Valeting / Detailing / two bucket wronguns

[beko1987]

I have a snow foam attachment,for my Karcher washer.The amount of wash shampoo that is used is somthing else so i have stopped using it.

I have an autobrite foam gun and don't find it too bad. Half the bottle will do a car and there's some left over! I tried some foam shampoo once and it was nice, but felt a bit pointless when I also had 2 buckets on the go, so stick to just using it in the pre wash stages

[beko1987]

Bump so I can find it later!

[Matt]

Just looking into G101 because I've never had it before and check this out:
 
3 Autosmart branded spray bottles for £4.80 per bottle

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/172500952163
 
OR

5 of near exact same bottles, minus branding for £2.19 per bottle.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/252468588986

The bottles look a slighty different shape but both are 750ml and chemical resistant, heads look exactly the same. Daft.

 

I've since found the same again even cheaper at £1.99 per bottle

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/172410792980

 

Edit: Just spotted that the Autosmart one claims to be chemical resistant while the cheaper ones only say chemical resistant head. Maybe not such a bargain in the long run after all.

[Magnificent Rustbucket]

I'm not sure I would class myself as a detailer, but I look after my car and keep it clean. I don't have any special techniques though - only that I have never left it long enough to get dirty. It did rust a bit though.

 

 

 

Obligatory reflection shots!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[junkyarddog]

Last car I washed I used a sweeping brush and washing up liquid.

 

Am I doing it wrong?

 

[Parky]

I do enjoy that VXR thread. Wonder if his house is as clean as his car? He must take ages washing up!

[Matt]

Nice work on that engine bay, looks mint. What did you use on the hoses and stuff?

[Hendry]

This has reminded me there was a guy on Astra Owners Network who clayed his bath!! 😂😂😂

[twosmoke300]

I'm guessing Mr Vxr was single with no children ?

[scruff]

That is beautiful 

[bub2006]

I want to know how you can wash it no more than 3 days apart and 5 layers of wax yet he had it checked for part chop with by his own admission 4 bald tyres and didn't collect new car till 4 months later. Did he leave old car there and go Spanish for that time or did he drive it round on shot rubber? Obviously he would not have put new tyres on else he would have done that before he had part ex valuation. Sorry for derail

[beko1987]

That is a fine job!

 

I'm going to take a punt on those cheapo bottles! I need some anyway, they might be ok! We shall see how quickly Tardis kills one... Just having a rolly and have I got a big post to make, I've just had all my kit out (ooer)

[beko1987]

I've had a point with him, he was alright, bit up himself though, although he did know alot! Kept trying to talk to someone called davekg who used to (probably still does) get loads of test stuff in. Dave was quite drunk iirc, we all stayed in the same hotel for the first waxstock

[fordperv]

I absolutely love a clean car and it upsets me when my car doesnt look its best, i dont do anything special except take my time, it gets a nice wash, dried, address any marks that inconsiderate people have left by scuffing coats, bags etc on it in car parks, then give it a hand polish with farecla wax top i have also been known to polish it with t cut colour fast as well, i like the simoniz hard wax as well, i dress tyres and bumper splitter with meguires endurance tyre gel, the black trims with autoglym trim gel as and when required, i also polish my light lenses with wax top from time to time

 

This was sundays effort ready for monday, probably only 4 hours in total

 

[Guest Breadvan72]

I am going to try selling the Vauxhall dude a bucket of Dihydrogen Monoxide for 400 quid.

[beko1987]

So, as you might have noticed, I really want to get back into this whole car washing lark. Although I'll be lucky if I get a few weekends this year to do it, our cars deserve a good clean (having probably never had one in their life!)

 

To spur me on, and so I can take stock and work out what I need to buy, I got all the stuff I could find out earlier! Let's have a look...

 

First up:

 

 

One of my show plates! Sadly it's the bent one, it lived on the parcel shelf of the puma for a few years, and the sun made it conform to the shape. No idea where the other one is!#

My detailing world t-shirt, sadly only an XL so it doesn't really fit now

My Farcela G3 shirt! I won that, and a pot of the paste wax (which I do have some left of somewhere). I had to do this review, amazingly the pictures still work! - http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=270387 This also shows how fucking sexy the Meriva used to look! Tabact - you know what you need to do!

 

Wardrobe done, I went into the porch and got everything I could find

 

 

I thought I would break this down into the stages, mainly so I can work out what products I'm missing...

 

1 - Pre-wash

 

 

Fuck all at the moment! This is my pressure washer. This is the second one actually, the first one died a few years ago due to frost, so I bought this unit only from ebay for £25 and used my old hose. I have a proper foam gun for it somewhere (which needs stripping and cleaning). I used to have a lovely angle adapter but it broke, and when I looked the other day their a frigging fortune now. Found a 90 degree adapter though for under the arches, and I've seen angled lances that I might indulge on.

 

No snowfoam either, some on order though.

