chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

currently when i wash the car all i do is rinse it, then wash using two bucket method.

noticed a few people use an attachment to "foam" the car.

what the crack with these, as i hose my car down via an attachment on my kitchen tap, so the pressures not great, but quite strong.

could i attach a foam thingy-ma-bob, to foam the car first, and if so, what would be the best foam stuff to buy for a beginner.
i mainly wanna do this to de-grease some gunk etc off the car, before washing with wool mitt and two buckets. looks fun too

any help off the beginners or pros much appreciated on this one.

ta

andy

jac2000

The foam is a type of TFR (Traffic Film Remover). You will no doubt get a mix of opinions as to how good it is versus the liquid form. When valeting a car I use the liquid form, but only on the lower third of the car under arches, bumper etc as it breaks down dirt and flies etc. Then I would power rinse off after a couple of mins. I would not tend to use TFT all over the car unless really bad all over as it can be quite aggresive. The only time I have is when there is maybe tree sap etc covering the whole bodywork and when I know I will be doing a 3 stage polishing routine, certainly not part of a weekly wash cycle on a car which already has been well prepared previously IMHO.

V4JDMSTi

iTrader: (2)

you can buy yourself a gilmour and use something like megs hyper wash in it. it'll connect straight onto your hose. this will foam the car up and help to soften the bugs when left to soak. however, it won't degrease the car. you'll need a bug and tar remover for this.

they're great for getting rid of tar and bugs prior to claying, but they will also strip all protection from your car. so you'll need to build up the protection again.

This pic is using an autobrite foam lance connected to a karcher pressure washer. it's filled with a mix of megs hyper wash, autobrite super snow foam and just plain old water. it's not harsh and won't strip the protection layers and will help to soften the bugs when left to soak for 10 mins. It won't soften tar though.

iSCOOB

I use a gilmour with megs hyper, great for softning up the dirt and for seeing what your car would look like in white

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

not much point in me changing my normal routine then.

may just invest in a clay bar/lubricant for the sake of hassle.

V4JDMSTi

iTrader: (2)

only clay though when you want to remove all protection from your car as well. although you could "spot clay" the bumpers. but then if you was going to do that you may as well use the bug remover on the front bumper and lower part of the car.

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

seems a plan.

right so... what order do i do everything. bit confused now thats all...

oh and a recommendation for bug/tar remover for the front , and a clay bar recommendation for the whole car...

V4JDMSTi

iTrader: (2)

the order i use is as follows:

rinse with pressure wash to remove any big lumps of dirt that may be on the car,
foam and soak - leave for 10 mins,
apply bug and tar remover leave to soak for 2 mins, 3 max - don't let it dry out - you can apply this towards the end of the foam soak if you wanted to,
rinse with pressure washer,
foam with a less "foamy" mixture - just use more water,
wash with 2 bucket method,
rinse with pressure washer,
dry with drying towel - pat dry to have less risk of swirls or use a leaf blower,
clay using claybar and lube,
dry using microfibre towel as you go along,
rinse with pressure washer,
foam and soak - 10 mins,
rinse with pressure washer,
dry with drying towel or leaf blower,
polish either by hand or machine,
apply wax or acrylic sealant.

stand back (or sit after all this) and admire your efforts.

clay wise a great starter clay is the meguiars (sp) quick detailer kit. it comes with the clay and detailer to lube it with. it's not too harsh so won't stand as much chance as others to introduce marring.

At the moment i use Poorboys bug squash, (neat for spraying or spot application), megs super degreaser (cut to 4 - 1 for the engine bay, 10 - 1 for the wheels and about 20 - 1 as tfr) and autoglym bug and tar remover for spot application. I will be using the new product available from polished bliss when it arrives. (cheers Rich), but from what i understand it's fairly harmful and needs to be taken care with / of.

hope that helps. this is just the way i do things and may be a bit long winded for some or not envolved enough for others. It's seen me right so far though.

