I see scratches

[Suzanna]

Okay, another Sunday working on the car finish.

Washed/clayed.
Put on the second coat of EX-P.
Two coats of Wheel Sealant.
First time using Natural Look on the interior.
Next week-end will be my first coat of Natty's.

The sun is hitting the car and I was looking at the bug, leaves and dust that has fallen on the car so far.
Then I see scratches on my trunk.
Never noticed them before, but I am noticing stuff every week-end (see other threads!)
So they could have always been there, or maybe sand from driving this week, or I did something.

How serious is this?
I was just trying to get protection/sealant/wax on the car before the summer sun beats down on the finish.
Do I assume it is not the paint and then have someone who knows what they are doing detail it in the fall?

Totally demoralized.
Suzanna

 

[Brenton]

Need some pics Suzanna, if you can.

 

[Suzanna]

The sun has gone down more, now I don't see the scratches.
Except I found another spot that looks like something under the paint (see other thread.)
The lighting is so bad, the car doesn't look white and I can't even get a picture of the spot.
Will try again next week-end.

Since I don't see scratches now, does it mean they aren't there?
Suzanna

 

[hook]

Don't be demoralized. I know when I started detailing my cars, I kept noticing new things almost every time for about 6 months. It's natural, your eye is just becoming more critical.

Ok, so let's sum it up. You've gotten some good products. You're learning the right and wrong ways to do things to take the best care of your cars finish possible. You've gone way beyond a lot of people in that you've already clayed and put sealant on the vehicle.

But now as your eye is becoming more critical you're starting to see more defects and flaws in the finish.

Fear not! Discourage not! You're on your way. I wouldn't wait until fall to continue to do things. You've got a good layer of protectant on the car. You might hold off on the wax topper, though.

I suggest that for the next couple weeks you work on one or possibly two panels at a time. Get them *perfect*. If it means getting some polish you can use by hand to remove minor swirls, do it - it's not that hard if you're only doing one panel. And before you know it, you've gone completely around the vehicle and you *know* every panel is as good as you can get it.

Now you see why I said to wait for that wax topper - as you do the panels, just keep applying more layers of sealant. That way, if you need to buff out one or two spots, it's not that hard to get sealant back on it. Then, once you're done, go for one more complete layer of sealant. Then, take a nice weekend day to do the wax - it will really make a difference.

Firs ttime I got into it, I did a panel or two every evening - it would take mabye 30 minutes....I got very good at quick detailing (the bucket/Mf method, not the product).

Give it a shot, I think you'll enjoy the results. When you break it down panel by panel, it's not nearly as overwhelming. I started with the trunk deck, then did the roof, then the hood, then a quarter panel and a door, then another door and rear quarterpanel, etc....before long you'll be spotting things to detail you'd never imagine (my wife caught me in the engine compartment with a power (spinning) toothbrush cleaning the bolts the other day).

Keep it up, your car is looking great!

blue skies,
Andrew

 

[cwcad]

hook aka Andrew has it right. If you are doing this all by hand then it would seem that you are at your limit as to what you are able to do with the products that you have listed.

Just take your time. keep searching threads on the proper washing techniques. This is the best way to avoind marring and swirls.

As far as noticing swirls that is part of being OCD. Even the best detailer can find a spot that he did not get. I know that I spent four and a half hours polishing my truck today. I only did the left side of my truck. I did it at a friends house. He kept coming around to check my propgress. I asked him if he could see the difference from one section of my truck box to another part of the truck box. I had gone slow using both a rotary and a PC with different pads and products to see if I could get the scratches that I was worried about. My friend stared at me then started to laugh. He said chuckling,"To be honest CW, I do not see the difference. Mostly because I did not see the scratches that you have been working on when you started. I think it looks great right now. I also thought it looked great when you started. But it is OK if I do not see the marring, CW. Because I know that you are obcessed over the paint on your truck."

The more you learn the more you see. The more you see the more you want. The more you want the more you do. It is a viscious circle which I happened to have fallen into and I love it more with each detailing session. You have protection on your vehicle. Keep reading the threads, learning as you do. Continue asking questions and using the answers to help you on your way to the ultimate shine. Although it is the road less traveled, the bounty that can be reaped is very great.

 

[kaos]

Something else I noticed:

You said that you 'washed/clayed', then 'put on the second coat of EX-P'.

If the car was clayed before the first coat of EX-P, then you should not need to do it again so soon. Also, clay will remove most, if not all, of any products that are already on the surface. ('cept for Pinnacle's new Ultra Clay which claims not to, but it's brand new, so I haven't seen any verification of this yet) So if you did in fact clay again, then I would consider this coat your new 'first' coat of sealant.

As everyone else has said, don't get discouraged. The swirls that you see were probably there all along, it's just that you're developing a better eye for catching them, or that this was the first time that the sun was at just the right angle for you to see them. I know in my own case, that as I continue to detail my car over and over again, I find more and more defects that were probably there all along, I'd just never noticed them before.

Just keep reading, keep doing, and you'll keep getting better. It's worked for me. Heck, I figure at the pace I'm going, in about 10 years, I'll be able to turn out quality equivalent to GSRstilez. hehe:lmfao