 

 

This is my detailing box. Many boxes are like it but this one is mine.

 

 

2 - Brushes

 

My brushes are an embarrasment! Mainly because I've used a fair few for hoovers so much they've worn down and been binned. This is what I'm left with! More are on order, some cheap, some expensive. Must of the ones pictured will become engine bay/wheel brushes.

 

3 - Wheels

 

 

This is not too bad. Lots of bilberry red, which is ace. Some bilberry blue, which I didn't find too ace, might have to re-visit it. Some Bilt Hamber autowheel which is very nice, I used that on the Zafira when I did that the other month. And a small dribble of IronX, probably enough for 4 wheels. I have some Autosmart Korrosol to buy and try. May look into a big wheel brush for the backs, dunno yet.

 

4 - Decontamination

Another big fat no here. I have nothing. No clay, no tar remover. Soon to be rectified.

 

5 - Wash

 

Not too bad. Dodo Juice Born to be Mild, which is fucking excellent both on filthy and waxed cars. Must buy some more. The Autoglym and Farcela stuff is not bad either, but not as slick. Will use them all up, but more BTBM is needed soon!

 

6 - Drying

Not pictured, but I do have some drying towels, not sure what state they are in, and I also have a drying machine! I got a fucked up Hoover Portapower from the car boot last year, and nearly binned it, but it has a blower port on the back, and after it's been switched on for 10 minutes, the air goes warm, so win there!

 

7 - Polishing

Mixed here. I've always had good results with Ultra Deep Shine and SRP, and the Farcela stuff isn't half bad either. Between them their OK, takes a while by hand though! All bottles have enough in to be OK for a while yet

 

 

8 - Finishing

Lots to choose from here! I'll start with what I never liked, which is Autoglym Extra Gloss Protection. Always thought it did fuck all. Second to that is the Lime Prime. Pointless tbh, no abrasive action, it literally just cleans, which the paintwork always should be by this stage!

 

However, I was fucking thrilled to find a 3/4 full bottle of Blacklight, it's the tits, can't wait to rub it all over the gooner with a hardon! Less great is the little bit of black hole, need some of that too. The black hole is easier to apply than blacklight, and does cover swirls a bit better, but take the time to get rid of the swirls, and blacklight wins! Pondering getting a bottle of Hybrid V7 too if they still sell it, that was always yummy http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=212632

 

 

9 - Trim

 

Not bad here! The bottle labels are fucked, but I have:

 

Some Astonish trim cleaner. This was a quid in QD many years ago, and is lovely! Cleans without leaving anything behind, I used to use it on my stepdads zafiras, since they were always brand new company cars, plus I hate dashboard products. Our zafira will get it soon.

 

Poorboys world trim restorer. This is bloody good, gets rid of polish splatter, and really cleans exterior plastics. Looks ok finish wise too.

 

Poorboys world trim gel - This looks the tits when applied and buffed off, but does run when it rains, so I don't really use it much

 

Autoglym Tyre dressing spray, which is very good!

 

 

10 - Sealant/wax

Not too bad here:

Nattys Blue Paste Wax - My go to wax, it's fucking ace. Still got half a pot, with a well saturated sponge applicator inside which will probably do half a car without me having to dip it.

Chemical Guys Butter Wet Wax - Only used this once or twice, it looks lovely but doesn't bead too well. One day I might try it and then finish with nattys.

Gtechniq spray carnuba wax - never got on with this tbh. The spray nozzle is a bit shite

Some dodo juice panel pots! Used to love these, especially the Hard Candy. Sadly most are used up now, probably enough between them for 1 car.

Some Hubi Detail stuff I won which I have never really used.

 

Really want to try some new wax, no idea what's out there now. Nano sealents were coming in as I stopped caring about car cleaning, 6 month protection etc. Might be something to look into, but I fucking love waxing a car. The whole applying it, then buffing it off and watching the glass like paint come through underneath...

 

 

I have some nattys wheel wax too, but I think it's gone iffy as it's quite liquidy. Also never found it that great, better results from using nattys blue on wheels...

 

 

11 - Leather

I knew I had this somewhere! Gnomeotoole used to have an S40 t4 with leather interior, and bought this, then gave it to me when he got rid of the volvo! Very glad I've found this, because I really need it! My mum has the bottle of leather cleaner spray too, so double win there! I can attack the gooner's seats now over a few lunchtimes.

 

 

12 - Glass

Mixed bag here

 

Carlack glass whatever - always hated it

RainX repellant - hated it even more, no matter what I did it always smeared in an un-buffable way. Also smells of whisky, and I fucking hate whiskey, the smell makes me heave.

Gtechniq G4 Glass polish - not bad, but lacks bite

(not pictured as it's actually in the Xantia still) Autoglym glass polish - almost fucking perfect!

Zaino clear view. A twat to use, as it's quite pasty and goes dry and powdery as it goes on but my god does it clean glass! I always used to use this on a first timer, then after that AG would do the job. The zaino removes everything, it wouldnt surprise me if it fixed the gooner's headlights, although I would go through alot of it.

 

Don't have any glass sealent, must get some and try it.

 

 

And there we go! Everything I have left. I am buying alot of stuff tomorrow, I call it an investment, you guys and Amy will probably call it fucking stupid, but screw you all! I'll post that all up when it comes.

 

And now to go post all that up on detailing world!

 

 

[Kiltox]

Really must dig out all of my cleaning gear. Some of it is properly wank though

 

Autoglym fast glass is the only glass cleaner anyone ever needs btw

[beko1987]

Damn, another thing to add! Good old fastglass. But one needs to get the glass to a certain standard first...

[Alusilber]

Funnily enough, I once met a guy years ago who spent a fortune on "detailing" products for his Disastra VXR, which wasn't quite fast enough for him so he had it chipped to about 300bhp or thereabouts. Don't think it would be the same guy though...

[oldcars]

I absolutely love a clean car and it upsets me when my car doesnt look its best, i dont do anything special except take my time, it gets a nice wash, dried, address any marks that inconsiderate people have left by scuffing coats, bags etc on it in car parks, then give it a hand polish with farecla wax top i have also been known to polish it with t cut colour fast as well, i like the simoniz hard wax as well, i dress tyres and bumper splitter with meguires endurance tyre gel, the black trims with autoglym trim gel as and when required, i also polish my light lenses with wax top from time to time

 

This was sundays effort ready for monday, probably only 4 hours in total

 

Stunning car indeed. Love it.

[Rusty_Rocket]

That Astra thread is utterly ridic. It's an everyday-use road car, not a priceless Bugatti that sits in a museum!

 

I must confess however, I do enjoy cleaning my cars in the summer. I actually find it really therapeutic, hours to myself in the fresh air, while Mrs Rusty cooks a Sunday roast indoors, bliss!!

It's a shame that none of my cars have paintwork worth 'detailing' though. My choices are not what polish to use, but whether to peel off any more lacquer or not?! 

[oldcars]

Yep totally bald, that why i went to all the trouble of cleaning the arches and stuff...........................

[Split_Pin]

I don't tend to go too daft with things. I don't give a monkeys about a few swirl marks on the paint but it has to be clean, have good depth of colour and shiny. All I use is autoglym super resin polish, meguairs wax, detailing spray, meguairs tyre gel and meguairs black bumpers treatment. I also use Gliptone liquid leather in the Astra Seats. Surprisingly, turtle wax foam with a stiff brush works great on stained seats. It made a great job of the Megane's which were mockit when I bought it. I also like arches and underneath to be clean. Worked very well on the Astra for the last 12 years so I'll continue with that.

[oldcars]

Mockit is a word we need to see more of on here 

[rainagain]

I was watching this vid by chrisfix

 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CFXfSBR5Q9w

 

And I want to give the whole two buckets with grid guard and clay a gG.

 

Could someone recommend where's the cheapest place to get all the kit.

 

I saw this clay bar on eBay seems good value

 

https://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/382109631664

[DVee8]

I got my clay bar kit from here.

 

http://www.juicydetailing.co.uk/claying-decontamination/clay-kits.html

 

My kit,I have used it twice with good effects.

 

http://www.juicydetailing.co.uk/claying-decontamination/clay-kits/basics-of-bling-clay-kit.html

[Grundig]

I'll just leave this here -

 

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=81391

 

 

[runs away]

 

 

I do enjoy that VXR thread. Wonder if his house is as clean as his car? He must take ages washing up!

 

The barry boys skit on that is v funny too

 

http://www.barryboys.co.uk/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=25953

[Timewaster]

I see Boatofukkit has killed that infamous thread.

 

Lols at the Barry boys parka.

[cort1977]

Came over a bit two bucket wrong 'un yesterday and washed the minivan with comedy enormous Honda plastic headlights.

 

I 'detailed' the paint with this stuff http://www.meguiars.com/en/automotive/products/g17216-ultimate-compound/ Meguiars ultimate compound.   Things seem to have moved on since the days of T-cutting sierras, this stuff cuts through all the shit on neglected paint and buffs off easily.  

 

I am posting it here though because it makes cloudy plastic headlights come up like new in about two minutes.   I have tried those polishing kits with 3000 grit pads for a drill that take forever and make a massive mess, in comparison this is much easier so thoroughly recommended.

 

For added mingebagness I got it for free in a big box of stuff a neighbour was throwing out after the hurricane and floods so thanks Harvey. #HoustonStrong [#SurvivorsGuilt] 

[FakeConcern]

I may try that Mr Cort1977 as the lights on my daughter's Clio need buffing pretty regularly (could even try it on the paint!).

 

I have a 2 bucket question, does anyone know of a good tyre black product that lasts longer than overnight? I have black wheels on the C4 VTS and black wheels with brown tyres isn't a good look!