Have I scratched the car paint, or just deep dirt?

[dinfern22]

Well, shit! I just read up on some people saying sealant is way better than carnuba wax and it protects the paint way better. And also glazes like the one i got are for hiding swirls instead of fixing them! Dammit. Is this correct?

Whats the main difference between carnuba wax and a sealant, do they yield different results, and which one is overall better? Also if polishing is for hiding swirls, what if my paint doesn't have any, will the glazes suffice? Thanks!

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by dinfern22

Well, shit! I just read up on some people saying sealant is way better than carnuba wax and it protects the paint way better. And also glazes like the one i got are for hiding swirls instead of fixing them! Dammit. Is this correct?

Whats the main difference between carnuba wax and a sealant, do they yield different results, and which one is overall better? Also if polishing is for hiding swirls, what if my paint doesn't have any, will the glazes suffice? Thanks!

It does not matter what products you buy you will have a group tell you they are wrong and you should use what they use. Buy wax some say sealer. Buy sealer some say wax. There are literally thousands of different products available and just as many opinions as to what is right or wrong.
Give what you bought a try and see if YOU are happy with the results. Don't worry that people will say it is wrong.

[dinfern22]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

It does not matter what products you buy you will have a group tell you they are wrong and you should use what they use. Buy wax some say sealer. Buy sealer some say wax. There are literally thousands of different products available and just as many opinions as to what is right or wrong.
Give what you bought a try and see if YOU are happy with the results. Don't worry that people will say it is wrong.

Haha, well that puts it into perspective! Your definitely right, read a post somewhere were some said in all honesty you cant eyeball it and tell the difference from many products, ill use what i got and see the results.Thanks.

Im just worried ill degrade my paint color if I don't protect it properly and it'll lose its color later on. But that's probably me overthinking shit.

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by dinfern22

Haha, well that puts it into perspective! Your definitely right, read a post somewhere were some said in all honesty you cant eyeball it and tell the difference from many products, ill use what i got and see the results.Thanks.

Im just worried ill degrade my paint color if I don't protect it properly and it'll lose its color later on. But that's probably me overthinking shit.

That is a common disorder around here.

Just wash the car then wax it. Repeat every 6 months ....... see how simple it can be ......


humfrz

[bcj]

Take care with power buffers.
A friend wanted to polish out his 65 Buick Riviera with one.
He burned through to the primer on one of the ridges down the hood.
Not a happy bunny. Didn't try power polishing again.

[dinfern22]

Originally Posted by humfrz

That is a common disorder around here.

Just wash the car then wax it. Repeat every 6 months ....... see how simple it can be ......


humfrz

Haha can you blame us with all these products that come out every other day, and thousands of steps made to clean a car? Makes you go OCD

[dinfern22]

Originally Posted by bcj

Take care with power buffers.
A friend wanted to polish out his 65 Buick Riviera with one.
He burned through to the primer on one of the ridges down the hood.
Not a happy bunny. Didn't try power polishing again.

Damn, that sucks man. Maybe it better that i didn't get a full polish, don't wanna risk messing up the paint. How did your friend know that he burned through the primer?

Are clay bars safe, is there a high risk messing the paint or removing clear coat like polish? Lol sorry if it sounds sounds dumb, new to to the whole detailing

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by dinfern22

Damn, that sucks man. Maybe it better that i didn't get a full polish, don't wanna risk messing up the paint. How did your friend know that he burned through the primer?

Are clay bars safe, is there a high risk messing the paint or removing clear coat like polish? Lol sorry if it sounds sounds dumb, new to to the whole detailing

Clay bars are safe to the car's finish, if you follow the instructions. JUST DO NOT allow it to drop on the floor/ground. Why, because it will pick up a piece of grit that WILL grind scratches in the finish.


humfrz

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by dinfern22

Haha can you blame us with all these products that come out every other day, and thousands of steps made to clean a car? Makes you go OCD

Yep, for sure. Back-in-the-day, under a shade tree, we used a metal pail, rain water from the cistern, lye soap, a real sponge, a chamois, followed by a coat of Simonize wax ..... the excess taken off with an old baby diaper.

Now, for average care of a new car, just use a plastic bucket, any car washing soap, micro fiber cloths and any name brand wax.

See, it doesn't have to be a complex operation .....


humfrz

[sodjer]

Originally Posted by dinfern22

Well, shit! I just read up on some people saying sealant is way better than carnuba wax and it protects the paint way better. And also glazes like the one i got are for hiding swirls instead of fixing them! Dammit. Is this correct?

