I'll be putting up pics of my wash/detail/polish on my IP '08 this weekend. Mid to high 70's, low humidity, perfect weather to NOT be playing golf and detailing my car instead!
Seriously though, do I want to wipe down with 1:1 water/alcohol between every polish?
And for an '07 vehicle that has never had a polish, do I want to go right to an orange pad/ medium cut polish and then go to finish or do I want to go green pad/ light cut THEN orange pad/med cut?

 

Good deal, looking forward to hearing about your results.

Here's my take on your situation. Infiniti's have relatively soft paint, I'd start with the less aggressive approach with the green pad / light cut and see what results that's giving you. Just do a small 2' x 2' section and assess your paint. You may want to do an alcohol wipe down with that to reveal the true finish. If you need more aggressive, bump up to the orange pad.

You don't have to do the alcohol wipe down after each polishing step, but it would be good to do after all the polishing is done. The only part I'd do it after each step is initially when you're assess your results on a small area before you tackle the entire car.

Let me know if there's anything else I can help with. Looking forward to seeing your results!

George

 

I have a quick question on polishing, if I go through the entire car with a orange 6.5" pad with Menzerna SIP would there be a problem going over some of the spots with the deeper scratches with an orange 4" pad after. I get a littte nervous of how deep I end up cutting.

Also for you detailers what do you tell your customers for when they should come back to re-apply wax/sealant. If im giving them a coat of sealant then leaving it til the next day then a coat of wax over the sealant.

 

How do detailers deal with car odors? Specifically, I had a cat spray somewhere on my car where it made it into the AC system. I've been spraying febreeze, enyme-based pet odor destroying agents, lysol, etc., into the various AC intakes, but I can't quite get the smell out - it seems to be especially stuck in the recirculating system, and not really in the fresh air system. What gives? Any ideas?

 

Regarding the polishing, that's very common to switch up to a smaller pad for spot treating the deeper imperfections. It helps you narrow your focus and increase the cutting power with an orbital buffer. SIP / orange combo isn't a combo you'd need to worry about too much. After you complete a polishing session with it, chances are if you maintain your vehicle properly, you can get away with a finishing polish next time around.

General rule of thumb with sealants and waxes, reapply sealants every 3 or 4 months, reapply waxes once a month. Obviously each product varies, and it also depends on how the car is maintained, miles driven, how it's stored, etc. If you follow those reapplication time frames, your vehicle should always be protected.

Check out something like an Odor Bomb or Einszett Klima-Cleaner. They are designed to recirculate through your AC system and kill odor causing bacteria.

There are professional fogging machines designed to eliminate smells, but you end up spending a few hundred dollars on the unit and supplies.

Let me know if there's anything else I can help with.

George

 

Thanks for the advice.

 

Hi George,
First post here. I am getting ready to do my first full detail on my fairly new 09 G37x this weekend. I see where a lot of folks on this site appear to be topping off FMJ with Poorboy's Natty Blue. I wanted to try Pinnacle Souveran Carnauba Paste Wax instead. Is this a good choice and if so do you have any tips for doing the job. Thanks in advance for your help.

 

Pinnacle Souveran never ceases to amaze me. It looks stunning on darker colored vehicles and is very easy to work with. The downside most people see with Souveran is the price and durability. You only get a few weeks of protection out of the wax, but since it's easy to apply and the gloss and depth you achieve from it, it's not a big deal to apply another coat every couple washes.

I don't think you'll be disappointed one bit with that combo. Let me know what you think when you get a chance to use everything.

Enjoy,

George

 

Thanks George. Unfortunately it rained all day today and I never got a chance to get started. Will now have to wait until next week to do this but I will let you know how it all turns out.

 

Sounds good, looking forward to it.

 

Great thread!

Im a semi-noob to detailing. I wash my car every other week and like to keep it clean, but I have always just bought stuff from autozone or advance auto.

My past routine has been a turtle wax car wash, I use the 2 bucket technique, dry with microfiber towels. For any small scratches or swirl marks, I use Meguiars ScratchX. It gets most of the small stuff out. Then I use a cheap Eagle 1 spray on wax.

The car usually looks pretty good and it doesnt take much time, simple and cheap.

However, now Im looking to "upgrade" my routine. The eagle1 wax usually only lasts a month and Im noticing some swirl marks on the car which the scratchX isnt getting rid of. I have a 2009 Black Obsidian and I know black cars tend to show swirl marks more, so I want to upgrade my routine.

Ideally, I would like to put a sealant on the paint every season and be able to do a simple wash, dry, and then spray wax on it every time I wash it to keep it nice and clean.

I got the car in May of 09 and Im debating getting a PC and some polish to remove the swirl marks. Also, is there any benefit to changing soaps? Do different soaps remove more material bonded to a car? (So that claying isnt needed as frequently)

Would you recommend a setup that is pretty user friendly and not very time consuming.

