Pure Gem Detailing Before and After Photos

Didn't do my normal photo shoot with this one. It really wasn't bad in terms of correction, but did need a polish. Bigger correction job for tomorrow with lots of pics to come....





 
I wish I lived close to you so I could have you polish my Envoy and Maxima. I just bought the 2010 Maxima and they were suppose to do a 3 step clean, polish and seal. It only looks a little shinier and really any cleaner. I think I got hosed on that deal. The paint color is Crimson Black, looks black in the shade and at night but looks burgundy metallic in direct sunlight. I love the paint color and I can only imagine what it would look like being cleaned professionally.

I love seeing your before and after comparison shots, you do awesome work :thumbsup: wish I could find someone here to do mine properly....
 
This car was an absolute pleasure to do. I love the color and car itself is just flat out sexy. I was able to remove 90-95% of the swirls, but some "RIDS" remain. Since the car is a daily driver and is not garage kept it's not a good idea to go hitting it hard with the compound with future details in mind. Most of the car was done with some menz PF on an orange flat, but the hood, roof and trunk needed some menz SIP on a yellow flat pad. I sealed it up with some menz PL and topped it off with some FUZION!!!





















 
That blue was beautiful before .. . but absolutely stunning after the detail. Good job
 
Nice work man!

I heard that BMW puts some sort of sealant on their leather so if you try to use leather conditioner it just makes the seats all oily because it isn't absorbed. What'd you do or have you heard of this?

Also, is it not necessary to tape? I read some tutorials where guys did that, but I polished for the first time today and it doesn't sling at all so it seemed like a waste of time. Not sure if I will tape next time.

Last, do you ever treat the trim or weatherstripping with anything?
 
xtitan1 said:
Nice work man!

I heard that BMW puts some sort of sealant on their leather so if you try to use leather conditioner it just makes the seats all oily because it isn't absorbed. What'd you do or have you heard of this?

Also, is it not necessary to tape? I read some tutorials where guys did that, but I polished for the first time today and it doesn't sling at all so it seemed like a waste of time. Not sure if I will tape next time.

Last, do you ever treat the trim or weatherstripping with anything?
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Can’t say I noticed the seats being oily after I applied my leather conditioner. I use wolfgang leather conditioner and it’s not greasy to begin with.
With regards to using masking tape…I don’t mask because of what could be tossed off the pad when in use. I mask so that when I’m getting close to the edges I don’t have to worry about ANYTHING getting onto the weather stripping. When in doubt tape it out! Using proper technique by putting the pad to the paint on a low setting just to spread the polish around then go into a higher speed you should never sling polish around.
 
ChriSS K said:
Can’t say I noticed the seats being oily after I applied my leather conditioner. I use wolfgang leather conditioner and it’s not greasy to begin with.
With regards to using masking tape…I don’t mask because of what could be tossed off the pad when in use. I mask so that when I’m getting close to the edges I don’t have to worry about ANYTHING getting onto the weather stripping. When in doubt tape it out! Using proper technique by putting the pad to the paint on a low setting just to spread the polish around then go into a higher speed you should never sling polish around.
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Roger that! I taped mine but I didn't do it well so some weatherstripping got hit with polish and some paint got missed so there's a white line in some places right on the paint. Then of course I ran out of tape (2 rolls). Guess I just need more practice!
 
xtitan1 said:
Roger that! I taped mine but I didn't do it well so some weatherstripping got hit with polish and some paint got missed so there's a white line in some places right on the paint. Then of course I ran out of tape (2 rolls). Guess I just need more practice!
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You'll find with every detail you do you'll get better everytime. You'll see ways to do things better and faster just always keep proper technique, research and ask questions and you'll be fine. More importantly you have to like what you're doing...
 
This was a fun little car that was done rather quickly vs most jobs I get. I love how well Iron X works. It made quick work of these wheels, although I did have to hit them 3 times. The rest of the car was done with mez PF, PL and a quick topper of optimum spray wax. The trim was dressed with ultima trim guard.









