So, after seeing the shine some of you guys are achieving with machine polishers, I quite fancy getting one myself .

I reckon keeping your car clean and shiny is probably the best way to keep it looking smart.

I'd be after a budget one realistically but I know nothing about them at all.

What would you recommend/are currently using on your cars?

Cheers
Jacob

Do you thoroughly clean your car already?
You need to take necessary steps before you machine polish the car.
You can't just wash it and then get a machine polisher on it, you'll cause more damage than good!

Just as an example of what I sent to gadge the other day when he asked me a similar question.

Ill link you to a good starting kit

http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/polis...pro-meguiars-chemical-guys-kit/prod_1212.html

It is a little steeply priced but its a good piece of kit.

I also suggest you have a thorough read of the following...

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=4637

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=63859

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=281047

You need fair bit of washing kit as well to get the paint as clean as possible before you machine polish.

Heres a list of everything i use, which can be had from

www.cleanyourcar.co.uk

Pre-wash - Valetpro Citrus Wash

Shampoo - Chemical Guys Maxi Suds 2 & Chemical Guys Citrus Wash and Gloss

Wheel cleaner - Chemical Guys Diablo Wheel Gel (diluted 5:1) & Sonax Full Effect Wheel Cleaner

Iron contamination remover - Iron-x

Tar remover - White spirit (you may want to get a dedicated tar remover for luigi as its single stage paint)

Clay bar - Bilt Hamber Medium (Using water a lubrication)

Polish (by hand) - Autoglym SRP.

Polish (by machine) - Scholl polishes (the meguiars polishes and pads in the link i posted will be more than suitable)

Wax - Autoglym HD wax, Autofinesse Desire, Finishkare Pink wax and Finishkare 1000p

Sealants - I dont really use but I have Gtechniq c2v3 which is a sort of sealant come quick detailer

Quick detailers - Finishkare #425 ultra slick & Sonax brilliant shine quick detailer

Tyre and trim gel - Gtechniq T1

Universal cleaner - Gtechniq W2

You'll also need plenty of microfibre cloths, plush buffing cloths, wash mitts, drying towels and wax applicators.
Empty spray bottles and a pressure sprayer for the pre wash

The exact order that I follow with my car is this... (when doing a in depth clean)

Pre-wash (leave to soak approx 5mins)
Pressure wash wheels and body
Clean wheels
Pressure wash wheels and body
Clean the car using the 2BM
Pressure wash
Partially dry car (not fully)
Spray entire car with iron-x, leave to react for approx 5 mins again (dont let it dry)
Pressure wash off
Partially dry again
Spray tar remover on the car and let it soak for about a minute then wipe the tar spots off with a cloth
Throughly pressure wash the car
Clay the car
Re-wash the car to get rid of the clay residue
Pressure wash
Fully dry the car
Polish (by hand or machine)
Wax
Dress tyres and trim
Clean windows.

Et voila, many hours and one beautiful car!

Ive probably managed to put you off doing it now!

Wow, excellent information thanks mate.

I pretty much do all the above already minus clay bar and pressure washing (just use a garden hose).

And then hand polish and then hand wax so yeah it gets a pretty good shine, just looking for a really deep, reflective shine tbh.

Price wise that's what I expected really.

Do you think I could achieve that deep reflective shine by hand, all be it with a lot more effort than machine polishing? I don't mind spending time/effort cleaning a car. I enjoy looking at it anyway

I come from the world of car dealerships....... "Is that panel a bit rough and scratched? Where's the mop" that's pretty much how it works and with the right compounds and a little time you can get some very good results.

With my current grande which has horrific paint the process involves wet sanding by hand the worst of the scratches and bird poo marks, then a very harsh, high grit compound on hard pads. to quickly cut through the top layers of paint, this leaves it looking like it's been washed with a scouring pad,

Then a much milder compound on a softer pad lots of water and time to restore the shine and get the deep finish.

The main problem especially if using this process for the first time, is not burning through the paint which is easily done, and irreparable.

If you already have a fairly high level finish then it may well only need to be gone over lightly

It was a very VERY helpful link that Sweex sent me and anyone thinking of investing in a machine polisher (like I am) you should read and watch everything there as every you thing you need to know is there

See, this is what i hate.
Body shops can just go through pads like butter because the paint isnt clean.
Its all good and well that you wet sand and get rid of most of the contamination in the paint but you're still going to be polishing dirt into the paint.

You can generally avoid wet sanding using the correct processes, not what dealerships do.
I cant stand dealers and bodyshops when they 'mop' the paintwork its awful and you are generally left with horrific buffer trails.

Garden hose will be fine, add the clay bar in youll get more depth to the paint.

You could achieve a good finish by hand but you will sacrifice many more hours and have a horrible aching body after.
Machine polishing is labourous but polishing to get a high gloss swirl free finish by hand is even worse.

Just so everyone is aware, it really boils my **** when people use the term 'mop' you just know its going to mean.
'let me just remove x amount of microns of paint for no reason and leave a really terrible finish as well.'

Fiat paint is very soft and thin if you use harsh compounds and pads youre bound to do damage.

There's nothing wrong with my paint, it's in pretty damn good nick to be fair, just after that shine

After exams are done I think ill spend the best part of a day hand polishing/waxing it and see how it goes before investing.

How long do you guys reckon a wax would last before having to reapply or do you reapply everytime the cars washed?

