So...How do I get into detailing?

[mr tommo]

Right... my car really freaking annoys me. The swirl marks, I think Ive got a problem. I can't enjoy looking at it close up because of the sight of such minor marks.

So I was thinking (Ive had a lot of time to do that this week as Im off work with an injury) how do I get into detailing? And I mean proper detailing with machines etc, not like my neighbour treating his car to some turtle wax while proceeding to tell me he's detailed it.

I figured it will cost me around £200 to get my car done professionally.

How much are we talking for start up costs and whats needed? I'd like it to be more of a hobby on friends and family cars for the time being as Ive already got a full time job and a part time business on the go. I know some people with some fairly decent cars so getting a portfolio together should be easy If I was to get into this properly and start taking customers.

 

[mr tommo]

Lol you have never even done it before and already you are thinking of a portfolio so you can charge for it?

Erm...Lol its called planning ahead.

Obviously I want to get a machine first.

I also meant to ask if there are courses you can go on rather than learning from the internet. As I really wouldnt like to make a mess and land myself with a respray


If I never make a penny back I really wouldnt care aslong as I enjoy myself, and get my car looking how it should be.

 

[mr tommo]

Head over to www.detailingworld.co.uk , tons of information there and IIRC there were a few on there that were offering beginners the chance to go and practice and get advice on techniques etc.

Thanks mate, exactly what I was after.

I swear 90% of the people over at Detailing world are the sorts of people who make love to their car. Its just not normal to be so anal about cleaning ones vehicle

Oh I agree, to be honest I just want my car to be pretty decent. Tiny swirl makrs don't bother me a lot, but lots of random slight scratches (from kids in the drive on bikes & footballs) do when they are as noticable as mine.

Then cleaning my mrs' car today, which hasnt been washed for 3 months, and has been scraped along every single brach down the narrow country road leading to her house, made me decide that I wanted a machine and wanted to be able to get rid of slight scratches.

None of this beading crap particulalrly bothers me, I want a shiney, scratch free car.

HAHA. I own wax and clay.

It was that retard Mark with the Arctic White VXR that put me off it for life.

I own wax and clay too, but you haven't seen the marks on my car, no amount of waxing will hide it.

 

[mr tommo]

go to a scrappy get a panel or bonnett off a car and practise on that until your happy with the result and then use it on your car

Great idea WIll definately be doing this.

I spent over 1k on bits n bobs for doing the cars, it all adds up quickly. If you were to do expensive cars you really need a paint depth meter and the good ones that can work on all body types are around £500.

Ouch. Which machine did you go for? Having had a quick look at the top 3 that are recommended on that detailingworld website, the Meguiars G220 looks like the easiest option?

EDIT : Damn, had seen the Paint Depth Meter but hadn't got around to pricing that up yet

 

[mr tommo]

Autoglym Ultra Deep Polish works wonders on Sapphire Black.

Tried it

Heres a list of what Ive tried so far by hand.

AG Super Resin Polish
AG Ultra Deep Shine
Poorboys Black Haze
Poorboys Blue wax
Meg (black bottle )


I give up. Granted Ive probably not used them properly but Ive had this itch to get a machine for a while now so I dont think anything is gonna put me off. Plus I'd love to attempt stone chip repair myself, read a few guides, and again a machine is pretty much essential.

 

[mr tommo]

I started with a Porta-Cable imported from the states then got a Makita polisher. The G220 would be an equivalent of a Porta-Cable.

Which is adequate still?

Makita is a bit more than I want to pay really.

Where do you buy your pads/polishes from? Any favoured websites?

 

[mr tommo]

www.polishedbliss.co.uk is good I knew Rich before he started it up. The G220 is good its a random orbital polisher which is easier for beginners. Although a couple of scrap panels and a rotary polisher is a good start aswell. If the car has soft paint a random polisher would be better however for hard paint which is most of the German cars a rotary once you have mastered it will be a lot faster however you would be amazed how quickly it can go through a soft clearcoat.

I never read the rotary guide as I presumed the Dual action ones were the better ones

Will definately be getting some scrap panels to try it out on before I take it anywhere near my beloved car!

I make a lot of money from this at the moment, Not to brag but im pretty good (I detailed the mustang saleen) and this is what it takes to earn money from it as if your ok people will not use or reccommend you . From 1 job I get about another 3 or 4 booked in .

