help with detailing

I

Inuit

Member
Decided it is time to buy some proper kit.

Decided to buy a foam lance (is there an issue if the snow foam gets on the roof - Z4MR) and a kestrel das 6 (some suppliers seem to do kits, but no idea which will be the best for the Z and LR, understand bmw paint is quite hard, but not sure about the Disco), but what i need to now is what people con the polish front.

I am planning on doing a good detail to start with by washing claying etc, but what i need to know is what waxes, glazes etc people recommend. Firstly for the intial detail and then something to use on a weekly top up, do not want to spend hours every weekend polishing the car, prefer to be driving it.

First car, imola red Z4mr - slight swirling, nothing too serious though.

Second car - java black discovery - this goes off road and has some nice scratches from trees and bushes, therefore need something with fillers and soemthing that gives it a wet look which hopefully will disguise the majoirty of the marks?

Need a good wheel cleaner, get heavy brake dust.

Do not mind spending a reasonable amount, but really would like good value products rather than real top end items.

Checked a few sites out, but any recommendations to suppliers, might need a bit of discount as i will be buying the polisher and foam lance plus all the other bits.
 
Clean your car would be your best bet for a whole bundle of stuff and when shopping with CYC you get points which mount up to some money which can be discounted on your ext purchase.

DAS6 pro machine is a better unit to go for.
CYC does a DAS6 pro/sonus pads/menzerna polishes kit which is right up your street tbh.
BMW and landrover/range rover paint are tough, the landrover even more so ( ive done loads or range rover sports and vogues recently and they certainly are hard paint )

Poorboys world blackhole applied after polishing on a finishing pad via DA will a: mask any remains of faint marring and b:really bring a depth to the finish.

Waxes, what do you want?
Durability?
Warm glow and wet finish?

Durabilty definately look at collinite 476s or marc de elegance or finish kare fk1000p, these can last anywhere between 6 months to a year with correct wash practice.

For a seriously wet look and durability up to 3-4 months, dodo juice rainforest rub ( £25-£28 )is excellent and ticks the boxes without breaking the bank, for something a little special dodo juice supernatural is very basic and extremely warm/glowing ( £90+ )

If your going down the dodo juice route then get both shampoo variants, use dodo born to be mild every wash until the 4th-5th then use sour power to revive the gloss then back to born to be mild again.
Born to be mild is pH balanced and wax safe so wont strip the protection, sour power is a gloss enhancing shampoo but too much can conflict with th wax.
 
I think you will struggle to get a Kestrel DAS6 until July(ish), we've been out of stock now for 3-4weeks and I'm told most if not all the UK Retailers are also sold out.

Just to echo Scott, the DAS6 Pro is the one to go for. I also have an Imola Red car and the normal DAS6 did struggle a little so the extra power of the pro should be a bonus. As for polishes the Menzerna found in the CYC kits is fine, though I've personally never used the Sonus pads. I've found the Menzerna pads pretty poor and had a compounding pad disintegrate after just half a car, so I'd avoid those.

Wax is a huge can of worms, I'd suggest set yourself a budget and then perhaps myself or Scott can tailor recommendations. My car wears Dodo Juice Supernatural however I needed to test Chemical Guys Blitz recently and really liked the finish. It is perhaps a bit 'plasticy' but I think it suits the flat red colour. Blitz is a spray so very handy for topping up on a weekly basis if you wanted to go that route (cheap too).

Wheel Cleaner...I know Scott doesn't like this stuff but Very Cherry Acid Free as sold by Autobrite Direct is a really decent cleaner (provided you follow the instructions, dilute properly and don't leave it on too long). I realise Acid Free is just a buzz word and it's actually Alkaline based but I suppose you need something to do the cleaning. For a pH neutral one have a look at Chemical Guys - Diablo.

Finally washing..no point skimping here because if you do you'll only be undoing all the polishing/waxing. Get a pH Neutral Shampoo (Dodo Born to be Mild is great), good quality wash mitt and a deep pile drying towel.

John
 
Best bet is to fire onto Detailing world for advice.

Polishedbliss is a good source for the gear.
 
Dont you find that Clark is a little overpriced on products Aliv6?

Plenty of online sources for products online which wont max your credit card inuit. :thumbsup:

What you have to consider is how basic or extravagant you are wanting to go, set a budget and maybe a small figure that you are willing to step up to if needed also consider how far indepth you are wanting to go be it key fundementals to safer cleaning or complete OCD cotton bud brigade member ( see detailing world for details :D )
 
Thanks for all the info - i did join detailing world, but ended up more confused :?

Anyway the guy at clean your car, was very helpful and they have the das pro in stock.

