too anal retentive!!!!

[joebabyny]

Ok, I am just overloaded here with info, which is all great. So, I want to have the best finish possible for my car, what is the best way to go about it. Lets assume I have absolutely no products other then a PC. This is for a SL500 in aegean blue metallic. There are no swirl marks, no reall scratches. There is a bit of orange peeling from neglect i think, but i believe that can't be fixed without a rotary, so if that is the case i can live with the orange peel. I mentioned i am anal retentive, so I want to be able to do the whole process each time, which i assume would entail a cleaner/polish to strip the last coat of wax from the previous application, then another polish to really shine, then new wax. So from beginning wash to the final wax coat, what are the suggestions of the group on the products I should use? Keep in mind, we are going to consider I own no products or pads or anything other then a PC, and I want to be able to remove any old wax and reapply new every time. Also, for the purpose of this the costs are not an issue. Thank you everyone, and once I finish the car I will post some pics.

[Bill D]

Always better to be anal retentive than anal explosive If costs are no issue and you only want to use Meguiars products then I would recommend getting the entire Meguiars Professional Body Shop grade line of compunds,polishes, glazes and last step products. Whatever products you don't have immediate use for you could always have on tap for any future "situations". Check out the Meguiars website here to see alll their products and you can also call them and request a catalog of their pro products. Many of us mix and match products from different manufacturers as well. Good luck with your detailing

[Beercan31]

Correct me if I'm wrong but orange peeling and fish eye are a byproduct of not prepping the vehicle or the paint properly before painting.

"Fish eye"
looks just like it says and "could be caused by a spot of oil or water.
appearing after the application of paint--after initial first or second coats--are the result of air-borne contaminants.

"Orange peel"
can be a byproduct of moving the paint gun to fast, paint to thick,or drying to fast amongst other, and this can be in the paint or the clear coat.

As of yet I have not found away to create orange peel by neglect. so stop kick'n your self on that issue.


Ps. and if I'm wrong Mike Phillips can kick me around for a while.

[Don]

Originally posted by Beercan31
"Orange peel"
can be a byproduct of moving the paint gun to fast, paint to thick,or drying to fast amongst other, and this can be in the paint or the clear coat.

orange peel is the term used because the surface texture of the paint is similar to the skin of an orange. The only way to correct it is to wetsand down the high spots and polish out the paint. Like BEERCAN31 said...it's NOT from neglect, it's a typial "factory option"

[2000]

Originally posted by Don
it's NOT from neglect, it's a typial "factory option"

It's an option? dealer must be giving away free options cause all the black gm's I see have it. I have learned two things 1) to live with it. 2) to save for a real paint job.

[RamAirV1]

LOL! I think orange peel is standard n GM cars. My black '01 WS6 TA had some but not too bad really. If that's the only paint defect I can live with it. The hood for the WS6 is painted by ASC, not GM. It had no orange peel but it scratched and swriled VERY easily. Even Dharisma towels would scratch it! MIcrofiber towels and bonnets were the only things I could use on it, along with PC foam polishing and finishing pads. I can guarantee you that if it doesn't scratch my WS6 hood it will not scratch your paint either!

If you have paint that swirls easily, I would suggest that you blot it when drying your car rather than wiping. This was VERY helpful on the WS6 hood! Also rinse with a flow of water rather than a spray. That way you won't have as much water to remove.

Even with the most anal retentive among us, I think that weekly (assuming you wash your car once per week) machine cleaning, polishing, and waxing is excessive and unnecessary. A monthly schedule for that would make more sense.

Here is what I suggest:

CM Clay Magic clay bar to remove tar, tree sap, rail dust, etc.

#83 DACP for moderate swirls and sratches

MPC Medallion Paint Cleaner for use by hand and machine for ligher scratches and swirls.

#81 Hand Polish which can be used with the PC also. Use after cleaning and before waxing.

NXT Car Wash

NXT Tech Wax

NXT Spray Booster Wax

FD Final Detail QD spray.

California Car Duster.

Ultimate Wipes, DF Towels or other high quality microfiber towels would also be beneficial as they are the least likely to scratch paint.

I would use the cleaners only as needed, followed by the #81 Hand Polish before waxing. I use it about 4 times per year but more often if swirls or rail dust pop up. Do the claying first right after washing.

Apply NXT Tech Wax once per month. Use 2-3 coats for best results. Use the spray booster wax every week or two.

Every day, if it doesn't rain, use the California Car Duster to remove light dust. Just move it very lightly over the paint surfaces, it will NOT scratch your paint when used correctly. Then follow up with Final Detail spray. This will minimize the time that tree sap, bird droppings, bugs, and other environmental contaminants sit on your paint and cause damage. I keep a bottle of FD at work in case a bird decides to dump on my car during the workday.

If it rains on a dirty or dusty car, hold off on the QD until you can do a full car wash.

This is what I did with my black '01 Trans Am WS6 and when I traded it in, it was by far the best looking car on the lot, with the best finish, including any of the new cars. Now I'm working with the same process on my Impulse Blue '04 GTO. I amost hated to trade the TA but the dealer made me an offer I could not refuse, along with a great trade in allowance. I have to give Meguiars a lot of the credit for providing a great looking car finish which in turn resulted in a great trade-in allowance.

RamAirV1

[2000]

I agree with everything ramairV1 said, except I would either substitute #82 instude of medallion paint cleaner, or better yet just add #82 to your arrsanial.