Wax and Buffing advise PLEASE!

[1989CobraMakeOv]

So I’ve got a show this weekend and it'll be the first time I’ve had to really detail my car. I've got a variable speed orbital buffer and Meguir's "Cleaner Wax". I plan to hand apply the wax and let it set for 45-60 minutes before I use the buffer and a cotton terry cloth pad to remove the wax. Then I plan on buffing it even more with a 100% wool pad. The owner before me used Meguiars NXT Generation Tech Wax but told me if I waited a while (over a month, this guy waxed it every weekend :uh oh: ) to wax it, to use the "cleaner wax" instead of the NXT wax. My questions are:

Is this the best way to go about waxing my car? If not, what do you think I should do differently to get the best look, while not damaging my cars paint?

What speed should the buffer be at during each phase of the wax job? The buffer speed ranges from like 300-3300 rpm.

How should I address the tiny chips in my hood? I'll put it this way, when I bought the car, it didn't look like it had ANY tiny chips in the hood, yet now after it hasn't been waxed for a while, I can notice them (I wash my car twice a week).

Thanks in advance!

 

[Midnight Venom]

Are you looking for a "long lasting" detail or one just for the show?

 

[1989CobraMakeOv]

Are you looking for a "long lasting" detail or one just for the show?

I'd like it to last, but i guess it doesn't have to...

 

[Midnight Venom]

Even if you're not looking for a long lasting detail its nice to have because you dont have to worry about it for a few months. Here are some suggestions. A orbital wont get out all of the micromarring and scratches but it can fill in the spots you dont want to see.
Remove dirt in the paint/dust with meguiars claybar, i think any one will work.

Menzerna IP via Orange CCS pad to entire vehicle(not sure if this pad will work with an orbital or not), fills in a may get rid of scratches and mircomarring. This will also remove all the excess wax that was on the car.

Poorboys EX-P Sealant by hand to entire vehicle and take off by microfiber, helps protect for a while and seals in the polish. This is honestly one of the most important things to do for your car, wax protects this layer so wax is almost useless unless a sealent is used.

Apply Danase Wet Glaze by hand to entire vehicle next (this stuff is pretty pricey and you have to order it online, very few stores carry it, it just adds an extra shine really so its not necessary but great for car shows) if you find a higher quality glaze try it out, i think poorboys has some that works alright.

Meguiars NXT Wax (or Pinnacle Souviern Wax) to entire vehicle by hand and remove by microfiber. There is really no reason to remove with the orbital, i've found there is no difference to be honest as long as you dont put too much wax on the car. I've never left it on for more then 20-30 mins but if you think an hour will make it look better then go ahead, can't hurt.

I've found this combo works great and last a long time (6 months for a babied car). It will probably hide many of the hood chips as well. Some of those products take some looking for but if you can find an equal alternative go for it. I hope this helps some. If not I think they are a decent investment, the bottles you have detailing products that are a bit pricey but will give you at least a couple years worth of details. Hope this helped out.

O and I have some pictures, before and afters of this combo if you want to see those.

 

[1989CobraMakeOv]

Even if you're not looking for a long lasting detail its nice to have because you dont have to worry about it for a few months. Here are some suggestions. A orbital wont get out all of the micromarring and scratches but it can fill in the spots you dont want to see.
Remove dirt in the paint/dust with meguiars claybar, i think any one will work.

Menzerna IP via Orange CCS pad to entire vehicle(not sure if this pad will work with an orbital or not), fills in a may get rid of scratches and mircomarring. This will also remove all the excess wax that was on the car.

Poorboys EX-P Sealant by hand to entire vehicle and take off by microfiber, helps protect for a while and seals in the polish. This is honestly one of the most important things to do for your car, wax protects this layer so wax is almost useless unless a sealent is used.

Apply Danase Wet Glaze by hand to entire vehicle next (this stuff is pretty pricey and you have to order it online, very few stores carry it, it just adds an extra shine really so its not necessary but great for car shows) if you find a higher quality glaze try it out, i think poorboys has some that works alright.

Meguiars NXT Wax (or Pinnacle Souviern Wax) to entire vehicle by hand and remove by microfiber. There is really no reason to remove with the orbital, i've found there is no difference to be honest as long as you dont put too much wax on the car. I've never left it on for more then 20-30 mins but if you think an hour will make it look better then go ahead, can't hurt.

I've found this combo works great and last a long time (6 months for a babied car). It will probably hide many of the hood chips as well. Some of those products take some looking for but if you can find an equal alternative go for it. I hope this helps some. If not I think they are a decent investment, the bottles you have detailing products that are a bit pricey but will give you at least a couple years worth of details. Hope this helped out.

