Need Advice For Finishing Tomorrow

[defectiveAggie]

After getting my package from Meguiars yesterday filled with goodies (got home today from the lake tho), I decided to give my car the works. Started with interior and vacuumed it up real well then tried the carpet cleaner I bought instead of the APC i got cuz i didnt have a spray bottle to put it in. Eh. No biggy. It gave me a chance to try out the Meg Carpet Cleaner. It didn't really impress me too much but that is mainly because my carpet is black and so dirt isnt nearly as visible. But I did manage to wipe up plenty or nastiness onto my rag from various parts of the car. After that, washed it down with the Mr. Clean and NXT Wash in it with a tiny bit of water added to the NXT for extra suds. Worked better this time and dried it. Then i put on the Trim Detailer we bought and DAMN it looks good. Made the trim on both doors look real nice and black.

Anyways, then I was debating whether to use the paint cleaner, polish, swirl remover 2.0, maybe colorX, then NXT wax. After waiting 30 mins and talking to my neighbor decided to just do it and get it over with. Just doing it makes me want a PC that much more. Just takes forever by hand but also takes more time for me cuz of the amount of time I am willing to put into the car. I was able to finish the paint cleaner and part of the Hand Polish (#81?) and had to stop there since it got real dark real quick and the mosquitos were eating me up big time despite the layers of OFF I had on. GRR I hate living by a pond. So I parked it in the garage for the night to avoid any cats, dust, bugs, ****, etc.

Now onto my question.

I am working on the polish now. After that, I need to know what I should put on it. I have:

Swirl Remover
ColorX
Scratch X (might try this on some spots that need it but will it take off the polish??)
NXT Wax
CAN GO GET: #7 if suggested...

I know you guys have done this more than me so your input is appreciated. Sorry for the novel I wrote =P

-Ryan

[Mike Phillips]

Hi Ryan,

If you have cleaned, and polished your paint, the next step would be to apply the protection, i.e. the wax. If you still have defects left in your car's finish, then you can go after these using the ScratchX. You should re-polish after using ScratchX and of course apply wax to any of these cleaned and polished areas again.

Here's a how-to article on using ScratchX by hand,

How to remove a defect by hand with ScratchX

After you are completely finished applying any paint cleaner, (ScratchX or Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner), and then polishing with a product like #81 Hand Polish, then go ahead and start applying the wax. Allow the wax to dry to a haze, (about 10 to 15 minutes for most climates, and then remove.

Wait as long as you can before applying the second coat of wax.

Hope this helps...

Mike

[defectiveAggie]

so i shouldnt use the swirl remover as well after #81? Someone had mentioned this to me before and thats why I bought it. Not to say it was a wasted purchase but I just figured it would be a step in my process.

[jfelbab]

Use the #81 as a final step just prior to waxing. #81 is a pure, non-abrasive, polish that fills remaining light swirls and replenishes the paint's oils. It will give your paint that deep wet-paint look.

#81 or #7 are a must have in my opinion, if you want the best look possible.

[2000]

on the mr clean subject, you might want to look at this . just something to think about.

[defectiveAggie]

Well I finished the car today. Completed #81 and then finished with NXT Tech Wax. It is so purty now

I tried to get some good shots of the car but apparently my paint is hard to get great reflections like i see posted all the time....never the less...here are my results












-Ryan

[Mark McGuire]

Hey Ryan,
The car looks great. It's hard to get reflection from a light colored car, but yours looks very good, great depth and clarity.
Good job.

[2000]

defectiveAggie,
your car looks great! you did a spectacular job. what did you use on the dash?
on the refection shot...heres a tip. you had the right idea with the houses in the background but there was to much shade between you and the house. best thing to do is put your car right at the shade line and what your using as a reflection getting the sun.
again great job.

[defectiveAggie]

Last time i detailed the interior about one week ago, i used NXT Tech Protectant on the dash and most of the interior that it applied too. It still looked real good so i didnt bother to use it again. All i did this time was vacuum and use Carpet Cleaner and it seemed to help a bit.

I am very pleased with the results of the Trim Detailer i used on the exterior trim. It really brought the natural black back. I highly recommend this product. Hopefully it will work wonders on the Volvo project next week.

Thanks for the replies guys. I'll have to park my car in various lighting to see the different results. =P