Please help me fill in the blanks in my game plan!

T

Tenchu

New member
Hi guys :)



As you can see by my post count, I'm new to this site. I spent the last few days reading and reading and reading some more. There is sooo much information here, it's totally amazing!



I have a red 1992 Dodge Stealth RT that I want to make sure looks like a million bucks. Here's the situation: I got into an accident and had the front and rear bumpers repainted, as well as both fenders and my left-rear quarter pannel. My paint is showing it's age a little so the differentce in the rest of the car compared to the newly painted parts shows, especially on the hood, where I have too many unsightly swirl marks for my taste. I want to restore those lacking parts and then seal and wax the whole car when all of the paint is up to par.



I found that David's Perfect shine setup suited my needs as to the type of look I'd like the car to have when it's done. However I didn't feel like I needed to use all the product in the kit, since I believe I have other products that could be substituted for them. My game plan is as follows:



- Wash the car with dawn



- claybar all the parts of the car that are not freshly painted using the waffle/claybar kit.



- 3M SMR or Meg's Deep Crystal paint cleaner? Therein lies an important question. I already have a full bottle of Meg's Deep Crystal that I got at a car show in Carlisle, PA, as part of their 3-step kit. I need to get rid of those swirl marks, but it seems that many members on this board like 3M SMR a lot. Would it be worth it to buy 3M SMR, or could I just use Deep crystal and save some money?



- 2 coats of Klasse AIO



- 1 coat of P2S1 Concours wax



- Sonüs High Gloss Acrylic Spritz or Meg's quick detailer spray? As part of Meg's 3-step system, I already have the quick detailer spray, so again, should I splurge and get the Sonüs or will what I have be fine?



I think I should be fine, but then again, I'm a newb, so what do I know ;) Any input from you guys is very important to me.



One last question I have is about curing. I don't know which products requier curing :( If I use Deep crystal to remove swirl marks, and then notice that the first application didn't do the job, should I have to wait for it to cure before I use Deep Crysal again, until the swirls are completely concealed? What about Klasse AIO and p2S1 wax? Do they requier consdiderable curing time before applying a second or third coat?



I think I'm done with the question for now. I can hear you all sighing in relief, hehe. Any help you guys could offer would be IMMENSELY appreciated!



Thanks,

JR.
 
Tenchu- Welcome to Autopia! Here's my $0.02:



Clay the ENTIRE car. It's well worth the time and effort.



I haven't used the Deep Crystal in AGES, but I wasn't favorably impressed with it back then. Regular SMR might well be too mild for your situation. I'd get some 3M PI-III, available

HERE . It's worth the expense; I'd get it instead of the Sonus QD. There are other, more cost-effective QD's for when you run out of what you have. Also, you could probably save money by getting a different clay system (much as I like the Block & Glide and want to support David's efforts).



Of all the products under discussion here, the ONLY ones where a cure time might factor are the AIO and the P21S wax. Whether or not you can layer either AIO (*I* haven't decided, but probably NOT) or wax (*I* believe you can) is a hotly debated subject. Short answer: don't worry about curing time with any of these products. Add another coat of wax after the next wash.
 
Tenchu- Welcome to Autopia! Here's my $0.02:



Hi there! Nice to meet you. Thanks for the warm welcome :)



Clay the ENTIRE car. It's well worth the time and effort.



Cool, will do.



I haven't used the Deep Crystal in AGES, but I wasn't favorably impressed with it back then. Regular SMR might well be too mild for your situation. I'd get some 3M PI-III, available

HERE . It's worth the expense; I'd get it instead of the Sonus QD. There are other, more cost-effective QD's for when you run out of what you have. Also, you could probably save money by getting a different clay system (much as I like the Block & Glide and want to support David's efforts).



Ok then, I'll check 3M Perfect it out. If a first application of 3M PI doesn't get ridd of all my swirl marks, is it ok to apply it again until they are gone? As for QD, I think I'll stick with Meg's QD if there are no objections on your part. I can get a good deal on it at a local store :D



As for the Block and Glide kit, too late, haha. I already ordered it from this site, so I guess David already has my support ;)



Of all the products under discussion here, the ONLY ones where a cure time might factor are the AIO and the P21S wax. Whether or not you can layer either AIO (*I* haven't decided, but probably NOT) or wax (*I* believe you can) is a hotly debated subject. Short answer: don't worry about curing time with any of these products. Add another coat of wax after the next wash.



Sounds good. I guess the fact that Zaino products need so much curing time without ZFX gave me the impression that most products did. For the first attempt, I'll apply one coat of AIO, followed by one coat of P21S. I'll then aplly another coat of P21S after the next wash. Thank you so much for clearing some of this stuff up for me. I may yet become a detailing expert over time :)



JR.
 
Tenchu,

I took Accumulator's advice and picked up some 3M PI-III MG. I am mid process today on my paint work but here is a shot of the roof. I have some swirls and some more serious marring. I went over some spots 2 or 3 times and it is working well.



11555top1-med.jpg




What you see here is has been dawn washed, clayed and washed again and has had 2 passes with 3M PI-III MG.



I'm going to follow up with the Klasse twins and Pinnacle.