 
Man was it a nasty day to detail. The humidity was so bad that it killed the work time of the menzerna. Due to the color I had to step up to the SIP on an orange pad. Overall I got a lot of swirls out of the paint. Thanks for looking.














 
dmanns67 said:
Fantastic work sir :thumbsup: Looks like it just rolled out of the assembly plant :yes:
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Thanks man. The customer of this car is picking this one up and dropping off their Bimmer tomorrow so its another double weekend for me.
 
I do not blame them. If I lived closer I would be bringing you my TB and the wife's F-150 for sure!
 
Think I lost 10lbs in sweat today on this one. I didn't take as many pics as I normally do because of time. The wheels on this car took far longer than I wanted to spend on them, but the results were worth it. Did a quick little headlight restore while I was at it. Again another good shot of iron X at its best. I feel this stuff is nothing short of sorcery! Car was happy with some menzerna SIP on a yellow LC flat. Thanks for looking











 
god that red was dull, nice restore! :thumbsup:
 
Aother long day on this one. Up tomorrow is a neat color ford fusion. Really think she's gonna love the camera! Thanks for looking!












 
I'm sorry that my pictures don't "reflect" the difference that you would see in person. The car has an interesting color thats tuff for before and after shots. I still tried my best to show...you can at least see how much contamination was in the paint with the iron X.






 
I didn't take a ton of before and afters here so I think the hood shot tells it all. The whole car was pretty much like this... Customer requested a full interior. Thanks for looking!









 
tbuckalew14 said:
yup. Looks good. Just noticed you're right around the corner from me.
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Ah yes, indeed you are.
 
Might not be able to tell, but this car's paint was in pretty bad shape up close. I didn't have a lot of time for a photo shoot with this one.





 
Love this color blue! She took nice to my menzern power finish on a yellow LC flat pad. I had to step up to th menzerna SIP for the door scratches.





 
Had the pleasure of doing this sexy boss today! I started with a two bucket wash method followed by some menzerna power finish on a lake country orange. The car was sealed with power lock and topped off with some wolfgang fuzion. I took my normal pictures and then had some fun with the camera.....


















 
Great job, the glow is much better after you got done with it!

Were the black pinstripes an issue?
 
Strips are always a pain when they are not painted on. I tape over them with a slight overhang. They are not to particular about what you use to seal them, but if you get anything that when dry turns white into the edges of the strips it will show. That FUZION wax is pricy, but I love the results and the customers do too. I don't use it on every car.
 
Man it was a cold windy day to detail! This was a daily driver thats kept outdoors all the time. When using the clay bar it felt shaving down cheese with a cheese grater...In the end we had another satisfied customer!














 
What are the general steps that you would use? How long did it take to detail the Charger?
 
mapanch said:
What are the general steps that you would use? How long did it take to detail the Charger?
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I start with giving the car a bath using what’s called the “two bucket” method with grit guards. This method helps to ensure that you don’t induce more swirls with the contaminated microfiber sponge that you just cleaned a panel with.

Next would be to clay the car. This might be the most important step. If you don’t properly decontaminate the paint than you’re wasting your time polishing since you’ll just be introducing swirls into the paint.

Then you would have to determine the condition of the paint to choose your course of action. Does it just need to be polished? Waxed? You might have to use a compound first followed by a polish. You always want to take the least aggressive approach first to help prolong the life of your clear coat. Anytime you polish/compound you essentially remove the slightest bit of clear. There many different types of polishers and pads out there. I own both a flex DA and portal cable DA. I also use Lake Country pads. With regards to the pads they come in different colors with represent their aggressiveness. Some are used for polishing and others for heavy cutting.

Lastly, anytime you “cut” into the clear it’s very important to protect your newly exposed clear. Here you can use your favorite wax or synthetic sealer. I’m a fan of menzerna products. They make an excellent sealer called menzerna power lock. I’ve witnessed water still beading up on the paint 5-6 months after application.

With regards to this car I used menzera power finish polish with an orange lake country pad on my flex polisher. Then it was sealed with menzerna power lock. Total time was 8 hours. Hope this helps.
 
Dude that clay bar lol, it looks like you were rubbing it on a sidewalk or something... the paint actually scratched it!?
 
good work as always chris that blue is just a dull color choice.:puke:
 
Btw Chris do you have the LC backing plate for the Flex? Mine shattered recently and I'm wondering if that's a known problem.
 
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