Ended up with the following

Product: DAS-6 PRO Dual Action Polisher - Sonus Kit
Product: CleanYourCar - Fine PolyClay (240g)
Product: PoorBoys - Black Hole
Product: FinishKare 2685 - Pink Wax
Product: Valet Pro - Bilberry Wheel Cleaner (1 litre)
Product: Miracle Dryer - Ultra Plush 25" x 36"

Stopped myself at this point. I do need to sort the foam lance, but my £30 pressure washer from netto does not seem to have the right attachement for a foam lance, so looking around for a 2nd hand karcher or alto and then add the foam lance and some quality car shampoo.

Fancied the dodo supernatural, but think i might add that later, at £90 it is quite an investment.

This weekend looks as though it is going ot be fun, the poor old citeron will be the test car for the polisher, if i completely mess it up it will not matter on that one.
 
Good little start up kit matey.
It does get costly so as said before its best setting a figure to spend and leave it at that to start with.
Look forward to seeing the progress. :thumbsup:
 
How much polish/wax is required to cover the Zed (1 coat)? I bought AG Surface Clay Kit, which only includes 100 ml of SRP. Also, most retail bottles are 500 ml. Can one bottle normally cover 3 coats?

I washed and waxed my car on Sunday with BMW shampoo and wax (it was just 18-day-old). My plan is to fully treat the car (wash, clay, polish, and wax) before and after winter (only normal wash and wax during freezing winter between October and March). Will it be enough if I use my Zed daily?
 
scottbt said:
Dont you find that Clark is a little overpriced on products Aliv6?

Plenty of online sources for products online which wont max your credit card inuit. :thumbsup:

What you have to consider is how basic or extravagant you are wanting to go, set a budget and maybe a small figure that you are willing to step up to if needed also consider how far indepth you are wanting to go be it key fundementals to safer cleaning or complete OCD cotton bud brigade member ( see detailing world for details :D )
Click to expand...

They do cost a bit more, but their service is very very quick and professional vs some of the others!

Also they have some great products other people don't bother stocking.

Dave
 
Great post :thumbsup:

I realized my "car cleaning" is all wrong after reading this - well not all wrong as but should be much better! I've been using SRP completely wrong though!

ot really got the money/courage to go for machine polish but may do in future. So I ordered these today:

PB Foam Lance Kit - Karcher
Gloss It Mild Clay Bar - 236ml
Poorboy's Black Hole Glaze
Lake Country Light Cut Hand pad
Meguiar's Foam Applicator Pad
Meguiar's Microfibre Applicator Pad
Collinite Marque D'Elegance (915s)

Already got loads of Microfibres, lambwool mit, 2 buckets ad all important pressure washer. I'm gonna be busy next week :D
 
Right the kit has arrived and now i need more help. I have the following

1 x Sonus SFX-1 Restore Pad - presume this is a yellow pad as it has no number on it
1 x Sonus SFX-2 Enhance Pad
1 x Sonus SFX-3 Final Polish Pad
1 x Sonus SFX-4 Final Finish Pad

1 x 250ml - Menzerna Power Gloss (S100) Cut 5.0 Gloss 1.0
1 x 250ml - Menzerna Intensive Polish (P085RD 3.02) Cut 3.5 Gloss 3.0
1 x 250ml -Menzerna Super Finish (PO106FA) Cut 2.5 Gloss 5.0
1 x 250ml - Menzerna Final Finish (PO85RD) Cut 1.5 Gloss 5.0

I am presuming you use them in order as here with corresponding pads, looking at the cutting values. Just wondered how agressive the first SFX and power gloss combo is? The kit comes with no instructions and the menzerna website is not that helpful either.

I also have the poorboys black hole, the Z4 is a small car so will do by hand - however, the disco is very large - presume you can do this by machine, but what would be a good pad, persume i use the black hole after the mezerna and then the Finish kare wax - again same question what would be a good pad. Something like a FX 4 finish pad?

think i am going to need two extra pads one for the black hole and one for the wax, i am reading that really you should use a different pad for each product?

God this complicated, the das pro is quite heavy, but i am female, will have to use the excuse that it is to heavy to use and get the other half to show me how to do it properly and will need showing at least a few times or until he manages to finish both my cars :evil:
 
Have a read of this page, I posted some basics.
http://www.z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=18716&start=30

This, though it is quite well drawn out as Davekg is, will help also.
http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/images/misc/dapolishing.pdf

The key is to start out with least aggresive pad/polish combination and work upward is needed until you get the results your wanting.
 
55 odd pages but a bloody good read, I'm also just about to buy a da. My z4 only needs minor correction, could probably get away with fillers so will do that first and see how I like the finish before going down the correction route. I'd say save that PDF and read through a few times as it's worth the effort and makes things clearer.
 
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