Ask the Detailer

+1 for 303

 

How often are you guys applying the 303 to your cover? I’m about to get a new cover and would also like to keep it looking black.

 

I washed the truck and reapplied every couple of months. Now that's its coated I'm not sure if I'll have to use 303 except once in a blue moon.

 

I do it about every 4-6 weeks.

 

And I just got my truck back from the bodyshop, right before I put my Lomax cover on, they repaired a dent at the bottom of the tailgate, and said no car wash for 45 days while the paint "cures"? They said I could use plain water or possibly dawn. So now I am all set to try out my new ONR from a previous post, but I am blocked They also said no high pressure commercial carwash for 45 days. Basically they said anything with wax in it. Does that match up with the collective wisdom here?

Thank you
Steve

 

It is better to wait for the cure time to expire. If anything goes wrong before the paint job cures, the shop can deny your claim because you didn't follow their directions to allow the paint to cure.

 

^^^^^^^^^^best advice you're gonna get^^^^^^^^^^

 

Any recommendations on a good detail guy in the West Columbia SC area

 

Quick question. What would you use to clean a seat like this? A quick google ‘cleaning xb12x seat’ had unrelated results.

laundry detergent and a brush too rowdy?
Dawn too rowdy?
Regular wash&wax?

my seats have always been vinyl. But this seat has a stain on the orange bit.

sorry, forgot pic:


armor all all purpose is promising, doesnt seem to be any slicker on the test side.

Waiting to see if it turns white.

 

my go to is always simple green. I soft bristle brush should help since that seat is textured. I've always lived by the philosophy of no armor all ANYWHERE on a 2 wheeler...especially the tires

 

Whatcha think about dawn?

 

Just finished up my bottle of Reset. Want to try Hydro2 Foam or Shine Supply Shine Soap. Which is best, or neither? Shine supply is half the cost... My paint has tons of scratches and such from trail so don't need perfection, currently coated in griots 3-1

 

Hydro2 Foam and Shine Supply Shine are very different products. Shine is just a soap, while Hydro2 Foam is soap and sealant in one. If you're just looking for a soap, consider Meguiars HyperWash as well. Very economical, solid soap with a high dilution ratio.

 

Ah thanks for the clarification. Looking for soap/sealant combo. Thought Shine was that.

 

No soap you try will be better than Reset, but there’s plenty of good ones. Meguair’s Gold Class is probably the best you can get off the shelf at Walmart or an auto parts store. I’ve never cared for the results from a soap/wax/sealant combo. They tend to not be good at either of the things they’re supposed to do. They also tend to be streaky.

If you want easy, just use whatever soap you like, followed by a spray and rinse sealant like Hydro2 (not the foam), Gyeon Wetcoat, or McKees Hydro Blue.
That said, you have Griots 3-1 on your truck. Is there a reason you want a different sealant?

 

P&S Carpet Bomber works great. Like @Ckatz53 said though, it’s one of many that do the job. There’s not a huge difference in most interior/carpet products in my experience. Folex can be had at Walmart etc, Shine Supply has a good one also.
On the seats, I’d try a manual brush and extractor before resorting to drill brushes. They’re great for carpet, but I’d worry they’d be too rough on the seats. I’ve had great success with Folex and the same Bissell machine you have.

 

Agree on all points. I’d say no Armor All on anything though.

 

No, not specifically. After posting that I did some more research. Going to stick with Griots 3-1, and use a soap only soap. Was going to get the Meguirs wash, but Chemical Guys Honeydew was 30% off, so got that instead. No reason to change it up, so I won’t. Also picked up a new pressure washer since mine died last week. Finally gonna put my foam gun to real use.

 

HoneyDew is one of the better soaps that CG makes....good deal getting it 30 pct off.

 

Glad to hear. Maybe one day I’ll either be comfortable enough to polish my 11 year old paint or have the grand to get it done and ceramic coated

 

That’s a really good soap!

 

Man, if you have the time and a little extra cash spend the money on a griots polisher. If you're into the whole detailing thing that is.
Just takes time, a bunch of reading (this forum has some of the BEST detailing advice) and some tools you'll use again if ya enjoy the stuff. It's really hard to fuck anything up with a DA unless you really try to. That being said, read up on compounding and polishing, watch some videos etc. Every vehicle is different, if you have some history on the paint it helps if not, go at it by hand with a compound to see what ya get for correction. It's much harder on the body but you'll really have to do something terribly wrong by hand to destroy your paint. As far as the ceramic, I'd say ask @Ckatz53 for some pointers or go search for detailing threads on it. If your paint has chips and what not I'd not pay someone to ceramic it. Honestly they should turn it down in my opinion if it does, or at least let you know ahead of time that the chips should be fixed first. To get to the point of applying a ceramic I'd say that MF'er needs to be as perfect as you want before you lock all the defects in for a while. Someone on here swears by 3-in-1, and makes sense depending on truck condition.

 

X2 on Griots 3 in 1, and X100 looking to Ckatz53 for advice....he's the man

 

@Ckatz53 I removed the “TRD” sticker from the bed of my 2020… process to remove the haze left over? I hit the label with a torch then removed it slowly… it didn’t rip at all, then hit the left over residue with goo b gone… just some slight haze and outline of where the old sticker was… thanks
Chris

 

Is the paint hazy or is it residue sitting on top? 3M eraser wheel got all my residue off easy when I peeled mine.

 

No residue left over… feels smooth to the touch. Kinda like some lingering shadows and a minor outline of where the sticker was… I was gonna throw some polish on the Random orb and thinking that will likely get it done….

 

Haven't had my truck in over 6 weeks so I decided to try detailing my wife's car for the first time. I've hand waxed vehicles before but never used a machine. I think it came out good but definitely have room to improve. Did a wash, swirl remover, wax. I need to do something about the water marks on the glass that just won't go away.

 

Barkeeper’s Friend (liquid version) is great for removing water spots on glass. You can find it at Walmart. Just make sure to keep it off your paint.

 

any thoughts on the toyota touch up pen for Barcelona red? Does it match well with the factory color? I got a thumb length scratch on it over the weekend ;-(

 

Also interested in results of anyone that has tried a touch up pen. I've heard they can be disappointing. I think most of that is from one paint being newer and the older being beat by they sun etc.