Good luck,



Russ
 
:shocked



And it's not even waxed yet?? Nice.

How long did you wait between passes? Apply, wait till haze, buff and reapply immediately?



JR.
 
Tenchu,

No wax or sealer had been applied in that pic.



I used a PC with an orange pad and applied using techniques similar to what you'll find here.



- Nickel sized portion of product applied to pad

- I spread on the pad with a plastic knife

- Move PC to panel and turn on just as you make contact

- Apply med pressure (more than you think) to begin the cut

- I alternate between horizontal and vertical coverage on about a 2'x2' area...I add diagonal when I get bored or the panel really needs work.

- Begin to lift pressure after 6 - 8 passed (more sometimes) and the product will start to dry.

- Turn off PC and remove from panel

- Buff immediately (lightly) with a good cotton towel or MF cloth turning often

- Use QD to assist removing any stubborn spots



I applied the 3M PI-III MG by hand in the spots where the PC wouldn't work and I was surprised with how well it worked. I can't imagine the doing the whole car that way as I had to apply considerable pressure.



I gotta go buff apply my second pass of AIO...:cool:



Later,



Russ
 
russ968 said:
- I spread on the pad with a plastic knife
Click to expand...

Spread it with a knife? This is a new one to me. I don't think you need to bother with this step, just put the PC on the car and smear the pad around the panel to distribute the product before turning it on. If I tried your method, with my luck the knife would slip out of my hand, hit the car and make a bid scratch.



Finish looks good so far....waiting for pics of the whole car.



Michael
 
Hi Tenchu, welcome to Autopia. :welcome



Similarly to what Accumulator said, I would be inclined to reach for a different product if you want to get rid of swirls - especially if you're doing this by hand. From what I've read, Deep Crystal pre-cleaner is far too mild, which is not really surprising. 3M SMR is a bit stronger, but is still too mild to get out swirls (appreciably anyway) by hand. I would try to find PI-III like Accumulator says, or Meguiar's DACP (maybe easier to find), or even 3M PI-II rubbing compound (FCRC here) which should be available in the autopaint section of Wal-Mart. You may need to follow them up with something milder though (your DC pre-cleaner might be enough).



I would not bother with Sonus, and would just use the Meguiar's QD. There won't be a huge difference between them, especially if you plan on topping it off with P21S anyway.



With things like AIO and P21S wax, you're not really going to have much, if any, swirl hiding ability. The reason is because you don't have any kind of glazing product (#7, IHG, Mothers Glaze, GEPC, etc.), or any layerable sealant that can help fill in swirls (Klasse SG for example). It's not the end of the world, but you may have to try and get the paint looking better before proceeding to apply any protection. HTH!
 
Russ,

thanks for the detailed step by step, although I'll be working with the hands for now, hehe. Nothing wrong with a little elbow grease. Be sure to post pics when you're done, k?



Brian,

Thanks for the welcome and the sugestions. I'm gonna be thankful for a while since almost everything that's suggested is new to me, lol. So basing myself on everyone's feedback, here's what I believe my course of action should be:



- Wash the car with good ol' dawn .



- Claybar the whole car using the waffle/claybar kit. Credit for my extra work goes to Accumulator, drrr... :p;)



- One application of 3M PI-III Machine Glaze or Meguiar's Dual Action Cleaner/Polish or 3M PI-II rubbing compound, which ever is easier to get. Only on affected area of the car, not the freshly painted parts unless Accumulator wants me to, lol.



- Follow up (if necessary) with one application of Meguiar's Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner.



- 1 coat of Klasse AIO. It says here that among other things, it's a good sealant, which is something I definately want.



- 1 coat of P2S1 Concours wax.



- Meguiar's quick detailer spray



- Finding somewhere to lie down from exhaustion.



Does this sound about right?



JR.
 
It sounds good to me, although really you could collapse in a corner somewhere after buffing off the P21S. :)
 
4DSC said:
It sounds good to me, although really you could collapse in a corner somewhere after buffing off the P21S. :)
Click to expand...



Haha, wherever it happens, don't worry, I'll find somewhere soft to land :)



JR.
 
Tenchu,



Do not use Megs Quick Detailer on top of your SG if you still intend to add more coats in the near future.



Megs Quick Detailer has wax component and SG will have problems bonding on top of a wax... I suggst you use Megs Final Inspection or Eagle One Wet wipe and shine.
 
russ968- Glad to hear (and SEE!-wow!) that the PI-III is working out for you. It's really a great product.



technu- Yep, you can just use application after application of PI-III with no waiting. IF you use FCRC (or probably even DACP, especially by hand), you'd better get some PI-III anyhow, as those products can leave minor marring that the PI-III will take out.



And yeah, I'd do the freshly painted areas with the PI-III (lightly) if they aren't absolutely perfect (heh heh, easy for ME to say, what with my Pc and Cyclo).



Jaim's right about the Meg's Quick Detailer messing up adhesion... the Final Inspection is a GREAT product to have around to help remove stubborn residues when polishing and its rather all-product-friendly. If you don't have the FI and you run into residue problems, you can try fogging the surface with your breath before/while wiping.
 
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