I am always glad to hear guys taking care of their trucks. Running a professional shop, I see the most neglected finishes in the world. The truthful answer is 4 times a year. Once in the spring, once at the begininng of summer, once at the end of summer, and once before winter. If you have black, another application may be necassary during the summer. When you park in the hot sun, then hit the road doing 60-70MPH the way on your hood, roof and trunk had liquified and rolls right off the car. THis is why you see many cars with paint problems only on the hood, roof and trunk.

 

Leaf blower, huh? Gotta try that.

 

I geuss I am a little 'old school'. I still dry with a chamois. After it's dry, I usually go over it one more time with some detail spray and a micro-fiber towel.

As for waxing, I am right there with 98Navi, about every three months. Although I usually go a little longer between the last wax in the fall and the first one in the spring. No garage, and I am too old to be out there trying to wax when it's 30 degrees out! A nice warm water rinse every week or too during the winter is as far as I can go. Gotta get rid of the salt.

 

I would wax when water no longer beads up on the hood. That works out to about every 6 months if you use a high quality wax such as Meguirs.

 

Hmmm,

Weekly , can be a good way to burn off some stress / get some fresh air..

 

You have a problem...no doubt.

First off...any carnuba wax you use won't last more than a week under the conditions your truck is facing. Carnuba will just melt off the finish....Your best bet is a polymer finish.

First the surface must be cleaned...then use a clay bar.

Apply the polymer per instructions.

DO NOT: Use paper towels anywhere...they will scratch clear coat paint and glass.

Use a CA duster...get more than one...DO NOT use the same duster on the body that you do the wheels.

DO NOT: use any wax containing silicone...or you can kiss your clear coat good bye. NEVER spray silicone on painted surfaces.

I'm a nut on detailing...my truck is Red....but as I'm retired, it's also a garage queen.

Good Luck

 

I have actually never used clay...on any vehicle I have owned. I just got the new 07, so do I need to do it yet? Its been really wet down here so the flying dust isnt a prob so much..but the mud puddles are...

I know nothing about washing to be honest. I used to use dishwashing soap to clean my truck. But I mainly go to the carwash now. I do clean it once a week, but I think my process is a little off.

can anyone reccommend..

1) a good car wash soap
2) clay...I know nothing about it
3) wax, as far as wax gooes im not too clear on the diff types of waxes...whats the polymer finish do? I need long protection 1st..looks are second
4) if not paper towels, whats the best way to clean the windows?

one more side question...i hear ppl talking about washing with a 2 bucket method. Whats that about? I have always just used one bucket

 

Just put a couple coats of Collinite 476 or 885 Paste or 845 Insulator wax, should get you 4-5 months of protection easy.

 

Read the posts by RockPick, as he is very knowledgeable and is the Guru here...This place has alot of Great Meguairs stuff:
http://www.autodetailingsolutions.com/

 

You need a clay bar the first time the truck sits out for an hour....go to your local Auto Zone or whatever...both Mothers and Meguires sell a clay bar kit...it's easy to use....and you won't believe how smooth the finish turns out. One thing you shouldn't do is use a clay bar in the sun, as it will leave streaks of clay on the finish...it won't hurt..but can be a PITA to remove.

Cleaning windows: NO PAPER TOWELS! paper towels are made of recycled material...and may contain bits of metal. Years ago, I used the D things on my wife's new '99 Avalon...and had to replace the w'shield as a result.

Invisible Glass is what I use, followed by a cotton t-shirt. After about a week...spots of pollution will appear (in your case...about a day). I use a clay bar/Invisible Glass to remove the fallout.

Whatever you use to wipe off the finish....turn the cloth over after using it once...otherwise you're rubbing the same stuff you just removed..back in the finish.

You'll have a tough time keeping a RED truck clean...if I were you...I'd buy a boring White truck and just wash it!

Yeah...I'm a newbie...here...but I've been detailing for over 50 years. I have a Rose Beige '63 XL...paint is original...thin...but it still looks good after 43 years.

 

Here's a pic of our Expy, it has:

Poorboys EX-P Sealant 1 Coat
Collinite 476S Doublecoat wax 2 Coats
Topped with Finish Kare 425, extra shine / anti static.

Just applied about a month ago, so far 4 washes / 3 Snowstorms:
Sorry, it's Boring White, still alot of work to keep clean........

 

NICE!! Good job....

 

Clay is a very effective way of removing BONDED contamination. Depending on your environment, you may or may not have a significant amount on your paint. When I refer to 'bonded', this is the type of stuff that DOES NOT wash off with your average wash.

Here's a quick test... take your CLEAN and DRY hand and run it very gently across your CLEAN and DRY paint. Feel any 'bumps'? Get down there and look very closely at your paint. See that little spec that you just identified with your hand? That's bonded contamination.

It may be industrial fallout, paint over spray, rail dust or a host of other contamination. Any which way, clay is typically the way to remove it (there are other options but they're a bit more along the professional line (acid stripping and such)).

