G if anyone is interested. Thanks!

UPDATE! I figured out what happened. I ordered a 12 pack of utility towels on amazon for $19.99 and it said they arrived Thursday (I didn’t see them). I check the tracking number and it matches the number on my mystery box! So for $19.99 I got $80 worth of product instead of 12 towels. I’ll still take it lol

I’m sure many will tell you it’s not necessary, but I think it’s a good idea. Every time I’m done polishing a vehicle i give it a wipe down with wax and grease remover, because the sealant will have a completely bare surface to adhere to.

There’s a citrus based product called citrol 266. They sell it in gallons and aerosol cans. It will remove tape residue easily. Great for tar as well.

Yes. MRB for microfiber pads and APC for foam pads

I'm not sure if I've ever heard of MRB being used to clean pads. I always use APC and have never had an issue. Pads are clean as a whistle afterwards and the APC is cheap.

I also have a bottle of MRB that I will occasionally spray onto my towels to pre-treat, but don't notice much of a difference. The All F&C is just much cheaper. I should try the MRB more often.

If you don't want to spend a ton of money on microfiber cleaning solution, pick up some ALL Free Clear. It is a detergent that is dye/fragrance/fabric softener free. That is what you need for microfiber towels.

Those are the bare essentials I would say. Single softs from Adam's are great towels, but there are certainly cheaper alternatives out there without sacrificing quality. I use my drying towels twice before I wash them. I thoroughly inspect them before the second use, though. Even though the car is "clean" you will manage to pick dirt up somewhere or another on occasion.

I personally use a one bucket method, but that's just me. 2 buckets, grit guards, car shampoo, strip wash, visco clay, buttery wax and 10-15 towels with a drying towel should get you started. The wheel brush, trim and lugnut brush as well as the big wheel woolie and wheel wash mitt would be perfect for 90% of the wheels out there.

I'm just beginning to get my feet wet in detailing for money, but I have 4 polishers, tons of different compounds/polishes (and not even THAT much in the grand scheme of things), all the different brushes you can imagine, metro sidekick blower, two crates full of towels, 70+ compound/polishing pads, tornador w/vacuum attachment, waxes/sealants etc. I have well over $2,500 in my setup already and I don't have an extractor or steamer. Those are coming up on the "To buy" list but first I need a paint depth gauge which I think I'll order on Amazon today. My point is, keep your services limited to what you're able to accomplish and build your money and clients up in order to make big purchases. I didn't do that and had to pay for a bunch of stuff for a while with no clients.

Would you mind PM'ing me what you use? I've been curious about trying different pads but there are too many to choose from....Lake country, Rupes, Americana Global, Griot's Garage etc.

Almost all of my pads are Adams, besides the assortment of microfiber cutting pads from Meguiars (I also have Adam's microfiber pads). Lets face it, besides machines/tools/towels, pads are going to be one of the largest investments you have when it comes to detailing products. With larger pads (5-7") coming in at $12-14 a piece, it gets costly. Especially when you run a business and need 10+ of each pad type and size. To switch pad brands will be quite a costly endeavor but I plan on trying different pads out next year, just for the sake of experimenting. The adam's pads have treated me well and I have nothing bad to say about them. As for your question on the pad style, I'm not sure it does all that much. It might play a factor in how it feels while polishing the paint or how the pad generates heat, but I can't see it being THE factor to how a pad performs. That is more to do with the foam construction itself.

Great bunch of people over there. It’s not just the products that have me sold as a lifelong customer, it’s the service you get with them!

So I got home and I was expecting a bunch of detailing stuff that I ordered. I got my Rupes nano ibrid kit and also two Adam’s boxes. I was expecting a bunch of polishing pads that I ordered last friday so I wondered what my second box was. I open it up and it must’ve been a mystery box! It had a single soft towel, microfiber sponge, car shampoo, APC, glass cleaner and buttery wax. I checked my adams account and I didn’t order anything besides my pads. I checked my amazon account and I didn’t order anything besides my utility towels. I even checked my bank account and nowhere on it was $29.99 taken out for a mystery box. I must say that it was it was a pleasant surprise but I still find it weird. Lol. Thanks Adam’s!

On any alloy wheel I've worked with I use the red wheel brush and it works fantastic. I either use Adam's WC or another brands wheel cleaner and I couldn't be happier with the results. If there's a space you can't fit the bristles in I use the lug nut brush for it. Never had an issue getting a perfectly clean wheel once I'm done.

I've had good luck with VRT not running after it rains. As stated above, apply the VRT and let it set for a couple minutes. Come back with a microfiber towel and knock it down. Prior to applying it make sure to wipe the trim down with TRC to assure the best bond and look possible.

Sealant will help with water spotting in the future for sure.

Looks like you need to take those wheels off and use a small piece of clay inside the lug holes then. If that doesn’t take it all off, use a small dab of finishing polish with a microfiber towel and work it. One of those methods will work.

For the lug holes, try some vinegar mixed with distilled water. Put some in a small container, dip a trim & lug but brush into the mixture and act as if you’re cleaning them normally. Rinse thoroughly with distilled water and you should be good to go. If it doesn’t come out with that you may have to take them off and clay/polish them by hand.

Try a clay bar on the wheels. If the spots are from a recent incident it should pull them off. BUT, once you clay your wheels keep that clay bar for wheels ONLY. It will pick up all sorts of metallic contaminants from the brakes and you don’t want to rub that all over your paint.

I would think it is being it has a 12mm throw opposed to 8mm. It’s also quite powerful for a small polisher and doesn’t stall all that easy.