Paint correction, pro or DIY?

NoNameNoNumber said:
You need a machine (£70?) megs 105/205 (£25) a few pads (£30) and maybe tape, mf cloths etc (£20)

you can do a whole car in an afternoon and you'll have the stuff then for future use. No brainer IMO :)
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Disagree with you almost entirely. If you are going to machine polish then you need to clay too. Though clay only goes so far so if the car hasn't seen much attention then probably would best to add tar and fallout removers to that list also. Also if you are going to machine polish then definitely need to add some LSP.

As for the time, if you can fully machine polish an entire car in an afternoon you should set up a business as you could detail 2 or 3 times as many cars per day as the pro's do. Even a single stage polish takes around 2 or 3 hours alone, nevermind all the prep time before that in washing, decontaminating / claying and then the time after applying a couple coats of wax or sealent. If aiming for a single stage polish though, IMO a diminishing polish would be better as unlike the Megs so you can relatively easily finish down hologram free even with the high cut polishes.

If sticking to only paintwork then you could do it a day. Obviously if going for clean and seal wheels, glass, trim protectants etc it becomes a struggle to do in 1 day.
 
Relentless81 said:
Cant ache as bad as doing a polish and wax by hand!

Looks good, I am tempted by DIY its just the fact I live in a flat, if I had a house with a driveway I wouldn't consider pro at all
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Ache a lot more, the machine is heavy!

Greboth said:
Disagree with you almost entirely. If you are going to machine polish then you need to clay too. Though clay only goes so far so if the car hasn't seen much attention then probably would best to add tar and fallout removers to that list also. Also if you are going to machine polish then definitely need to add some LSP.

As for the time, if you can fully machine polish an entire car in an afternoon you should set up a business as you could detail 2 or 3 times as many cars per day as the pro's do. Even a single stage polish takes around 2 or 3 hours alone, nevermind all the prep time before that in washing, decontaminating / claying and then the time after applying a couple coats of wax or sealent. If aiming for a single stage polish though, IMO a diminishing polish would be better as unlike the Megs so you can relatively easily finish down hologram free even with the high cut polishes.

If sticking to only paintwork then you could do it a day. Obviously if going for clean and seal wheels, glass, trim protectants etc it becomes a struggle to do in 1 day.
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Agreed it takes ages, but for me the Megs SMAT I find a lot easier to use than diminishing ones, personal preference I guess.
 
I also found when starting out, try and split the body work up into 6 or 8" square section, you can concentrate on the defects better and can see the polish breakdown better.
 
Greboth said:
Disagree with you almost entirely. If you are going to machine polish then you need to clay too. Though clay only goes so far so if the car hasn't seen much attention then probably would best to add tar and fallout removers to that list also. Also if you are going to machine polish then definitely need to add some LSP.

As for the time, if you can fully machine polish an entire car in an afternoon you should set up a business as you could detail 2 or 3 times as many cars per day as the pro's do. Even a single stage polish takes around 2 or 3 hours alone, nevermind all the prep time before that in washing, decontaminating / claying and then the time after applying a couple coats of wax or sealent. If aiming for a single stage polish though, IMO a diminishing polish would be better as unlike the Megs so you can relatively easily finish down hologram free even with the high cut polishes.

If sticking to only paintwork then you could do it a day. Obviously if going for clean and seal wheels, glass, trim protectants etc it becomes a struggle to do in 1 day.
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The OP asked about the correction part, which I still stand by, yeah I overlooked the possibility that he may have only ever used a bucket and sponge so apologies-there are a lot of other products needed for the full works but the correction could be done in a good afternoon.
 
NoNameNoNumber said:
The OP asked about the correction part, which I still stand by, yeah I overlooked the possibility that he may have only ever used a bucket and sponge so apologies-there are a lot of other products needed for the full works but the correction could be done in a good afternoon.
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I dont agree either, you might be able to do a quick going over with a rotary, but it wont be a great job, just masking up takes a while, in my experience, do do a correction, ie cut polish and then wax, is easily 45 mins per panel. Not an afternoon.
 
With a rotary or DA?

Rotaries work very quickly in the right hands an with LLC Hydrotech pads there's very little hologramming left from 105 so only needs a very quick pass with 205.

Just my 2p, I still stand by 1 afternoons work :D
 
From experience, I can echo the comments that polishing a car cannot be done in an afternoon. The only way this is possible is if you are just going over it for a buff-up. Giving a car a proper detail is, as others have said, at least 45 mins per panel.
 
I agree on the full detail argument but that isn't what I was saying. I still maintain that the correction part ( not the washing, iron out, de tar, claying, washing and drying nor the LSP application) can be done in an afternoon :)

Whenever I correct paintwork -on the basis that I don't have a PTG- I aim for removal of swirls and minimization of any RDS but you gotta leave enough meat on the bone for another day. Take 90% of the clearcoat off just to achieve perfection on a daily car would be counter productive.
 
NoNameNoNumber said:
I agree on the full detail argument but that isn't what I was saying. I still maintain that the correction part ( not the washing, iron out, de tar, claying, washing and drying nor the LSP application) can be done in an afternoon :)
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I see what your saying, yes you can do just the machine polish in an afternoon. So saying you're wrong is errr.... wrong, maybe you're misleading would be a better choice of words? Time is going to be part of the decision when considering DIY or paying a pro, as the stages before (wash, decon etc) and those after (LSP) all really need doing then only giving the time for one part of the job is misleading. Assuming the pro is a decent pro then they are going to wash, full decon, clay, LSP etc. then much easier to consider like for like when deciding between DIY time and cost of the pro.
 
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