Spring Detailing 2013 Sti, how to follow up my fall detailing

Hey guys, I washed my car for the first time this spring, didn't use the Valugard system yet but it was so bad I did break out the FK1119, then just did a quick wax after...needless to say, this car is going to need a lot of work when I get to the Valugard, AIO, and Wax in the next few weeks.


Do you guys think Valugard A is more aggressive than FK1119? I went over the car twice with the 1119 but I still have a lot of little tar specks all over the car, and a lot of rust blooms. Should I be using some aggressive elbow grease during step 1/A?


Do you guys think the Valugard B with attack the rust blooms?
 
Subirex09- Ron Ketcham would be the guy to ask about "A" vs. FK1119, but in *my* opinion/experience the FK is actually more potent.  Ron might say it's too potent; it's not as foolproof as "A", that's for sure.


 


The Tar might oughta be removed with a solvent or with clay.  I'd probably clay while the "A" is dwelling, though it'll dissolve the clay *fast*.


 


The rust blooms oughta come out with "B" and a little mechanical agitation (FK1119 doesn't do ferrous contamination, you'd need their acidic product for that and "B" is safer).  Let the "B" dwell for a good long time, agitate gently with their "bug pad", which, much to my surprise, didn't scratch medium Ford clearcoat for me.  Don't be surprised if you have to redo the "B" step a few times if the rust blooms are really bad, I'd plan on at *least* two applications/rinse-offs.
 
For what its worth, orange B&S pad + adapt knocked those rust blooms off no problem on that same car. Just as an FYI if there are left overs after ABC wash and/clay ;)

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Finally got this done 4 months later, just wanted to follow up after all the conversation we shared.


On the Valugard ABC, I did A once, repeated B 2 or 3 times and ended up claying all of the vertical surfaces since the B took out all of the rust blooms but wouldn't take the tar specs. In hindsight, after doing B twice, I wish I Tarminated the vertical surfaces, let that dwell, then lubed and clayed, but I forgot all about the Tarminator while I was in the moment. C was easy, and the final results were excellent. ABC and clay yielded a terrific outcome.


I followed ABC with Klasse AIO by hand, and put a layer of 845 over that by hand. My beading isn't as tight as I hoped after rain, so before it gets too chilly, I am going to pick up a DAP finally, give the car a solid hand wash which won't be bad since it's now been waxed, and then I'm going to apply one more coat of 845 with the DAP, super excited to finally be advancing to the DAP, I think it will make life a reasonable amount easier in the future.


Pic doesn't do it a whole lot of justice since the sun was down, but you can at least see the reflections off of the hood and roof.




 
Subirex09- Glad it went so well, interesting that the "A" didn't get the tar off.


 


I'll be intersted to hear if doing the 845 via machine makes for any discernable difference; I do it both ways and it seems to turn out the same for me, despite how the machine has "all those orbits" going for it.


 


Maybe, just maybe....you'd be happier with a different LSP.  I hardly ever use 845 any more, at least not by itself (always top it with 476S).
 
Do you typically recommend putting pressure into A? I really just bathed the car and let dwell for a while, so I don't know if I should have put some decent elbow grease into it or tried to take a tougher sponge to it during the dwelling.


I did see some fresh beading today and was pleasantly surprised, quite a bit tighter than the past two rain storms which had some drying time before I took a look unless it had something to do with the humidity. I may still want to apply another layer just to try out the DAP when I get it.


 
I have had mixed results with using a DA to apply lsp unless you are doing a van which has really large flat panels (probably not doing it right or something); I typically prefer by hand as I can get the grooves/curves and a 'feel' of where I have laid my lsp...  It's the compound/polish where the DA is invaluable for me ;)


 


car looks good! I had great results doing collinite sandwich last winter 845/476s/845. did that last year in Nov on my wrb, the roof was still beading in may :P
 
Subirex09- I do sometimes get a bit aggressive with regard to the wash medium for both "A" and "B"; to my surprise the ValuGard Bug Pad din't mar up paint the way I'd expected it to.  But I'm all for erring on the side of caution and all's well that ends well!


 


jojo69- Yeah, there are situations that're better/worse with regard to machine-LSPing.  Glad the Sandwich worked out so well for you, I still kinda do it that way, using 845 as a base for my 476S. 
 
My wife is not gonna let me use this forum any more, now I kind of want to buy some 476 and put a layer of that on instead of another layer of 845 : ).


 


I figured AIO would outlast the 845 and give me long lasting protection but if you guys have amazing results with 476, I am tempted to clean the Sti up and throw on a layer of that before it gets too cold since I wouldn't have to clay again.  AIO, 845, 476....mmmmm.....beading until May sounds amazing.
 
I can't imagine some 476 is that expensive... I mean, a can will last you a life time, so it's 1 way of rationalizing it!


In all honesty, you could probably be all set if you found someone selling a used can! Eisenhulk had a %90 full one last time I checked his spread sheet! try him out! 
 
Subirex09- Actually, the Klasse AIO (which I do use/like/recommend) hardly lasts any time at all and offers virtually zero protection against etching from bugs/birds/etc.  It's *really* just a great paint cleaner; the stuff it leaves behind is of virtually zero consequence....it's really all about whatever you put on top of it.  I'm all about FK1000P, but you can top the 845 with 476S without any issues and one can of 476S will last for many years.
 
Hey guys, I hate to keep bumping my old thread, but I figured it would be better to post again rather than send someone a long pm are start another one.


 


I noticed that I have swirls after my last hand waxing, kind of bummed, I can see them in the dark under lights, and in direct sunlight if I look at it from certain angles (Satin White Pearl).  I am still going to throw a layer of 476 on this month by hand for the winter, but next spring I will probably have to tend to the swirls. 


 


I have read a lot about swirling this week, and I am guessing could have caused it with my microfiber towels, they appear clean (Meguiars Yellow Buffing Towels), but I have had them a long time so I wondered if I could have damaged them or if they have contamination in the fibers that isn't totally obvious. 


 


Does a hot dryer cycle ruin microfiber?  As in, if I overdried these towels at some point, should they be thrown out?  They still have the clinginess MF is known for, but I don't know if the fibers melt if dried with too much heat, which in turn could lead to swirling. 


 


EDIT, just stumbled on this thread with another couple of searches: http://www.autopia.org/forum/topic/84911-does-a-hot-drier-hurt-mf-towels/


 


If the MF feels ok, and is still clingy, is it safe to say it is probabl still usable?  I will be purchasing an MF specific cleaner very soon if that will help me at all.
 
Subirex09- Test the MFs on the data side of a CD, see if they scratch it.  I'd be sorta surprised if they do.  IMO the vast majority of marring comes from the wash process, from rubbing dirt into the paint.


 


And no, unless it has something *VERY* wrong with it, a household dryer doesn't get nearly hot enough to damage MFs.
 
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