Teaching Detailing

[dnoraker]

Yesterday, I spent the day with a music student of mine who has an '02 Saturn with 48,xxx miles that is his first car. His dad and brother are both into drag racing and have some pretty nice muscle cars, but Mark, my student, never has gotten into it. He has seen my truck and what I've been able to do with Meguiar's products and wanted to learn to detail (and not just play his French horn!) He's a great kid with huge attention to detail and wants to do the job right.

Before:

We washed the car twice and then clayed the whole thing, especially the doors which felt like sandpaper. We used Scratch X on some isolated noticeable scratches, then followed with #80 and NXT liquid using the PC and a SS microfiber for removal (I have bonnets but need to get cutting pad for backing).



After:



Mark using the PC with #80 (FYI, he just turned the machine off and was lifting it away)



Mark cleaning the wheels



My favorite reflection shot of the house across the street, as used in my recent post of my '97 S-10



The proud owner of a nearly new Saturn!




I'm very proud of the work he did. I pretty much just showed him how to do things and he went after it and did an awesome job. we didn't quite hit every detail because we ran out of time (after 7 hours with me helping). I'm putting together a list of things he can pick up to start building his Meguiar's arsenal. He was very excited about the results and has vowed to stop barreling through mud puddles!

Here's a list of what we used:

Gold Class car wash
Water magnet drying towel
Quik clay with Final Inspection for lubricant
Scratch X
PC with #83 on a couple panels with heavier swirls
PC with #80 on speed 4.5, removal with terry and SS microfiber
NXT on speed 3
removed wax with supreme shine microfiber
NXT Tire cleaner
NXT Insane shine dressing
Hot rims wheel cleaner
Gold class trim detailer
PlastX
NXT window cleaner
NXT Tech protectant for interior

I would've gotten more pictures of the final product, but we ran out of time and it clouded over when we were done. The metallic in the paint stood out so much better in the sun when there were fewer swirls refracting the light.

Thanks again, MOL. The wisdom presented here has been passed on to yet another young person who has gotten excited about excelling at auto detailing.

[jetta18T]

Wow, awesome job.... the best part of it is that he'll be able to keep up with it and have a true appreciation of how much work it is. Instead of a one time detail by you he can do as many as he wants and KEEP the car in its best possible condition, instead of coming back to you every time he needs it done. He'll also save himself money in the long run by not needing to have it detailed professionally, as well as a higher resale value when the time comes. GREAT JOB!!

[Mike Phillips]

Great work!

Thank you dnoraker for taking the time share the passion!

[imacarnut]

this is what i love to see, everyone helping each other out and in the end result.... there's always the rewards (you've probably just recruited a new car crazy person)! dnoraker, great job buddy!

[Ranger72]

Have you made him 'Car Crazy'? LOL nice job

[dnoraker]

Thank you for all the kind words. I enjoy detailing cars and even more so showing people how to do it, but the biggest reason I do it is for the chance to teach life lessons, like....

1. Taking care of the things we are blessed with; where else in the world do people have this much comfort?

2. Giving is greater than taking. I want them to continue to give what I've given them, which is enjoying a job well done, among other things. Barry Meguiar, after seeing a lot of Car Crazy episodes, seems like a very giving person. I just get really good vibes from the guy, kind of like watching Chip Foose on Overhaulin'. They're both genius', but incredibly humble.

3. Overcoming "average-ism." I remember reading that the U.S. is the only industrialized country to be decreasing it's industrial output (this was a couple years ago). I see so many lazy slobs in my daily life it makes me sick! I've been teaching this a lot in other music groups I work with. Being "exceptional" is harder, but it's worth it!

4. The biggest reason is to show them they are created for excellence and capable of doing FAR beyond what they can think of.


Mark worked his butt off on that car, and I kicked his butt pretty good! "Mark, you missed a spot!" We had a great time, and yes, I believe he is on the road to car craziness. I'm creating a shopping list that he can tackle in stages, starting out with regular maintainance items and working up to the PC and associated cleaners. I kept asking him as we went along if he was having fun and he always said that he was and was very excited with the results.

Again, thanks go to MOL. You all just freely give of yourselves and I'm thankful for access to your wisdom.

[Don]

Looks like you have him 'blowing his own horn' in more ways than one

<---- OK, OK...bad pun

[dnoraker]

Well, not to 'toot my own horn' or anything, but......

anyway, I saw Mark yesterday and the car still looked pretty good but he had been on a couple dirt roads and had gotten a few water spots from a couple drops of rain. He doesn't have the products to maintain the car yet, but I'm working with him on that. His dad has a few things, including a rotary buffer, but I told Mark not to touch that quite yet, or let his dad use it on the car until I see if he knows what he's doing!