first detail

[2012srt8]

hi im new to the forum and detailing in general. ive always waxed my previous cars buy just washing it and putting some cheap wax on lie mequires nxt and a foam applicator. it never looked good really so im trying to do it the right way. i bought a 2012 charger srt8 in pitch black and bought adams cyclo pro5 polisher kit with the foam and microfiber pads. along with with 2 stage polish,glaze,americana wax and spray sealant. im doing this for the first time with the polisher so im hoping it goes well. i washed the car and clayed it and taped off all the plastic and rubber parts.

 

should i use the microfiber pads or foam pads?

 

do you do the whole car using the step 1 polish then use step 2 or do you do one panel with both steps at a time?

 

after the the polishing is done, would my next steps be glaze,sealant,wax?

[2012srt8]

Can I ask why you didn't clean the wheels and wheel wells first?

 

Usually you would do this before you wash the car.

ya that would have made sense. the wheels were somewhat cleaned but i like to take my wheels right off the car to clean them that way nothing gets missed, and i can also apply sealant and wax to my calipes. also my car is lowered 1.5 inches so get washing wheel wells with the rims on the car is quite difficult

[Timmy8784]

ya that would have made sense. the wheels were somewhat cleaned but i like to take my wheels right off the car to clean them that way nothing gets missed, and i can also apply sealant and wax to my calipes. also my car is lowered 1.5 inches so get washing wheel wells with the rims on the car is quite difficult

Ok I gotcha. Good luck!

[2012srt8]

 

 

 

 

few pictures i tried to take of the work

[mdolandese]

Looks great good job! It will just get easier and quicker with time

[2012srt8]

well i have laid down the sealant,glaze and iam now laying the patriot wax down. as i was doing the hood the sun is out and bright today and when it hit my hood, it revealed a ton of swirls and scratches. i dunno what happened byt im afraid to see the rest of the car in the sun

[GerryC]

What was the very last polishing pad you used before you started sealing? Was it the white foam or the white microfiber? Softer clearcoats don't finish well with the more aggressive microfiber pads and will require the foam finishing pad to get it perfect. If you can get a picture of the swirls in the sun that would help.

 

If you haven't finished waxing yet, don't continue. If you have to re-polish an area it will remove the wax.

[2012srt8]

used the microfiber white pad last. ive already waxed it. ill take some pics in the morning

[mdolandese]

Can you just polish over the selant and wax if you just had a little area to do from some mistaken swirls and then just re seal and wax that area. Or do I have to strip down that area first then re seal and wax?

[The Guz]

You would be fine using the polish in that area and retouching it up with sealant and wax.

[2012srt8]

whole car kinda looks like it needs to be redone. its not terrible, better then before but i was expecting much better. ill go out a take a pic in few

[GerryC]

There's a good chance you need to finish with the white foam pad, as the microfiber might be a bit too aggressive for your clearcoat and is leaving behind those micro scratches that you are still seeing. You do not need to start over from the beginning, just pick an area that has swirls and do a pass with the white foam and PFP and see if they go away.

[2012srt8]

but id still have to do the whole car like that plus seal,glaze and wax again?

[mtnbiker326]

but id still have to do the whole car like that plus seal,glaze and wax again?

 

Yes, if you already applied the sealant glaze and wax, you will need to strip wash it and then finish another round with just the white foam pad and finishing polish.  Then apply sealant, glaze and wax again, in that order.  

 

Don't feel bad, I have to do the same thing with the BMW.  Did a full correction with microfiber (cyclo) and missed some critical areas and didn't correct enough (did the whole car (multiple passes) in ONE day... bad idea for a novice).  I have to strip all of my protection off as well but I know that the paint is just the way I left it.  So going another round will be pretty easy.

 

Say an hour or so for a GOOD strip wash (without using other techniques, just APC and shampoo in the wash bucket)

 

Then another hour or 2 (or 3) correcting test panel and finishing the rest of the car (with those steps)

 

Complete said correction and then apply sealant glaze and wax in about an hour and a half.

 

 

So a good afternoon is all it should take to try again.  (if that makes sense)

Edited April 12, 2014 by mtnbiker326

[GerryC]

Unfortunately, yes. That's why we stress the importance of doing a test area and getting one spot perfect so you know what process to take on the rest of the car. Otherwise you'll just end up wasting time and product and not getting the results you're after.

 

Do one area with the white foam and the PFP, then pull the car out into the sun and see if the swirls are gone from that area. Don't do any other part of the car until you are satisfied with that one area, then replicate that technique over the rest of the car.

[2012srt8]

good afternoon?i dont move that fast lol. took me 2 weekends to do all that. ahhhh. such a pain in the ***.

[KBsToy]

I feel your pain also. I thought I had mine done then went over to post office and came out wearing my sunglass`s and saw minor scratches on rear quarter panel

 

So today back at it stripping polishing and waxing. No need for gym,  this process has my arms back and legs sore

[2012srt8]

at least yours in only a small amount. i need to do the whole thing over. not to mention i wasted a layer of patriot wax now

[KBsToy]

HA !!!!!

 

I have OCD concerning detailing. Doing whole car just to be sure there is the correct amount wax / sealant. Lucky though, I got my Patriot just delivered so you know whats going to happen with that.

 

Will sleep good tonight

[2012srt8]

took pictures today of how it looks. it looks worse then i thought. i dunno how i could have messed up this bad

 

 

 

im going to assume this needs to be completely redone using both steps? can i just wash the car and start polishing over again, or do i need to use something to remove the sealant and wax?

[GerryC]

You'll need to strip to remove your protection. You can add a few ounces of APC to you soap bucket and wash the car, or you can wipe the car down with diluted IPA and a clean waffle weave towel.

 

When you start polishing again, only do one small area. Do not do the entire car until you are satisfied with that one area. Pull the car out into the sun and inspect it to be 100% sure.

 

Areas that look like your first pic I would start with orange foam then do white foam. Areas that look like your bottom pic can probably be done using only white foam.

[2012srt8]

Well i decided to let a local do it. He says no way im fixing most of it with a cyclo. I just dont have time for it right now anyways.

[cammyfive]

Well i decided to let a local do it. He says no way im fixing most of it with a cyclo. I just dont have time for it right now anyways.

I was in your shoes not too terribly long ago. I'm no means the expert many of the guys that have already chimed in this forum are, I've really just moved from a beginner to intermediate at this point, but I definitely went through a similar frustrating learning curve. When I first started I used a PC and mainly foam (orange and white) pads. I checked my work consistently and all looked great until the next day when the car was out in the sun I wanted to throw up - swirls, hazy paint from either over or underworking the products, spots I missed, etc. I spent some quality time with an Adams detailer helping out and asking tons of questions. Slowly but surely, I'm perfecting my technique. It does suck, but the only way to get better at this hobby of ours is through time and trial and error. I don't know of anyone that reached perfection, let alone 90% of that, the first time they used a machine. Keep at it and eventually it will kinda click.