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Another detail from me!! :lol: :lol: This was the first half of the week's efforts, and why I haven't been online in a couple of days! The detail was done over three days starting Monday at 6pm, finishing today at 4pm...
Day 1
Arrived in the early evening to begin work on my good friend's Audi A4 - it had recently had a new engine owing to a snapped timing belt, so it was my challenge to give it like new paintwork.
First off, the before pictures of the car I was greeted with...
From a distance, the car looked ok, but get close up in the light and very severe swirls were clear to see, this car was a car-wash regular...
The car was washed using Meguiars Hyper Wash and a Meguiars Lambswool mitt, and then clayed using Meguiars Detailer Clay mild (yellow) and Megs Last Touch as the lubricant. By this time the light was starting to fade, so it was time to go for a test part (one half of the bonnet) to trial the paint. A Brinkmann will be arriving with me soon, but for the time being my car halogen searchlight was used to highlight the swirls in the bonnet...
First of all, I decided to try Menzerna Intesive Polish, using a 4" LC Yellow cutting pad and the slow-cut method that L200 Steve told me about. While this did make a dent in the milder swirling and haze, then severe swirls were left virtually untouched - yep, Audi paint is hard!! :lol:
Next up, out with the Menzerna Power Glodd compound, working on a 1' by 1' square area at a time, using the slow-cut technique. I used the PC on speed 3 with no pressure, and made about five or six passes over the area before stopping the machine and spraying the pad with a little water. Then another five or six passes over the area at speed 3, until the polish went clear again. The spary some water, up to speed 5 this time with no pressure and another four of five passes this time. Then one final spray with water, up to speed 6 and add pressure this time to finish. Wiping off revealed the majority of the swirls gone, with only the odd few left over. I therefore used PGC again, this time the fast-cut method of speed 3 to spread, speed 5 with pressure for one pass then speed 6 with pressure for a couple of finishing passes. Wipe away residue and there was micromarring a plenty, but the swirls had gone.
Only very deep scratches were left over...
To remove the micromarring from the area, IP was used on a 4" LC Orange light cutting pad using the fast-cut method, this brought the finish up a treat with all marring removed and the finish most certainly LSP ready. So it was topped off with Chemical Guys EZ-Creme Glaze with Acryllic Shine II, using the 7" DAS Green pad and the residue removed. With the sun down by now (took an hour and a half to do half of the bonnet...
), I used my searlight to check the area, here's the best half and half pic I could muster with the light...
That was it for the evening, the size of the task in hand clear - the process of 1 go of PGC slow-cut, followed by PGC fast-cut, followed by IP fast-cut to remove micromarring and topped with CG EZ Glaze was decided on... Starting on Day 2!
Day 2
10am, the sun was already out, so on with the sunscreen, and set to work. First off, the half and half pics of the work done last night with the bright sunlight showing up the swirls and finished paint...
Bad swirls on the bonnet...
And the half of the bonnet after Day 1's treatment...
The next half of the bonnet was completed using the technique discussed in Day 1, with the following results...
Onto the passenger side next, same technique again. First off, a pic of the marring left by PGC...
and the marring removed by the IP stage...
The rear 3/4 was particularly badly swilrled for some reason...
but the above technique shifted them well...
To show the swirl removal, I masked off half of the boot. First up, a pic of the boot before...
and a couple of half and half shots...
and finally a couple of completed pics of the boot, with an attempted small tree!! :lol:
Both the sides, and the boot and the other half of the bonnet were completed using this technique before I called it a day at 11pm... about ten cups of coffee, five Twixs, half a Lemon Drizzle cake from M&S (really really nice!), two ham and lettuce rolls, apple pie and custard, cottage pie and vegetables later!! :lol: :lol: She wouldn't let me go hungry, the owner of this car, thats for sure!!
Day 3
Only the roof to go!! This was treated to the same as the rest of the car, with the following results...
While I was working away on the roof, the owner who was keen to help out over all the three days had worked on the glass, the interior and was now doing the black plastics, and very competently too which was great as it allowed me to focus solely on the paintwork which was quite tough going in places...
With everything done, bar the piece of resitance, the spit-shined wax layer, the car was sitting nicely in the sunlight...
I revisted an old friend for the spit-shined wax layer - P21S. I used the PC to apply both layers, using a Meguiars Finishing Pad (tan), the wax was applied to an area (bonnet and front wings first, that kind of size) and then sprayed lightly with Last Touch and a second layer applied over the top. Of couple of photographs taken after the spit-shine stage...
The wheels wouldn't fully clean with Hyperwash when washed on Day 1, so they were attacked again with Autoglym Engine and Machine cleaner which with a little persuation did a good job of removing even pitted brake dust, no need to crack out the Wheel Brightener which I was expecting to need to do. Tyres were treated to Megs Endurance...
A final wipe down with Meguiars Last Touch, and the car was ready to photographed so off to Dundee Riverside for the completed shots...
Et voila!
I'm pleased with the way this car came out, and the owner was delighted too, but my arms are taking a well-deserved (I think! :lol: ) rest for a couple of days before trying out the Pinnalce XMT Finishing Glaze on my car!