O and I have some pictures, before and afters of this combo if you want to see those.

Where do I get that pad and Poorboys EX-P Sealent?
Also, Explain to me the purpose of and how to use the clay bar?

 

[1989CobraMakeOv]

Even if you're not looking for a long lasting detail its nice to have because you dont have to worry about it for a few months. Here are some suggestions. A orbital wont get out all of the micromarring and scratches but it can fill in the spots you dont want to see.
Remove dirt in the paint/dust with meguiars claybar, i think any one will work.

Menzerna IP via Orange CCS pad to entire vehicle(not sure if this pad will work with an orbital or not), fills in a may get rid of scratches and mircomarring. This will also remove all the excess wax that was on the car.

Poorboys EX-P Sealant by hand to entire vehicle and take off by microfiber, helps protect for a while and seals in the polish. This is honestly one of the most important things to do for your car, wax protects this layer so wax is almost useless unless a sealent is used.

Apply Danase Wet Glaze by hand to entire vehicle next (this stuff is pretty pricey and you have to order it online, very few stores carry it, it just adds an extra shine really so its not necessary but great for car shows) if you find a higher quality glaze try it out, i think poorboys has some that works alright.

Meguiars NXT Wax (or Pinnacle Souviern Wax) to entire vehicle by hand and remove by microfiber. There is really no reason to remove with the orbital, i've found there is no difference to be honest as long as you dont put too much wax on the car. I've never left it on for more then 20-30 mins but if you think an hour will make it look better then go ahead, can't hurt.

I've found this combo works great and last a long time (6 months for a babied car). It will probably hide many of the hood chips as well. Some of those products take some looking for but if you can find an equal alternative go for it. I hope this helps some. If not I think they are a decent investment, the bottles you have detailing products that are a bit pricey but will give you at least a couple years worth of details. Hope this helped out.

O and I have some pictures, before and afters of this combo if you want to see those.

yea, please email them to [email protected]

 

[langod]

Read this and all of your washing, waxing and detailing question will be answered:
http://articles.autopia.org/topics/17-car-detailing-stepbystep-1.html

This guide is pretty much a bible of detailing. You'll find people who have different opinions of products, and maybe very slight differences in procedure, but overall, everyone who knows anything about detailing, follows these steps.

 

[mblgjr]

Everyone has touched on the rest but I'll make this very simple.

DO NOT USE THE ORBITAL WITH THE WOOL PAD to start with. You shouldn't even need to touch a wool pad to your paint if its in any reasonable condition. This would be the fastest and easiest way to burn your paint though.

www.autopia.org is a great source for how-tos.

www.specialtymotoring.com use "afterike" for 20% off; or "svtperformance" for our normal 10% He carries Optimum; Poorboy's and Menz. lines...pretty much everything you need for a proper detail.

 

[Midnight Venom]

Where do I get that pad and Poorboys EX-P Sealent?
Also, Explain to me the purpose of and how to use the clay bar?

To be honest I'm lucky there's a store near me that sells those products. Look in the phone book (hahahah do those even exsist) or on yellowpages.com and try to type in car accessories or something to that extent, the place that carries those products close to me also carries a lot of car accessories and other cleaning/detailing supplies if that helps. If not you can go online and order them.

Claybar is for removing dirt that has made its way into your paint. Easiest way to tell which areas need to be claybarred is put your hand in a plastic baggie after you wash and dry it (no towels please) and run your hand over your paint, any areas that you feel there is dirt are the areas necessary. Usually the front quarter panels, and rear bumper/trunk are the areas that need it the most but there are some other places you may find that need it to. always always always keep the area lubricated that you are using the clay bar on (soapy water in a spray bottle works well).

Autopia.com is a really good site all about detailing if you want to read about it some more, maybe find a few different products that are easier to find, different techniques, etc...Also look on there for waxes for different color cars.

And I'm just going to post the pictures on here because i find it easier. My fiance did this as a side job for a few months and I helped him a lot, learned a lot so these are all of our details.

This car does not have Danaze wet glaze btw.

I have some more if you want more examples.

 

[Finaltheorem47]

don't let the wax sit too long, just enough to the point where its dry, its not like a sealant where the longer it sits, the better. I made that mistake once and let the wax sit 3 hours and it glued its self onto my car and I ended up re-waxing it to try to moisten the dried wax off my car. All in all, it was a bad mistake and it cost me several more hours and wax to fix.

 

[1989CobraMakeOv]

Everyone has touched on the rest but I'll make this very simple.