Im looking for a good soap to use in the wash phase if the turtle wax isnt great and then polishes which can remove the swirl marks and then a sealant to use once a season and a spray on wax to use after each wash.

I was debating on getting a PC but didnt know if it was necessary or not.

Would the Poorboys SSR1 would be a step up over the scratchX, or would I need to get the SSR2?

Im also debating between the FMJ or Jetseal. They seem like they are pretty comparable, does either one provide longer durability and is either one easier to put on? Are there different spray on waxes that bond better to FMJ or Jetseal? Like if I went with Jetseal, should I choose one spray on vs. another?

Thanks for your help.

 

Thanks for the detailed post, it helps me get a better idea about your situation and what you're looking for, much appreciated!

Sounds like you're maintaining your paint fairly well, so I'm assuming the swirls are somewhat light compared to most vehicles out there. If that's the case, I think your best bet is Menzerna Power Finish in terms of a polish for your paint. It's a notch up from SwirlX but finishes down quite nicely. I'd recommend applying it using green or white pads if your going to invest in a buffer.

You're going to limit your results if you continue to polish by hand. Most polishes aren't designed for hand application, Menzerna certainly isn't. Menzerna is my choice of polishes, they leave me with consistent high quality results. If you wanted to take the finish even further, consider following up with PO85RD after the Power Finish. I recommend applying that with a black pad.

Be sure to read over our polishing guide to get the most out of your polishing experience. Follow the advice as closely as possible because your results can vary quite a bit as you have less experience under your belt.

Regarding the sealant, I've found that the two sealants mentioned last about the same time, roughly 3 - 4 months. FMJ is the easier of the two products to apply and remove. I think Jet Seal 109 offers a little tighter water beading than the FMJ. In terms of the looks department, both look great, lots of gloss and deep reflections from either. FMJ leaves behind a slicker surface IMO. I don't think you'll be disappointed with either decision.

For spray on maintenance products after a wash, Menzerna High Gloss Acrylic Shield is designed to work specifically with FMJ and does a good job restoring the slick feel of FMJ. My other favorite QD to use post wash is Optimum Instant Detailer or Optimum Car Wax if you're looking for added protection.

Let me know what you think of the suggestions and if you have any other questions that may pop up.

Be sure to keep us posted on what you end up going with and how things turn out for you.

Cheers,

George

 

Thanks George,

Yes, the paint of my car is still in very good condition. Its garaged kept with only very minor swirl marks so I was looking for a very minor polish setup and then a sealant for protection.

Im guessing that the Menzerna combo of the Power Finish then PO85RD is more mild then using the Poorboys SSR2 then SSR1?

And the Menzerna HGAS with the FMJ was the suggestion I was looking for. Thank you very much. I figured there was a sealant combo products that were designed to work with each other.... one as a sealant and the other as an after wash spray on.

Another question, I previously read the polishing guide and a few other guides online and I notice in some PC packages it includes a counterweight and others dont. Is the counterweight necessary with the PC?

Also, I have a very small 1 car garage so I will be doing all my work in my driveway. Can the Menzerna polishes be applied in sunlight?

Thanks in advance

-Phil

 

Phil,

The Menzerna combo is on par with the SSR 2 / SSR 1 combo in terms of aggressiveness, but would yield better results IMO. I'd say the Power Finish may be able to remove a tad deeper imperfections than SSR 2, but I doubt it's a measurable difference if you were to take a paint thickness reading after doing 1 side of the car with one or the other. SSR may be a cut rating of a 4 where I may put Power Finish at a 4.5 in my book (scale of 1 - 10). 85RD is definitely less aggressive than SSR 1 and the gloss and depth achieved is much greater. The Poorboy's polishes would be better suited for buffing in direct sunlight. Menzerna will work outside if you work in very small sections, but expect some dusting and I'd be prepared to rewash after polishing if there's a lot of dust in the cracks and between panels. Personally, I'd probably use the Optimum polishes over the Poorboy's polishes if polishing in direct sunlight and you didn't want to use Menzerna.

The counterweight isn't necessary, it may reduce vibrations by 5 or 10%, which in the grand scheme of things, isn't much, the unit will still vibrate quite a bit. During long polishing sessions though, every little bit helps after polishing for hours on end.

If there's anything else I can help with, let me know.

George

 

just got a new g37s, took it to a professional detailer who clayed/polished/waxed the car.
now i just want to maintain it.
im planning on using Poorboy's World Super Slick & Suds with a sheepskin wash mitt. after drying it with some MF waffle weave towels, can i just apply Menzerna High Gloss Acrylic Shield to keep the shine?
i live in a hot dusty climate (middle east)