Sweex said:

Just so everyone is aware, it really boils my **** when people use the term 'mop' you just know its going to mean.
'let me just remove x amount of microns of paint for no reason and leave a really terrible finish as well.'

Fiat paint is very soft and thin if you use harsh compounds and pads youre bound to do damage.

Click to expand...

Given the unnecessarily offensive nature of at response I will endeavour to use the word 'MOP' as much as possible, this is after all what the machine is called in every dealership and body shop in the country.

In addition to this I've been 'mopping' cars for many years now and was trained by an autosmart specialist, so I do know what I'm doing, I don't leave swirl marks or buffer trails, it might be an Idea to have a little more thought and respect for people before you start shouting the odds

Jacob said:

There's nothing wrong with my paint, it's in pretty damn good nick to be fair, just after that shine

After exams are done I think ill spend the best part of a day hand polishing/waxing it and see how it goes before investing.

How long do you guys reckon a wax would last before having to reapply or do you reapply everytime the cars washed?

Click to expand...

If your paint is very good then machine polishing most likely isn't necessary, I wax mine a couple of times a year and it lasts well, maybe 2-3 months the length of time the wax lasts will depend on the wax you use

Excellent, any suggestions for good wax? I have some budget simomiz stuff atm which does the job for cheap and cheerful

I have a trade Autoglym wax (liquid hard wax) I hear their HD wax kit is very good (about £35) and autosmart have a very nice wax called carnauba gold which can be bought cheaply (about £12?) lots of other I'm sure people will give you their suggestions

AndyRKett said:

Given the unnecessarily offensive nature of at response I will endeavour to use the word 'MOP' as much as possible, this is after all what the machine is called in every dealership and body shop in the country.

In addition to this I've been 'mopping' cars for many years now and was trained by an autosmart specialist, so I do know what I'm doing, I don't leave swirl marks or buffer trails, it might be an Idea to have a little more thought and respect for people before you start shouting the odds

Click to expand...

Given that you've been trained by an autosmart specialist I will make the assumption that you are a novice at detailing, the difference between bodyshop standard and detailing standard are 2 different worlds.

Also, autosmart are valeters. There is a distinctive difference.

Do you have proof that you dont leave buffer trails? If you dont then you are one of very few people that work for dealers and bodyshops that can.
I have seen horrific work carried out by dealers and bodyshops.
A lot of finishing polishes are heavy in oils so hide the buffer trails and light marks until its been washed a few times.

My anger was not aimed at you but at the majority of the bodyshops and dealers around the UK.

As I am sure you are aware 85% of the shine is created by the prep mate! I have bought some very expensive waxes tbh but my fav's are Collinite 915 and Juicy Details wax. I also use poorboys products also together with carbon collective products the all seem to work very well for me but my best tool is my Meguiars G220 V2 together with some awesome hex pads.

If I can be of any further help let me know!

Regards
Stephen

Aint Detailers just over trumped up valeters who love the idea of stealing a Americanism :devil:



Like any trade you get a good electrician or a bad electrician


IIRC MOP = Machine operated polisher / polish


Its not such a black art i self taught starting with a DA then onto a Makita rotary



Oh and between tar remover and clay i would rewash the car with a water soluble degreaser especially if using white spirit and ensure all door shuts and crevices are clean such as light clusters and recessed trim bits dont want capillary action drawing out hidden grit mid MOPing :devil:.....


https://www.fiatforum.com/car-care/182419-started-machine-polish-gp.html

https://www.fiatforum.com/car-care/328720-bit-experiment-long-term-car-protection.html

https://www.fiatforum.com/car-care/328720-bit-experiment-long-term-car-protection.html

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=236423



As for buffer trails thats what a solvent / ipa / eraser wipe down is for to see if you've done enough

Andy Monty said:

As for buffer trails thats what a solvent / ipa / eraser wipe down is for to see if you've done enough

Click to expand...

After MOPing I use plenty of panel wipe before applying a final polish by hand, the last thing I want is any left over grit from dried compound finding its way into the polish or wax.

that way I can see if there are any areas that need any further attention before any wax is applied.

SJB1985 I think your car has to be the shiniest gp on here, that's the sort of shine I'd love but having read your thread it seems you've spent a small fortune on cleaning/polishing product and I couldn't afford all that haha.

How much are the collinite and juicy details waxes roughly?

Jacob said:

SJB1985 I think your car has to be the shiniest gp on here, that's the sort of shine I'd love but having read your thread it seems you've spent a small fortune on cleaning/polishing product and I couldn't afford all that haha.

How much are the collinite and juicy details waxes roughly?

Click to expand...

Thanks very much mate for the kind words, you would be looking at around £30.00 for 200grams for those waxes mate. I must admit I have spent an awful lot on my GP but I love it and 'winston' is going to be with me a long time lol. I would say start of with a good deep cleaning, claying, ironx etc good snow foam, shampoo etc get the basics right and the will fall into place mate but me like others on here are quite ocd when it comes to detailing

http://www.elitecarcare.co.uk/collinite-marque-delegance-no-915.php

Is good stuff however in some conditions can be a sod to buff off

Slightly cheaper and better for lighter coloured cars

http://www.elitecarcare.co.uk/collinite-super-double-coat-auto-wax-no-476s-9oz.php?cPath=66
There are some good liquid Waxes too eg


http://www.elitecarcare.co.uk/bilt-hamber-hydra-wax-enhanced-carnauba-liquid-wax.php

http://www.elitecarcare.co.uk/collinite-liquid-insulator-wax-no-845.php