Team-BHP - A superb Car cleaning, polishing & detailing guide

Today managed to get on with my 1st proper detailing session on the Duke, after struggling to acquire the products from Meguiars, plus the various brushes and towels. Finally, Mr. Nirmal came through with all the products that I needed.

Stuff that I acquired :-
1. Meguiars Clay bar kit
2. Meguiars Gold Class Foam pads
3. Meguiars All Purpose Cleaner
4. Meguiars Hyper Dresser
5. Wolfgang Deep Gloss Sealant
6. Motomax 2k rubbing compound.
7. Iso Propyl Alcohol
8. Paintbrush
9. Bottle brush
10. Cloth's brush
11. Jopasu Magic wipe
12. 3m mf cloths
13. Formula 1 car wash and wax
14. Nevr Dull wadding metal polish

So here's how I got the bike cleaned and detailed today:-

Hose down the bike.
Clean with car shampoo
Rinse
Apply APC to nooks and crannies along with the brushes, to remove the accumulated dirt and grime.
Rinse.
Dry with Jopasu Magic wipe mf towels.
Clay + Lube till the surface became slick.
Dry again with the mf towel
Compound with Motomax 2k
Buff off once it hazes.
IPA wipedown - thought of doing this initially, but completely forgot about it in the heat of the moment.
In hindsight, it was good to leave out the IPA, since being a beginner, I could've easily marred the finish due to improper dilutions.
Apply Wolfgang Deep Gloss Paint sealant using the Megs applicator pad. Wait for half an hour before removing the product.
Meanwhile, Apply Hyperdresser to plastics and rubber. I used it in 1:4 dilution to obtain a satin finish.
Nevr-Dull wadding polish on the copper, chrome and brass parts - exhaust header pipes and on the end can.
Buff it off.
Now after 35 minutes, the paint sealant had hazed. Checked the hazing with the swipe test as described by Mike Phillips. Once satisfied with the result, buffed off the product.
End result.

Reflections

HyperDressed 1:4 (HD:water)

Meguiar's smooth surface clay bar

Nevr Dull

Finished product

Special thanks to Mr. Nirmal aka nirmaljusdoit for delivering the products and guiding with the entire process and Shashank aka shashank.nk for answering all my questions and encouraging me to finish my first session.

So, what do you guys think?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Parthasarathig (Post 3036285)

Which is better among the above two - Armor All tyre cleaner or STP?

Can someone tell me if this Eagle One Nevr Dull is good for polishing exhaust pipes?
Also is this available in Bangalore?

Thanks.

I used Mother's Aluminium Polish to clean my Honda's exhaust and the exhaust manifold cover. Worked extremely well. The whole exhaust was almost black initially but with vigorous rubbing with an old 'banian', the original look was restored. I tried using rubbing compounds/chrome metal polish but nothing worked until I tried this.

http://www.carsingh.com/car-accessor...um-polish-5100

Quote:

Originally Posted by d_himan (Post 3040987)

I used Mother's Aluminium Polish to clean my Honda's exhaust and the exhaust manifold cover.

Oh yes I thought of ordering this earlier. Had seen it on ebay but does this work on chrome and brass?

I had also checked out other metal polishes till I came across Nevr Dull. Seems like its been there since WWII till eagle one bought it. The good thing about it is, only a small amount of wadding is required. I used a very small amount for my exhaust pipes and end cans.

The bad thing is if the surface is not clean, it will require a lot of elbow grease and that can be tedious. To avoid this ensure you have a clean surface or atleast give it a thorough clean and then move on to the polish. The cotton wadding removes much grime. And this requires buffing off too.

Any place I can get Brasso for cheap? :D

Quote:

Originally Posted by Parthasarathig (Post 3040816)

Today managed to get on with my 1st proper detailing session on the Duke, after struggling to acquire the products from Meguiars, plus the various brushes and towels. Finally, Mr. Nirmal came through with all the products that I needed.

Special thanks to Mr. Nirmal aka nirmaljusdoit for delivering the products and guiding with the entire process and Shashank aka shashank.nk for answering all my questions and encouraging me to finish my first session.

So, what do you guys think?

Thats one hot looking duke,especially the last pic!
Where did you purchase the all purpose cleaner? If you dont mind can you share the cost and the quantity?

Note from the Team-BHP Support Team: Please avoid quoting an entire large post. It inconveniences our small screen & mobile readers.

Quote:

Originally Posted by sagarpadaki (Post 3041030)

Thats one hot looking duke,especially the last pic!
Where did you purchase the all purpose cleaner? If you dont mind can you share the cost and the quantity?

Thanks. Theres lots of places to improve on that though.

I got the Megs products from Mr. Nirmal aka nirmaljusdoit. Got 1litre of it and that itself will last a long time. The prices are same as listed on the meguiars website. :) Nirmal has Meguiars all the stuff plus other items like ONR, professional sealants compounds etc.

Some more pictures in the sun. Almost 24 hours after curing of the sealant. Im happy with the overall improvement. Now it looks better than it was out of the showroom. I can even see the clouds, myself on the tank while riding. Earlier all these were not so clear.

Now Im thinking how to maintain this finish for atleast a month. Typically in Bangalore's conditions how long would a sealant last? Also how does one figure out when the sealant's protection has decreased? Should I also give a second coat?

@sushrutha I followed the same procedure almost. Forgot some in the heat of the moment. What polish could I use? How good is Meguiars?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Parthasarathig (Post 3041043)

Hi

I need Megs clay bar kit. I am not in the metros so its quite difficult for me to procure the high end products. Does Mr. Nirmal supply the Megs products to the outstation customers as well? If yes, then please share the contact details.

Also, I couldnt find Megs clay bar kit on their India website. If you dont mind, please share the price as well

Regards

Quote:

Originally Posted by HighOctane (Post 3043169)

BB Impex used to source BFWD. Please contact sanjay@bringingbest.com. Jopasu Magic wipes are available at Reliance Autozones and also through online.

I read on this thread only that BB Impex is no longer supplying BFWD and its missing from their website also. So i guess that option is gone now. I will anyway be dropping a mail to Sanjay, just in case they have old stock! lol:

And for Jopasu, we dont have Autozone here. Small town. Any idea where could i find them online?

Thanks

Used my SKIL pressure washer for a couple of times (today and a week before) - and it is a great tool to drastically cut down wash time / rigor, and also to clean the underbody / wheels better. Generates very good pressure from the regular municipal water supply. Exactly the stuff I needed to wash and clean 3 cars at home.

I am yet to use the Meguiar's DA power system as I do not have a power supply in my garage or have not found a good quality long extension cable. That has to wait for some more time.

Regarding bbimpex:

I had mailed Sanjay on the availability and price of a a few things, and he provided me with the url of their new website - which is better designed and I believe supports ecommerce.

http://bringingbest.in/

Quote:

Originally Posted by torque18 (Post 3043206)

Snapdeal.com

Follow this link for Jopasu.

And I've pm'ed you Mr. Nirmal's details.