Here's another recent one by Clark...

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Well, here it is, the latest detail to receive the Zymol Vintage treatment:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonp.jpg

Those of you that saw the AMG thread last week would have read that I had aimed to talk the owner into a full correction detail as when I briefly looked at the Astons paintwork it was showing signs of holograms/hazing/random scratches, etc. Fortunately he agreed as the DB9 really is his pride and joy and he wanted nothing but the best, including using his own personal pot of Vintage he purchased last year!

For a car with so little milage it had surprisingly random and in some areas, quite bad defects:

Bird dropping etching in the paintwork:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonu.jpg

Scuffs and scratches, hazing/micro-marring can just be seen:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonm.jpg

The odd area of cob-webbing:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstond.jpg

It was explained to me that the owner had previously employed some Polish/Czech guys to come and clean the cars but even he had realised they weren't up to the job when he saw that they were using dirty sponges, etc!

As for the holograms (which were only down the drivers side) I dont know why they were there - maybe down to the previous that had worked on it, I dont know, but they definitely used a cutting pad and left some bad hazing and micro-marring in areas as can be seen in the pic below on the drivers door(had to use the camera flash to capture them):

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonj.jpg

I should point out at this stage that upon taking paint readings I found the car to be fairly consistant in most areas, ranging from 90 microns up to around 120. That is apart from the rear bumper which in places I got reading of 40 odd microns! :eek:. The highest reading I got was 71, so needless to say it didnt get any abrasive polish what so ever, instead it got HD Cleanse x 2. Luckily the owner's company actually specialise in paint etc so he understood just what the readings were all about and praised me for being sensible and not going at the bumper with the machine just for the sake of removing a few swirls and scratches :)

I started off as usual with the least abrasive of finishing polishes on a polishing pad @ 1500rpm. Where this removed around 85% of the defects it still left some of the deeper ones so I stepped up a level and went to the next finishing polish @1700rpm, this worked perfectly :thumb:

Scuffs/hazing on top of the drivers door/rear quarter before:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonv.jpg

After:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstone.jpg

Once the polishing step was completed I then HD Cleansed all the paintwork and glass (inside and out) and then Applied the Vintage.

Whilst I allowed the oils to rise to the surface I polished the exhaust tips, fed the leather with Zymol Treat, hoovered the inside and gave it a quick wipe down with APC, sealed the wheels, dressed the arches/tyres and removed polishing dust off the fabric hood with masking tape.

The car was then given a final wipe down with Field Glaze (as was the hood, which had Field Glaze worked in by hand) to remove the last remaining smears.

And here's the afters:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstona.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonw.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstont.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonr.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonq.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstono.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonk.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonh.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonf.jpg

I also managed to get a few shots outdoors before it got too dark (what a noise the engine makes as you press that "Engine Start" button :D):

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonb.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonc.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonx.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstons.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonn.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstoni.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstong.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAstonl.jpg

I also gave the AMG a quick foam down with the foam gun and rinsed with the Pressure washer before I left, the Vintage beading nicely....

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v317/Clark_VTR/CAMG-1.jpg

Overall, I was very pleased with this Detail, as was the owner who has now chosen to sign up for a maintainance plan on the DB9, AMG and several other cars, so a good end to the week.

:icon_thumright:

stunning!
might I ask how much that kind of details costs?
..for an old, white Scooby

very impressed :thumb:

All that with 2 finishing polish and a porter cable?

i know what you mean about the noise :D

i have a new regular that's wanting a mini valet every Monday on his and his staffs cars, his car is a db9 but a tin top :D

took me a while to work out how to get the thing into reverse :lol1:

my reg wont let me touch the paintwork at all as he has been sold the "6 year paint treatment" crap from the dealer and has fell for it hook line and sinker :(

his is crying out for some wax :(

trying to clean the rear screen on the tip top is a complete PITA :mad:

stunning!
might I ask how much that kind of details costs?
..for an old, white Scooby

I'll drop you a pm in a moment, as our Zymol contract forbids us from posting our prices publicly. :)

very impressed :thumb:

All that with 2 finishing polish and a porter cable?

No, with a rotary - Makita 9227 on this job. No way would a PC have given anywhere near as good a finish, and the paint was pretty hard, so full correction would have been much, much harder to achieve with a PC. :)

i know what you mean about the noise :D

i have a new regular that's wanting a mini valet every Monday on his and his staffs cars, his car is a db9 but a tin top :D

took me a while to work out how to get the thing into reverse :lol1:

my reg wont let me touch the paintwork at all as he has been sold the "6 year paint treatment" crap from the dealer and has fell for it hook line and sinker :(

his is crying out for some wax :(

trying to clean the rear screen on the tip top is a complete PITA :mad:

I hate rear screens on tip tops too - the one on the S2000 we did last month was the worst we've had to do, complete nightmare for anyone over 3ft tall!

i think the last s2000 we did was a rag top :confused: but i do remember it was a bit cramped in there, although there was no rear seats, where as the Aston has these little cubby holes which are claimed to be rear seats :lol1: and the front seats did not slide forward very far :(

it needed some serious gymnastic work to get to the bottom of the rear screen to get the glass polish on, has the convertible got a proper glass rear screen?

