Looking for some guidance- time sensitive

[YouKnow]

Let me start out with some basics. My car will be featured in a calender used to support a local website. I purchased the car with 8k miles on it and factory paint. Since then (26k miles). I have taken care of the paint. Washed every week, touched up with QD when it needs it. Then every 8 months or so I clayed, scratchX, polish, wax'ed it by hand. The paint is in what I would call good condition (i.e. minor swirls and defects). My question is should I detail my car by hand again or buy a G110 and use that. I have no experience with a DA but am a fast learner. I feel confident about doing it by hand, but I want my car to really shine and hopefully cut down on the time it will take me to detail it.

Now if you say G110, what chemicals/pads do you recomend? I was looking at the G110 package that came with m205, 80, nxt 2.0, pads and clay.

Here is a pic of my car about a month before I stored it- resized to 800x600



Let me know if the pic doesnt work, I am at work and cant see photobucket pics


Thanks

[cozmo]

Re: Looking for some guidance- time sensitive

From my personal experience, I would say get the DA if you want the best looking finish you can get. With it, you can do superior looking work, not to mention, in a fraction of the time. Get the DA and unless I miss my guess, you will be wishing you had done so sooner.

As for pads, it looks like your paint is in good condition so I would use a megs finishing pad and 205M, followed by NXT 2.0 liquid wax, using another finishing pad for spreading the wax. If you have very light scratches or such, then I would use a polishing pad and M205, which can be followed by M205 and a finishing pad for a more brilliant shine, if desired.

It's good to have a different pad for each product too. I keep mine in labeled zip-lock bags, and also write the product name on the back of the pad. Leave the bag slightly unsealed when stored. Those two pads should work well for you. I prefer the 6.5" pads but it's a matter of personal preference.

For more serious defects, you can use M105 which cuts fast and and finishes great. It should be followed by M205 then wax. Learning to use the DA and gaining experience with it will increase the quality of the work and it was rather easy to learn for me, although I expect I will be learning about it as long as I use it. It's a great tool. Go for it!

[yalerd]

Re: Looking for some guidance- time sensitive

Getting the G110 is the way to go. Easy to use and amazing results can be achieved.

As for the pads, it's just a personal preference. I prefer the SoftBuff 2.0 pads, just because you can wash them in the machine. Looks at the Polishing and Finishing Pads.

As for the products, you can get the package that you mentioned. Give those products a try, it really depends on the condition of the paint but if you take care of the paint like you mentioned and only had normal defects, nothing serious, then M205 & M80 would do a wonderful job. If they don't I would just go get Ultimate Compound that is very easy to get and use.