GrpA Calais Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Recently, well 5 weeks ago, my fiancée and I bought ourselves a "shiny", new to us, 2004 Holden Commodore with 153000Km on the clock (95,000Miles). I knew at the time we bought it the paint would need some work, especially once the fairly effective mask of car dealer fake shine wore off. So I looked around on the good old World Wide Web, and came across Adam's Polishes, watched a few video's and lurked about on this forum a bit to check things out..... I was pretty darn impressed with what I saw, and the results people were getting with Adam's products. So I placed my order Not everything I used in this correction was an Adam's product, but when those nameless products run out there is little doubt they will be replaced by something with the Adam's name on it. Here are some before shots....... As you can see someone with little or no knowledge of what they were doing ran a rotary buffer across the paint. The whole car was covered in holograms, but these are the worst panels. Scratches on the rear bumper from careless loading of the boot/trunk. A nasty scratch down near the rear license plate. General condition of the boot lid (trunk - yes, I'm from NZ, we call it a boot ) Hood, or in NZ speak, bonnet (yeah, kinda weird even if I think about it too hard!) Hood again, under lights this time. Deep scratch spread over both the left hand doors - this ain't coming out! But it does become a good point of reference later on. Well, that's a damn mess right?!?! So I started out with a quick wash & dry, nothing too careful as I can't really make it any worse at this point. Followed that with a good rub down with a decent Wax & Grease remover, aka Prepsol. Not sure what the consensus is on using solvents around here, but it gets any old wax off pretty quick smart, along with any tar spots - and this car had buckets of tar on it! Then a good go over with clay - made easier by removing the tar already! Finally I got to my newly acquired Adam's collection and Porter Cable polisher. - Spot treatment on bigger scratches with drill, 4" pad and Severe Swirl Remover - Severe Swirl Remover (3 - 5 passes depending on the damage) - Swirl & Haze Remover (2 passes) - Fine Machine Polish (1 pass) - Machine Super Wax (1 coat) - Brilliant Glaze (1 coat) - Americana (2 coats) I spent both Thursday and Friday after work on the car, then all day Saturday, around 2/3 of Sunday (I had to wait for the Machine Super Wax to cure, 12 - 24 hours), then I finished up with the hand applications on Monday after work. It took a while, but I think it was worth it These photo's were taken at the same time of day as the before photo's, so they were treated to the same low sun angle that showed up the holograms & swirls so well. Is it just me, or does it look a bit different?? Here we see the mess on the rear bumper almost completely gone, and the improved scratch near the number plate.... we also see where I stuffed up! Look closely around the 1st M in Commodore. Yep, that's been buffed through the clear Originally I had debadged the car, but I put the Commodore one back on over the buff through to hide it a but.... opps Live and learn I guess. Trunk after with the flash aimed at it. Hood after with the flash aimed at it. Hood, nice reflection!!! And that scratch again, still there, on both left doors. But just look at the paint around it! And one last product shot! I'm pretty happy with how it has come out, this car's paint has had some really bad treatment in it's 8 years of life. It is just a daily driver, so for what it is I am now quite pleased with my purchase. Thanks Adam's! You made my task a whole lot easier!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
04silverado Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 wow, that's a pretty serious turnout. Good Job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JerseyGator Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Great Job! Question: What pad were you using when you "stuffed" it up? A 4" focus pad? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Court M3 Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 That is one heck of a turnaround! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Boz Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Excellent work!!! That is a complete turnaround on a heavily damaged paint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveVY Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 WOW! Awesome job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerseykid Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 Wow, what a turnaround. That brings some serious hope to me that my first time with the PC greatness can be acheived. Excellent job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrpA Calais Posted May 1, 2012 Author Share Posted May 1, 2012 Thanks for the great comments guys! Great Job! Question: What pad were you using when you "stuffed" it up? A 4" focus pad? Yep, 4" focus on a drill.... so rotary style. I knew I'd be pushing it to get that scratch out, turns out I was right. Biggest thing it taught me, work with better lighting! I moved the car to my other garage which has better lighting for the rest of the job Wow, what a turnaround. That brings some serious hope to me that my first time with the PC greatness can be acheived. Excellent job! Thanks! It's all about taking your time, and being patient. Watch the how to video's. Then pick your 2x2 spot and have a go. I started with the trunk as practise, got that bang on first, then did the rest. Have fun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ralfy Posted May 1, 2012 Share Posted May 1, 2012 on the last pic of the hood with the americana, i can see those small little specks, thats how my hood looks in some spots, we were talking about it in a different thread and i can see im not the only one, but either way it looks fantastic!