Winter Detail Special (Pictures)...

[Dark 'n' Dirty]

This weekend was my kickoff of the winter detailing special that Phil included me in on. Needless to say, there hasn't been a lack of cars to prep for the winter here in MA. Customer only required a full exterior detail to remove minor swirls and recondition the paint to near perfect condition. Again, needed my brother's help on this one. Total detail time was 3 hours. Please see my process and pictures below as I've included my checklist of detail steps and products used. As always, please feel free to provide feedback whether it be positive or constructive. Thanks for looking.

Exterior

- Rims & Tires (Simple Green cut 1:1)
- Wash (Meguiar's Gold Class)
- Spot Compounding (3M Rubbing Compound - Fine Cut 1500 Grit)
- Clay (Adam's Clay & Detail Spray)
- Swirl Removal (Adam's Swirl & Haze Remover on wool pad)
- Polish (Adam's Revive Polish on white pad)
- Wax (Optimum Spray Wax layered under Adam's Butter Wax on grey pad)
- Tires (Adam's V.R.T.)
- Windows (Stoner's Invisible Glass)

*** Ended up detailing the engine since there was no top to this car, but forgot to take pictures. Degreased with Simple Green and dressed with Adam's V.R.T. and In & Out. ***

BEFORES

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture022.jpg

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture023.jpg

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture025.jpg

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture026.jpg

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture027.jpg
AFTERS

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture031.jpg

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture034.jpg

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture038.jpg

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture042.jpg

FINISHED PRODUCT

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture048.jpg

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture049.jpg

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture052.jpg

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture040.jpg

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture056.jpg

[Fobia]

o just hte front bumper and that scuff.. with the rubbing compound?

cool write up thanks!!!

[Dark 'n' Dirty]

Yup, the scuff was taken out with rubbing compound and the front was polished and waxed. The scuff got a little more attention with compound, swirl & haze, polish and wax...

[DetailersDomain]

Great work dude! I'm sure the owner was very very happy.[up]

[Dark 'n' Dirty]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure he was happy with the work my brother and I did. It was great to have a small car to do so we could focus more on removing the swirls and minor scratches you'll see in black paint to make it close to, if not, perfect. I don't get these very often, so when I do, better make the best of it.

[recordstyle]

you posted the pic of the white scratches - any pictures of how it came up/out afterwords? (i know unless its sanded out the scratch-remover wont remove everything but will gloss it over enough to hide it on first glance)...

Would really appreciate an honest comment on how it turned out though, thanks

[Dark 'n' Dirty]

Hey recordstyle,

To tell you the truth, the scratches pretty much all came out because my brother compounded most of it out with the 3M Fine Cut rubbing compound. The scratches weren't too deep (surface marks) which was great and most of it was paint, possibly from another car or removed from whatever touched the car. I worked over it again with the swirl & haze remover, polish and wax. In my honest opinion 99% of the scratches/paint was removed and only a tiny bit was left. I didn't post the AFTER pic because it didn't come out great (low lighting & blurry), but here it is. Let me know what you think. Thanks for looking, good observation...

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/BMW%20Z3/Picture047.jpg

[recordstyle]

thanks for responding - they definitely "came out" and you really can't see them.

I have a black car myself and have some scratches here and there and have not been able to get them out with the scratch-x or swirl/haze remover or other cream that you can apply... guess its something i should look into wetsanding gently like you/your bro did... or rubbing compound or whatever its called

thanks again - looks great!

[Fobia]

when using the rubbing compound.

Q: does it take off your clearcoat? in that area that you used it.. or is it safre for the clearcoat?

[Dark 'n' Dirty]

No problem at all. Always here to help. If you have scratches on your car, take a picture and post it on AZ. I'm sure the guys on the forum would be more than willing to help. If you're only using Scratch-X or Swirl & Haze, those two compounds may not be aggressive enough to get out deeper scratches in your clearcoat, or it could be that the scratch is too deep and into the paint. I'd definitely suggest going more aggressive on the compound (a heavier grit) before trying to wet sand. Use a more aggressive compound or pad, try different combinations. Let us know how it works out.


Originally posted by recordstyle
thanks for responding - they definitely "came out" and you really can't see them.

I have a black car myself and have some scratches here and there and have not been able to get them out with the scratch-x or swirl/haze remover or other cream that you can apply... guess its something i should look into wetsanding gently like you/your bro did... or rubbing compound or whatever its called

thanks again - looks great!

[Dark 'n' Dirty]

Compound is safe for the clearcoat, but abrades away/levels the clearcoat in the area that you use it on. Simply said, if you have a scratch and use compound on that area, what you're doing is leveling the clearcoat down to the same level of the scratch so the scratch is minimized or best case, gone. Hope that explains it well.

QUOTE]Originally posted by Fobia
when using the rubbing compound.

Q: does it take off your clearcoat? in that area that you used it.. or is it safre for the clearcoat? [/QUOTE]

[Fobia]

well i cant get good pictures but.. it is white where the scratches are.. should i go ahead get the 3m 1500grit compound then and see how it works?

[Dark 'n' Dirty]

Tough to say unless I had something more to go on. Have you tried to put your fingernail into the scratch to see how deep it is? If you can put a bit of your fingernail in the scratch, I'd either go with a more aggressive (heavier grit 1200 to 1000, may haze, but you can polish out) compound or it may not be able to be taken out because of how deep it is. I wish I could get a look at how deep the scratch is, then I'd be able to let you know for sure. As of now, I'd say spend a little bit of money, try out some product, and at very least, get some experience. Sorry couldn't help more.


Originally posted by Fobia
well i cant get good pictures but.. it is white where the scratches are.. should i go ahead get the 3m 1500grit compound then and see how it works?

[Dark 'n' Dirty]

Fobia,

Does your scratch look anything like this? This scratch was on my girlfriend's car back in the spring and I was able to minimize most of the damage using the 1500 to 1200 grit compound, but some of it is still there. Some jacka$$ thought it would be funny to key her car. Let me know...

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j211/ofanger/Details/Acura%20TSX/DSCF0641.jpg

[Fobia]

yah that is what it looks like.. but i cant put my fingure nail into it.

[Dark 'n' Dirty]

If you can't put your fingernail into the scratch, I'd suggest getting the 1500 grit and possibly a bottle of 1200 grit and start from least to most aggressive only compounding the area around the scratch in a circular motion.