It costs a lot of money to get all the right gear aswell and I wouldn't bother with a RO , just jump to a rotary as you have to be seriously stupid with speeds to burn paint work .

You need any help my msn is in my trust and I can also help with trade discounts on materials etc

I'd rather just buy the right kit at the start thinking about it. So will probably go for the rotary. I need to look into this in-depth tomorrow with regards to what to get started with. Making money out of this was me looking waaaaayyyyyy down the line (2 years, if at all) but theres 3 cars in my household and I will just be doing it for fun for now. I will add you on msn tomorrow if thats ok because I could do with getting a shopping list together to work out how much this is gonna cost me.

Just a quick question, how much is a reliable Paint Thickness Guage? Whats the cheapest I could get away with without it below average?

 

[mr tommo]

Are you sure you want to "invest" all this money on something you have never really tried before? Surely just buy a few of the basics and take it from there. Paint thickness gauges can range from cheapo to hundreds of £££.

I was hoping I could get away without using one. I guess the worst that could happen is I balls up a panel and it needs a respray, which as I know a local repair shop well and get decent prices and decent work, it wont be a disaster.

Obviously some in this thread don't see the point, but as with anything, if you want the results, one way or another you need to put the work in. "It'll do" is a phrase all to many people seem to live by. I'm really into my detailing, but only to the extent that I get the results I'm happy with, and willing to spend time doing it. I'll only really do it for close friends or if someone's in a fix.

You've got the URL for perhaps the most comprehensive guide you need Mr Tommo, and your intentions don't seem unrealistic at all. Once you've read a few guides, got yourself some kit and products together, I'm sure you'll get into it in no time. As for the paint thickness gauge - I'd not bother unless you decide to do it for money, or for people who would throw a hissy if the worse did happen.

...then the pictures of your car at the top of the multi-storey near Vue Cinema/Morrisons will look even better

Thanks for that mate. Seems "detailing" is top of the make fun of list around here, from people with computer specs in their sigs

Well spotted on the multi-storey

Think I will hold off the PTG then.

Dual Action or Rotary Polisher?

 

[mr tommo]

I like my cars to be immaculate however I have to admit that detailing, especially machine polishing is the most boring thing in the world and I can't bring myself to do it more than once per year.

I did the Boxster about a month ago and spent about 7 hours in total, that's 2009s detail done, by the time August 2010 rolls around I might be able to force myself to doing it again (although I might just pay somebody next time to be honest). Till then it's just wash and the occasional wax to keep it looking good.

Don't get me wrong I'm not going to be doing my own car every couple of months, infact I'd have just had it done when I first bought it and then If it became really bad again, which I doubt it would as Im pretty careful. Im not talking swirl marks you can only see under a torch, its as if its been washed with a house brick

1.) Buy a Porter Cable, G220 or similar plus a variety of pads from a retailer such as:http://www.autopia-carcare.com/pcdepot.html

Cheers for that link.
2.) Read the guides on detailing world.
In the process of doing that now.
3.) Do your own car. Don't mince about with buying panels, you have to be a total idiot to screw it up.
That's good to hear

4.) Don't bother with a paint thickness gauge. Not only do they make you instantly gay, they are totally unnecessary unless you are a pro detailer with an existing client base, and even then I doubt they are necessary. An over-anal accessory in my opinion.
Again, very good to hear. Im only planning on doing my own car, parents, friends at the moment

5.) Buy more equipment as and when you need it.

Start with a low cut compound such as Meguiars Speed Glaze and then move onto more aggressive compounds if necessary.

Detailing isn't some wondrous art that only the gifted to do. Anyone who can read, and follow a set of instructions can get a good result.

To be honest, detailing world does make things sounds seriously complicated, but I guess thats what comes with such in detail guides, once Ive got the tools in my hand I expect it to be fairly obvious

I take it you've done your own?

 

[mr tommo]

It gets stick because the degrees it goes to border on ridiculous. Plus given its own name - "detailing" makes it sound like something holy, when in essence it is just an expensive car wash on crack.

I mean spending 100's or 1000's of pounds on a wax and ensuring you have total uniform paint thickness is pedantic.

