Hi, everyone! Unlike a lot of you, I'm not a pro detailer or looking to become one. I'm a guy who cares about his car and wants to keep it in good shape and hoping to learn how to do it.
I have a local detailer who's a great guy and has done some solid work on my car. About a year or so ago I had him come do paint correction and Opti-coat. After eight hours he was able to get the car looking better than I'd ever seen it. It's definitely not swirl free by any means (they're still pretty noticeable in the sun), but it's a huge improvement from where it was. Using swirl-o-matic car washes and my improper washing technique had really, really, wrecked the very delicate paint.
While the Opti-coat has held up well and I stick to touchless washes for almost all my washing, I've decided I never want to damage a car again from improper washing. I want to keep my current car from being swirled further, and for my next car I plan on having full paint correction done right away (right down to removing orange peel) and keeping it absolutely perfect from there on out.
So I've come here in my quest to learn some detailing and start by learning proper washing technique. While I've done plenty of reading and research already, it's been awfully overwhelming and I've decided to go right to the pros for advice. I've started a thread here in the car detailing subforum hoping for advice in the washing process, finding an affordable setup of the essential tools, and maintaining them.
Once I've got basic washing down, I'm hoping to stay onboard here and learn more and more - clay barring, using decontaminants, sealing/waxing, and eventually I'd love to pick up a Porter-Cable and learn scratch/scuff removal, swirl removal, and other paint correction techniques.
So anyway, hello, and thanks in advance for all the help! I'm excited to start learning.
I have a local detailer who's a great guy and has done some solid work on my car. About a year or so ago I had him come do paint correction and Opti-coat. After eight hours he was able to get the car looking better than I'd ever seen it. It's definitely not swirl free by any means (they're still pretty noticeable in the sun), but it's a huge improvement from where it was. Using swirl-o-matic car washes and my improper washing technique had really, really, wrecked the very delicate paint.
While the Opti-coat has held up well and I stick to touchless washes for almost all my washing, I've decided I never want to damage a car again from improper washing. I want to keep my current car from being swirled further, and for my next car I plan on having full paint correction done right away (right down to removing orange peel) and keeping it absolutely perfect from there on out.
So I've come here in my quest to learn some detailing and start by learning proper washing technique. While I've done plenty of reading and research already, it's been awfully overwhelming and I've decided to go right to the pros for advice. I've started a thread here in the car detailing subforum hoping for advice in the washing process, finding an affordable setup of the essential tools, and maintaining them.
Once I've got basic washing down, I'm hoping to stay onboard here and learn more and more - clay barring, using decontaminants, sealing/waxing, and eventually I'd love to pick up a Porter-Cable and learn scratch/scuff removal, swirl removal, and other paint correction techniques.
So anyway, hello, and thanks in advance for all the help! I'm excited to start learning.