No, with a rotary - Makita 9227 on this job. No way would a PC have given anywhere near as good a finish, and the paint was pretty hard, so full correction would have been much, much harder to achieve with a PC. :)

Is a rotary a lot more difficult to use compaired to a PC?

What RPM are the PC and Makita 9227 running at?

looks good PB (move down south)

i think the last s2000 we did was a rag top :confused: but i do remember it was a bit cramped in there, although there was no rear seats, where as the Aston has these little cubby holes which are claimed to be rear seats :lol1: and the front seats did not slide forward very far :(

it needed some serious gymnastic work to get to the bottom of the rear screen to get the glass polish on, has the convertible got a proper glass rear screen?

Nope, bloody plexiglass again! Argh!!! :rolleyes: :D

Is a rotary a lot more difficult to use compaired to a PC?

What RPM are the PC and Makita 9227 running at?

Yes, the rotary is a much harder tool to master and use safely than the PC. The PC oscillates at 2500-6000 orbits per minute, and most correction work would be done at above 4000 orbits per minute. The rotary is usually used in the range 1200 - 1700rpm with the polishes we favour, which is a lot slower, and reflects the significant effect friction has on the process of polishing. If you want to go down the rotary route, either a Makita or a Metabo are tools worth looking at, and I would start out by learning to finish properly with finishing polishes and finishing pads before moving on to tackling full correction work. :)

i fancy having a go on my GF's Puma :D

if i was gonna have a go I'll like to try a rotary polisher.

What kit and price and I'm looking at?

1 x Rotary polisher

? x polishing pads

? x polish??

A good starter kit would be...

Metabo -

Metabo PE12-175 Orbital Polisher 110V (http://www.cleanandshiny.co.uk/ProductDetails.asp?ProductID=10112)

Meguiars Finishing Pads -

6.5" Meguiars Soft Buff Foam Buffing Pads (http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/pb271-273polish.html)

Menzerna PO106FF and Menzerna 85RD -

Menzerna Final Finish Polish (PO106FF) (http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/pb81polish.html)

and

Menzerna Final Finish Polish (PO85RD) (http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/pb82polish.html)

These finishing polishes will take pretty bad defects out of even hard paints when used with a rotary, hence the reason to start with finishing pads. These are also much easier to learn with than polishing pads, and safer - I would be surprised if you needed anything else on Ford paint. :)

Menzerna Final Finish Polish (PO85RD) (http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/pb82polish.html)

Thats £220 worth of kit to do one car :eek:

Would this kind of detailing put £110 (2 cars) back on to the value of a car?

for this kind of money and 5+ hours must be cheaper for a pro like you to polish my cars.

are there polishing courses or you just picked it up?

It takes a lot of practice to produce results like those shown above; if you're thinking of doing the detailing just occasionally then it would be a better bet to get a pro in, as you're gauranteed a high standard of work. High quality detailing can add a lot to a cars value; the manager of a Porsche dealership recently advised us that presenting a 911 properly with no swirls, etc, can add as much as £1500 onto the forecourt value. Obviously on lesser cars the added value diminishes, but I would have thought that any well presented car will fetch a premium over a car in normal condition - gives the buyer less to haggle with. :)

Do doubt it takes a lot of practice to achieve the standards shown above. However its the satisfaction of mastering it and seeing the results that does it for me.

Will have to have a go but I'm not sure on spending £175 on a Metabo PE12-175 Orbital Polisher (may also need a V converter) Hiring an orbital polisher maybe the way to go

No, with a rotary - Makita 9227 on this job. No way would a PC have given anywhere near as good a finish, and the paint was pretty hard, so full correction would have been much, much harder to achieve with a PC. :)

:nono:
sorry but how many aston`s have you done

the paint on astons are soft

Defects only coming out with a mid grade high quality finishing polish and polishing pad at 1700rpm on the rotary would not have come out fully using the same polish and pad combo on a PC. As stated, the paint on this car was pretty hard; not BMW/Audi hard, but still pretty hard.

:nono: sorry but i asked how many aston`s have you done

I believe this may have been the first Aston Clark has worked on; however, I may be wrong, as I'm not sure if he had the pleasure before he came to work for us, which as you know, wasn't so long ago. :)

I believe this may have been the first Aston Clark has worked on; however, I may be wrong, as I'm not sure if he had the pleasure before he came to work for us, which as you know, wasn't so long ago. :)


Thanks for your PM, most helpfull :thumb:

:nono: sorry but i asked how many aston`s have you done

So how many have you done then ?

:nono: sorry but i asked how many aston`s have you done

tosser

tosser

lol, got it in one mate, he tries to cause trouble wherever he goes :cuckoo:

:lol1: :lol1: yep