XQIZT

:lolsmack: Mike, your hopes of a new product were shut down pretty quick

I know. Record time, I'd say!

tape.

Oh............

Well THAT was disappointing.

Could you at least lie to use and tell us that it's special Adam's Brand Premium Detailer's Tape? Super effective at preventing the unwanted spread of polishes and waxes to delicate parts of your pride and joy.

COOL! Whats the yellow thing in Adam's hand in the shot with the Vert C2?

None left... I didn't love or hate the flip pad... it did come in handy sometimes, but it really didn't blow me away either. The hex grips get the job done IMO.

I know someone who has some.

http://www.adamsforums.com/forums/contests-promos-sales/18133.htm

Have you been crying since the news of the Flip Pad going the way of the Dodo? Dry your eyes with a Great White Drying Towel and place an order!

2 flip pads: $15.00, free Post Office shipping. Yes, ya gotta order 2. No, you can't add a gallon of Detail Spray and still get the free shipping.

I've got limited quantities, so act fast! Through XQIZT AUTOMOTIVE only! (Unless other dealers, or the Adam's Warehouse wants to jump in)

Good riddance....he was a bum anyway.

When compared to the comfort and size of the hex grip pads, it seems to be a no brainer. Thanks Adam's and crew for continuing to improve and listen to customer feedback!

You'll always run the danger of introducing swirls. Even with a perfectly clean pad, if a grain of sand is blown on your wet car, it could get scrapped across the surface. Insta-swirl.

I've moved to another extreme of washing on the vette.

3 buckets. One for wheels and tires. One soap, one rinse.

3 pads. One 9x9 for the glass "greenhouse. " One Merino for the top surfaces and down to the "beltline." and another 9x9 for the lower surface. Since I can use and flip each pad before needing to get more clean wash water, I almost don't use my rinse bucket at all. Each pad only gets clean water once.

Heavy blast to knock off the big stuff, then foam, then wash.

Twice a year, the local race track here holds an event called Crash-a-rama. It's essentially an evening-long Jeff Foxworthy punch line. The line-up?

Chain Race - 2 cars chained together and only the front car drives

Reverse Race - Back it around the track

Skid Race - Front wheel drive car with the rear tires removed and replaced with metal skis

Roller Derby Race - Just like Roller Derby. One car pushed another around the track and also "throws blocks" on opponents

The "Gauntlet" - An armored van has to complete 5 laps, while 6 cars try to prevent it.

Flag Pole Race: There were 2 poles that drivers had to do a complete 360 around on the back straight before being allowed to continue.

RV Demolition Derby - Yes, recreational vehicles

FWD Demolition Derby - front wheel drive mayhem

Figure 8 Bus Race - 15 buses on the track. Figure 8 pattern. See a problem here?

Boat Trailer Race - Car towing a trailer with a boat...now go race.

These were full field races, not one at a time. So swirl marks were the last of anyone's concerns.

All this and no serious injuries, just a good time. They didn't even riot when they ran out of beer!

Skid Race:

Boat Trailer Race:

Figure 8 Bus Race:

Austin: Thanks for the props! I have met a number of the Adam's dealers and I can tell you, they are all top notch folks that are passionate about the products and the results. If you ever have a doubt, call us and ask! I carry all the products and try to honor every special price and sale offered by the Adam's team, as do other dealers. Picture us as an extension of Colorado, just closer.

I spoke to the dad around Christmas time and later on this year. He had a bit of a "situation" with ice around his house...lets just say he's been laid up and probably not doing much detailing. Next time they are in Florida, I expect to have a visit.

Does beer count? What about a fan?

As far as glaze and Americana, I don't wait at all. Apply glaze, buff off, apply Americana, buff off. Commence face melting.

Remotely posted by XQIZT Automotive

You might be right... though I have very little experience with filter systems. If that was the case though, perhaps the system is too heavy on the salt and thats whats leaving the spots??

I know some softening systems require salt to be added. Filtration systems (like RO) just pull stuff out of the water. We actually had a "hard water" spigot installed at our house, just so that the soft water wasn't used for car washing.

Sounds like this is just going to take some experimentation.

"Soft" water has salt added, no? Isn't that basically how those systems work?

Just thinking this through outloud...instead of air drying (essentially forcing the air to evaporate on the surface), maybe try towel drying with DS as a drying agent. Then you are lifting the water from the surface, along with any minerals in it. That MAY help.

Not to throw another wrench in the works, but I LOVE my TEC grill. They're out of South Carolina, I think. AMAZING quality. Mine has been outside uncovered in Florida for like 10 years...no rust and it still works like the day it was bought, like 15 years ago.

nice solution! perhaps a mixture of 50/50 APC diluted with water would clean them out more safely than full strength?

