What to do in the winter?
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 1,818
Likes: 3
From: SE Michigan, USA
What to do in the winter?
Ok so despite being hired to do a few other people's paint correction, I've yet to get to mine... until now.
I took the S out of storage and decided to finally correct my own paint! I already am heavily invested in good detailing equipment, and thought I'd document my journey for the rest of my UMWerners entertainment.
Too cold for hose, so I had to go the route of ONR. This is a great product that has gotten a lot of attention mainly due to it's ability to allow for washing without inducing defects in the winter, as well as being environmentally friendly (wash your car with only 5-6 gallons of water vs the usual 40+). Don't get me wrong though: I look forward to using my foam-gun come sumer time
Everything is set and ready to go!
(left to right/top to bottom)
1000W halogen lights
extension cord for lights
Makitia 9227C rotary buffer
Two bucket wash system with ONR (1 cap-full per gallon) and lambswool mitt
Citrus degreaser diluted down to 1 part to 20 parts water to loosen anything on the paint before the wash, the other sprayer contains water only
The two polishes picked for this job: Menzerna IP + Menzerna 106
heavy duty extension cord for buffer
on top of the drawers is blue painters tape, CG Luber clay lube, CG Jetseal109, Dodo-juice Supernatural, and 99% ISA
top drawers with my "good" microfiber towels (Eurow Shag towels, Detailers Domain Uber towels, Viking Detailing towels)
middle drawer with Waffle Weave drying towels (not to be used with ONR - these my towels to dry when hose based washing), and micofibers for interior use
bottom drawer for various polishing pads (LC brand), backing plates, wax applicators
all clayed and ready for inspection
looks good right? wrong. my paint is in much better than average condition due to the way i baby my car, but it has never been polished and under the lights it shows:
swirls and scratches from back in military when I had no place to give it a proper wash and therefor had to go to "swirl-o-matic" car washes
time to test and see if my combo of polishes+pads will work. left side done, right side untouched (this is after an IPA wipedown to insure the polishes used were not just "filling" the defects and they were in fact truly removed)
this time the top is untouched (front right fender), and the bottom (hood) is complete
with the hood done and it getting late (and cold), I called it a night. first i made sure the completed hood got it's IPA wipedown, then applied the Jetseal109 to sit overnight
Jetseal109 does not contain agents made to take away slight defect (abrasives) like many over the counter waxes, and therefor should not be applied in traditional circles. Instead, it should be wiped on in a thin thin layer after an IPA wipedown in order to properly bond to the paint. Keep in mind that any defects will affect the way light is reflected off the paint. Once the paint is flawless or close to it, light will reflect much more crisp and direct leading to a much deeper and truer color.
that's it for now and more to come soon! any questions and comments are welcomed and may you all have a warm and snow-free weekend!
UPDATES!!! COMPLETED FRONT END, here's the story:
well to show what a difference things made, here are a few pics.
Half the bumper done, half is not:
remember the shots of the hood that showed the ugly marred front fender? now check out the absolute clarity to that same front passenger fender:
side by side, the completed fender vs the passenger door under halogens:
and heres a nice series for you guys - driver fender step by step.
before:
after polishing with Menzerna IP (notice buffer trails/marring which need to be taken away, but a much improved finish)
and after further finishing down with Menzerna 106 (now CLEAR)
after IPA wipedown:
and last but not least (for now...)
driver fender vs driver door
once again, take into account my paint was actually in pretty good shape. red can get hazy and lose it's depth (therefor making it look lighter/pale), but some darker colors like blues, and of course black show defects much worse. the paint turns pale, hazy, and loses its clarity with all the defects in the clear coat.
LAST UPDATE!!
So after taking off the Jetseal (which is the easiest to remove sealant i've ever used), my S was ready for some real carnauba wax, and in this case i wanted to give her the best i have...
here she is all waxed-up
I let the Supernatural sit for about 50 mins before I came back to wipe it off. The solvents used in this wax work very slowly, and I'm not quite sure how the cold weather (around 20-30 degrees in the garage) might affect it. Regardless, after removal, I was delighted to what I saw.
finished and outside:
even in low light, the reflections appear crisp, clean, and very wet:
the second half will be done most likely once it's a tad bit warmer.
thanx for the comments/questions/etc, and may the rest of your winter be salt free, above freezing, and short!
I took the S out of storage and decided to finally correct my own paint! I already am heavily invested in good detailing equipment, and thought I'd document my journey for the rest of my UMWerners entertainment.
Too cold for hose, so I had to go the route of ONR. This is a great product that has gotten a lot of attention mainly due to it's ability to allow for washing without inducing defects in the winter, as well as being environmentally friendly (wash your car with only 5-6 gallons of water vs the usual 40+). Don't get me wrong though: I look forward to using my foam-gun come sumer time
Everything is set and ready to go!
