Detailing "Kit" Compilation: Quick, Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced.

[deevergote]

I want to compile a go-to list of products, tools, techniques, and procedures for proper exterior detailing. I want to build a list that anyone looking to detail their car can look at and follow, with different levels based on the ability and desired outcome.
I'm talking wash soap, polish, wax, detail spray, wheel cleaner, and all the tools, pads, towels, etc...

The goal is to have a quality list for each heading below, naming exact products, and linking to DIY threads or videos showing how to use them properly. I intend for these lists to be complete enough for a person that has and knows nothing to go to the store, buy all the products on the list, watch/read DIYs, and get started right away!



Quick - For the person that doesn't want to spend all day making their car look absolutely perfect. For the person that doesn't have an extensive collection of tools and materials, but wants to get a decent look for what they have at their disposal.

Beginner - For the person that wants to do more than just a quick job. Perhaps with an inexpensive orbital polisher, or a drill attachment. The best low-cost, low-risk options for someone just learning to detail their car.

Intermediate - For the person that is ready to get more serious. More expensive tools, perhaps the use of abrasive polish to bring their paint back to life.

Expert - For the person willing to pay top dollar for high-end products and equipment.




I'm not a detail expert myself. In fact, I hope to benefit from the first two categories! I hope to fill in this list (perhaps create full threads for each category) to be used in the future, however. There's a lot of great info on here, and lots of people here know what they're doing... but I have yet to see it all in one convenient thread. It can get mighty overwhelming for a beginner to go through everything, not knowing what is proper for their level of experience and desired outcome.

[CB7NWDD]

I'm a huge fan of Adam's detailing products, they are in the "expert level" of product and their price reflects that. My absolute favorite is their deep wheel cleaner which cuts through break dust build up like butter, and I also like their car wash and their interior detail spray.

They offer an entire line up of products and I've used all of them on all types of vehicles, from a 1931 Chrysler Imperial to a 2004 Saleen S7 TT, they have yet to disappoint.

[PakaloloHonda]

I'm a fan of McGuire's .. all of their products are just amazing!

I also bought a Porter Cable polisher/buffer .. THE best money I ever spent ..
I don't care what you do or what you use, if you do NOT use a Porter Cable ...
you ain't doin it right ...

[sonikaccord]

I've always wanted a PC...need a paint job first though.

The Mr. Clean auto dry works pretty well for quick washes.

[ol blue]

Meguiars 105 - for deeper scratches or a quick polish that looks good
Meguiars 205 - for light scratches and does a decent job on most cars without dusting to much

For a cheaper route Meguiars ultimate compound and ultimate polish are almost on par with the 105/205 combo

I have the griots garage for a polisher and it is a wonderful tool with a lifetime warranty. The harbor freight polisher could be used if you are a beginner and don't want to spend a lot of dough on just a polisher.

I use turtle wax trim for trim pieces on my saab and it lasted about 2 months before it started to dull. You can also use peanut butter I believe.

For the wheels I heard ,but have not actually used it yet, brown royal is pretty good.

Than finally carnauba wax is for a nice deep gloss but only last 1-3 months. Synthetic waxes are suppose to be good for longer but it does not give off that nice deep color look.

You can look at my members ride thread for Meguiars 205 before and after shots in sunlight.

[Maple50175]

I have been detailing since 03. I have figured the cheapest way to make the most profit.

For a beginner, the Harbor Freight Random Orbital Polisher works great on removing swirls. Pro's or advanced users should get a Rupes, or a Flex which has more correction area.

Makita Buffer: (Wool Pad) http://www.amazon.com/Makita-9227C-7.../dp/B0000223IZ
Rupes: http://www.amazon.com/Chemical-LHR21...keywords=rupes
etc

People who do detailing at car dealerships, use malco/appearance detailing, some stuff is good. other's is just overpriced junk.
I use as follows:

Scratch Removal : 3M 39060 Perfect-It Rubbing Compound
Or cheaper alternative: http://www.meguiars.com/en/professio...ompound-32-oz/

Then after i do the whole care I'll follow up with this stuff called Buff and Wipe or Glaze from Trans Mate : http://trans-mate.com/automotive-care/

All swirls go away with a yellow foam pad and this stuff (unless you use the random orbital on this step which always works too)

Then once I do whole care, I use Collinite waxes (which to be is the best) It last's and as like others said Sealants are great but there is something I don't like about them (people often say wax is old technology) http://www.collinite.com/

Wheel Acid for the wheels ( will get wheels looking brand new)
Wash car with 2 bucket method one rise, one clean
ClayBar Car to remove contaminants (road tar/iron fallout/ rail dust)
Compound car
Polish/glaze
Wax
Tires

For the interior. Air Gun http://www.cornwelltools.com/webcat/...-Bent-Blow-Gun

For guys who don't have a 1200+ extractor. Use GP (not that purple power crap) get real products from you're local detailing supplier. and Carpet spotter/ Lightly Wet carpet with a hose, scrub with brush and vaccuum up right away. crank the heat to floor and let dry out while using a clean rag to soak up moisture.