It's a VERY simple process and, as ex mentioned, several manufacs make a kit that contains everything that you need to make it happen. Follow the directions to the 'T' and if you have any questions, feel free to ask!

Have an hour or three to listen to me talk about the wash process? No? Me neither.

Washing is THE most important portion of any paint maintenance in my opinion. Good washing technique and such can yield great results that doesn't cause marring and minimizes swirling and such. Today's modern catalyzed clear coated paint finishes are very durable but are still no match for a grain of sand or similar.

So, that in mind, let's start with the soap. Dump the dish washing soap and the soap at the car wash. The unfortunate fact is that dish washing detergents WILL strip any protection (wax) on the vehicle and car wash soaps are typically VERY caustic and can thus do the same stripping.

Go with a mild wash shampoo like Meguiar's Gold Class or Mother's Wash. Don't skimp here because you want high lubrication and high-sudsing action for lubrication across the paint.

<CONTINUED IN NEXT POST!>

 

Mitts/sponges -- average Joe-Blow stuff works here but, in my opinion, offers more of an opportunity for marring and/or swirling. In short, don't skimp here. Get a very nice 100% cotton or 100% lambswool mitt.

Two bucket method -- It's very simple. You use one bucket for a wash solution and one bucket for simple plain water. Wash a body panel, rinse your mitt in the rinse bucket, repeat, then go to the wash bucket and do it again. Make sense? By doing this, you effectively remove a vast amount of the 'gunk' that your mitt picked up off of that body panel and you leave it in the first bucket. You then go back to your paint with a "fresh" mitt of wash solution without the worry of gunk being spread around on your paint and causing the marring and swirling that I've mentioned so many times. In each bucket, I like to use what is known as a 'Grit Guard'. This is a simple plastic device that seats in the bottom of each of your buckets and prevents any thing being tossed into the bucket (like mitts) from making it to the bottom where the heavier 'grit' will dwell.

Technique -- top to bottom. Dedicated sponges for anything below the middle of the door line (or second color if it's a two-tone). Dedicated sponges/mitts for the wheels. Grungy areas like fender flare lips, wheels etc are LAST (no exceptions). Don't use the same wash water on your painted surfaces. Change the water often if it's looking grungy or murky. Water's cheap -- full details on your paint with your time and products are not cheap.

Common sense -- if you drop a mitt on the ground, you need to thoroughly decontaminate it as it could've picked up some grit / sand. Consider tossing it and using a new one. Storage of your products is also important. Rinse them frequently while using them. Use a lot of common sense...

1. Meguiar's Gold Class, Meguiar's NXT, Mother's California Gold. As far as commonly available products, I'd go with Meg's Gold Class. $12 for a gallon at Target... it's a great deal. Be sure to mix the correct dilutions as shown on the bottle.

2. Clay -- see above. Meguiar's Smooth Surface Clay Kit or Meguiar's Quik Clay Kit. Mothers also makes a good kit. As does Clay Magic. I've really never found a kit that is better than another. They're all good IMO. Do it on a cool paint surface -- no sun as Ex mentioned.

3. Long lasting protection -- your best bet is the Zaino system. It's a boatload of work but, it's also the best on the market from a protection standpoint IMO. A second product would be Meguiar's NXT or Mother's Synwax. A third product would be Meguiar's #21 Syn Sealant

All of those products are SYNTHETIC products. Generally, a rule of thumb is that synthetics will outlast natural wax-based products. I've found this to be true with no exceptions. Two very very thin coats of the Meg's or Mother's products. Zaino is a system of one coat this, two coats that, one spray this, two squirts that. If you want more info on Zaino, just ask. It's just quite involved but, again, is high-protection.

4. I prefer lint-free microfiber towels. Microfiber towels should be a part of your detailing arsenal to keep it in top notch condition. You get what you pay for in towels so, ask if you're not sure here. The link that was provided earlier to ADS is a good resource for most of what we've mentioned here.
one more side question...

Already handled that one...

This definitely isn't an all-encompassing glimpse into detailing. Far from it. Comfort levels will vary on what you feel you can or can't do. So, if you don't feel like you can do it, consult a professional detailer. Also, please feel free to email me if you have questions. The main thing to remember is the COMMON SENSE statement. If it seems strange or your tool wasn't designed for what you're using it for (ie: dish washing soap as a soap for your vehicle) then it may not be the best bet.

Feel free to ask questions! G'luck! We're your support group if you need anything! HAHA!

RP

 

Thank you RockPick! Explains a lot, I plan on detailing my truck tommorow morning, weather permiting and see how it turns out. I picked up meguiar's NXT car wash, NXT wax, and wheel cleaner. As well as cotton or micro-fiber clothes for the washing, applicator pads for the wax, and for the windows. Which I will be using invisible glass. This is just a start for me, ill see how it turns out...got to be better than the prior. Thanks again, and to all the input from everyone to try and help me keep my new truck looking 'New'.