What to add to arsenal

G

gret

New member
Hey guys. Im getting more and more into detailing the more i read here. I was wondering what are some essential things i need that i do not already have. I am a weekend worrier trying to add items to my favorite hobby.

What i already have is as follows:
2 5 gallon buckets
2 grit guards
microfiber washmit
Adams Boars hair trim and lugnut brush (used on wheels only)
GG wheel cleaner
GG 6in random orbital
GG orange foam pad (for polish)
GG red foam pad (for wax)
GG machine polish 3
GG machine polish 4 (fine polish)
Carrand cheap tire brush for use on wheel wells and tire
Meg's clay bar
Meg's QD
Mothers QD
Meg's liquid wax
Meg's plastX
Meg's supreme shine microfibers (dont know exact number, but can always use more MF)
GG huge waffle weave MF drying towel
Meg's leather care wipes
Meg's interior cleaner/detailer
Invisible Glass
Meg's headlight restoration system (the one with the little sandpaper pads)
Meg's gold glass shampoo
Meg's high endurance tire gel
Rigid shop vac
Wheel wax

I am looking at some new pads for the GG 6in. I dont know what to buy though. Lake country? I am also looking for a tire cleaner but dont know what to look for in this type of product.
 
Have you considered swapping the 6 inch backing plate for a 5 inch backing plate? It's generally considered an upgrade when you go to a 5 inch backing plate, especially for polishing or correcting. The smaller, lighter backing plate allows the polisher to rotate slightly faster. It's also easier to control and 5.5 inch pads are less expensive.
 
^^ What he said.

Upgrade the Meg's supreme shine microfibers to Poorboy's World DMT or UMT. Other than that you're looking good.

Have you considered Waterless and Rinseless washes?
 
WaxAddict said:
^^ What he said.

Upgrade the Meg's supreme shine microfibers to Poorboy's World DMT or UMT. Other than that you're looking good.

Have you considered Waterless and Rinseless washes?
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Gonna look into poorboys MF. Is Meg's lower quality or lower GSM? I like them because i can get them locally for a decent price. Meijer always has buy 1 get 50% off on car care products here. But if Meg's is poor quality i will definitely use them as utility towels and get some poorboys dedicated for the paint only.

I never thought about going to a 5.5in backing plate. Im going to look into that.
I havent considered waterless and rinseless wash because i have quick and easy access to a hose and water. Only time I would really use waterless is in the winter when i shut the hose off for freezing pipe purposes.

What is a good, cheaper tire cleaner? Ive just been using car shampoo and a brush. I want something that is dedicated and actually cleans the rubber.
 
5.5 in backing plate will definitely be a good purchase

As far as tire cleaner you could get an APC concentrate and use it diluted for tire cleaning and other cleaning at different dilutions.

I have used Megs Detailer line APC concentrate and it was great. I am currently using Pinnacle's APC concentrate and love it, but I purchased it on a holiday sale so that made it more affordable.
 
If you want a good cheap tire cleaner; try ZEP Citus sold at Home Depot or Lowes. Its about $12 bucks a gallon and can be mixed 4:1 which means the final price is only about $3 a gallon. Works great on tires and wheel wells.
 
bswombaugh said:
If you want a good cheap tire cleaner; try ZEP Citus sold at Home Depot or Lowes. Its about $12 bucks a gallon and can be mixed 4:1 which means the final price is only about $3 a gallon. Works great on tires and wheel wells.
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Now that's CHEAP. Gonna look at that stuff. I need to get some spray bottles as well. I'm wondering if the dollar store will have some. Gotta save where I can... College is expensive
 
gret said:
Now that's CHEAP. Gonna look at that stuff. I need to get some spray bottles as well. I'm wondering if the dollar store will have some. Gotta save where I can... College is expensive
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Don't let the price fool you- its good stuff. The Dollar store will probably carry the spray bottles but they won't carry the ZEP. Home Depot is where I found mine at.
 
bswombaugh said:
Don't let the price fool you- its good stuff. The Dollar store will probably carry the spray bottles but they won't carry the ZEP. Home Depot is where I found mine at.
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Yeah I was referring to the spray bottles. Gonna get me some ZEP this weekend hopefully.
 
get the rigid auto detailing accessory kit for your rigid vac.
lake country pads offer a larger variety of pads compared to griot's. (griot's pads are a good quality though)
if you are detailing different vehicles, get 3-4 orange pads and 3-4 white pads for polishing so you don't have to stop so often to cleans pads while you work. get a pad cleaning brush. pick up some snappy pad cleaner too, great stuff.
you can never have too many microfiber towels.
 
tropicsteve said:
get the rigid auto detailing accessory kit for your rigid vac.
lake country pads offer a larger variety of pads compared to griot's. (griot's pads are a good quality though)
if you are detailing different vehicles, get 3-4 orange pads and 3-4 white pads for polishing so you don't have to stop so often to cleans pads while you work. get a pad cleaning brush. pick up some snappy pad cleaner too, great stuff.
you can never have too many microfiber towels.
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I was just looking at the auto detailing kit for my vac actually. Looks like a great kit. So far I only detail my fiancés vehicle and my vehicle. Gonna get some LC pads and a pad cleaner brush after your recommendation.

Thanks!
 
Also big fan of 5" backing plate with 5.5 pads. I have had good luck with Lake country 5.5 flat pads fairly cheap durable and work great easy to clean rounded pad edge makes them easy to work on inside bends.
 
Buff and Shine 5.5 flat pads, they are cheap and work great. I would also recommend getting the detailing kit for the ridgid vac.

Washing: get a few mf wash mits (use one for the top half and one for the lower half) GG washmit are great and not expensive (pack of 2)
Wheel Cleaning: IronX or Sonax Wheel cleaner
APC: Megs APC+
Degreaser: Megs Super Degreaser (gets old tire dressing off and cleans wheel wells good)
MF Towels: like mentioned above get as many as you can, then get another dozen
- get some edgless with at least 300gsm for rinseless washes
Rinsless wash: Optimum No rinse works really well
Pad: Megs MF cutting pads, in my opinion work better than the orange foam pads
Backing Plate: Get a 3.5inch and 5inch backing plate for the GG 6inch polisher - This will allow you to do smaller spots without having to get another polisher
Polishes/Compounds: just pick some, there are so many good ones out there (sonax, menzerna, megs, Blackfire etc..

Welcome to the joy of endless selection and rarely will you ever get just one answer for a great product. All detailing starts somewhere, 2 vehicles to practice on. Enjoy the obsession and goodluck!
 
I think the Speedmaster Wheel Brush is a necessity when detailing. Best way to scrub the barrels and clean between the spokes.
 
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