Whats the main difference between carnuba wax and a sealant, do they yield different results, and which one is overall better? Also if polishing is for hiding swirls, what if my paint doesn't have any, will the glazes suffice? Thanks!

Main difference between a Carnuba and a sealant is the longevity of the product and the desired effect. Carnuba will give you a much deeper shine and make the paint look "wet", a synthetic wax or sealant can add some shine but its main selling point is that it will stay on the surface for months vs. the Carnuba which will only last a few weeks. A lot of people will seal with a synthetic wax/sealant and then layer a carnuba wax on top of that. As for the sealant it's really up to you and what you want to spend. There are plenty of options out there ranging from synthetic polymers that will last months, ceramic coatings that will last years, and even clear vinyl paint protection films.

As for sealants, and fillers, think of the paint in layers, like this:


A sealant or wax will be your top layer, on top of the clear coat. This layer is there to help protect and preserve the clear coat, and layers beneath it. Swirl marks could be through that sealant layer or into the clear coat itself. Applying more sealant or a filler will fill those in and make the surface appear to be smooth and have less defects. Although as the sealant or filler wears away the defects will come back.

Once bad enough you'll look at doing a correction, or using a compound and polish. This is when you call up a professional detailer as the chance to damage the painted surface is pretty high. Although with today's dual action polishers the risk is substantially less than it was in the past with buffers/polishers. The main action of compounding or polishing is to level the paint surface. As you can imagine, this is not something that you'll want to do often as we have a very finite amount of clearcoat to work with.

As humfrz notes Clay bars are safe, just don't drop it and use plenty of lubricant with it or it'll just stick to everything. Most kits come with a quick detailer, but you could also use wash solution with it. Also be sure you re-apply a wax or sealant after claying as the clay will remove your current protective layer (unless it's something more on the "permanent" side such as a ceramic or vinyl)

[dinfern22]

@sodjer Damn bro thanks for writing that up, really help shed some light, appreciate it!

Since your saying polish can potentially damage the paint mabey I'll avoid that step. How does this routine sound, I will be hand washing at a coin wash:

1. Foam gun
2. Two bucket wash
3. clay bar with detailer while wet
4. Dry
6. Apply glaze
7. Apply layer of carnuba wax

Will this suffice to remove the swirls marks you saw on the pictures?

Or do you recommend i add two more things; polish before adding glaze, and add a sealant before wax?

Or is this an overkill? I just don't want to end up going to the store again to eat polish/Sealant because the clay bar didn't remove the swirls.

[bcj]

Originally Posted by dinfern22

Damn, that sucks man. Maybe it better that i didn't get a full polish, don't wanna risk messing up the paint. How did your friend know that he burned through the primer?

He could see the gray primer where the cream paint was ground off all down the ridge.
He put more pressure on the ridge than on the rest of the pad.

Originally Posted by dinfern22

Or is this an overkill? I just don't want to end up going to the store again to eat polish/Sealant because the clay bar didn't remove the swirls.

The swirls are more than likely grooves cut in the clearcoat.
All polishing does is thin the clearcoat down to the bottom of the grooves.
You wind up with a smooth finish, but it doesn't offer as much future protection.
Can still use polish applied and worked by hand (no swirly machine) like they used to.

Your call. I drive mine and am not obsessive about the appearance.

[sodjer]

Originally Posted by dinfern22

@sodjer Damn bro thanks for writing that up, really help shed some light, appreciate it!

Since your saying polish can potentially damage the paint mabey I'll avoid that step. How does this routine sound, I will be hand washing at a coin wash:

1. Foam gun
2. Two bucket wash
3. clay bar with detailer while wet
4. Dry
6. Apply glaze
7. Apply layer of carnuba wax

Will this suffice to remove the swirls marks you saw on the pictures?

Or do you recommend i add two more things; polish before adding glaze, and add a sealant before wax?

Or is this an overkill? I just don't want to end up going to the store again to eat polish/Sealant because the clay bar didn't remove the swirls.

You'll want to dry the car before claying, otherwise the water on the panel will dilute the Quick Detailer and you likely won't have enough lubrication for the clay. Plus you don't want to leave water standing while you're working to dry into water spots

The clay won't help remove the swirl marks, it's only going to pick up any bonded surface contaminants the wash process doesn't remove. The glaze however will fill in the swirl marks and make them almost invisible and the wax will add a layer on top of that to help hold the glaze. Just keep in mind that as those layers wear off the marks will become visible again. To fix or remove them you'll have to correct or level the surface, and would probably be best to find a reputable detailer in your area to do this.

[dinfern22]

What's usually the price range to get a car detailed; clay bar, wax/sealant and polishing, all that good stuff? Is it worth the money, getting it professionally done?