and was planning on doing some detailing in the next week or two. I was wondering what some good products to use and if what i already have will work. I'd rather not spend a ton of money though if i dont have to. I already got some stuff in my garage and was wondering if it is any good to use. here is what i got:

meguires gold class car wash
meguires clay bar kit and quick detailer
turtle wax polish for light oxidation and swirls
mothers caranuba wax

can i use this stuff and get decent results, id rather not have to spend a lot of money getting new stuff.

i read some how to's on detailed image and here is what i was planning on doing.

hand wash and dry the car, then clay bar if i have to (or should i do this no matter what?), then rinse and dry again. Next use the PC and polish with turtle wax polish. then wax with mothers caranuba wax. Now should i hand wax or can i use the Porter Cable?

Does this sound good or is there anything i missed?

 

Also what color pad should i use for the polish? ive got yellow, orange, white, black, and blue pads.

 

Thats an awesome gift. No one in my family/friends would ever buy me detailing supplies as a gift because they are think I'm crazy because of the way treat my car. They confuse obsession with passion.

 

you should definitely clay bar...

 

You can definitely use the wash, the clay bar and lube, and the wax without any problems. Yes, use the clay. I personally would get better polish than what you have, something like either Menzerna SIP or PO106FF if you are just going to use a single step polish or if you want something cheaper PBW SSR1 or Polish with Sealant. Either will do well, I use both. If you are doing a one step polish, use the white polishing pad. If yo are doing a two step polish use the more agressive light cutting polish like SIP first with the orange pad, and then follow up with the finishing polish like PO106FF with the white. I apply and remove wax by hand usually, but sometimes I sue the PC. Either way will give you good results. I use the black pad for waxes. Good luck and be sure to post before N After pics.

 

Thanks for the info BB. We are working on my friends car tonight and gonna try the turtle wax polish for now, but i will probably order some of the stuff you recomended later on.

 

If the turtle wax stuff does a great job that you're happy with, then use it. I don't know much about it but I know it's not likely to be as good as the Menzerna, but it's easily available and a whole lot cheaper.

 

If Menzerna is too much, look into Poorboys polishes.

 

I got a Craftsman buffer/polisher from my bro. for Christmas. I used Meguiars NXT wax by hand before and was happy with the results. I use Meguiars Gold class soap for car washes.

 

Well after looking around I think i am going to order some of the poorboys polish with sealent from DI. I was wondering if there is anything else i should get to use along with that and wax. I've heard some people mention glazes before and was wondering if i should get one of these too or if the Poorboys polish with sealent followed by a caranuba wax would be good enough.

 

If you're looking for a carnauba take a look at www.migliorewax.com/original.html