Some photos of 427!

[Ajr]

It's been a while since i've taken some photos of number 427.

I have also been neglecting the paintwork but as i've been loving driving it again recently my love has been reignited

Weapon of choice:



Plus a huge selection of products. I got bored after 4 hours though. Tomorrow i will get up early to apply another layer of sealant then it's wax time!

Anyway before i bore you to death:















Miles still creeping up!



Miles per gallon still great(39mpg over 800 miles, could do so much better too)





Somehow i've managed to collect 12 of these meguiars applicators. Don't think i need any more :lol:



That's all for now. Sure i'll update with reflections and details when i've finished. Hopefully it will be cloudy tomorrow so i can get on with it!

 

[Paul C]

Great job so far mate! I plan to give mine a machine polish when i get some time! also sort out a few stone chips!

Have fun tomorrow.

 

[Ajr]

Cheers!
I'm not overly impressed so far, i think it's too hot even when working in the shade or when cloudy to get good results. That and the UDM isn't great, much prefer a rotary but i don't have access to one currently. Some small scratches were completely corrected with a few extra passes though so that's a start!
I need to go around with my little brush touching in the chips carefully and accurately.
Will see how it goes tomorrow

 

[SharkyUK]

39MPG!?!?!?!? :shock: Wow, I'm impressed!

 

[Ajr]

Over 860 miles too, so not just one tank. Being honest, i very rarely get less than 380-400 miles between stops for petrol. I do enjoy myself too, just in the right places at the right times!

Anyway, the continuation...

Well after last nights rain i sulked for a bit, then i wondered why the UDM wasn't getting good results!

I gave the car a quick dust down by hand(with a microfibre) making sure there was no grit on it, there was just dust and a few bits of plant seed and small bugs.

I tried some stronger polish and a different combination of pressures, speeds and amount of passes. Redid the whole car!

Then i washed the car again with the microfibre mitts, then doused it in clean water & used a water magnet to dry it out asap before i got water marks.

Then i did the sealant properly, covering the front panels in two shots with a few hours to cure between.

I redetailed the exhausts back to a chrome finish all round after just a basic clean before. I am yet to reapply the trim detailer, and i need to wax it but that can wait for tomorrow, hopefully it won't rain again tonight!

The paintwork is so much smoother and has a nice deep darker red appearance. The beading on the sealant is excellent, lots of nice small beads of water.

























This is from the roof, the hardest part to detail, despite me claying it not that long ago!

 

[Cue]

liquid shine.... liking that..

 

[Sam_K]

Mmm very shiny! although you do seem to have a tree growing from your roof!lol!

I would attempt to have a go with the machine polisher, clay bar etc but im afraid that i may do damage

 

[Trophy264]

fuck me!! can you do mine?? or at least teach me how to do it myself.

 

[Ajr]

I could be persuaded to do some other trophies probably.

I'm unsure whether i've got a job to go back to at the moment, will find out soon, if i don't then i have loads of time to mess with other peoples cars!

 

[BenG]

Mmm very shiny! although you do seem to have a tree growing from your roof!lol!

Ha ! You cant be doing it right, the paints gone mouldy.

She looks very very very nice mate, well worth the effort ! Im in the process of doing mine one panel at a time but im doing it by hand and I cant get the Britemax Resto Max to work very well this way so it is taking me ages and im not getting the results im after. Should I stop being a tight arse and put my hand in my pocket for a machine polisher ?

There is a bird plop stain on the roof too that I need to get rid of.

 

[Ajr]

I wouldn't shell out for a random orbital personally Ben, i would go straight for a full rotary makita, but then it's a MUCH more dangerous process, you need to get a depth gauge, get a feel for how much you can do without burnishing the paint too much etc. Luckily one of my best mates is a proper obsessive geek so i get a shot of virtually every machine out there and get to practice on cheap crap cars(old golfs,beemers and peugeots etc) before i hit expensive ones like the trophy. My key mark was virtually completely corrected with the makita although it took quite a few passes with some strong 3M compound which removed a fair few microns!

So what i'm trying to say is you want a makita, but you need a cheap car to practice on first Ideally start off with a UDM(try and borrow one) on a cool day and you can't really do much damage if you stick to the instructions, you get the hang of it after doing a few cars :lol: I've done 3 with the UDM before the trophy, and as the paint hardness and required correction varies between cars it always takes some accustomisation.

That britemax stuff really is best used with a machine...

 

[Stevie]

Looking good, mine needs a good clean with a good 4 weeks of crap still on it.

 

[Trophy264]

where are you?? if were gonna clean the shit out of 264 a destination would be good . lol

 

[Ajr]

Ashdown forest, east sussex. Between hartfield and groombridge!

Had to drive 427 today so he's a bit dirtier now lol

 

[Trophy264]

oh lord. ok anyone with a machine polisher than can get results like this guy in Hampshire maybe?? i know there's enough Trophys around Southampton. if not, its gonna be a propper trek

 

[hoolio]

What pads are those? They look as though they are less likely to mark if you've not got the machine at a perfect 180 Degs.

 

[BenG]

I was going to get the Meguiar G220 machine polisher. Where do you get the one you mentioned from ?

 

[Ajr]

That's a 3M pad. I've got an assortment including a smaller backing plate and smaller pads for the tighter areas.

The G220 is a good machine for a beginner. Plenty of places sell the makita http://www.autogeek.net/ma927po.html

Portsmouth is an hour and a half from here. There are plenty of detailers near you, request one on detailing world. Check his previous work and look at what kit he uses...

 

[hoolio]

And what do you think of them? I'm using sonus at the moment.

Not sure even i'm ready for something like the Makita yet and i'm not really a beginner, stick with the megs unit to start with, you can always sell it on for almost what you buy it for when you want to step up.

Edit; spelling

 

[Ajr]

They seem pretty good, obviously the pads are colour coded for their strength/hardness. I've got a load of sonus pads here. I hit my 1995 cherry red 106 with a sonus pad originally and it seemed to restore it pretty well, The bonnet is suffering though. not sure it's saveable!