Suggested products for a new guy?
- Thread starter Redem
- Start date
Eliot Ness
Active member
It depends on what pads and products you use. The following thread has some good info and some great links with even more info. I think it would be well worth your time to read up on the PC and then ask any questions that might not be clear.Redem said:
http://www.autopia.org/forum/machine-polishing/107323-pc-7424-newbie-q.html
Accumulator
Well-known member
Redem said:
What didn't you like about it
I was gonna tell you to just stick with the 1Z/Collinite combo.IME white is hard to see marring on...when it doesn't look quite right it's usually because there's marring there that refracts the light, but it's not so obvious so the paint doesn't look "swirled up".
FWIW, I'd lean towards AutoGlym SRP instead of KAIO for this if you want to go that route, just a personal preference (and it's not like I don't use KAIO a lot).
Speaking of personal preference, my favorite combo when I had a white car was the Pinnacle PCL topped with Souveran, but a) that was on well-prepped paint, and b) the Souveran needed redone quite often and if I were doing that car today I'd put Collinite on it. Heh heh, actually, if I were doing it today I'd use 1Z/Collinite
Oh, and note that IME the ZAIO is considerably *more* abrasive than the 1Z MP (but I do like the ZAIO a lot too...I'm not bashing anything here, just stating which products I'd rather use for this job).
I really did not see a difference with 1z, maybe I am expecting to much from a white car?
Maybe I should have used some sort of paint cleaner before the 1z? I do not know, but i think I may stick with collinite. What could I do to boost up the 1z/845 combo? Is it ok to add a glaze for some shine?
Maybe I should have used some sort of paint cleaner before the 1z? I do not know, but i think I may stick with collinite. What could I do to boost up the 1z/845 combo? Is it ok to add a glaze for some shine?
Accumulator
Well-known member
Redem said:
Adding to what we discussed via PM:
More likely IMO that you need something more aggressive before the 1Z MP (as opposed to a mild paint cleaner). I find mose white vehicles are a*LOT* more marred up than most people would ever realize, the color just doesn't show the imperfections. Give it a good polish with something more aggressive (e.g., 1Z Paint Polish), then do the MP, and it oughta look better.
Of course I'm just guessing...but I really do find that the 1Z MP will leave a nice finish, but only after more serious correction has been done and that unless you have a lot of experience inspecting light colors (and numerous light sources to use), seeing what's really going on can be tricky.
A final spritz-and-wipe with FK425 wouldn't hurt either
Nice car Redem...I bought the exact same one about 2 months ago, gotta love the 2008.5's in CWP. Have you had your radio fixed yet?
Sounds like you got some good advice about the paint...you're somewhat limited with how much you can do with white paint. My only advice would be to keep the products to a minimum. The CWP is LOADED with pearl and adding many layers of different products can mute pearl. I haven't had enough time to tinker around with my products on the CWP to see what combo I like best, but I'm thinking along the lines of KAIO followed by a good carnauba or maybe a "candy shell" type sealant to make the pearl pop.
Another suggestion would be...do your best on the paint, but don't neglect the black on the car (ie trim/tires/wheels/wiper-arms/etc...). This car has a fair bit of black trim and if you keep it dressed & conditioned (nice deep dark black) it will contrast against the white and look really good. Also, the interior...same thing. Lots of black, the piano black trim is very nice. I personally love when you open the door to a white car with black interior and the interior is dressed and conditioned to look REALLY black, it's almost like a black hole because it's hard to see inside the car...again, it's that contrast against the white that looks awesome and your tints will help with this contrast.
Finally the polisher...yes you'll eventually need one. Though you won't see the marring/scratches as much on white, it will start to dull the look of the pearl. Accumulator makes a really good point about polishing on white. Probably best to give it a go on a darker color car first...just so you can see and feel what the polish looks like when it breaks down because seeing this on white can be tough.
Sounds like you got some good advice about the paint...you're somewhat limited with how much you can do with white paint. My only advice would be to keep the products to a minimum. The CWP is LOADED with pearl and adding many layers of different products can mute pearl. I haven't had enough time to tinker around with my products on the CWP to see what combo I like best, but I'm thinking along the lines of KAIO followed by a good carnauba or maybe a "candy shell" type sealant to make the pearl pop.
