First, I would like to say hello to all the detailing geniuses in this forum. The work you guys have done on the vehicles in these threads is inspiring. As such, I have been inspired to be more actively involved in the care of the exterior of my Berlina S. My girlfriend is great and shares my love of the S. She was nice enough to buy me a PC for my birthday. I have spent hours reading these forums and have gained a lot of insight into the techniques involved. However, as we all know, the only way to really learn is to do. So, I am going to use my daughters car as my first victim. She has a black Corolla that is in need of some serious attention. My question is this: Is it okay to use products available at auto parts stores to practice with? I'm thinking of the Meguiars line, ie. SwirlX, Ultimate Compound, etc... Perhaps the 3 part Deep Crystal "system". I know these aren't the greatest products but I was hoping they would be acceptable as practice products. I have used them before, by hand only, and I am also comfortable with clay bars. If not, does anyone have any suggestions for readily available products? Or should I just bite the bullet and buy the products I plan to use once I'm more comfortable? Thanks for any help you guys may have, Jim

 

hey there Jim!

glad to see you on this side of the forums, and i'm glad to hear you've been doing quite a bit of research and reading. IMO: you can't do enough of those two. Understanding the theory and explanation of how things work is very important in my eyes.
take into account that not everything over the counter is bad: it's simply marketed towards the general public.
example: sealants. as you know from your reading, detailers of all levels refer to these man-made paint protection products as sealants, but over the counter they may be called liquid wax, synthetic wax, sealant, or polish. When Meguiar's decides to sell products over the counter - they can't simply appeal to car-crazy enthusiasts.
Ultimate compound is a good product now that I've had the chance to see it in action while working with fellow forum member Gasolina. I even bought some myself to fill the void between M105 and M205 in my collection. Check out meguiar's online to see the difference in cutting ability and such, and they should help give you a nice, accessible, affordable introduction to machine correction. Even the Meguiar's over the counter clay-kit (or smooth surface kit... whatever they call it) should be a good start as an introduction to claying before polishing.
surely if you have more questions, wackos will be here to lend you friendly advice if we can, and I for one look forward to seeing some good postings from you soon!

 

Jim,

Good to have you here, I'm going to say the meg's pro line is great stuff...

but there are other great products out there if you don't mind going online to get some....

Here are a few easy tips to get started...

1. Wash
2. Clay
3. Polish
4. Wax

Also can you snap a picture of the car you are working on showing us some of the imperfections.

Thanks,

 

As a professional detailer myself, I personally would recommend purchasing products that you plan on using long term. I understand that you are simply looking to practice on your daughter's Corolla (and there is nothing wrong with that) but I would personally rather start practicing with better products (not ScratchX, etc). If you do practice with some over the counter products, I would definitely recommend Megs pro line products like detailersdomain did.

You'll want to pick up some claybar to remove all surface contamination before you do any polishing. Also, I might recommend picking up a good synthetic polymer sealant for your last stage protection as it offers much better durability over a wax.

Good luck with everything and let us know if you have any other questions.

 

I'm in the same boat as you are, Jim. I just purchased my second S, Laguna Blue, which happens to be my darkest car yet. My previous two were white and my first S was Suzuka. Needless to say, imperfections show very easily on the darker colors and I'm looking to get rid of the swirls as well.

I'll be picking up a porter cable as well and I happened to pick up some "over-the-counter" polishers and waxes before getting in touch with this forum. I think I'll pass those onto friends or they just might sit there forever. I think one was a polish made by Turtle and the wax I got was the Meguiar's NXT Tech Wax 2.0.

What pads and how many of each will I need in order to polish and wax a single car. Are they reusable for multiple cars? Should I wax by hand or can I use the PC too?

 

I would recommend using at least two pads when polishing a vehicle the size of an S2K. I use at least 3 when detailing larger cars, Minivans, SUVs, etc. Once you are done with your pads, you can clean them with snappy clean or something similiar and can use them for the next time.

Regarding the application of waxes, there are three main types of waxes.....liquid, paste, and spray on. The only one you can apply via PC is a liquid wax, however I personally always recommend applying it by hand.

 

Thank you all for your replies. I am going to head over to Detailersdomain and buy a few goods. I will post some pics of the Corolla when I do it and I will welcome all critiques and advice. Thanks again, Jim

 

Good stuff Jim, looking forward to some pics.

 

welcome to the board jim...

looks like you got some great answers to your questions, so i am too late on this one!!

i can add this:
after you post up pics of your clean car, be sure to pm me for your wacko badge!!

 

glanz wax can be applied via PC with a black or blue pad. great wax for the money. good durability and our sponsor sells it.