Dennis - Great to hear that you have had a pleasant experience with our business. I greatly appreciate the feedback. I constantly am trying to refine our product selection to offer anyone a great detail no matter what they order from our site. I am looking forward to hearing about your results with everything!

Keep us posted.

George

 

Great thread.

Earlier you recommended quick detailing sprays for use between washes. Now I want to get down to the real dirt: what would you do if you had no place to hand-wash your own car? I'm an apartment dweller where there's a strict no-wash no-repair policy in the lot, and the local pressure-wash coin-ops have "No Buckets/No Hand-washing" signs posted. What to do?

 

qttrcoupe - Thanks for the pics, that accurately gives me an idea on what you were referring to. I would recommend trying something like ScratchX and/or PlasticX from Meguiars or another really fine polish. Something like Final Polish II or PO106ff would do the trick and also work wonders on your paint. Basically you need a polish with micro abrasives to smooth out those dips and valleys, aka scratches and swirls.

Great question. There are a few products out there that can be used as a waterless wash. One of them is Poorboy's Spray & Wipe and another popular one is Optimum No-Rinse. Both have slightly different methods to them when using them as a waterless wash. The Spray & Wipe would be used similar to a quick detailer but you would mist 6 - 7 sprays per section, let it sit for 30 seconds to a minute or so. Here is a nice writeup on how to use the product on the Poorboy's World Forum.

The Optimum No-Rinse uses water but you do not need a hose source. I did some quick searching but found this mini-write up on the Optimum Forums for you to see how to use it. Optimum No-Rinse Useage

I'd say the Optimum is more ideal for dirtier cleanings and the Spray & Wipe would be used for a little more than a light dusting or less.

Let me know if this makes sense after reading those writeups. I'd be happy to answer any other questions you may have.

George

 

My paint, i have a 2003 that is dolphin gray, when i run my hands over it mostly the sides feel nice and smooth, but when i get to the trunk, hood, and one quarter panel, the paint feels rough, even though it stil looks as shiny as the rest of the car. is this some kind of oxidation? i live in maine and it wasformerly anew jersey car. im thinking it is from pollution, but what can i put on it to bring basck the feel of smoothness?
~kylie

 

Kylie - Great question. Typically what happens is over time you'll have a build up of contamination that won't be removed with your normal washing and drying procedures. From the sounds of it, you have some contamination building up that isn't necessarily visible to the naked eye but can be felt when gliding a towel or wash mitt over the paint. What you can do is use a clay bar to help remove this contamination in order to restore the slick, contamination free surface from your vehicle.

Clay can be found at your local automotive stores and come in a variety of sizes. To be honest with you, there are only a few clay manufacturers so most of them perform the same. Typically speaking they will come in 50g, 80g, 100g and 200g sized bars. I recommend using between 30 - 50 gram pieces of clay per vehicle. The clay bars we stock are 200g bars, which means we recommend cutting them up into 4 - 6 equal sized sections so that if you potentially drop a piece of clay, you don't have to worry about ruining your entire bar and can throw that piece out. Once clay hits the ground, it should never touch your paint because you can easily add imperfections such as scratches and swirls.

We are running a special on our homepage for clay bars, where if you purchase one of these 200g bars for $24.99 we are including a 16oz bottle of Clear Kote Quik Shine which can be used as clay lube or a quick detailer.

Claying your paint is also the perfect time to assess your paint for imperfections such as swirls and scratches, and follow up with the proper polish to correct them. The reason why is because this will be the time your paint is clear of contamination and you will get the best results out of your polish, sealant or wax, since you aren't using those products over the contamination.

We have put together a helpful piece of information describing the clay bar process as well as step-by-step how-to's on properly claying your vehicle. I encourage you to read up on them prior to using a clay bar on your vehicle.

If you have any other questions on anything, please do not hesitate to ask.

George

 

Hey I have recieved all my products and must say i love the way my car turned out!

After about 7 hours of hand polishing the entire car it looks amazing!!!!!!!!!

Thanks so much!!

Let me know what you think.. advice?..

Thanks

Dennis

 

I hate how the pictures i can never get them into the site without having the stupid link!

But here is a few more pictures!

Im not the best picture guy neither soo.. hope they are ok!

 

Dennis - I can tell the car came out great. Pics 3 and 4 are your best shots, especially pic 4 where you look between the wheels and it looks like a mirror. I'm glad you got the results you were looking for with the products you picked up.

For some helpful picture tips, check out this thread on shooting pictures of detailed vehicles.

The biggest benefit your see from here on out is that your vehicle should be much easier to maintain now.

Once again, we greatly appreciate your support.

George

 

 

old64mb - thank you for the positive feedback, it is appreciated.

As far as your leather is concerned, if you'd like to try some new products we have our best leather care combo on sale this month, Leatherique Prestine Clean and Leatherique Rejuvenator Oil for $10 off its normal bundled price.

Leatherique is a unique product and is applied differently than other leather care products. This is how I would apply the products to get the most out of your Leatherique.

1. Vacuum seats thoroughly and wipe down with a damp towel to ensure all loose debris is removed prior to working the product.
2. Apply Leatherique Rejuvenator Oil by hand and massage into the leather or leatherette, using generous amounts to the stitching and cracked areas
3. Allow Leatherique Rejuvenator Oil to sit on your seats for up to 24 hours, we suggest parking the vehicle in the sun to create a sauna effect while the product is penetrating your seats.
3a. Multiple applications may be required for hardened and discolored leather.
4. Apply Prestine Clean directly onto the seats with a terry cloth applicator pad, using generous amounts around stitching and cracked areas
5. Allow Prestine Clean to penetrate leather for 15 – 30 minutes
6. Remove Prestine Clean with a warm damp cloth towel
7. Buff completely dry with a new dry cloth towel

I'd suggest applying Leatherique Prestine Clean every 3 - 4 months for optimal conditioning and preserving your leather and leatherette. The Leatherique Rejuvenator Oil should be done one to two times a year or as needed. For regular maintenance cleanings, just a damp cloth followed by a dry cloth.

This will leave you with a beautiful matte finish and soft and supple leather. This is as good as it gets when it comes to leather care.

For your seatbelts, I'd recommend an All Purpose Cleaner / Degreaser diluted to the manufacturers recommended ratio. For a product readily available at local department stores, try to get ahold of some FOLEX. This seems to be a popular item among detailers that can be found locally. I use Poorboy's Biodegradable APC for stubborn stains like you are describing along with a small scrub brush to agitate the surface. It also works great as an engine degreaser, tire cleaner, wheel well cleaner and more. I typically use it diluted 3:1 with water and have stronger versions available when needed. You could try the FOLEX on your leather too, but keep in mind it will not condition it and restore it to the soft and supple feel it deserves.

Hope this helps. Let us know how you make out with everything.

George