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mc2hill Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Fantastic turnaround Dave! That blue looks great now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Team Adam's Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 WOW! That thing had every severe defect in the book when you started... swirls, scratches, and some truly heinous rotary holograms!! Nice turn around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kustom_FX Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 simply stunning! Most excellent glow sir! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zman12 Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Wow looks great. That color pops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cpwest Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 that is one of the best turnarounds i have seen, nice job Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug123 Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Goodbye holograms! Goodbye swirls! Hello deep clear paint! Nicely done! Must look great in direct sunlight... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charger06 Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 WOW!! Great job on that.. It almost looks like you took a picture of a different car.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrpA Calais Posted May 2, 2012 Author Share Posted May 2, 2012 Wow guys, such generous comments. Glad you all approve of my hard work (with Adam's help of course!) on the last pic of the hood with the americana, i can see those small little specks, thats how my hood looks in some spots, we were talking about it in a different thread and i can see im not the only one, but either way it looks fantastic!! I know what you mean, they are there under lights, but not in the sun. That pic with the Americana is of the trunk, but the hood is also the same. Now I know 100% that the hood has been refinished at some stage, and I'm also about 80% certain the trunk has too. From what I know of spraying metallic paints you can muck it up where the metallic flakes don't sit right, which I guess is possibly what the specks are.... but that is just a guess. WOW!! Great job on that.. It almost looks like you took a picture of a different car.. Thanks! It sure does look like a different car.... I've done a couple of double takes when I have caught it out of the corner of my eye since it looks so different Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
THE Mook Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 Nice car, nice work, and I LOVE THAT COLOR! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MichiganSRT8 Posted May 2, 2012 Share Posted May 2, 2012 wow nice! gotta feel great to have that paint looking like space . those holograms from before wowwww, makes me heart drop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
90LXVert Posted May 3, 2012 Share Posted May 3, 2012 Very nice work, I hope I can have similar results. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuckkilo3 Posted May 3, 2012 Share Posted May 3, 2012 Nice job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragweed Posted May 3, 2012 Share Posted May 3, 2012 Car looks completely different. Great job. I'm from Kentucky and Growing up here we always called it the boot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrpA Calais Posted May 8, 2012 Author Share Posted May 8, 2012 Car looks completely different. Great job. I'm from Kentucky and Growing up here we always called it the boot. Thanks! Oh wow, I thought all Americans called it a trunk.... but I'm guessing you still call a hood a hood, and not a bonnet like we do here?? WOW well done! what an impressive turn around. Nice colour too! Came out well for an old Holden huh There are tons of VY's and VZ's running around wearing this colour, but they all just look dull and drab. I guess it shows how many need a bloody good polish huh!?!?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuckkilo3 Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 Thanks! Oh wow, I thought all Americans called it a trunk.... but I'm guessing you still call a hood a hood, and not a bonnet like we do here?? I have never met anybody from KY or anywhere else in the US that called the trunk a boot. I first heard it when I met some English folks in Belgrade, Yugoslavia in 1979. Same goes for bonnet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragweed Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 I have never met anybody from KY or anywhere else in the US that called the trunk a boot. I first heard it when I met some English folks in Belgrade, Yugoslavia in 1979. Same goes for bonnet. Yes, everyone refers to it as the trunk now. When I was a child, too many years ago, everyone called it the boot. Like everything else terms change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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