"All clear coats have swirls ma'am, that's just how it is." :rollseyes *56K* maybe

EBPcivicsi

GOT PREP?
Just a quick story behind this detail:



This lady brings her car to the local tunnel wash (I know the name, but will keep it to myself) to have it detailed. They then commence to run it through the tunnel and “detail� it. Afterwards she notices that she still has all of these “spider webs� on her paint and asks why. The “detailer� then tells her that ALL clear coats look this way and that the marks cannot be removed. She also has a bit of paint transfer on the sides on the car where she accidentally closed her security gate on the car that she “thought� was going to be removed. After the detail, she still sees the paint and asks about it. The “detailer" tells her that the paint cannot be removed and she will have to live with it. :wall



So the customer is referred to me and she already has a bad taste in her mouth about “detailers� because of the hack at the tunnel wash. I do my best to overcome this obstacle by explaining to her exactly what I will be doing to her vehicle, why, and how long it will take. I also tell her that she has nothing to worry about and that the swirls and paint transfer will be removed without issue. She looks at me, smiles, and says “I’ll check on you in a few hours.�



Here is the area of concern; it was like this on both sides.

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Full shot of area:

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This what happened when the customer made an attempt at removing the paint transfer:

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Here are the swirls; this is what a year of tunnel washes will get.



This is the trunk; these patterns of scratches were everywhere:

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Trunk again:

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Random swirls throughout:

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They also told her that since BMW’s produced so much brake dust they could not guarantee that the wheels would be perfect. LOL!

Before:

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The process that I used to revive this paint was lengthy, but worth the effort. I spent around 8 hours with the car and that included cleaning the motor, interior, and fixing the paint. For the paint the process was:



Wash



Clay with Meguiars aggressive cdetailer line clay



Apply Meguiars #85 Diamond cut via rotary with a Meguiars foam cutting pad @ 1750 RPM’s



Apply Meguiars #83 dual action cleaner polish via rotary @1000 RPM’s



Apply #80 Meguiars speed glaze via PC @ speed 5 with Meguiars polishing pad



Sealed with Adam’s butter wax by hand and a foam applicator



All products removed with microfiber towels.



Tires were dressed with Meguiars all-season dressing.



The owner was blown away, but she felt betrayed by her “regular� car wash. I tried to explain to her that this was common and that if she continued to take her car there it would be marred/swirled again. Anyway, she loved it, I was tired, and the car looked incredible�it was a good day.



Here’s the area where the paint was:

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Swirls are GONE!!!!

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This is the trunk area after:

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I think the wheels came out quite well.

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I have full pics of the car, but it was dark outside when I finished. The ones that I took in the garage are blurry because I don't know how to operate my camera outside of "auto."

:(
 
haha wow bet her jaw dropped. i hate scammers like that, imagine how much money they get from ignorant customers who think they're actually doing something to the car. great work man :up
 
Excellent results! Was the paint that hard that you needed to use #85? What led you to use such an aggressive product?
 
merci said:
Excellent results! Was the paint that hard that you needed to use #85? What led you to use such an aggressive product?



Swirls are always worse than a photo can capture IMO.



I didn't find the paint that hard, but after trying several different test combos, this one provided the best results. :nixweiss
 
Great results! I know she was relieved to talk with you about her paint issues. It's amazing some of the things so called experts tell their customers. Good work! :2thumbs:
 
Diamond cut, damn you really know what your doing, and she got lucky that the gate didnt do more damage.



You are probably her favroite person right now, i wonder if she will goto the car wash and show them how bad they suck lol.
 
ebpcivicsi- #85 is sorta becoming your go-to product for first passes, huh?



Heh heh, you don't usually take 8 hours, so I bet the engine/etc. looked mighty good by the time you were finished ;)
 
Man, it's sinful for a "detailer" to leave a car looking like it did in those before shots. Incredible what some skill will accomplish. Excellent work.
 
Super results!



My experience so far is that #85 is a "10", but it's all relative. It's not like you're wetsanding. #85 (and #84) breaks down from it's most aggressive state pretty quickly and it spends more time breaking down through the lower part of the range. When you're looking at an obviously swirled car. I think you're smarter, and it's quicker and better, to do one pass with #85 than two with #83.



#84 is my "go to" product with the rotary. The answer always lies in the results.





Tom
 
I'm amazed!!! That is a great job. I would like your procedures for those rims. Sorry I focused on the rims, but brake dust and I do not get along.... I spend numerous hours trying to get the brake dust off of the rims in prep for Poorboy's wheel sealant.
 
:clap: I'm amazed!!! That is a great job. I would like your procedures for those rims. Sorry I focused on the rims, but brake dust and I do not get along.... I spend numerous hours trying to get the brake dust off of the rims in prep for Poorboy's wheel sealant.
 
Mosca said:
Super results!



My experience so far is that #85 is a "10", but it's all relative. It's not like you're wetsanding. #85 (and #84) breaks down from it's most aggressive state pretty quickly and it spends more time breaking down through the lower part of the range. When you're looking at an obviously swirled car. I think you're smarter, and it's quicker and better, to do one pass with #85 than two with #83.



#84 is my "go to" product with the rotary. The answer always lies in the results.





Tom





Thanks Tom, and I totally agree. While 85 is a "10," it's not as strong as some of the other compounds that are ranked at the top of their respective scale.



Accumulator, I think you are thinking of #84, it's been a while since I used #85. :) I certainly spent more time on the interior, it was trashed--two kids live in the back. ;)



The process for the wheels was:



Acid based wheel cleaner, pressure washer



High ph wheel cleaner, agitate with EZ detail brush, PW



Clean with carwash soap, PW



Blow dry



Apply one coat of Meguiars #20



Thank you all for the compliments.





Jake11375, check the last line of the first post, they're blurry, but let me see what I can do.
 
Bradley said:
:clap: I'm amazed!!! That is a great job. I would like your procedures for those rims. Sorry I focused on the rims, but brake dust and I do not get along.... I spend numerous hours trying to get the brake dust off of the rims in prep for Poorboy's wheel sealant.

If you hate break dust, get yourself some Megs Wheel Brightener. It eats it for breakfast. Also get yourself some rubber gloves and chemical resistant paper mask because it's nasty stuff.
 
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