Ask the Detailer

I second this. I have the same issue on my box sides from time to time. I do not see it by my mirror. I used Mother's back to black on bed caps and I'm pretty sure that's where it's coming from.

 

Yes that’s the one. Smells like ass but hands down the best.

 

It is. If you do a real coating on the trim it almost eliminates it. Even with my truck having a true coating on the paint with tons of stuff on top of it I still had issues. Switch to cerakote trim and it won’t be such an issue

 

Lake Country are very good pads....I just get confused because their selection is so extensive. For simplicity's sake, most of my pads are Griots BOSS pads. The thinner pads are easier to keep rotating......and the system is straightforward....red/grey are finishing pads, yellow is polishing, orange is light cutting, white is heavy cutting

 

Thanks. Autozone has a pretty good line up. Ill stop by there tomorrow and see what they have.

 

Had a breakthrough tonight. Was watching a video of a guy testing a Ryobi polisher and learned what a paint correction is. One of these days I’m gonna understand what I’m reading!

 

BTW, the pads that come with the Griots G9 in the kit from Auto Zone suck up compound. And they suck IMO. I'd second what he's saying. Lake country is pretty good to start with and you can pick and choose a kit with the G9 on autogeek.

 

Think of it this way. Paint on a panel/car should be very reflective. Almost like glass or a mirror. Each time something touches it, either your hand, a carwash with brushes, a fucking bush that your neighbor let's hang over the street too far without being trimmed because they planted it or some dickstick that works at Mister carwash for 8 bucks an hour, all scratches the car. Either very noticeable or not so much in because it can be so small in the case of the tunnel wash. All the shit that's on your paint before it's touched is pushed around like sand paper with all the "touching". These tiny little scratches can dull or cloud the reflectivity when the sun or a nice bright light hit the paint.
Correcting that is essentially removing all of that shit stuck.on the paint and then making it soooo small with different steps that light doesn't make it as noticable if at all to the untrained eye.

 

For what it's worth, the pads that come with the Autozone kit are the regular Griots pads. They are thicker than the BOSS line, and they are 6.5 inch pads. I always recommend people swap out the original backing plate to the 5 inch backing plate. With the G9 being a free spinning DA, it's easier to maintain pad rotation with the smaller thinner pads. I think the Autozone kit comes with one orange light cutting pad, so I'm guessing you used more than one when applying compound to your vehicle? All foam pads will saturate with product...one reason you need multiple of each type depending on what you're doing.

Just out of curiosity, what did you not like about the Griots pads, aside from the fact that they saturated with product? I've always found them to be on the less aggressive side when compared to similar categories of other brands.

 

I've only been at this 'hobby' for about 5 years.....I spend a lot of time watching other detailers videos to learn about products and processes. When I got my first DA, I practiced on my lawn tractor. I had the shiniest lawn tractor in the neighborhood. I'm guessing you may have watched FAB automotive detailing...he recently did a review on the Ryobi.

Paint correction basically involves removing clearcoat, so as to flatten the surface to improve the way light reflects off of it. There are so many variables it is mind-boggling.

 

Lake Country HDO pads are my go to currently.

 

I bought a kit from autogeek, later last year towards the end of December my buddy bought the Autozone one. Up until that point I hadn't used the Griots pad that came with it. I had only used the lake country foam pads and a meguiars fast finishing pad. Until one weekend he was giving it a whirl on his wifes car so I jumped in to help and give him some more pads to use. When I tried his DA it just seemed that it just took more compound into the pad than the lake country foam.

I had switched to the 5" inch backing plate a while back and it is much different than his 6 on the same machine next to me.

Yes, more than one pad.

I think the Griot's orange is less aggressive than the Lake country orange and I believe they'd fall in same category "light cutting".

 

It almost seems like Griots does this by design. Their detailing clay is not very aggressive at all....possibly the least aggressive of all the clays that I've tried. I keep 3M Perfect-it on the shelf for that very reason.

 

Maybe...maybe it's to make things a little more safe for people just trying their hand at it?

I have a bottle of the perfect it compound and ultra fine polish they've seemed to work well for me in what I've corrected. I've played with around with some of the griots compounds. I believe the perfect it cuts more in my use. I'm actually trying to decide on a new AIO to try out as I haven't used one yet. I just don't want to be disappointed in the money I spend on it. Any recco's?

 

Thanks for the Autogeek link fellas...Thats one hellava rabbit hole.

 

I suspect you're on to something with the Griots products.

I've tried several AIOs......3D Speed, Meguiars D166, McKees 360, Blackfire AIO, and more recently, Rupes Uno Protect. I don't count on them for correction/cutting, even though I know all of them will to some degree. I've settled on Rupes Uno Protect. I evaluated them all on cut, protection, slickness, gloss and ease of use. It did not come in first in every category, but did the best overall. Speed was the slickest of them all, btw. I've got some of each still on the shelf....if you want to try any of them (except the Rupes - only bought an 8oz bottle), shoot me a PM with your address and I'll ship some 4oz samples for you to try.

 

Sorry gH is what it said. Website is recondetail.com here's the package I was looking at thats $1000 for clay and ceramic and $2000 if paint correction is needed.

 

Confused yet?

 

Just so you know...that's actually 9H......which is a measure of hardness (Mohs scale)

 

Completely and thoroughly

 

It's a deep deep hole. You kind of have to sort through the b.s. and form your own conclusions depending on what you watch on youtube. IMO larry from Ammo NYC explains what you're needing to understand the best. The videos can be very long at times and there are some pdfs on his site. He's good just super through and scientific I guess.

 

Good to know, so does this service warrant the price he's asking for?

 

Looking at his website, and what he is offering, his prices are pretty comparable with what I've seen. It is a huge investment, and coatings need to be maintained. Ceramic Pro 9H comes with a lifetime warranty......but as with all warranties, read the fine print and make sure you do what you need to so it remains in effect. That detailer has some pretty high end stuff that he has worked on, so I'm not shocked by the numbers. I'd make certain he takes a fair amount of time with you, fully explains the process and what you're getting for your money.

 

https://youtu.be/uYxKQwZah1s

After watching this I bought the turtle wax hybrid spray. Very impressed with the results compared to the usual carnauba wax I use.

 

Yeah he's one of the top companies around. The owner actually has a truck and does jobs just like the rest of them. I have another detailer who says he can do paint correction and ceramic for around $350-$400 but now I'm thinking that's too low and he might not do a good job.

 

I'd be a little wary of someone who charges that low for such a comprehensive package. I'd ask him about what coating he's using, and how long it is warranted for. I'm not saying he is not good....but I'd like to see some of his work and be able to reach out to some references. I do it as a side hustle, which is why my prices are so low.

 

Yeah I've been watching him. Here my biggest reason for going down this road. The clear on the cab is toast. Tons of stains and discoloration.

 

That Hybrid Solutions line has gotten some very good reviews. I recently bought their Ceramic Polish and Wax......will be trying that out shortly....if winter ever decides to completely leave us

 

Larry Kosilla is a good guy to watch.....he gets a little long-winded at times.....but he definitely knows his stuff. Your clearcoat may not be beyond help...surface staining can be dealt with

 

Here is his site. Seems legit but ill talk to him Monday. https://www.tucsonmobiledetailing.c...LVvarrhRF4NXF4oTWhH-Be_c8Zyf2a-hoCSBYQAvD_BwE