DO NOT USE THE ORBITAL WITH THE WOOL PAD to start with. You shouldn't even need to touch a wool pad to your paint if its in any reasonable condition. This would be the fastest and easiest way to burn your paint though.

www.autopia.org is a great source for how-tos.

www.specialtymotoring.com use "afterike" for 20% off; or "svtperformance" for our normal 10% He carries Optimum; Poorboy's and Menz. lines...pretty much everything you need for a proper detail.

So what do I do once i've buffed the wax off? Can I not use a softer pad to buff it to a gloss finish? Microfiber pad?

 

[1989CobraMakeOv]

Read this and all of your washing, waxing and detailing question will be answered:
http://articles.autopia.org/topics/17-car-detailing-stepbystep-1.html

This guide is pretty much a bible of detailing. You'll find people who have different opinions of products, and maybe very slight differences in procedure, but overall, everyone who knows anything about detailing, follows these steps.

Thanks I printed a few of those articles off.

 

[1989CobraMakeOv]

To be honest I'm lucky there's a store near me that sells those products. Look in the phone book (hahahah do those even exsist) or on yellowpages.com and try to type in car accessories or something to that extent, the place that carries those products close to me also carries a lot of car accessories and other cleaning/detailing supplies if that helps. If not you can go online and order them.

Claybar is for removing dirt that has made its way into your paint. Easiest way to tell which areas need to be claybarred is put your hand in a plastic baggie after you wash and dry it (no towels please) and run your hand over your paint, any areas that you feel there is dirt are the areas necessary. Usually the front quarter panels, and rear bumper/trunk are the areas that need it the most but there are some other places you may find that need it to. always always always keep the area lubricated that you are using the clay bar on (soapy water in a spray bottle works well).

Autopia.com is a really good site all about detailing if you want to read about it some more, maybe find a few different products that are easier to find, different techniques, etc...Also look on there for waxes for different color cars.

And I'm just going to post the pictures on here because i find it easier. My fiance did this as a side job for a few months and I helped him a lot, learned a lot so these are all of our details.

This car does not have Danaze wet glaze btw.

I have some more if you want more examples.

wow, looks great, what did he charge to detail the exterior of a car? Wash, clean, wax, etc...?

 

[1989CobraMakeOv]

don't let the wax sit too long, just enough to the point where its dry, its not like a sealant where the longer it sits, the better. I made that mistake once and let the wax sit 3 hours and it glued its self onto my car and I ended up re-waxing it to try to moisten the dried wax off my car. All in all, it was a bad mistake and it cost me several more hours and wax to fix.

Ok, thanks, I’ll just let it dry... I once made the mistake of waxing my 89 fox IN THE SUN, while letting it sit, AKA, turn into a new layer of paint, on the car for a day thinking it was a good idea. Needless to say, I ran out of elbow grease after removing the wax…….. from the hood... every part on my arm/hands were numb for a week after that debacle.

 

[RDJ]

I take it there was nothing helpful in the "showandshine saloon" ?

 

[mblgjr]

So what do I do once i've buffed the wax off? Can I not use a softer pad to buff it to a gloss finish? Microfiber pad?

A glossy finish is not produced by "buffing" the wax off. A glossy, perfect looking reflective finish is achieved by washing; cleaning; polishing and then protecting the paint. You would be royally backing yourself (and the guy that has to correct your mistake) up if you went over the car with the rotary and a wool pad if you tried to "buff it".

Once you've removed the wax (by hand via terry cloth or microfiber towel) you're done. There's really nothing to do after that.

This is a general procedure...

Wash; clay; polish; apply wax/sealant.

Go to this link and read the specific articles that have bold blue links right in the middle of the page.

http://articles.autopia.org/topics/17-car-detailing-stepbystep-1.html

The best thing you can do for your upcoming show is to: Wash; clay; Meg's NXT 2.0 It has enough fillers in it to cover any minor swirling. Getting the car really clean elsewhere is what will aid in drawing attention...like cleaning the inside of the wheels, dressing wheelwells, cleaning engine, perfect trim and tires...etc. It takes a total combination to do a show.

 

[mblgjr]

I take it there was nothing helpful in the "showandshine saloon" ?

Nah; nothing helpful here :read:

 

[mblgjr]

Read this and all of your washing, waxing and detailing question will be answered:
http://articles.autopia.org/topics/17-car-detailing-stepbystep-1.html
.

Glad you already posted that too; pretty much explains the basics of it all.

 

[RDJ]

I take it there was nothing helpful in the "showandshine saloon" ?

Nah; nothing helpful here :read:

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:


When I posted it was still in Roadside LOL!

 

[mblgjr]

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:


When I posted it was still in Roadside LOL!

Yeah, I know it was originally posted there. I was joking that nobody ever reads anything in here or even searches this forum really. It's always the same stuff over and over for the most part. :beer: