First time doing a "real" detail
07-13-2009, 10:40 AM
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Although it was exterior only, it still took me 6 hours! It sure was fun though and the 6 hours just flew by. I couldn't have chose a better weekend to do it too, the weather was nice, the girl was out of town, I had the garage all to myself!
A quick thank you to Kaiten408 for all the help and answers to my questions, this guy really knows his detailing.
The products used consisted of pretty much all Meg's products with the exception of a small bottle of Pinnacle's sealant (came with the kit).
PC 7424XP
CCS Gray pad
CCS (2) White pad
CCS Blue pad
MF bonnet
Meg's car wash soap
Meg's Clay kit
Pinnacle sealant
Meg's Deep Crystal Polish
Meg's #26 Hi-Tech Yellow Wax
Blue tape
20 oz. Perier b/c detailing gets your tired and thirsty fast! haha.
My process:
1. Wash
2. Clay (man was it dirty!)
3. Wash/Dry
4. Tape off trims
5. Sealant
6. Polish
7. Wax
I started at 5pm and stopped at 930 at which point I only got up to step 5, polishing, and only completed half of the car. The next day I started up again at 10am and finished everything at 12 pm. The PC was intimidating at first, but after a few minutes, I found that it was super user friendly.
My finish is nothing near what some of the pros posted, but its definitely a start. I got ride of my dreaded water spots and swirls. The paint itself fees silky smooth now
I definitely learned quite a few things and would do a couple of things differently. I should have taped off my trims and rubbers better as I noticed that I got some polish/wax on them. Most importantly, I needed better lighting. I noticed that I was not getting all the polish off b/c I could not see them. Also, I take back anything bad I said about the MF towel used for drying, that thing is great. I think my process was wrong before, thats why it didn't work as well.
Product wise, I really like the Meg's stuff. I know that many suggest to go with Klass and Menzerna (sp?), but I couldn't wait for it in the mail and just went with what I've always used . The product that I will change is the polish, it was great but required that I applied a small section at a time which is really time consuming.
My camera is out of battery right now
so I'll post pics up in a bit.
A quick thank you to Kaiten408 for all the help and answers to my questions, this guy really knows his detailing.
The products used consisted of pretty much all Meg's products with the exception of a small bottle of Pinnacle's sealant (came with the kit).
PC 7424XP
CCS Gray pad
CCS (2) White pad
CCS Blue pad
MF bonnet
Meg's car wash soap
Meg's Clay kit
Pinnacle sealant
Meg's Deep Crystal Polish
Meg's #26 Hi-Tech Yellow Wax
Blue tape
20 oz. Perier b/c detailing gets your tired and thirsty fast! haha.
My process:
1. Wash
2. Clay (man was it dirty!)
3. Wash/Dry
4. Tape off trims
5. Sealant
6. Polish
7. Wax
I started at 5pm and stopped at 930 at which point I only got up to step 5, polishing, and only completed half of the car. The next day I started up again at 10am and finished everything at 12 pm. The PC was intimidating at first, but after a few minutes, I found that it was super user friendly.
My finish is nothing near what some of the pros posted, but its definitely a start. I got ride of my dreaded water spots and swirls. The paint itself fees silky smooth now
I definitely learned quite a few things and would do a couple of things differently. I should have taped off my trims and rubbers better as I noticed that I got some polish/wax on them. Most importantly, I needed better lighting. I noticed that I was not getting all the polish off b/c I could not see them. Also, I take back anything bad I said about the MF towel used for drying, that thing is great. I think my process was wrong before, thats why it didn't work as well.
Product wise, I really like the Meg's stuff. I know that many suggest to go with Klass and Menzerna (sp?), but I couldn't wait for it in the mail and just went with what I've always used
. The product that I will change is the polish, it was great but required that I applied a small section at a time which is really time consuming. My camera is out of battery right now
so I'll post pics up in a bit.
07-13-2009, 11:21 AM
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My Ride: I have an 05 545i. It's a manual with a few options. This is my first BMW but I don't know how I'll ever be able to switch to something else.
Good to hear that everything went well George!
I don't know if it's a typo, but I hope you didn't put the sealant on THEN polish because that would remove the sealant
We need pics!
I don't know if it's a typo, but I hope you didn't put the sealant on THEN polish because that would remove the sealant
We need pics!
07-13-2009, 11:37 AM
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Originally Posted by kaiten408' post='941047' date='Jul 13 2009, 12:21 PM
Good to hear that everything went well George!
I don't know if it's a typo, but I hope you didn't put the sealant on THEN polish because that would remove the sealant
We need pics!
I don't know if it's a typo, but I hope you didn't put the sealant on THEN polish because that would remove the sealant
We need pics!
I'll chalk this one up for experience I guess. Luckily it was only a 2oz bottle and I only covered half of the car (if even that) haha. No sweat I guess, it doesn't do any damage right?
07-13-2009, 11:46 AM
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My Ride: Mach5 05' 530i Black Sapphire Metallic w/Auburn Leather Seats, Heated Front/Rear Seats, Cold Weather Pkg, Premium Pkg, Sports Pkg, Xenon Headlights, NAV, Mud Flaps, 20" 166 Style Rims
Model Year: 2005
Engine: N54
Originally Posted by BulldogE60' post='941062' date='Jul 13 2009, 03:37 PM
Hmmm no typo.... I'll chalk this one up for experience I guess. Luckily it was only a 2oz bottle and I only covered half of the car (if even that) haha. No sweat I guess, it doesn't do any damage right?
I'll chalk this one up for experience I guess. Luckily it was only a 2oz bottle and I only covered half of the car (if even that) haha. No sweat I guess, it doesn't do any damage right?
Neophyte! 
07-13-2009, 11:50 AM
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Originally Posted by tprenaldo' post='941069' date='Jul 13 2009, 12:46 PM
Neophyte!
07-13-2009, 11:53 AM
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My Ride: 2008 550I LOADED, all options except HUD and NV
Eh, as long as the paint wasn't burned don't worry about noob mistakes. The guys on here that are good at detailing have been doing it a while, you'll get the hang of it. How much was the kit, may I ask? And get some pics of the job done!!!
07-13-2009, 11:57 AM
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Originally Posted by pjinca' post='941081' date='Jul 13 2009, 12:53 PM
Eh, as long as the paint wasn't burned don't worry about noob mistakes. The guys on here that are good at detailing have been doing it a while, you'll get the hang of it. How much was the kit, may I ask? And get some pics of the job done!!!
07-13-2009, 05:53 PM
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My Ride: I have an 05 545i. It's a manual with a few options. This is my first BMW but I don't know how I'll ever be able to switch to something else.
No harm, no foul. @ the Neophyte reply, that's what we called some pledges in my fraternity
@ the Neophyte reply, that's what we called some pledges in my fraternity
