Newb dropping in to say hi lots of Pics

[1Bad TT]

Hi Everyone,
My name is Matt and I live in the Denver Metro Area. I have been using Mequiar's products well pretty much since I started driving in 1988. I still consider myself a very novice detailer and have pretty much just used the Deep Crystal line of products in the past.

My current car is a 1992 Dodge Stealth RT/TT that me and my brother-n-law just repainted using RM products we shot it in the factory 3 stage pearl white.

I joined this forum because I want to learn the best way to maintain and protect my labor of love. I plan on having this car till the day I die so I want to keep her looking her best.

Here are a couple of before pics:

Right after I bought her.



Installing my wide body kit.







In the Paint Booth.





All put back together.







Since the car was cut and polished the only product I have used on it has been Mequiars Show Car Glaze #7. I still have about 60 days to wait before I can look at the first coat of wax.

So for a virgin paint job that has been maintained during the first 90 days with Show Car Glaze #7 can I safely go straight to the Deep Crystal System Carnauba Wax, which is what I was using prior to the repaint? Or should I do any other "prep" to the paint before I apply my first coats of wax?

I love this site and can't believe that I just now found it! Hopefully I can learn alot and maybe sometime in the future I will be able to help others as well.

Matt

[Tim Lingor]

Hey Matt,

Welcome to Meguiar's Online!

Awesome job on the car! I hope you are able to post more pics of the various stages of the re-paint!!

Also, for fresh paint that is curing, Meguiar's offers #80 Speed Glaze which contains a paintable polymer which safe to use on curing paint. It will add some protection until the curing process has been completed and a true coat of wax or sealant (like Meg's NXT Tech Wax) can be applied. It also contains mild cleaners and TS Oils that will add more depth and gloss to the paint!

#80 Speed Glaze




Tim

[gb387]

Matt... Welcome to MOL! Lots of good info here!

Car looks great, looks like you have lots of work into it.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Newb dropping in to say hi lots of Pics

Originally posted by 1Bad TT

I love this site and can't believe that I just now found it! Hopefully I can learn alot and maybe sometime in the future I will be able to help others as well.

Matt

Hi Matt,

Welcome to Meguiar's Online!

We're glad to have you as a member as you appear to be as passionate about your car and your hobby as we are. You'll find this forum to be very helpful, but just as important very friendly with lots of great people hanging out.

Since the car was cut and polished the only product I have used on it has been Mequiars Show Car Glaze #7. I still have about 60 days to wait before I can look at the first coat of wax.

So for a virgin paint job that has been maintained during the first 90 days with Show Car Glaze #7 can I safely go straight to the Deep Crystal System Carnauba Wax, which is what I was using prior to the repaint? Or should I do any other "prep" to the paint before I apply my first coats of wax?

Yes, after the recommended time before waxing, or sealing the paint has passed you can go straight to wax.

Deep Crystal Carnabua wax, which is really a blended wax, is a great wax but you might want to take a look at NXT Tech Wax or even M21 Synthetic Sealant, I use both of these on cars I detail with fantastic results.










As far as any other steps to perform before waxing, this would depend upon the process used to cut and buff the finish. Hopefully it was left swirl-free?

The best thing to do would be to pull it out into the sun and inspect the finish. This Mercedes-Benz was cut and buffed by a body shop but after a few washes it didn't look too good...




We showed the owner and the San Diego Mercedes-Benz club how to fix this by hand and also by using Meguiar's Dual Action Polisher in this thread.

How To Remove Swirls By Hand


When you inspect the finish, if it looks great then go straight to wax, if it has swirls and you want to remove them, then let us know and we'll help you with this also.

[Mike Phillips]

Here's this...

List 'O Links

Many of the things we cover in our Saturday Classes are discussed and talked about in the threads found in the sub-forums of the Information Station


First read this,

Meguiar's 5-Step Paint Care Cycle


Then read these...

Circles or Straight Lines?
Which LSP is Best for Light Colors
How To Remove Swirls By Hand
Using the G-100 to remove swirls with the Professional Line
How to remove a defect by hand with ScratchX
How to locate Meguiar’s Professional & Detailer products in your hometown
How to tell when a Meguiar's wax is ready to remove - The Swipe Test
The Dual Action Counterweight "Controversy"
What are the Differences Between Meguiar's Waxes
What's the Deal with "Layering"?
Measuring Clear Coat Thickness
Rotary vs. PC vs. Regular Orbital Buffer
Glass Polishing...Deep Cleaning
NXT Tech Wax Cure Time
Suggested Products for Taking Care of a New Car
Colored Waxes - Do they really work?
PC + #83 not "Cutting" it! - The Limits of the Dual Action Polisher
What it Means to Remove a Scratch
Why Meguiar’s Recommends Polishing Paint
A Lesson From White Paint
Each one, teach one... Ferrari Fiorano 355 F1 Spider

[Mike Phillips]

And you ought to get in on this...

FREE G100 Dual Action Polisher Drawing!
That's right, all you have to do is click on the link below and reply to the thread and you're automatically entered for a chance to win our G100a Dual Action Polisher and a $100.00 Gift Certificate to buy pads, products or whatever you want to go with your new polisher!



Click here to enter!

[1Bad TT]

Tim,
So I take it the #80 Speed Glaze is recomended over the #7 Show Car Glaze? If so I will have to place an order tonight I only want the best for my baby. Is the new synthetic NXT better than Carnauba Wax?

This car has been an absolute labor of love I have around 40 hour into mounting and molding the rear wide body quarter panels onto the car. Another 16 hours into rerouting the fuel tank line and mounting and molding the Sparco fuel funel into the rear deck. Then I drove from Denver to Boise, ID where my brother-n-laws custom paint shop is (Ace Painting and Customs). We put 90 hours into prep and my brother-n-law spent like 9 hours in the paint booth spraying the 3 stage Pearl white (3 coats of base, 3 coats of pearl, 3 coats of clear). It was pretty intense because I took 10 days off from work for the repaint and its a days drive each way so we ended up working some very long days in the shop. We sprayed the car on day 6 and let her sit for 2 days then reasembeled/cut and polished and then I drove home. Talk about a nerve wracking trip I have never been so nervous driving. I got home and supprisingly only picked up on very small rock chip (which I touched up) not bad for almost a 900 mile trip.

Well enough talk here are some more pics from the repaint process:

Ok Shutterfly is acting screwy and won't let me link to pictures there. So lets try this Photo Album that link will take you to the 45 pictures I took while I was in Boise working on the car.

I have a photo shoot scheduled with a professional photographer on the 23rd of April and will post some quality pictures once I get them back.

Matt

[Mike Phillips]

I'm not sure why your images are not showing up, try right clicking on the image you want to share and then copy and paste the URL address between the image tags.

[1Bad TT]

Couple of new pics









Its amazing how much better the pictures come out when a pro takes them

Matt

[Stepinfetch]

Hello Fellow Stealth owner! Whats up man I have a 1991 ES nice to see you on here are you from 3si? Anyways nice car that thing is sick, my car is currently in the tranny shop as my tranny blew and im getting a new clutch, $1900 dang trannys in our cars.