Am currently looking for another car to do... Any volunteers?!! :lol: :lol:
Day 1
Arrived in the early evening to begin work on my good friend's Audi A4 - it had recently had a new engine owing to a snapped timing belt, so it was my challenge to give it like new paintwork.
First off, the before pictures of the car I was greeted with...
From a distance, the car looked ok, but get close up in the light and very severe swirls were clear to see, this car was a car-wash regular...
The car was washed using Meguiars Hyper Wash and a Meguiars Lambswool mitt, and then clayed using Meguiars Detailer Clay mild (yellow) and Megs Last Touch as the lubricant. By this time the light was starting to fade, so it was time to go for a test part (one half of the bonnet) to trial the paint. A Brinkmann will be arriving with me soon, but for the time being my car halogen searchlight was used to highlight the swirls in the bonnet...
First of all, I decided to try Menzerna Intesive Polish, using a 4" LC Yellow cutting pad and the slow-cut method that L200 Steve told me about. While this did make a dent in the milder swirling and haze, then severe swirls were left virtually untouched - yep, Audi paint is hard!! :lol:
Next up, out with the Menzerna Power Glodd compound, working on a 1' by 1' square area at a time, using the slow-cut technique. I used the PC on speed 3 with no pressure, and made about five or six passes over the area before stopping the machine and spraying the pad with a little water. Then another five or six passes over the area at speed 3, until the polish went clear again. The spary some water, up to speed 5 this time with no pressure and another four of five passes this time. Then one final spray with water, up to speed 6 and add pressure this time to finish. Wiping off revealed the majority of the swirls gone, with only the odd few left over. I therefore used PGC again, this time the fast-cut method of speed 3 to spread, speed 5 with pressure for one pass then speed 6 with pressure for a couple of finishing passes. Wipe away residue and there was micromarring a plenty, but the swirls had gone.
Only very deep scratches were left over...To remove the micromarring from the area, IP was used on a 4" LC Orange light cutting pad using the fast-cut method, this brought the finish up a treat with all marring removed and the finish most certainly LSP ready. So it was topped off with Chemical Guys EZ-Creme Glaze with Acryllic Shine II, using the 7" DAS Green pad and the residue removed. With the sun down by now (took an hour and a half to do half of the bonnet...
), I used my searlight to check the area, here's the best half and half pic I could muster with the light...That was it for the evening, the size of the task in hand clear - the process of 1 go of PGC slow-cut, followed by PGC fast-cut, followed by IP fast-cut to remove micromarring and topped with CG EZ Glaze was decided on... Starting on Day 2!
Day 2
10am, the sun was already out, so on with the sunscreen, and set to work. First off, the half and half pics of the work done last night with the bright sunlight showing up the swirls and finished paint...
Bad swirls on the bonnet...
And the half of the bonnet after Day 1's treatment...
The next half of the bonnet was completed using the technique discussed in Day 1, with the following results...
Onto the passenger side next, same technique again. First off, a pic of the marring left by PGC...
and the marring removed by the IP stage...
The rear 3/4 was particularly badly swilrled for some reason...
but the above technique shifted them well...
To show the swirl removal, I masked off half of the boot. First up, a pic of the boot before...
and a couple of half and half shots...
and finally a couple of completed pics of the boot, with an attempted small tree!! :lol:
Both the sides, and the boot and the other half of the bonnet were completed using this technique before I called it a day at 11pm... about ten cups of coffee, five Twixs, half a Lemon Drizzle cake from M&S (really really nice!), two ham and lettuce rolls, apple pie and custard, cottage pie and vegetables later!! :lol: :lol: She wouldn't let me go hungry, the owner of this car, thats for sure!!
Day 3
Only the roof to go!! This was treated to the same as the rest of the car, with the following results...
While I was working away on the roof, the owner who was keen to help out over all the three days had worked on the glass, the interior and was now doing the black plastics, and very competently too which was great as it allowed me to focus solely on the paintwork which was quite tough going in places...
With everything done, bar the piece of resitance, the spit-shined wax layer, the car was sitting nicely in the sunlight...
I revisted an old friend for the spit-shined wax layer - P21S. I used the PC to apply both layers, using a Meguiars Finishing Pad (tan), the wax was applied to an area (bonnet and front wings first, that kind of size) and then sprayed lightly with Last Touch and a second layer applied over the top. Of couple of photographs taken after the spit-shine stage...
The wheels wouldn't fully clean with Hyperwash when washed on Day 1, so they were attacked again with Autoglym Engine and Machine cleaner which with a little persuation did a good job of removing even pitted brake dust, no need to crack out the Wheel Brightener which I was expecting to need to do. Tyres were treated to Megs Endurance...
A final wipe down with Meguiars Last Touch, and the car was ready to photographed so off to Dundee Riverside for the completed shots...
Et voila!
I'm pleased with the way this car came out, and the owner was delighted too, but my arms are taking a well-deserved (I think! :lol: ) rest for a couple of days before trying out the Pinnalce XMT Finishing Glaze on my car!
Am currently looking for another car to do... Any volunteers?!! :lol: :lol:
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