1990 Chevy 454SS truck w/ 11k miles

KMG

New member
This vehicle is owned by the same people that own the gold Corvette I did the prior week. He purchased this as a retirement present for himself. The exterior of the truck appeared to be in really good shape with typical swirling that you see on most black vehicles. The interior of the truck looks basically like new, however just needed a simple cleaning. We decided to use Americoat on the truck, as he was looking to make cleaning it as simple as possible.

PICTURES OF THE VEHICLE AS IT ARRIVED
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The exterior of the truck looked like this from being driven in the rain just prior to showing up.
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Pollen and dust build up on the wheels
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This image shows some swirling along with pollen spot that are common this time of year

THE WASHING PROCESS
Foam Pre-treatment: Chemical Guys Citrus Wash & Clear
Wheels: Carpro Lemon IronX w/ wheels whoolies & mothers brushes
Protected with Hydr02 Silica Spray Sealant
Tires: Tuff-shine Tire Cleaner, coated with CarPro PERL 1:1
Decon: Carpro Lemon IronX
Nanoskin Autoscrub Speedy Prep Sponge w/ ONR
2 Bucket Wash: Chemical Guys Citrus Wash & Clear w/ Sheepskin wash mitt
Coating: Americoat Acrylic Coating on Painted Surfaces and Trim
Drying: Metro Air Force Blaster & Waffle weave drying towel
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Foam pre-treatment with Chemical Guys Citrus Wash and Clear

CONDITION OF PAINT AFTER CLEANING
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The whole exterior of the truck was covered in swirls like shown in the picture above
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PAINT CORRECTION PROCESS
I performed a test spot using my Rupes LHR 15 and Ameridepth w/ a 5.5" white (polishing) Lake Country flat pad. This combination provided good correction removing basically all the swirls, however the surface still had a good amount of RIDS remaining. I performed a second test spot using Menzerna FG400 w/ a 5.5" orange (light-cutting) Lake Country flat pad, which I then followed up with Ameridepth on a white polishing pad like in the first test spot. This provide more the desired results I was looking for and finished down very nice and glossy. This is the process I used on the rest of the truck. I used my Rupes 75E with 3" Lake Country pads in the tighter areas of the truck.
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50/50 shot of the first test spot using Ameridepth
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50/50 shot of second test spot using Menzerna FG400
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Image showing the finish after completing the dual-stage correction with these products
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Cleaning the wheels after putting PERL on the tires

FINAL PRODUCT WITH AMERICOAT COATING
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Reflection shot after coating the truck with Americoat
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Picture just before the customer picked up. The truck now has amazing gloss and a mirror like finish
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Another picture showing just how glossy it looks
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After photo of the interior that was thoroughly vacuumed and whipped down with Meguiars Ultimate Interior Protectant
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Another after shot of the interior

Thanks again for looking!
 
Very cool truck! There is something about a BigBlock! I remember when they were new, very cool to see some still in great shape and on the road.
 
That's a great looking and well preserved truck. Probably the best I've seen since the 90s. Clear coat failure was a big issue with those trucks during that time. Great job on it. I totaled one just like it in '96 lol.
 
Thanks for the comments guys. I was pretty happy with how it came out, and the owner was very happy with it.
 
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