[Firstcaralfa]

Evening! I do like washing my car but never been overly clued up. Had a read of SR's how to and think I am ready challenge the GT.

I have got AG pressure washer shampoo, Simoniz Wax free shampoo, a meguiars clay bar, AG rapid detailer, AG deep shine polish, AG tyre dressing and simoniz wax. Will be using my pressure washer, microfibre mitt, microfibre towel, microfibre applicator pads, may use 2 buckets though I've always used one before?

I plan to rinse, pre wash, wash, dry, clay, polish then wax.

Does that sound reasonable? Any tips would be greatly appreciated!

Ta

 

[_The_Editor_]

Evening! I do like washing my car but never been overly clued up. Had a read of SR's how to and think I am ready challenge the GT.

I have got AG pressure washer shampoo, Simoniz Wax free shampoo, a meguiars clay bar, AG rapid detailer, AG deep shine polish, AG tyre dressing and simoniz wax. Will be using my pressure washer, microfibre mitt, microfibre towel, microfibre applicator pads, may use 2 buckets though I've always used one before?

I plan to rinse, pre wash, wash, dry, clay, polish then wax.

Does that sound reasonable? Any tips would be greatly appreciated!

Ta

If you've got some, isopropyl alcohol wipes are useful for removing the residue of the polish before waxing..

Else your wax coat might not last as long! Otherwise crack on!

 

[Firstcaralfa]

Thanks editor!

Hmm may look for some, is that similar to a sealant stage? I have seen that comes after polish and before wax?

My foam lance should arrive tomorrow too

 

[_The_Editor_]

Thanks editor!

Hmm may look for some, is that similar to a sealant stage? I have seen that comes after polish and before wax?

My foam lance should arrive tomorrow too

Nope, IPA rinse/wipes would I guess be an extra cleaning/washing stage...

Polishes can leave behind oils on the paint surface that can prevent a good bond forming between the wax and your freshly waxed paint.. Isopropyl alcohol is a good solvent for removing these oils and leaving a perfectly clean paint surface for your protection layers to bond to.

 

[Firstcaralfa]

That makes sense! Is that why some people go for a second wash after the polish?

 

[_The_Editor_]

That makes sense! Is that why some people go for a second wash after the polish?

Yea, that second wash/rinse will remove some of the residue so worth doing that if you don't have IPA wipes..

 

[lowejackson]

From the list of available products IPA would probably not be helpful. The AG Ultra Deep Shine is a glaze i.e. designed to fill in the swirls rather than remove them. On a traditional (abrasive) polish IPA can be useful in removing polishing oils but on a glaze it may remove some of it which would defect the reason for using it

 

[Firstcaralfa]

From the list of available products IPA would probably not be helpful. The AG Ultra Deep Shine is a glaze i.e. designed to fill in the swirls rather than remove them. On a traditional (abrasive) polish IPA can be useful in removing polishing oils but on a glaze it may remove some of it which would defect the reason for using it

Oh right okay, so is waxing over the top still a good idea?

 

[Tommywho156]

Always wax over the top, otherwise the first drop of rain will wash the fillers out of the glaze and the swirls will be revealed once more. Just don't expect the wax to last as long as quoted on the tub, glaze deteriorates faster and that breaks down the wax too.

 

[Firstcaralfa]

Always wax over the top, otherwise the first drop of rain will wash the fillers out of the glaze and the swirls will be revealed once more. Just don't expect the wax to last as long as quoted on the tub, glaze deteriorates faster and that breaks down the wax too.

I am a complete novice to a proper detail so all help is very appreciated! The deep shine stuff says not to wax over the top (I only realised this yesterday) I am still planning on doing so. Would a different polish, without glaze, be a better idea? I'm not massively fussed about how long it lasts, I guess a few weeks would be nice? I just want the car to look good :thumbs:

 

[Lyngaas]

As long as you are polishing by hand, you wont get the big results as you are going to with a machine.
I assume the end result will look better if you fill the scratches rather than attempting to remove them by hand.
The result you get by polishing(with abrasives) by hand depends on how hard the paint(clear coat) is. Alfa paint tends to be quite soft so you might be able to remove light scratches but still... Your arm will ache...

 

[Firstcaralfa]

Well after almost 3 hours of hard work, the car looks great! Cannot believe I haven't clayed before, made a MASSIVE difference. I did think the 'glass finish' was marketing bull, but it feels so smooth! It did take up most of the time mind and I went over the ultra deep shine with wax. Really chuffed with it, now just need to try and figure out how to get photos on here from my phone..

 

[Firstcaralfa]

Just downloaded tapatalk, hopefully this works.


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[Firstcaralfa]

Oh and one of the roof!


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