*Official* Ask A Detailer Thread

What do you think: I use Rain-X wash soap with wax beads, and I use a new Spray wax- Eagle One Nanoprotectant? I really like the Eagle one spray wax, it seems to do a good job for us rookies and budget guys. You just spray it and buff it in. I use a microfiber towel for wiping it and buffing it. Although nothing is quite as good as a good ol wax by hand right? I work for Valvoline which owns Eagle One. It seems to have gotten a lot of good reviews. I am also a fan of Meguirs too.

BTW- you know our Tacoma seat stain issues, especially with the sport package. What or is there a really good Foam seat cleaner I can use. I have tried Turtle wax, oxy clean upholstery cleaners and none have seen to do a "great" job. Any suggestions?

 

this really wasnt towards me bbut i have used deluded degreaser on my seats umm put some degreaser in a bucket id say 4 to 1...4 parts water to 1 degreaser. dip ur brush in the bucket shake off the water and scrub the seats i also have the sports edition and ive washed my seats with these steps. the degreaser i used is one from home depot lightning degreaser

 

Even with you truck sitting outside all the time, I don't think there's any reason why you should wax every 2 weeks. Wash it every 1-2 weeks and use some sort of spray wax/sealant (Duragloss AquaWax or Meguiar's Ultimate) after each wash. If you do this, you can go longer between true waxings.

 

So i just got the smooth surface clay kid from meguiars. I clay bard the truck. Then it also comes with a wax..so i just waxed it after... You say to polish it, but why would meguiars have the clay bar and the wax instead of the polish? and fyi it looks nice,but it looked that nice before i did anything

 

It's actually a cleaner wax so it's basically the polish step and wax step in one. The less work the better for most people, which is why they include the cleaner wax.

 

1 - Try Meg's new Ultimate Compound or ScratchX 2.0 (UC is more aggressive).
2 - NXT 2.0 gets good reviews. But if you have a Carquest, go pick-up some Duragloss TPP #105 (they call it a polish, but it's more of a sealant) and AquaWax #951 (great after washing). 3 - I'm not familiar with that product. What is it? What does it do?

 

If it were me, I'd toss it in the trash and spend $10-$15 on something else (Meguiar's, Mothers, or Duragloss).

 

Ok, I decided to seal my fence today and like a moron did not even move my truck out of the driveway even though the wind was blowing. I used the kind with a slight honey tint to it soooo, needless to say I have tan overspray all over my brand new 2009 Taco with only 1,000 miles on it. Ain't I smart

I know I need to take a clay bar to it. I have some detail experience ( polish, wax, wash) even on black. However I have never clayed. My question is after I clay is it going to be necessary to polish before I put another coat of wax on? Also, any special tips to keep in mind while doing it?

Thanks!

 

Using a clay bar is very easy. As 28ØØ3, keep the area lubed and you'll be just fine. You'll need to re-wax after doing this. If you feel like polishing after claying and before waxing, go for it. It'll only improve your paint. Watch the video I linked below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfEfLGL59GI

I like Clay Magic: http://www.claymagic.net/

 

Thanks, One more thing. The sealent(toyoguard or whatever it is) will that come off with the clay?

 

Mike, I'm sure it's 6 of one, half dozen of another but any preference between Mothers and Meguiars?

 

To be completely honest, that stuff is BS. The stuff they use probably isn't even as good as the stuff that I use. That service is a profit center for them, especially considering some dealerships charge $500+ for it. Normally, if you read the fine print the sealant needs to be re-applied every 6 months for the warranty to honored if something goes wrong. Don't feel bad though, I fell for it too years ago. Now days though, I know that doing a complete detail every 6 months myself will save me tons of money and the job will come out looking much better.

So to answer your question, don't worry about it stripping the stuff off. You can just apply your wax or sealant of choice. I'd recommend waxing every 2-3 months, 4-6 if you're using a sealant.

 

Thanks for the help, I got alot of work ahead of me considering I have my double cab Tacoma and a crew cab F-150 to get it off of! lol

 

I have a love/hate relationship with Meguiar's. They make quality products but I can't stand Mike Phillips (the guy in the video I linked above). He runs their message board and a lot of professional detailers are extremely turned off by his attitude towards others, particularly the experienced professionals. Plus, I don't really agree how they market/advertise some of their products.

That said, you can't go wrong with either line-up. Meguiar's products are easy to find and they have a product for everything, but because they irritate me, I'd probably pick-up a Mother's bottle first...hehe!

 

Yeah, you're arms are going to be nice and tired when you're done! Good luck!

 

Thanks Mike. I've really liked the Mothers line, and for me the price isn't too bad either.

 

Another question. I have chrome wheels. I saw somewhere to put a little spray wax on them, which I have done once since I've only had them a month. How often should I do this vs chrome polish? I live in seattle so it rains.....all.......the....time. Of course, I have Mothers chome polish but I haven't used it yet. I'll probably get the mothers ball to use with it when the time comes.

thanks alot Mike for your time with all of this. Life is busy for all of us and it's really great that you are willing to give so much of your time. I really appreciate it, as do all of us here. Thanks again.

 

Thanks for the kind words sapper!

Ok, for your wheels I would just polish them on an "as-needed" basis. There's no reason to polish them all the time nor is there an excuse for never polishing them. A new metal polish that I would recommend looking into would be Optimum Metal Polish. This is a new polish that Dr. G (the founder and owner) just came out with recently. Not only will it polish, but it will also protect...all in one step. If you want to add further protection, look into Optimum Opti-Seal.

I'd say 90% of the products I use on a daily basis in my business are from Optimum because of the quality and ease of use that they provide so when I recommend their products, it's because I think they are THAT good.

 

Appreciate all your effort in the thread here. I'm in the same boat. I've got some scratches from branches, my dog, some oxidation from over the winter, and some paint chips from rocks on my '09. I've also got a big dull spot in the paint on my tailgate that I need to polish. I'm an idiot when it comes to polishing/waxing, and have a tendency to make things worse. I really could use detailed instructions/advice on what I need to do to get it looking shiny and new, and to keep it looking that way... specific product recommendations down to waxing/buffing pads/etc. would help. My last vehicle was white, and it was much more forgiving than the magnetic gray metallic has been so far.

 

Hey Mike, thanks a lot bro. Great thread. I went out and got a lot of the products you recommended, mostly Meg's stuff simply cause they are easier to find. Taco looks great!