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**jmitch8011** · Jun 20, 2008, 02:36 PM

Re: advice on my techinque and products used

if this is the wrong area please let me know. I am doing this job for money and wanted to make sure I am covering everything that should be done.

**Mike Phillips** · Jun 20, 2008, 03:01 PM

Re: advice on my techinque and products used

See suggestions in bold blue....

Originally posted by jmitch8011 View Post

need advice since i'm going to do a caddilac this weekend for a neighbor - I will be purchasing some other products from mg soon but I have these things right now. Let me know if it's a - good idea , bad idea , way off , what where you thinking and why.

I have no formal schooling (want too (in MO)) but I hope to change that.

I'm charging $80 f

or this but after writing it out I will change that price if they come back. You can give your thoughts on a price. I also know that written vs watching are two different stories.

You need to bring your price up... you're doing an entire day's work...

That said this, here it is.

-tires - (light coat of bleach white 10sec -scrub-spray) (1 side at a time)
rinse (ryobi 300
-mg all wheel - mg wire brush if needed / and mg wheel brush for wheel surface -rinse
-wheel wells with mg gc soap (haven't ordered degreaser and power plus is too strong sometimes to me)
rinse all -
high pressure water to body to lose or move dirt, bird droppings ,ect
mg mc mit - top to bottom - rinse
mg (gold color mit) - top to bottom again - rinse

I usually use an absorber but I bought the mg chamois(for cust cars) - haven't had any issues with my absorber(if you have let me know)

dry vehicle while using shop vac blower (may upgrade to compressor-any thoughts as well) to push water from areas i can't reach with the drying chamois.-

clean and wipe down all door jams / underside of engin hood / trunk / gas door - (use walgreens steamer to push caked up dirt from hard to reach areas if possible -

- completley dry car - vaccum entire car (between seats as well as below along with trunk) - I use the mg brush kit for the interior parts - air vents , shifter, radio , etc.

once I vaccum the vehicle I work on any problem areas in the carpet or trim. Once complete I move to the seats- he has leather so I will be using the mg cleaner and the mg conditioner - and test to see how soft the seats feel afterwards - (light push of hand on steats after fully wiped down)

clean down all interior panels and surfaces and apply cleaner if needed but steamer seems to help clean surface with 2nd absorber - I tried to use the mg interior detailer as much as possible- haven't tried the wipes (any thoughts if any)

very min on headliner for fear of make it loose - i have cleaned my liner and others in the past but i have heard of stories where a person can cause it to come lose over time from liquids.

- move to the glass egale 1 20/20 - outside to inside doors then back window then front and mirrors - then rear view and dash glass(plastic)

- hit any dull chrome surfaces with MG chrome polish

- do the entire car with mg syn sealant and then tech wax (2.0 now) (no paint correct)(debating on buffer or da soon)

Even if you don't do any paint correction, you should inspect the paint after washing and drying by feeling it with the palm of your clean hand, the paint should feel smooth and glassy, if it doesn't you should clay the paint before applying any wax or paint sealant.

This will,

Increase Gloss -Gloss comes from smoothness. Bonded contaminants give paint a textured surface, this diminishes gloss. Claying remove above surface contaminants thus restoring smoothness, thus restoring gloss.

Enable your choice of wax to last longer
A quality car wax or paint sealant is formulated and designed to adhere or bond to paint, which is actually resin. By claying contaminated paint you maximize the potential for the protection ingredients to adhere or bond to the resin/paint.

- whip any wheel welll plastic - and exterior trim with mg rubber and vinyl cleaner #40 (used on interior a few times but didn't like the lasting smell)

- tires get coat of mg gc endurance high gloss - move vehicle to get full application to tire surface using egale 1 tire applicator - then second very light coat -

- wipe entire car with nxt speed detailer / and wheels if alloy

- spray freshner if requested -

oh and sorry i'm a bit detailed.

Actually, sounds like you have a good plan of action, just make a few tweaks and you're good to go....

**new2detailing** · Jun 20, 2008, 03:31 PM

Re: advice on my techinque and products used

I have to agree with Mike. Claying the vehicle after a wash will greatly enhance the gloss and extend the performance of whatever sealant you choose to use. In suggesting a price in the future, do a complete assessment of the customer's vehicle. I had a large Lexus SUV that required little if any paint correction ,but required 4-5 hours of my time on the interior (I charged $175.00 divided by 7 hours = $25/hour) remember, your time is valuable, do not undersell your abilities.

