Detailing advice

[JKD]

Hey Nick! I was wondering if you could give me a some detailing advice/instructions. I was given a Porter Cable for an early Christmas present and would like to know your opinion how to properly use it.

I was watching an auction last night on TV and a Meguiars segment came on talking about clay baring and polishing. They started with a clay bar and mentioned keeping the surface extra wet while doing so, but they were using a detail spray instead of water? Is this correct? Seems to me it would take a couple of bottles of spray to do a whole car.

Next was polishing and they used a "cleaner wax" but no mention of which pad to use or speed or anything. It was also mentioned the hand polisher is only to apply wax but not to remove it?

As you can tell, I'm a real newbie to this, but I really love to clean and detail my cars. I want to try it out on the daily first of course if I'm gonna screw it up.

Any help or advice from anyone would be greatly appreciated. :cool:

[Pro88LX]

steve, its pretty hard to fuck a car up with a porter cable from what i have heard.

[Nick Chapman]

Where are you located?

[Nick Chapman]

I don't know where you're located. But if you're local, and can come by my house, it would be sooooooo much easier to show you how to use it, than to try and teach you through the net. There are so many tricks to make your paint come out correctly. Almost impossible to do through a website.

[JKD]

steve, its pretty hard to fuck a car up with a porter cable from what i have heard.


Yeah, but you know me Chris. I'm OCD about cleaning and detailing. I've always wanted to learn how to do it the right way at a professional level. If Nick wasn't so far from me, I would have taken his assistant position for free just to learn how to do it. :cool:

[Nick Chapman]

Yeah, but you know me Chris. I'm OCD about cleaning and detailing. I've always wanted to learn how to do it the right way at a professional level. If Nick wasn't so far from me, I would have taken his assistant position for free just to learn how to do it. :cool:


Can you come spend a few hours at my place?

[JKD]

Can you come spend a few hours at my place?


Returned your PM's sir :cool:

[BadCompany V.P WS6]

They started with a clay bar and mentioned keeping the surface extra wet while doing so, but they were using a detail spray instead of water? Is this correct? Seems to me it would take a couple of bottles of spray to do a whole car.

You can use a detail spray or water with 2 or 3 drops of car wash soap inside and shake it up.

DO NOT just use water.

And yes, keep it extra wet like some pink slant eye and let the clay bar do the work it self. :D

[JKD]

You can use a detail spray or water with 2 or 3 drops of car wash soap inside and shake it up.

DO NOT just use water.

And yes, keep it extra wet like some pink slant eye and let the clay bar do the work it self. :D


So some extra soapy water will work instead of using all the detail spray up?

[Nick Chapman]

So some extra soapy water will work instead of using all the detail spray up?


Yes you can. All you're using it for is lubrication. But I'd use a little more than just a couple of drops. I kinda over do things though :D