detailed the car, write up and pictures included

Hey guys, well to begin with this is my first time with a "serious" detail, the car only has 3800 miles on it and still smells new but there were moderate swirls and some water spots on the roof/trunk lid, I finally bought all my new products and here they are



well my first step was a wash, I did NOT need to clay it due to the fact that I clayed the car about 2 weeks ago, and well then, then I started experimenting, given that this was MY FIRST time using the PC and any real products, It took me a while to get the hang of things but i was pleased with my results, I found that 4500 RPM on the PC with the light orange pad with Optimum compound, would take out most swirls by moving slow, letting the PC do the work, and going back over the worked section twice, then after the coat of compound, I moved to a white pad, with the optimum polish, turned it up to about 5000 rpm, buffed it real nice, (all products were removed by hand), after this I applied a coat of my Poorboys EX sealent with Caranuba, which by the way I was extremely pleased with, went on smooth, came off easy, shone real nice and feels as soft as glass!!! here are a few pictures

my work station


some before/afters , here is an area on the hood

after

area on the rear quarter window section

after

and a few finished shots of the car





Overall I'm very pleased with the way the car turned out, no more swirls, very soft, the poorboys ex with caranuba was awesome and is supposed to last a long time, and I love the porter cable, its extremely nice, and very easy to use :alk

looks good man. I dont think i would have the patience to clean my car to the MAX.

Looks real good man!

looks good, but I wouldn't have used the compound. I assume you're brand new from reading your write up. Personally I would have used SSR1, optimum polish w/ a white pad (definately an excellent choice, especially for someone new to the detailing game) only difference is I would keep it under 5000. I treat it like I treat a compound--no more than 4500 RPMs. Then step to a glaze, I prefer vanilla moose hand glaze w/ a grey pad @5500-6000RPMs and finally your favorite carnuba. All in all, the car looks good and that's just my line up. Here's the picture of my work I always post, only because it's my favorite.

crizzut said:

looks good, but I wouldn't have used the compound. I assume you're brand new from reading your write up. Personally I would have used SSR1, optimum polish w/ a white pad (definately an excellent choice, especially for someone new to the detailing game) only difference is I would keep it under 5000. I treat it like I treat a compound--no more than 4500 RPMs. Then step to a glaze, I prefer vanilla moose hand glaze w/ a grey pad @5500-6000RPMs and finally your favorite carnuba. All in all, the car looks good and that's just my line up. Here's the picture of my work I always post, only because it's my favorite.

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thanks for the info, I'm signed up on Autopia.org and every review that I have read on the SSR2.5/1 is that its hardER to work with than the optimum, and I've heard that it dusts up, which I dont normally like, the compound that I was using was not really a real "compound" many people have said its similar to the SSR1/2 because it doesnt cut a lot, it didnt even haze the paint over, as for the glaze, theres a debate on what glaze does, yes its another layer of protection but I was too lazy to put glaze on and I just wanted a nice thick coat of the EX sealent on my car and it turned out to my liking, with white its HARD to tell a difference, now with a black/darker car I could definately understand but thanks for the tips man, I'm brand new and I'll keep the speeds in mind, I was just messing around really

no problem, with the SSRs they tend to dust up if you apply too much product or you use it at too high of a speed. The SSRs are great because they can be broken down easily, the only problem is too much speed will cause it to break down all at once thus dusting up.

BTW how long did you let the EX sit before wiping it off? if you let it cure for 24 hours, Ill bet one more coat of straight carnuba wax will really let it shine.

crizzut said:

BTW how long did you let the EX sit before wiping it off? if you let it cure for 24 hours, Ill bet one more coat of straight carnuba wax will really let it shine.

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20-30 minutes, I would do other sections of the car while it sat, I needed to drive the car so I couldnt let it cure, but one day I will definately do that, I've heard it helps a lot

well it cures even after you wipe it off, you can wipe it and wait an entire day, wash it and wax it and you're set.

You did excellent work, I'm very impressed! I know how tough it can be to get those scratches out! Especially the ones under shop lights! Your product choice was excellent, and your finished product proves it.

If you like EX, maybe try EX-P. It's a pure sealant without the carnauba which I think looks a bit better on lighter colors, such as your white.

Great pics and nice work. I need to get one of those light stands to help out in the garage.

good work guy. I use to use those pads but after using themfor over 6 months and on many details i had to switch to edge. I kept loosing the backing on the pads and i hate backing plates.

oh and another thing next time you get new tires, or balance your wheels, see if they can use the weights that are mounted inside the rims, rather than on the lip.

SVECobraR said:

oh and another thing next time you get new tires, or balance your wheels, see if they can use the weights that are mounted inside the rims, rather than on the lip.

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That's just the way Ford does it on all of their Mustangs. I even had the outside weights on my '03 Cobra wheels when I bought it.

looks good dude, a coat of nattys or carnuba moose wax on top of your process will really do the trick.

mixxer said:

looks good dude, a coat of nattys or carnuba moose wax on top of your process will really do the trick.

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I've heard nattys is awesome, I'll def have to try that or the p21s caranuba wax, heard they are both top notch

Nice write-up 66temp. I dont now which is hotter the picts of your g/f or your Mach-1... j/k ! :beer:

By the way: how much was that light stand? I need one for the detailing on my black 04 COBRA. Thanks! :beer:

car looks great.i will be useing my new pc as soon as i have enough time and hope it works as well for me.

car came out great man!

Came out great, I always loved the white Machs