Off the shelf Detailing Success

Wow, with such an elitist perspective on what constitutes a good detail job and proof of such, surely you must have some proof of your own work adhering to those standards. Modern polymer and diminishing abrasive technology has closed the gap on what the home detailer can accomplish with a DA and the proper pads in recent years........ without buying the uber expensive boutique euro detailing products. The learning curve is essentially nothing with these products provided you go through all the needed steps and have the proper equipment. The OP did.

Good job OP.....nice work. The only thing I would say left to do is get that polish/wax residue off the tailgate handle asap. The longer it stays it becomes exponentially harder to remove.

 

I've actually been wondering about how to get that residue off. Any suggestions?

 

For residue try some distilled white vinegar diluted 1:1 with water. Dip a toothbrush in it and go to town. Any that gets on paint will strip the wax so you'll have to recoat the area immediately around the handle. I've also heard of the merits of a mr. clean magic eraser for this purpose, but haven't personally tried it. For the future I've found that dressing all the black plastic with some aerospace 303 protectant before you ever get out a bottle of polish helps it to not stick to the plastic. Seems to wipe right off. Either that or you can tape it all off, but I've found the former to work well.

 

Op, you should use blue masking tape on all edges where plastic meets the paint. I use 1" tape for the moldings that's around the windows and on the edges and the 2" for covering. Also a tip. Out trucks have a a transparent film on the bottom front of the bed sides and the bottom edges of the rear doors. Use blue tape to cover the edges go over the paints just a little bit so residue doesn't het stuck in the edges of the protectors.