Rate my routine

H

Heff

New member
hey guys, I do part time detailing on the weekends, and I was wondering if you guys could give me any tips, or suggestions. almost all of the cars that i detail are in need of the same thing as far as buffing goes, 1-6 years old , minor swirls, spiderwebbing, etc. what I have been doing is washing, then buffing with megs dacp, and a megs foam polishing pad, then either a wax or pre cleaner then wax. I'm semi satisfied with the results, but I still see more swirls, and light scratches than I would like after I'm done. I have no problem getting a good shine , but would like to do better on the defect removal. There are so many different compunds in the megs pro catalog, I'm wondering if there's something better i should use. I still want to stay with a one step product from megs though. Any suggestions on a different pad or compound?

thanks

Heff
 
Are you polishing by hand or machine? If machine, which one?



If you're gonna get serious about detailing, you will need a rotary polisher. A PC simply is not going to be able to deliver the same results as a rotary unless you're willing to spend megahours working out the defects gradually. And working by hand is totally futile when removing defects.



DACP is a great all-around polish but you should have a wide selection so you can tackle tough jobs. I'd recommend a bottle of Megs Compound Power Cleaner #84 to augment the DACP. Also Einszett Paint Polish is a terrific product for machine use.
 
I have/had the same problem as you. What I do is test an area with the products and see what it would like like. I would try the DACP then some swirl free and then some wax on top of that. Im almost certain that a precleaner it really almost mimicks the clay bar. I remeber when I used meguiars consumer red bottle pre cleaner, that was the first stage to start a detail. You may actually be taking away the DACP results, but im not 100 percent sure. The cleaner used to give my paint a nice smooth feel like it stripped everything away and the paint was bare or prepped ready for polish etc.
 
I have a dewalt 849 rotary which I use for the buffing, and an orbital buffer which I use to apply wax and the pre cleaner. As far as the pre cleaner, I use klasse AIO, then wax. I'm trying to use as few steps as possible, because I detail at the customers house, so I'm trying not to take forever. I want to stick with one round of buffing with the rotary, unless I get a car that has heavy oxidation, or something. The compund power cleaner description, sounds good, but I'm wondering if it's too heavy for my cars needs, or to be used as a single step polish, being as it is a 9 out of 10 on the abrasiveness scale.

Heff
 
When you answer Bretfatz' post, we'll be able to give you some more specific advice. The rotary, with the right pad/polish, will remove most swirls, and some scratches. The PC is pretty darn good at 'cleaning up' after the rotary.



Try not to limit your work to one product line... you'll be missing out on many really fine items.



Jim
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top