Another suggestion would be...do your best on the paint, but don't neglect the black on the car (ie trim/tires/wheels/wiper-arms/etc...). This car has a fair bit of black trim and if you keep it dressed & conditioned (nice deep dark black) it will contrast against the white and look really good. Also, the interior...same thing. Lots of black, the piano black trim is very nice. I personally love when you open the door to a white car with black interior and the interior is dressed and conditioned to look REALLY black, it's almost like a black hole because it's hard to see inside the car...again, it's that contrast against the white that looks awesome and your tints will help with this contrast.
Finally the polisher...yes you'll eventually need one. Though you won't see the marring/scratches as much on white, it will start to dull the look of the pearl. Accumulator makes a really good point about polishing on white. Probably best to give it a go on a darker color car first...just so you can see and feel what the polish looks like when it breaks down because seeing this on white can be tough.
imported_User Name
New member
Redem,
I've got a white car and although it is never going to show like a black, red or blue, I think I do a pretty good job of making the white pop.
Here is my regimen:
1. Wash with either Meguiar's NXT of Gold Class Shampoo
2. Clay (if needed) with Clay Magic Blue
3. Either Meguiars DC Paint Cleaner or #80
4. Meguiar's Show Car Glaze #7
5. NXT 2.0 x 2
I've got a white car and although it is never going to show like a black, red or blue, I think I do a pretty good job of making the white pop.
Here is my regimen:
1. Wash with either Meguiar's NXT of Gold Class Shampoo
2. Clay (if needed) with Clay Magic Blue
3. Either Meguiars DC Paint Cleaner or #80
4. Meguiar's Show Car Glaze #7
5. NXT 2.0 x 2
The car is new, but I have put on about 2k miles. I can not see any marring no matter what I do. I tried the 1z again on a small spot and it does look pretty nice alone. I think the results are pretty good based off of the pictures in this thread. The paint seems slick and had a good bit of gloss considering the color. Do you guys usually do a more agressive polish on a new car? I wish I could see some others results using 1z, but no one seems to use it.
I will have my kaio here in a few days, but the more I think about it the more I think 1z may be better for me. There is probably some light marring although I cannot see it, and the 1z looked good, I dont know what I did wrong before. Maybe the missing step is not a better polish/wax combo, but more knowledge and skill of what I am doing. Would stepping up to a pc make a diffrence in apperance if there isnt much correction work to be done? Is 1z mp really going to be enough shine/gloss alone?
I will have my kaio here in a few days, but the more I think about it the more I think 1z may be better for me. There is probably some light marring although I cannot see it, and the 1z looked good, I dont know what I did wrong before. Maybe the missing step is not a better polish/wax combo, but more knowledge and skill of what I am doing. Would stepping up to a pc make a diffrence in apperance if there isnt much correction work to be done? Is 1z mp really going to be enough shine/gloss alone?
Accumulator
Well-known member
Redem said:
If you *really can't see any marring* then you probably don't need a more aggressive product. I don't mean to be insulting, but I somehow bet that that if *I* were to inspect the car I'd think it was all marred up...but hey, that's just a guess.
I *will* say that I can probably count on my fingers the number of new cars that I've seen with unmarred paint...and I've seen a whole lotta new cars over the last 30-some years.
I dunno if the PC would really make much difference, but *generally* people do get better results with it than they do by hand. With products as mild as 1Z MP, it probably won't do much better actual polishing, but it won't get tired and suffer from fatigue induced performance drop-off the way a person will either.
I also dunno if switching products would really do all that much...it's possible to get super results with most anything, but hey, OTOH some people/products just work better together than others and some people see results from certain products that they don't see from others. A different *type* of product (e.g., more aggressive initial polish, a sealant instead of a wax) might make a difference that you'd notice. Heh heh, I'm almost ready to suggest you buy some ZPC, ZAIO, and some Z2 Pro and see if that approach makes a difference that you like!
Guess I'm just at a loss regarding how the 1Z MP/845 combo could be less than impressive..that's why I suspect some marring that's refracting the light instead of reflecting it.