25th May 2010, 22:34
| #2371 |
| Senior - BHPian  Join Date: May 2009 Location: New Delhi
Posts: 1,271
Thanked: 229 Times
| Once a month or once every 2 months max!! ( actually I never let it get that dirty) and I never let anyone but pros touch my car  |
|
| |
|
26th May 2010, 00:20
| #2372 | |
| BHPian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Bangalore
Posts: 846
Thanked: 710 Times
| Quote:
Rajesh - your observations are entirely true  The overhead pic was taken after a 300 km drive & what you see is a light film of dust. When we got the car it did have a lot of swirls & the surface was really rough with bird droppings & mud, etc. Don't know how the previous owner was maintaining it (2007 model done 30 K kms) After a couple of washes, first waxed at home with 3M wax & then washed with Sonax shampoo & NXt wax. The swirls have reduced a lot with the NXT & Im researching what next do i do to get a show car finish. I was thinking of - washing, claying, polishing,paint cleaning & then waxing. Will be going in for Meguiars products initially to maintain uniformity from a particular brand.I prefer the DIY route as im yet to find a professional detailing center here in B'lore & the satisfaction of doing it myself. Am open to detailing suggestions from yourself & other Tbhpians ! | |
|
|
|
26th May 2010, 00:55
| #2373 |
| Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2009 Location: New Delhi
Posts: 1,271
Thanked: 229 Times
| |
|
|
|
26th May 2010, 10:05
| #2374 | |
| BANNED Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Mumbai
Posts: 88
Thanked: 35 Times
| Quote:
In your process you forgot something. After polishing wipe it down with a degreaser. It will remove any polishing material hiding the swirls. Sohail is right you could remove the swirls by hand, but I prefer using a DA polisher. It reduces the elbow grease. You beamer has hard paint unlike soft Japanese paint. So the swirls will be a little harder to remove with the 30K misuse. Once you examine the final results after polishing use a bright light like halogen at an angle of 30 deg to examine the results. I use a battery operated halogen light which immediately shows up any defects. Once you have a finish free from swirls and holograms then proceed with the waxing. Put 2 thin layers. The frequency would depend on climate, and the parking conditions of your beamer. | |
|
|
|
26th May 2010, 10:49
| #2375 |
| Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2009 Location: New Delhi
Posts: 1,271
Thanked: 229 Times
| |
|
|
|
26th May 2010, 17:11
| #2376 |
| BHPian  | |
|
|
|
26th May 2010, 17:27
| #2377 | |
| BANNED Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Mumbai
Posts: 88
Thanked: 35 Times
| Quote:
I use a Milwaukee DA polisher. It is very heavy duty. I have been using it since the last 3 years without any maintainence problems. By the way, has any one deduced why dust collects on a moving car on its flat surfaces and less on the sides. As you noticed on the photographs. It is like on a room fan though it rotates constantly the dust still sticks on. Some feel it is static, but then there would be static on the sides of the car also. My thinking is the flat surfaces are more hotter than the sides. So it has to do with heat too. | |
|
|
|
27th May 2010, 03:45
| #2378 |
| Senior - BHPian  Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: New Delhi
Posts: 1,256
Thanked: 362 Times
| |
|
|
|
27th May 2010, 09:46
| #2379 |
| BHPian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Bangalore
Posts: 846
Thanked: 710 Times
| Sohail - Thanks for the video, very informative ! Rajesh - Thanks for the tip ! Can you give us more details on the degreaser & how to go about applying & removing it ? Any recommended brands ? Btw, how about gravity being the factor why dust sticks on horizontal surfaces more than vertical surfaces ? Another example which comes to my mind is a TV. Theres always more dust on the top than the screen Guys, ive shortlisted the following Megs products after some research, please suggest if any additions are required : G1016 Smooth surface clay kit A3016 Deep crystal System paint cleaner A2116 Deep crystal System polish G17216 Ultimate compound G17616 Swirl X G12718 Nxt generation tech wax 2.0 G14422 Ultimate quik detailer X2020 Supreme shine microfiber towel - 3 pack X3070 Foam applicator pads |
|
|
|
27th May 2010, 10:52
| #2380 | |
| BANNED Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Mumbai
Posts: 88
Thanked: 35 Times
| Quote:
If it was gravity, then when you car is going at above 50 km/hr the dust should have flown off. There was a very good comment by a lady who was telling me that her old car which was a Maruti 800 bought in 1983 had less dust on the flat services while all the other cars parked in the same parking area were filled with dust. She asked me why was this? She was right. I saw the whole parking lot of 40 cars in the morning at 7 am. She was based in Chandigarh. Her oldest car was the cleanest while her new Santro was as dirty as the others parked beside them. Her old car basically was painted with NC paint while all the other cars were with clear coats. So it had to do with heat and the clear coats which attract the dust. The NC paints were without clear in the earlier days. Another observation of this is you can see that many cars the bonnet is dirty but the side fender which bends over to meeting the bonnet is less dustier. Both the bonnet and part of the fender which are flat have different degree of dust accumulation. So flat surfaces and heat is what could be the factor. The side fender does not get so hot as the bonnet has the engine to heat it up. The side fender has air (which is a bad conductor of heat) between both the sides of the engine chassis and the exterior surface. It is worth analyzing this phenomena as everyone would want a finish which attracts less dust but is as glossy as ever. | |
|
|
|
27th May 2010, 15:02
| #2381 |
| BHPian Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Bangalore
Posts: 122
Thanked: 20 Times
| |
|
|
| |
|
27th May 2010, 15:31
| #2382 | |
| BHPian  Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Chennai
Posts: 585
Thanked: 24 Times
| Its called a squeegee. You can get cheap ones used in restaurants or good brands like Oxo. Oxo is available in Lifestyle, but is quite expensive. If you can get it from Amazon.com, it should be $5-$10. Quote:
| |
|
|
|
27th May 2010, 15:40
| #2383 | |
| BHPian Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Chennai
Posts: 585
Thanked: 24 Times
| Nice video. That presenter had a prosthetic leg. How cool is that !!! Quote:
| |
|
|
|
27th May 2010, 15:48
| #2384 | |
| BHPian  Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Calcutta
Posts: 192
Thanked: 10 Times
| Quote:
Amazon.com: Glass Master Pro: Automotive if you can get hold of it somehow. Rgds | |
|
|
|
27th May 2010, 18:35
| #2385 | |
| Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2009 Location: New Delhi
Posts: 1,271
Thanked: 229 Times
| Quote:
do get more than one UQDs as one tends to use it quite frequently(as it does give awesome results on a properly detailed paint) Do check out their waxes(they have a wide selection of polishes/sealants etc.) - Car Wax, paint Sealants,Car Waxes, Show Car Wax, Best Car Wax, Carnauba Car wax, P21s Car wax, Pinnacle Souveran Wax, Meguiars car wax, Mothers | |
|
|
 |