Maybe. But straight IPA nor APC applied by hand and buffed with a towel was working so I just went full bore. If I ever encounter this again, I'll try some more gentle products and still use the pc and grey pad. I think agitation is the key.

I almost forgot the disclaimer: use common sense with APC on paint. Your results may vary.

Remotely posted by XQIZT Automotive

We don't just need a small group of guys and a good location... I think we would need to help Adam's find a healthy mix of 2500+ customers in Florida in order to make this a reality...

 

It sure would be nice to have a location with year round detailing weather, faster shipping to the southeast and seeing more Adam's shine on the roads!

You'd actually be surprised how many customers are here. I run in to people at every clinic and every show that use the products...and don't forget the snowbirds...and the collectors...and and and...did we mention the weather?

SOLUTION FOUND!

Everyone is correct that if this problem presents itself, you're basically going to need a full repaint of the panel some time in the future. There are several causes, including general neglect and poor paint work.

My concern was atleast minimizing the appearance. This technique worked pretty well, although its not perfect. After you complete your polishing and the surface is cool Cool COOL, liberally spray a large portion on the affected area with APC. (I did half the hood of the Accord at once). 4 sprays of APC on a grey pad on a PC. Setting of 1, no pressure, simply glide the pad around the surface, as if you were spreading sealant. You don't want the pad to spin too much, or the APC foams up and slings everywhere. Work up and down, left to right and do not let the APC dry. I was able to get about 10 passes before any signs of drying. Immediately spray the same area heavily with WW and wipe clean. Continue on the other half of the hood. Then rewash fully to remove all remaining APC/WW. Finish as you normally would with MSS or QS. I did not try a wax for fear of refilling the crowsfeet with another visible product.

Here's my logic that lead to this process. A machine (either Flex or PC) worked polish into the crows feet, filling them and making it really hard to clean out. Therefore, agitation with a strong cleaner should work to remove the polish. But at the same time, you don't want to reintroduce swirls into your freshly corrected paint. So the grey pad was my choice.

Claying did not work, IPA did not work, regular washing did not work, Revive did not work...etc etc.

Not sure of the long term affects of using APC on the paint, but I did not let it dry, so I believe I am going about it safely. And the paint was immediately rinsed, rewashed and finished with MSS.

At the end of the day, with DaytonaJae's and Mc2hill's help, it came out looking great. I'll post up some before and after's in another thread.

I was going to ask if this was on metal or fiberglass surfaces. i have seen this on fiberglass hoods (i.e., my hood, grrrr). Can't be fixed without a repaint. In the mean time, a black sharpie hides it well for the shows.

Metal. I realize that I can't make the crow's feet go away. At this point, I just want to get the polish out of them so at least they aren't so "in your face."

Or maybe a small collection of guys?

 

 

or before Jae says it

A collection of small guys...

Exactly...I was actually looking at the warehouses down Innovation Way...off International Corporate Park Blvd. LOTS of room there. Probably SUPER cheap too. Hey...we can dream, right?

WELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLlllllllllll...after some research, first, the technical term is "crows feet" and nothing can be done to fix them other than a repaint. My suspicion was confirmed several times over. Usually the cracks are there and only become apparent when polish or wax fills them in. Hondas seem to have this problem more often...and sun exposure makes the possibility of them appearing worse yet. Now I am wondering how to get the polish out of the cracks...hopefully a good IPA wipedown will do.

I've seen this problem occur on several black cars, including mc2hill's truck, the black Dodge Ram that was detailed by DaytonaJae, mc2hill and myself and now this '99 Accord. These marks were not apparent during the wash or claying process. As soon as you start with SSR (definitely necessary) on the Flex, BOOM, they crop up everywhere, primarily on "face up" surfaces like the hood and trunk lid.

I really studied this issue because I want to get to the bottom of it. They are pretty small, but I can catch my nail in some of them bigger ones. It appears as though they are microcracks in the clear coat that hold polish, and therefore reveal themselves. Even through SHR and FMP, they are still there. I tried wiping them down with some APC and that seems to work, but its very tedious and there are literally thousands of these marks, just on the hood alone.

I'm thinking that after polishing, maybe a strip wash or just an IPA wipedown? Glaze doesn't make them disappear, nor does sealant, so I can't just coat over them.

Has anyone else experienced this? Solutions?

I am sure that it happens on other colors as well, but on black, it's REALLY obvious.

Thanks guys!

Great to see guys! Congrats!

Now the next step is to open a Florida warehouse/showroom...365 days of detailing. Right?? I know a guy willing to run it for you.

I don't see the merino wash pad on the online store? Is it out of stock or discontinued? Don't see any posts on the forum stating that.

I have 3

Remotely posted by XQIZT Automotive

Nice work. Does anyone know if the square "GM" logos are posted on or just stuck on?