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

admittedly very long winded, but your more of a pro detailer, whereas im must more ameteuristic.

my usual routine (in cloudy weather mainly now) is...

rinse car with hose

• wash roof, spoiler, bootlid, windscreens, bonnet, rinse with hose to stop scoring. (all with autoglym shampoo - two bucket method throughout)
• do the same with both sides, and rinse whole car afterwards, to keep wet.
• squeegy it all down, and dry off with meguiars microfibres
• hose wheels and apply autoglym wheel cleaner. scrub away gunk etc with sponge
• polish windows using super resin polish id use for the body work (really good shine for this, obviously not on the windscreen though )
• wax car panel by panel using nattys poorboys paste wax with megs applicator pad and microfibre to buff off.
• black in a flash for the tyres and black trimmings
• spray dried wheels with autoglym alloy wheel seal, buff off with clean cotton cloth

may have a polish in there too sometimes before waxing

all that hassle and i still have terrible swirl marks all round.

all my cloths etc get washed correctly, so ive given up, and just do my best.

V4JDMSTi

iTrader: (2)

why thank you. can i quote you calling me a pro detailer

squeegy needs to be binned for a start! one other thing, wash your wheels first. this way when you rinse them off you won't be putting dirts up the side of your clean car, albeit it may only be a little bit.

sponge is fine for the wheels, not ideal i still prefer to use a mitt but are you using a mitt for the rest of the car?

AG SRP hasn't really got enough cut to get rid of your swirls. treat yourself to some menzerna intensive polish and a couple of german applicator pads.

making these simple reletively cheap changes to your routine will help with the swirls.

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

the squeegy is very soft and more rubbery that plastic, otherise i have no other way to get the big clumps of water off the car - id need loads of towels.

use a wool wash mitt for the car bodywork, two bucket method, very careful.

my hose isnt very powerful, and as ive already dried the car when i wash my wheels, no water/gunk is sprayed onto the bodywork.

ok, so for an amateur, what applicator pads would you recommend for a highly swirled red classic, and what "potency" polich would you suggest, baring in mind i will be hand applying and buffing.

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

just to add, ive had a look on polished bliss' site, and saw the intensive polish. is that all i would need plus applicator pads, or do i need the final finish polish too.

im trying to keep it simplish, as polishing will only be used to rid some swirls. then the wax for the sealent.

Rasher

would always use the final finish even though you will probably get a good enough result and be LSP ready after the Intensive polish, especially if you are not using a p/c

V4JDMSTi

iTrader: (2)

agree with rasher. if you can afford it get the final finish too. will give you a much more refined finish

iSCOOB

You'd only need two towels, one to get the bulk of the water off (keep wringing it out) and one to go round for a final dry off.

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

see you point. could maybe just keep the squeegy for the windows then.

so... say ive finished drying the car off, and its time to polish her. i apply the intensive stuff, and buff off. do i think go round the car again after buffing and apply the final finish, again bufing off afterwards?

then go round again lol, and apply the bubblegum wax...mmm

V4JDMSTi

iTrader: (2)

i tend to go round a panel at a time until the whole car is complete for 1 step. so do a wing and buff off, then the door etc, then repeat with final finish, then the lovely bubble gum smelling wax.

got to ditch that water blade once you've polished it mate.

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

ok il take that on board.

problem i seem to have currently with polish/wax, is the dusty resedue when buffing off. i dont use a massive amount of either polish or wax, but its annoying white/blue specs which i then have to re-rub off.

for the record, i apply polish with a dry foam pad, and the wax with a wet foam pad (as per instruction really)

V4JDMSTi

iTrader: (2)

the menz intensive polish is oil based. it will still dust when worked very hard so that it heats up, but far less than other polishes i've used. when working by hand, i've never managed to make it dust can with the rotary though

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

well, i finished work at 6am, dropped her off at work for 7, had a quick bath, and ive been working on the car since then until now.

will do a thread on members gallery to showcase the results.

V4JDMSTi

iTrader: (2)

get it posted up in here first mate

chocolate_o_brian

iTrader: (22)

piccies up in members