Plastics/panels use the GP(general Purpose) cleaner. Then use Detail Spray(which i love) or something like armor all.

***Believe it or not Shout (the laundry strain remover) works excellent on headliners, and seats/stains****

Throw in an air freshener, do the windows, etc

* For deeper scratches *usually if finger nail goes in scratch it's too deep to get out everything else wet sanding with 1500grit-2000grit sandpaper will get almost everything out. JUST don't do this unless you're familiar, don't want you do burn the paint/sand too much!


Hope this helps, Will format it better later but I just woke up

[ol blue]

* For deeper scratches *usually if finger nail goes in scratch it's too deep to get out everything else wet sanding with 1500grit-2000grit sandpaper will get almost everything out. JUST don't do this unless you're familiar, don't want you do burn the paint/sand too much!


Hope this helps, Will format it better later but I just woke up

I was told for deeper scratches was like lick my finger and wipe it over the scratch. If it is a scratch that could be polished out it will blend in the paint, but if it is to deep it won't blend into the paint. Does that make sense?

[Maple50175]

yes ideally that works too. It just depends if it went though the clear or not.

[AccordWarrior]

I have been detailing since 03. I have figured the cheapest way to make the most profit.

For a beginner, the Harbor Freight Random Orbital Polisher works great on removing swirls. Pro's or advanced users should get a Rupes, or a Flex which has more correction area.

Makita Buffer: (Wool Pad) http://www.amazon.com/Makita-9227C-7.../dp/B0000223IZ
Rupes: http://www.amazon.com/Chemical-LHR21...keywords=rupes
etc

People who do detailing at car dealerships, use malco/appearance detailing, some stuff is good. other's is just overpriced junk.
I use as follows:

Scratch Removal : 3M 39060 Perfect-It Rubbing Compound
Or cheaper alternative: http://www.meguiars.com/en/professio...ompound-32-oz/

Then after i do the whole care I'll follow up with this stuff called Buff and Wipe or Glaze from Trans Mate : http://trans-mate.com/automotive-care/

All swirls go away with a yellow foam pad and this stuff (unless you use the random orbital on this step which always works too)

Then once I do whole care, I use Collinite waxes (which to be is the best) It last's and as like others said Sealants are great but there is something I don't like about them (people often say wax is old technology) http://www.collinite.com/

Wheel Acid for the wheels ( will get wheels looking brand new)
Wash car with 2 bucket method one rise, one clean
ClayBar Car to remove contaminants (road tar/iron fallout/ rail dust)
Compound car
Polish/glaze
Wax
Tires

For the interior. Air Gun http://www.cornwelltools.com/webcat/...-Bent-Blow-Gun

For guys who don't have a 1200+ extractor. Use GP (not that purple power crap) get real products from you're local detailing supplier. and Carpet spotter/ Lightly Wet carpet with a hose, scrub with brush and vaccuum up right away. crank the heat to floor and let dry out while using a clean rag to soak up moisture.

Plastics/panels use the GP(general Purpose) cleaner. Then use Detail Spray(which i love) or something like armor all.

***Believe it or not Shout (the laundry strain remover) works excellent on headliners, and seats/stains****

Throw in an air freshener, do the windows, etc

* For deeper scratches *usually if finger nail goes in scratch it's too deep to get out everything else wet sanding with 1500grit-2000grit sandpaper will get almost everything out. JUST don't do this unless you're familiar, don't want you do burn the paint/sand too much!


Hope this helps, Will format it better later but I just woke up

Wheel acid is dangerous, there are many other products that work quite well without acid. For example. Sonax is acid-free and I've had fantastic results with it. Wheel acid can easily damage the clearcoat finishes on wheels, giving you a huge headache and require further repairs.

I wouldn't waste my time with a HF buffer. The PC 7424 isn't particularly pricey and is one of the benchmark products on the market. Sure, there are better, but a PC will get you 80-90% there without a huge headache.

