Stuntin' 101

first off, after reading alot of the threads here, im a little confused now. i always thought that to really get a nice finish, it was basically a 3 step process. meaning, cleaner or swirl mark remover, then a glaze, and then wax.. now after reading some of the stickys, it seems like the swirl mark remover, and glaze are kinda thrown into the same catageory. is there a difference?

ok.. now about the clay bar. i dont understand if your suppose to kinda put it on the car, and roll it back and forth under the palm of your hand, or lay it flat, press it into the paint and then lift up and repeat. can someone please explain the application process a little more clear? i read the long thread about how to use it and i cant find anything with a clear answer.

i have the porta cable random orbital sander/polisher ( i bought it to use for sanding, not to use on the car, but whatever... i have it) i really dont have any idea oh how i would even begin how to use it, what to use, so should i even bother? i always did this by hand, will it make a very noticable difference?

now for the car.. i have a 96 with black paint.. the car was totally repainted probably about 3 1/2 - 4 years ago. i never really have the time to wash it myself as much as i want to, so i always opted for the hand car-washes. (very big out here). problem now is, the paint looks VERY dry, and you can see tiny lines in the paint probably from the towels they use to dry the car. how can i get these out, what do i need, can i do it by hand? it basically looks like swirl marks, but straight across. if i do a glaze and wax by hand, it looks 10x better. but it there a way i can get rid of them myself, without having to obtain a degree in detailing????

Stuntin' 101

also.. i usually use 3M produts.. swirl mark remover ( for dark color cars) glaze, and then whatever wax i have.. use to use mothers liquid wax, but i figured i would try the platinum turtle wax. (having doubts now). this doesnt need to be a show car, ill be happy to get rid of the dryness and all the tiny lines.. ( in case your wondering, the lines or scratches, are so fine you cannot even feel them. i have turtle wax polishing compound too, should i use that??)

what should i do?
what should i use?
where do i get it ?

gto400no1

iTrader: (5)

Let me see if i can help you out. the process is you buff with compound or a heavy polish, then you use the swirl remover to get out the cut lines from the compound, then you wax. to use the clay bar u have it right about rolling it in your hand but thats about the only thing u got right. after u roll it in your hand u want to flatten it in you hand, then you spray the lubricant on the part you want to clay (do small parts at a time) then run the clay bar over the part u want cleaned. do it carefully and go over it till it feels smooth. also make sure u continually clean the clay by rolling it in your hand and flattening it out again. i do that a few times per panel. after you have clayed, you will do your buffing i described. those lines you are talking about are swirl marks, some may also be surface scraches in some areas. the swirls will come out but most likly the surface scraches will remain but should be less obvious. you are on track using the 3M swirl remover, its one of the best on the market. i hope this helped and good luck. you will want to get some porter cable "foam pads" for that polisher of yours. also to get a better understanding of detailing go to http://autopia.org.

mdsmithers

http://www.adamspolishes.com/videos/clay_bar.cfm

How to video, very informative.

Stuntin' 101

that should be the first sticky on this forum...