not stasified...

C

ClimberGuy4

New member
Got up at 8:30 today to start detailing the maxima seeing as I have so much work this weekend. I started detailing the engine, which worked out pretty well. Looks good after 303 and sonus. Next came the tires and the wheels. My favorite cleaner, p21s gel got all of the brake dust off = shiny wheels. I washed the paint and started claying. It was my first time and I didn't enjoy it at all. I was using the pinnacle kit but it took forever. It must've taken over 1:15 hours, when I heard 30-45 minutes was normal. Worse still, the clay didn't seem to lift much grit off, as some of the paint has a nice smoothness, while certain parts feel like sandpaper. It's the weirdest paint. Also, how many cars should one bottle of lubricant do? It seemed like I used way to much.

After the 2nd wash, the paint still had some very rought spots. I got to use my PC for the 1st time (used p21s cleansing lotion). Even though it does a good job, I don't think it saves me any time.

So, I've probably been working on the car 7-8 hours and that's all I've done. I think I'm a slow detailer:rolleyes: Can anyone tell me how long they spend on each step. I'm going to start detailing other cars over christmas break to earn some money, but I can't stay on one car forever...

The car looks great already, but I'm not happy about the way the paint feels. The claybar would kind of rip as I was folding it and was a lot less suple than I thought it would be. Maybe it's just the paint (it does have quite a lot of chips at the front and bottom of doors + it's been the daily beater).

Sorry for the long post but any comments would be greatly appreciated.
 
Has the car ever been repainted anywhere? I'm just wondering because I have similar rough spots (which I'll compound out in the spring) on my C-pillars where they blended the new paintjob with the old. It might be overspray from something too. If you can't polish it smooth with the P21S cleanser you'll need something stronger on them.



When claying I sprayed an area once with QD, then woke it up with a water mist as it dried out. Next time I'm also considering cutting the QD with some water ahead of time because I found it takes very little to keep it slick. Some people also clay with car wash solution.



BTW, I feel your pain about those chips on the front and bottoms of the doors. :( I just wish I had a better eye for cosmetic detail when I bought my car.
 
I don't think it's repainted. It was bought from Hertz a few months ago so that probably isn't it. Could just be a whole lot of IFO. I live not too far from a rock yard, railroad tracks...and it's never been clayed. Maybe I'll get some ABC too so I can try to get it all.

I think the clay didn't work cause being my first time I didn't apply pressure and I put a whole bunch of lubricant (most of the bottle was done). Next time, I'll apply moderate pressure and I'll put less lube, using water when it starts to dry. Thanks for that tip.
 
You aren't really supposed to apply pressure with clay. But what you should do is keep claying until you don't hear the "swish" type noise the the clay makes when it rubs across contaminant. As you said, if you have lots of IFO, then it'll take more time than usual to get the car contaminant free. For a really bad car, with tons of tree sap and tar and brake dust, I can wash, clay, polish and seal the paint in about 5 - 6 hours, and then 1 - 2 hours on the interior. For average cars, I can usually do everything in under 5 hours. For repeat customers, I can usually do everything in 3.5 hours.
 
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