ArmorAll is garbage and can give you more headaches than you need. A product like 303 Aerospace protectant is MUCH better at not that much of an incremental cost. My only issue with it is that it outgases and you need to clean your windshield off 2-3 days afterwards. That being said, nothing but good experiences.

Also, you cannot make a blanket statement about a "yellow" pad. Different makers are going to have different pads, maybe they are color coded, but it's not something you can blindly say. Besides, the yellow CCS pads I use are much more aggressive than you may need for a car. I pulled swirls on my STI using a CCS yellow pad and then had to go over it with a blue and white pad to remove the holograms and I still had issues with them that I'm trying to sort out.

You've got a lot of good info in there, but if you swap out some of the products you run, you'll see MUCH better results.

[ol blue]

I wouldn't waste my time with a HF buffer. The PC 7424 isn't particularly pricey and is one of the benchmark products on the market. Sure, there are better, but a PC will get you 80-90% there without a huge headache.

You have a point there. I think the 7424 is only $30 more and it is proven to hold its own against some of the better polishers. Just keep an eye out at Home Depot I believe it is for sales on the PC. Before I bought my griots garage polisher it was on sale for like $100 shipped from Home Depot or menards( I can't remember).

[AccordWarrior]

You have a point there. I think the 7424 is only $30 more and it is proven to hold its own against some of the better polishers. Just keep an eye out at Home Depot I believe it is for sales on the PC. Before I bought my griots garage polisher it was on sale for like $100 shipped from Home Depot or menards( I can't remember).

Isn't the Griots a rebranded PC?

When I bought mine the Flex was starting to gain traction. I need to inventory what I have and get back into it. My car needs a buff but I don't know what I have left paint wise to work with as I've been over it a few times. I had some touch up work done at a body shop and they washed it for me which re-swirled it. Plus I have a few holograms I need to pull. I want to give Ultrafina a go as the last time I had borrowed some from a friend I was very pleased with the results.

[ol blue]

It may very well be but it had a lifetime warranty. Can't go wrong with that. When I bought mine it came out to be about $200 shipped, I see they have dropped a little in price.

I just polished my brothers 05 silverado crew cab and I can honestly say I am sastified with using 105 for a daily driver.

[Blk EX Coupe]

I guess I would fall in the expert category, but I've been out of the loop for a few years now, so my products and methods are considered outdated compared to my friends who still detail cars. Everything is nanotechnology now.

Detailing products have evolved so much in the past 10 years. A lot of off the shelf products are horribly outdated now, but they still work. All the advancements in technology have been for detailing efficiency and longevity, but at the end of the day the cars will look the same to a normal person. As you advance in detailing you'll start to move away from off the shelf products and use "pure" products instead of hybrids to achieve better long term results. The trade off is that details start to take even longer. (I usually average about 10 hours just to polish paint, but my level of OCD is high.)

For a beginner that will most likely only shop at a local auto parts store or walmart they should know that most products off the shelf are hybrid products which are meant to make the job easier for the end user. For example, the polishes generally contain fillers which temporarily fill in the swirls instead of removing them and soaps will contain wax. The goal of these products is to enhance the finishes while making it fast and easy for the end user.

I would recommend the major brands like Meguiars (ultimate line, nxt, or gold class) or Mothers. Another smaller brand I have seen for sale at local auto parts stores and Walmart is Surf City, but I'm not sure if they're sold nationally.

Their shopping list should include:
- 2 buckets (1 for soap and 1 to clean the mitt in between panels)
- wash mitt
- microfiber towels for paint, towels for interior, towels for wheels
- Soap
- clay bar kit
- polish (optional since its hard to polish without buying a machine)
- wax or sealant (I prefer sealants because they last longer)
- quick detailer for spot cleaning when you don't have time to wash the car
- Plastic bin to store paint towels and wash mitt *this is very important because dirty towels scratch the paint

Wheel acid is dangerous, there are many other products that work quite well without acid. For example. Sonax is acid-free and I've had fantastic results with it. Wheel acid can easily damage the clearcoat finishes on wheels, giving you a huge headache and require further repairs.

This is so important to note because most off the shelf wheel cleaners are acidic. I've seen so many high end wheels (usually raw polish) damaged because of acid wheel cleaners. The only time I'll use an acid wheel cleaner is on a really old stock rim that has caked on brake dust.

Sonax full effect and P21s gel wheel cleaner are 2 great ph neutral wheel cleaners.