But when people so much money on cars, they'll spend the money to keep it clean

I bought the starter bundle that most places do, the G220, load of pads (ok i bought more of these than needed), #80 and #83, then some AG stuff to go with it.

All I have wanted to buy additionally I bought as samples off the forum, most of the time a sample is more than enough to do several cars! Will save you a fortune.

The dodo "panel" pots, can probably get 3-4 cars out of one depending on their size, £6 instead of £30 for a big tub of wax which may not be "cool" 6 months down the line.

See my thinking!

Yeah I understand that, I havent come across any anal threads like that yet but Im still on the equipment pages.

Im thinking of going for the Kestrel DAS-6. Going to play it safe and opt for a Dual Action Polisher as I can always move on afterwards.

This kit comes with the 6" pads, Megs #80 and #83. Then Im going to get the backing kit for the smaller pads too.

What AG products have you also got?

Could you link me to where the samples are please mate?


Ive got clay, but for the initial wash... is the foam lance really that important?

 

[mr tommo]

Its a bit early to give up after having only tried one polish and a polish that is non abrasive as gets good results from having a high filler content.

If you want to try something to shift swirls get something like 3M Perfect-It III (fine). Apply it by hand but work it hard and evenly until it gets slightly warm. Even if you go for a machine polisher this won't be money wasted as it is designed to be applied by machine.

Using this method I could probably remove the bulk of the swirls on my car (it doesn't have many as I do a top-up wax every wash) but as Eidolon says it is soul destroyingly boring and its a 15k per annumn tool rather than a showpiece so it would feel like urinating into the wind.

Yeah I can't see me doing this to the same car twice. I'd just like a clean slate to start on again. Ive knocked my bumper and want to get it resprayed, so its kicked my arse into action to sort the rest of the car out too.

For the last stage, have I got any products that would be suitable? Such as the Poorboys Bluw Wax?

Personally I dont foam my car, but I could see why you would want to if it was really caked during winter. Ill be getting one at some point, but not top of the list of things to buy.

There is a big samples section on the DW forum where members resell on smaller sample sizes of product. I have a selection of wax/sealants and some #105 and #205 that I got.

The AG stuff is just things like rubber and vinyl care, tar remover (which isnt that good) etc.

Thats good then as its just saved me money for the foam lance. Ive just signed up so will get looking at the sale section

Yeah I think i've done my car about 3 or 4 times now, i've done a friends ATR (not you Skywalker ) a mates rover 600 which had the worst paint i've ever seen, and numerous others, usually friends or local people from car forums.

It never struck me as good way to earn money. It's a lot of money for Joe Public to pay someone like me to do, mainly because I take my time and do it properly. I have no insurance or anything like that, only the word of the people involved that they won't sue me should anything go wrong - not good.

Obviously stakes are lower as my car isn't worth much, but i've never even come close to getting out of my depth.

When I get my new car it will be the first thing I do to it.

To be honest I don't particularly want to earn money from it but a bit of pocket money in the long run would be nice. Knowing me I'd end up doing it for free for relatives and mates anyway.

 

[mr tommo]

Read this.

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/images/misc/dapolishing.pdf

Thanks, Its a lot easier in pdf form

 

[mr tommo]

I hate to dig up the same pictures again as even i'm getting fed up of seeing them but the below is what I used to get the effect seen in the pics.

1.) Pre wash snowfoam (Totally dubious of its ability but its lots of fun ). Rinse with pressure washer.
2.) Attentive wash with Megs NXT Wash using 2 bucket method. Rinse again.
3.) Blade dry and finish off with waffle weave towels.
4.) Apply clay bar with Quik Detailer (Again skeptical of this too but might as well). Wipe clean with Microfibre. May have used paint cleanser here but can't remember.
5.) Mask off trim, lights etc with blue 3M tape. Put paper on windows.
6.) Start Porter cable treatment. Used Meguiars #80 Speed Glaze. One pass on slow speed to spread polish, Second pass on medium speed. Third on full speed. All using circular motions with a constant speed.
7.) Wipe off residue
8.) Wax with Collinite 915 Marque D'Elegance
9.) Wax again if necessary
10.) Jizz all over incredibly shiny car.
11.) Commit suicide when it rains ten minutes later.

Bear in mind its a 10 year old car and I consider the above to be a very, very, very anal "wash"

Thanks for that it will come in useful, and great results by the look of it!!