(left to right/top to bottom)
1000W halogen lights
extension cord for lights
Makitia 9227C rotary buffer
Two bucket wash system with ONR (1 cap-full per gallon) and lambswool mitt
Citrus degreaser diluted down to 1 part to 20 parts water to loosen anything on the paint before the wash, the other sprayer contains water only
The two polishes picked for this job: Menzerna IP + Menzerna 106
heavy duty extension cord for buffer
on top of the drawers is blue painters tape, CG Luber clay lube, CG Jetseal109, Dodo-juice Supernatural, and 99% ISA
top drawers with my "good" microfiber towels (Eurow Shag towels, Detailers Domain Uber towels, Viking Detailing towels)
middle drawer with Waffle Weave drying towels (not to be used with ONR - these my towels to dry when hose based washing), and micofibers for interior use
bottom drawer for various polishing pads (LC brand), backing plates, wax applicators
all clayed and ready for inspection
looks good right? wrong. my paint is in much better than average condition due to the way i baby my car, but it has never been polished and under the lights it shows:
swirls and scratches from back in military when I had no place to give it a proper wash and therefor had to go to "swirl-o-matic" car washes
time to test and see if my combo of polishes+pads will work. left side done, right side untouched (this is after an IPA wipedown to insure the polishes used were not just "filling" the defects and they were in fact truly removed)
this time the top is untouched (front right fender), and the bottom (hood) is complete
with the hood done and it getting late (and cold), I called it a night. first i made sure the completed hood got it's IPA wipedown, then applied the Jetseal109 to sit overnight
Jetseal109 does not contain agents made to take away slight defect (abrasives) like many over the counter waxes, and therefor should not be applied in traditional circles. Instead, it should be wiped on in a thin thin layer after an IPA wipedown in order to properly bond to the paint. Keep in mind that any defects will affect the way light is reflected off the paint. Once the paint is flawless or close to it, light will reflect much more crisp and direct leading to a much deeper and truer color.
that's it for now and more to come soon! any questions and comments are welcomed and may you all have a warm and snow-free weekend!
UPDATES!!! COMPLETED FRONT END, here's the story:
well to show what a difference things made, here are a few pics.
Half the bumper done, half is not:
remember the shots of the hood that showed the ugly marred front fender? now check out the absolute clarity to that same front passenger fender:
side by side, the completed fender vs the passenger door under halogens:
and heres a nice series for you guys - driver fender step by step.
before:
after polishing with Menzerna IP (notice buffer trails/marring which need to be taken away, but a much improved finish)
and after further finishing down with Menzerna 106 (now CLEAR)
after IPA wipedown:
and last but not least (for now...)
driver fender vs driver door
once again, take into account my paint was actually in pretty good shape. red can get hazy and lose it's depth (therefor making it look lighter/pale), but some darker colors like blues, and of course black show defects much worse. the paint turns pale, hazy, and loses its clarity with all the defects in the clear coat.
LAST UPDATE!!
So after taking off the Jetseal (which is the easiest to remove sealant i've ever used), my S was ready for some real carnauba wax, and in this case i wanted to give her the best i have...
here she is all waxed-up
I let the Supernatural sit for about 50 mins before I came back to wipe it off. The solvents used in this wax work very slowly, and I'm not quite sure how the cold weather (around 20-30 degrees in the garage) might affect it. Regardless, after removal, I was delighted to what I saw.
finished and outside:
even in low light, the reflections appear crisp, clean, and very wet:
the second half will be done most likely once it's a tad bit warmer.
thanx for the comments/questions/etc, and may the rest of your winter be salt free, above freezing, and short!
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 1,818
Likes: 3
From: SE Michigan, USA
updated with the full front end finished, will have more pics tonight. right now i have to get ready to go to the Piston's game my g/f is taking me to, to I have the jetseal109 covering the whole car, and will come back tonight to remove it and apply Dodo Juice Supernatural carnauba wax on her. if the weather is ok, i'll try to take some cool outdoors pics of a super clean NFR S with a flawless front end. the second half of the car will be done at a later time
-Marc
-Marc
Trending Topics
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 1,818
Likes: 3
From: SE Michigan, USA
^ha ha
none of that stuff is touching MY car (or even my winter beater). in case anyone is interested, if you look around the wash and wax forums you'll see tons of advice if you need help picking out good products.
last update complete
none of that stuff is touching MY car (or even my winter beater). in case anyone is interested, if you look around the wash and wax forums you'll see tons of advice if you need help picking out good products.
last update complete
Registered User
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 203
Likes: 0
From: Northwest Suburbia
Excellent thread with a lot of new products that I wasn't aware were out there.
Where'd you get the tray that sits in the bottom of your wash bucket to keep the dirt off your sponge/wash towel? That would really come in handy with all the crap that gets on the car in the winter.
Thanks in advance,
Ron
Where'd you get the tray that sits in the bottom of your wash bucket to keep the dirt off your sponge/wash towel? That would really come in handy with all the crap that gets on the car in the winter.
Thanks in advance,
Ron
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 1,818
Likes: 3
From: SE Michigan, USA
hey ron,
those trays are called grit-guards, and most auot detailing places online carry them, to include the wash-n-wax forum sposer, detailers domain.
http://www.detailersdomain.com/index.asp?P...anfID=11&Page=1
they're recommended to always use when washing your vehicle in both the wash and rinse buckets to keep dirt and such away from your mit/sponge/whatever you use and therefor off your paint so you don't swirl your paint or cause damage to it. improper washing techniques are said to be the biggest cause of swirls and paint defects, so wash carefully!
thanx for the kind words,
Marc
those trays are called grit-guards, and most auot detailing places online carry them, to include the wash-n-wax forum sposer, detailers domain.
http://www.detailersdomain.com/index.asp?P...anfID=11&Page=1
they're recommended to always use when washing your vehicle in both the wash and rinse buckets to keep dirt and such away from your mit/sponge/whatever you use and therefor off your paint so you don't swirl your paint or cause damage to it. improper washing techniques are said to be the biggest cause of swirls and paint defects, so wash carefully!
thanx for the kind words,
Marc
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