Gettin'er done tomorrow!
 

Ok so after a few visits to Ken and lots and lots of questions, I think I'm finally ready to detail my car. I've got the day off work tomorrow, I THINK I have everything I need

But I still have a few questions, hopefully you see this Ken!

1. How often do I need to knead(sp?) my claybar? After each panel?

2. Is it absolutely necessary to prime your pads before applying polish?

3. Youre supposed to detail in 2'x2' sections, do I wipe off residual polish after the ENTIRE panel is done so I can see where I've polished? Or do I wipe off after each 2'x2' section is done?

4. (Related to #3) Ive read its best to spray some QD onto the panel when you wipe off excess polish. True? Not necessary?

5. Ken this one is for you, I remember you saying that there are 2 diff sides to the MF's but I dont remember what you said each side is best for?
One side has longer fibres..

6. Not too important, but still wondering. Is there any specific brand of tape I should use to tape off mouldings, trims, emblems, cracks etc?
Or will any painter's tape do just fine?

1. after each panel is the bare minimum.
3. i do 3 step polishing, and complete the section before moving onto the next. If you're only doing one step, then i guess it's fine to polish the whole panel before checking your work

1. knead it when it gets dirty, and pick out any large pieces
4. use an MF cloth that has been misted with water

since it seems like you're using a PC, just remember to make sure u work the polish in enough that it breaks down, a lot of people don't get the results they want because they go over the area too fast and dont allow the polish to be worked in properly, patience is key

[QUOTE=Draft;6394266]
1. How often do I need to knead(sp?) my claybar? After each panel?
I usually knead when its dirty. On some cars its each panel and on some it after each small section.

2. Is it absolutely necessary to prime your pads before applying polish?
I never prime my pads. Put 2-3 pea sized drops of polish spaced evenly on the pad, with polisher OFF, spread polish around 2x2 section, put machine against car ( only for pc use ) and have at 'er.

3. Youre supposed to detail in 2'x2' sections, do I wipe off residual polish after the ENTIRE panel is done so I can see where I've polished? Or do I wipe off after each 2'x2' section is done?
I usually wipe after each 2x2 section. If anything gets on your pad, you don't want to find out after doing a whole panel like your hood!

4. (Related to #3) Ive read its best to spray some QD onto the panel when you wipe off excess polish. True? Not necessary?
If you work in a cool area out of the sun and work the polish until it goes clear it should wipe off easily. If you get bits that are a bit caked on, a light mist of water or QD is fine.

5. Ken this one is for you, I remember you saying that there are 2 diff sides to the MF's but I dont remember what you said each side is best for?
One side has longer fibres..
The shorter side is better for removing polish residue as it has more bite and the longer side for waxes and sealants.

6. Not too important, but still wondering. Is there any specific brand of tape I should use to tape off mouldings, trims, emblems, cracks etc?
Or will any painter's tape do just fine?
Painters tape is not as sticky as the 3M tape from Lordco or any bodyshop supplier. Neither will leave any glue transfer, even if left overnight.

Ken beat me to it, post before and afters! We all love 50/50s too! Good luck bud, I'm sure Ken briefed you well

He did indeed!
I'll only go to Ken for products and advice

I'll be sure to keep my phone with me to snap some pictures of my progress
Hopefully I remember, I'm pretty psyched to finally use all the stuff thats been accumulating in my room

EDIT: Just remembered a very important one, do I need to wash again after claybaring?

No...well i don't at least. sometimes i clay while i wash.

My first full detailing session was a complete success..
The entire process, from washing to applying my final coat of sealant was 11 hours at a pretty laid back pace with a couple breaks

I didnt snap as many pics as I would've liked to, but I got a before and after shot

BEFORE
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a2...g?t=1240648162

AFTER
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a2...g?t=1240648198

Ken, you know what my paint looked like when I brought it in to you last week :p

Very nice! Glad everything went well. Now make sure you use the two bucket method when washing and keep your mitts clean and you shouldn't have any problems keeping your car looking great.

Looks great!

what products did you use?

Clay Magic
Porter Cable with white and orange pads
Menzerna Power finish
Werkstat acrylic jett sealant

What was your process, Power Finish with Orange and then again with White pads?

Awesome results :thumbsup:

I actually used only one pad per panel. I went with how bad the swirling was and then decided. The majority of the car was fine with a white pad + power finish, but the panels that were repainted had to be hit with the orange pad cause of the crappy wet sanding job done by the bodyshop

Thanks :)

sorry but super newb question whats the difffernce between porter cable and a buffer?

Buffer is a really old school term. A Porter cable is random orbital style polisher. The pad oscillates to mimic hand motion but is not force driven like a rotary ( Makita, Metabo, Flex) style polisher. It takes a little longer to polish with a PC compared to a rotary, but its almost impossible to burn paint or leave holograms. If you go to my website,http://www.autowerkesexclusive.comyou can look at the differences between them.

i will, thanks! im going to be making some purchases off you soon and i just want to know a little info before i stumble in there.

Looks great Draft! Makes me want to whip out the PC and get to work...

nice job.. i have a meguires g110 myself