Oh dear ... the detailing bug is starting to hit me

stormduck · Feb 17, 2010

after spending £100 last year on better gear, moving to meguirs, i've now discovered the internet's detailing world and spent another £100 on more clobber that you can't buy in Halfords! Bad on my finances but the T will benefit tremendously!

Meguiars Lambswool Wash Mitt
Eurow - Shag Pile Double Density Towels
Valet Pro - Bilberry Wheel Cleaner (1 litre)
Meguiars - Quik Detailer Mist & Wipe
Meguiars - Ultimate Quik Wax
Chemical Guys Wheel Guard
Meguiars Grit Guard and bucket
Poorboys Natural Look Dressing

Still, i enjoy cleaning! cleanses the mind while ur doing it!

moono16v · Feb 17, 2010

haha I love it too mate!!! I spend far too much on gear!! How do you find the wheel guard products??....its one product ive never bothered with, but always been tempted on using it. I bought some meguiars wheel cleaner and it brings them up sparkling!!!

PB.283 · Feb 17, 2010

Only £100??

Think I spent somewhere in the region of £600 last year!!

Nothing this year as yet and no plans to spend owt either! Although I am going to a swissvax demo in a month!!

moono16v · Feb 17, 2010

I was intending to go to the demo but unfortunatly im working!!!!

Berty · Feb 18, 2010

It can get very addictive and the costs mount up very quickly. I find my problem is I always want to try new products before I've finished the ones I've already got, so buy stuff unnecessarily.

PB.283 · Feb 18, 2010

Berty said:
It can get very addictive and the costs mount up very quickly. I find my problem is I always want to try new products before I've finished the ones I've already got, so buy stuff unnecessarily.

You need to come to a demo then!!! :wink:

Berty · Feb 18, 2010

If it wasn't so far away I would. But it's probably best I afford swissvax anyway, I'd end up leaving with some Best of Show or something equally priced that would be better put towards a house deposit.

BenG · Feb 18, 2010

I bought a Dual action polisher and a load of different pads at Christmas and ive not used it yet :shock:

Berty · Feb 18, 2010

I had one for Christmas and have only had an hour with it doing the bonnet, the difference was very noticeable though, I can't wait to get a couple of full days to spare to do it.

hoolio · Feb 18, 2010

BenG said:
I bought a Dual action polisher and a load of different pads at Christmas and ive not used it yet :shock:

TBH it's been a little too cold to do any polishing/correction unless you've somewhere heated to do it. Warmth helps break down the compounds in the polish and although the polishing action generates some heat you will need to work a lot harder and if you are a little unsure can make even more work for yourself.

wlshyd182 · Feb 18, 2010

I'm the same, i did it for my job for 6 years from being 14 until 20 and tell you i absolutely loved it, plus doing it in Cheshire/Alderley Edge/Wilmslow/Knutsford etc meant footballers, wags and all sorts of exotic machinery.

Did an Enzo, few SLRs, Koenigseggs, you name it, but never a 2.0 Clio (yes they were around then!)!!

Super job and the satisfaction of seeing a car gleaming at the end of all your graft was just as good as the money which wasnt too bad either.

Google miracle detail and check out paul dalton and his website, the guy that was on 5th Gear and charges up to £000s for a detail...

amazing pics, especially the green veyron

PB.283 · Feb 18, 2010

Paul Dalton now has his own Swissvax product, £500 per tub, which is a barging when you compare it to Zymol Solaris that has similar Carnuba content. I know you can refil the Solaris but it costs about £300 in post and packing to do so to get the same value you'd have to fill it up around 150 times.

Sam_K · Feb 18, 2010

I just wouldnt know where to start, i think i would rather fork out some money for some to do it properly

stormduck · Feb 18, 2010

haha, love the replies!

£600! Be nice but I couldn't afford that! There's a few more bits i'd like to buy this year but don't think i'll break £200.

sam i'm no expert by a long long way, hence the reason why i'm buying my first lambs wool mitt and bucket with grit guard - there you go, start with buying those! And some meguairs gold class shampoo.

I havn't actually used any wheel guarding products before which is why i'm buying them now. I was going to get the megs hot wheels but i read some reviews on this bilberry stuff on cleanyourcar.co.uk and thought i'd give it a go. Last year i took the wheels off and used the 3stage megs but the tar was sticking to the wheels like before in no time...now i've found out that specialised wheel guard products don't get broken down by the heat from the wheels like normal wax, and protects them for longer. The inside of my speedlines are corroding quite a lot, i intend buying a new set soon but if the wheel guard helps in the mean time then great. At the end of the day, like wax on paintwork, a wax/sealant on the wheels will help their longevity and look.

swissvax demo looked good, but i'm not going to travel that far to spend money i havn't got on products the size of valve cap!

berty that's bad! Maybe you shouldn't look up about different products till ur old ones were almost gone...no temptation in ignorance!

i'm not going to even think about machine polishers!

hoolio ur right about the temps, the polish was tough to get off the paintwork, but the car needed doing big time.

stormduck · Feb 18, 2010

I think detailing a car would be a lot more satisfying a job than simply washing/valeting, i couldn't do that. How comes ur still not doing it?

£500 .... is this an immensely ramped up price to fool you with the name of the manu. or is the price justified?

hoolio · Feb 18, 2010

Quick tip, if any products are difficult to remove you are probably leaving a little too long and using a little too much.

PB.283 · Feb 18, 2010

stormduck said:
I think detailing a car would be a lot more satisfying a job than simply washing/valeting, i couldn't do that. How comes ur still not doing it?

£500 .... is this an immensely ramped up price to fool you with the name of the manu. or is the price justified?

Personally I think its worth it.

The stuff I use is 160 and I think that is worth it and it is 47% Carnuba and Paul Daltons stuff is 78% I think so for me thats fine especially when you think that Zymol Solaris was(all tubs sold) £30k.

Also please dont think I'm bragging about my detailing spending I bought most last year when I had my Megane 225 F1. I really enjoy cleaning my cars and had been thinking about the basic Zymol Wax at £45 but I went to a demo and ended up spending a bit more

. But boy did that F1 look good, problem is it looked so nice someone decided to nick it!!!

roystinho · Feb 18, 2010

I can verify some of PB.283's cars. The F1 225 was spectacular.

Is he bonkers? Yes

Detailing for me is getting someone who has time to do it for me (hint hint)

PB.283 · Feb 18, 2010

roystinho said:
I can verify some of PB.283's cars. The F1 225 was spectacular.

Is he bonkers? Yes

Detailing for me is getting someone who has time to do it for me (hint hint)

I'm sure we can sort summat out when the weather is nicer.

quik5i1ver · Feb 18, 2010

Quick question whilst this thread is going so well
- what pads would anyone recommend for hand polishing? Also what products and any methodology advice? (polish only)