Finally! A sunny day....detail time.

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Apr 13, 2013
Messages
9,246
Location
FL, USA
Hello all! I hope you are all having an enjoyable weekend. For the past couple of weeks here in the "Sunshine State", we have had rain almost every day making it hard to find a good time to clean the cars. Today is the first day in a while that it has been sunny out so I figured it would be a good time to do so. The paint on my Accord is single stage Taffeta White so it does get dingy over time even when keeping it washed and waxed on a regular basis. I try not to polish often since this paint is already thin from the factory so I figured I would clay bar it to see if that would remove some of the darker patchy areas that form. These areas I assume are mainly from dirty rain water that ends up sitting on the paint after a rain storm, the dirt ends up staining the paint since there is no dedicated clear coat on top. They clay did not remove any of the dark spots but it did get rid of all of the black / brown specs on my rear bumper and trunk that were imbedded. The bumper alone must have taken 35+ minutes, it was very time consuming.

I figured since I had already clayed it that I would go ahead and polish it as well. I was going to get the Meguiars polish out of the shed then saw some old NuFinish, I figured I would try that instead since it is less abrasive and I wouldn't have to wax or apply a sealant after for protection. I was already 3 or 4 hours into the detail so I was ready to be finished. Turns out, NuFinish works great! It got rid of oxidation and the staining without being as abrasive as polish or compound and leaves good protection behind.

So the routine went as follows: wash, clay (used water, quick detailer, or car shampoo for lube), dried, washed, then "polished" with NuFinish and my Harbor Freight dual action polisher. Here are the results!

Here you can see the discolored areas...



After polishing one half with NuFinish





That shine!



Bonus pic! Detailed the Jetta too...
 
OUCH! That shine is painful to the eyes, very nice work! I am too lazy to do my accord just yet, maybe next weekend. Nice job!
 
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
How do you find the time? I barely can wash the cars anymore...


Your too busy then!
 
Looks great. I'm gonna wash the Avalon tomorrow after a 5,000 mile road trip to Washington and then to Montana and back. A lot of bugs.

It's too hot to do much more than a wash though.
 
Very nice!

I actually had time to do one of our vehicle's which I was happy to do. I swear the thing is so much easier to clean with a fresh layer of wax. Everything just washes off.

I'm one of those who hates exterior maintenance until I start. Always leave feeling satisfied but my results can't compare to that level of fetal lol.
 
Must ask you, what pads are you using on the HF and are you using the backing plate that came with it or another one? Thanks in advance, cars look great!
 
I'm finally on my way back home again, and I'm looking forward to getting my wife's black Volvo back to a mirror shine.

I'm also hoping to finally add a 911 to the garage... So that'll need a full detail too.
wink.gif


Nice work, as always!
 
Originally Posted By: Rolla07
Must ask you, what pads are you using on the HF and are you using the backing plate that came with it or another one? Thanks in advance, cars look great!


Good question, I should have mentioned this. I actually used the black Harbor Freight pad (most mild pad, used for wax application). I was glad to see that oxidation and staining were removed with the wax applicator pad and NuFinish. The Harbor Freight backing plate was also used.
 
Excellent work Greg! I need to do some serious cleaning on the Camry, and the GTI needs paint correction. Actually being black the Jeep is in dire need. But working out of town all week the projects at the house add up and the cars get neglected...
 
Originally Posted By: Donald
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
How do you find the time? I barely can wash the cars anymore...


+1 grass, boat, wife, dog, kids, grandkids, work come before waxing


Same here. Other than grandkids. And with this rain. Good lord.
My new Porter Cable just sits in the box. Washed the truck and Car in the rain yesterday.
 
Nicely done! Old timer NuFinish did a great job machine applied. Too many look down their nose at it....it still works.
 
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
How do you find the time? I barely can wash the cars anymore...
My thoughts exactly lol Too much to do all crammed into the weekends.
 
Originally Posted By: RTexasF
Nicely done! Old timer NuFinish did a great job machine applied. Too many look down their nose at it....it still works.


Yes! I can't remember if I have used this combo before (NuFinish + dual action polisher), but it worked well! I may have to start using this instead of Meguiars Ultimate Polish. I am assuming the NuFinish is less abrasive?
 
FWIW Harbor Freight pads seem as good as any. I used the orange and blue to do my water spot damaged paint on my Silverado and it turned out good. Use 3M "Perfect-It 1" on 8the black pad before you wax and the car will turn out perfect.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top