**new2detailing** · Jun 20, 2008, 03:31 PM

Re: advice on my techinque and products used

remember-sp need more coffee

**Mike Phillips** · Jun 20, 2008, 04:02 PM

Re: advice on my techinque and products used

Originally posted by new2detailing View Post

remember-sp need more coffee

If sp means spelling...

**jmitch8011** · Jun 20, 2008, 04:38 PM

Re: advice on my techinque and products used

Hey thanks alot! I started working with clay on my scion last week but it was already clean. I didn't want to scratch any paint other than mine to start. I realized that it's hard to scratch the paint with the clay if you keep it lubed and constantly putting the clean surface to the body.

**jmitch8011** · Jun 23, 2008, 01:38 PM

Re: advice on my techinque and products used

Ok, I completed the detail and it turned out awsome! I didn't wax the car but I did detail the engine and trunk along with the interior. (Is #40 ok to use on the black like plastic on some engine covers?) I ended up taping off the trunk in order to pressue wash the mud from the jams around the trunk. The windows did well but required multiple wipes. (will try the mg window cleaner next) I used the mg interior wipes and I guess that with the combination of the leather cleaner and conditioner the smoke smell was gone and the customer confirmed it. They want me to do their truck this week and probably the same car every 2 to 3 weeks. I had the car from 8am to 7pm- pretty much none stop except to drink water and move things around. This could have been shorter but I had to put all of their items that were in the trunk in a large garbage bag before working on this portion. What are some ways which a detail shop deals with extra cleaning? Anyway, I ended up making about $9.00 and hour which could have been a little shorter since I had to re-vaccum different parts of the interior because of little buds falling from a tree when the wind blew hard enough. Oh and there was dog hair in the carpet but it came out fairly well with the mg rubber brush. Over all I was very tired and sore. They gave me $100 instead of $80 as well. I know that it was worth a lot more and i'm glad I asked questions onthis forum.

**Mike Phillips** · Jun 23, 2008, 01:59 PM

Re: advice on my techinque and products used

Originally posted by jmitch8011 View Post

I had the car from 8am to 7pm- pretty much none stop except to drink water and move things around.

That sounds about right, that is work hard and fast, little or no breaks...

Originally posted by jmitch8011 View Post

This could have been shorter but I had to put all of their items that were in the trunk in a large garbage bag before working on this portion.

What are some ways which a detail shop deals with extra cleaning?

Ask them to remove anything they want to keep out of the inside of the car or the trunk the night before so that it doesn't accidentally get thrown away.

Originally posted by jmitch8011 View Post

Oh and there was dog hair in the carpet but it came out fairly well with the mg rubber brush.

Ha ha... that's never any fun... luckily you have one of our brushes as they've been discontinured...

A good rule of thumb that I use to decide if I want to do an interior job it this,

Does it need to be cleaned?

If the answer is yes, then I don't want to do it because if it needs to be cleaned it's more than likely because someone has been living out of the car and it's a horrible mess. For this reason they don't want to clean it but would rather find someone like you to clean it for them but usually not at a price to make it worth your time and effort.

Originally posted by jmitch8011 View Post

Over all I was very tired and sore. They gave me $100 instead of $80 as well.

I know that it was worth a lot more and i'm glad I asked questions on this forum.

Glad to hear everything went well and you made somewhat of a profit. Did you ask them for referrals? Did you let them know you get most of your business from referrals i.e. word-of-mouth-advertising?

**jmitch8011** · Jun 23, 2008, 02:28 PM

Re: advice on my techinque and products used

I didn't mention that but he tell me that he would bring me business as soon as I gave him some business cards. He apparently works on and replaces A/C unites for his own business. His neighbor came out and asked me to do their vehicle as well. I will have to remember to promote myself. He also told me that he had a line on a building with two wash bays. I have a possible investor so I want to talk some things over with them first. I also need to know if you all offer any type of schooling in the Missouri or any school that could be recommended. I have used a buffer before but never to the point of restore paint and things of that nature.

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