imported_rookie
New member
For the last 5 months, I have been reading everything in sight. I want to have my own detailing business. I have probably asked a lot of stupid questions on here, and after being yelled at to hit the "search" button, I was on it like crazy. Anyway, to learn, I worked at 3 detail shops this summer. The first was Ziebart; Wow. An absolute joke, I don't know if they are all like that, but this one was a Joke. They polished a car in about 10 minutes max; the wax was put on in 1 minute easy with this big buffer, and overall it was not great, and I knew i wasn't learning anything. So I had to get out.
My next stop: A detail shop with an automatic car wash. This car wash was not laser, or no touch, it was awful. Anyways, I should have known right away that this was a joke, but went anyway. This one lasted a day, all they did was "express details" after someone got their car washed, they took 7 minutes to do the windows and vacuum. I knew I hadn't learned a thing, and was outta there after that day.
3rd stop: Found a nice little detail shop in the back of a street that nobody ever drove by. That was ok, he only did dealership cars, and got ripped off. I liked it, and learned a ton, didn't learn to buff, but learned how to do a hell of an interior. It was all auction cars. I learned a ton, but needed to learn from a real pro.
Whew. I was learning that finding a "real pro" was a little more difficult than I originally thought. A complete detail at Ziebart is a crime; and there were few people that actually knew what they were doing.
After reading a ton on here, and hearing Jimmy Buffit talk, and him answering my constant newbie questions, I had to make him a proposal. I wound up working for him for a week, it was great. I was actually in a shop that did it right. I learned how to buff, the combination of pads and polishes, and what machine to use, loved it. He taught me how to "see" the paint, find the swirls, orange peel, the different level of scratches, and what to use on each.
I learned some absolutely great stuff there, but what astonished me was his buffers. His rotary was hands down the best thing I ever touched. I know most here use the Makita or Dewalt, well boy oh boy are you missing out. He uses the Fein Rotary. It is about 100 bucks more, but close to the weight of a PC. Unbelieveable. He had the other kind, that everyone elses uses, and he let me use it a bit to compare, Wow. Your missing out. I already ordered it. By the way, I thought using the rotary was going to be like performing surgery after reading autopia. If used right, you don't have much to worry about.
I also used the cyclo and PC. Great tools, each have their place, and when I left I felt like I was ready to go. Great feeling. Joel, you were great too.
Overall, it was a great experience. I cannot say enough good things about Jimmy, if you haven't met him, do so; he actually cares that things are done right, and with people like him, you know the detailing profession is heading in the right direction.
ps- I also worked on a brand new porshe; brand new that day, was a little scary, and was shocked he let me, but it was great.
My next stop: A detail shop with an automatic car wash. This car wash was not laser, or no touch, it was awful. Anyways, I should have known right away that this was a joke, but went anyway. This one lasted a day, all they did was "express details" after someone got their car washed, they took 7 minutes to do the windows and vacuum. I knew I hadn't learned a thing, and was outta there after that day.
3rd stop: Found a nice little detail shop in the back of a street that nobody ever drove by. That was ok, he only did dealership cars, and got ripped off. I liked it, and learned a ton, didn't learn to buff, but learned how to do a hell of an interior. It was all auction cars. I learned a ton, but needed to learn from a real pro.
Whew. I was learning that finding a "real pro" was a little more difficult than I originally thought. A complete detail at Ziebart is a crime; and there were few people that actually knew what they were doing.
After reading a ton on here, and hearing Jimmy Buffit talk, and him answering my constant newbie questions, I had to make him a proposal. I wound up working for him for a week, it was great. I was actually in a shop that did it right. I learned how to buff, the combination of pads and polishes, and what machine to use, loved it. He taught me how to "see" the paint, find the swirls, orange peel, the different level of scratches, and what to use on each.
I learned some absolutely great stuff there, but what astonished me was his buffers. His rotary was hands down the best thing I ever touched. I know most here use the Makita or Dewalt, well boy oh boy are you missing out. He uses the Fein Rotary. It is about 100 bucks more, but close to the weight of a PC. Unbelieveable. He had the other kind, that everyone elses uses, and he let me use it a bit to compare, Wow. Your missing out. I already ordered it. By the way, I thought using the rotary was going to be like performing surgery after reading autopia. If used right, you don't have much to worry about.
I also used the cyclo and PC. Great tools, each have their place, and when I left I felt like I was ready to go. Great feeling. Joel, you were great too.
Overall, it was a great experience. I cannot say enough good things about Jimmy, if you haven't met him, do so; he actually cares that things are done right, and with people like him, you know the detailing profession is heading in the right direction.
ps- I also worked on a brand new porshe; brand new that day, was a little scary, and was shocked he let me, but it was great.