VX Restoration Begins!

[Grif]

Well that why I asked, I had some paint probs with trail rash but my cladding after a few go-arounds with brush looked pretty bad. Very similar to the level of scratches you had on your paint. I buffed my paint out no prob, but the cladding probs were addressed with the "Showroom New" dye very well.

[Etfren]

Great works Bart! My friend's VX had almost as bad of scratches and I was able to get most of them out polishing it by hand, but after seeing your results I'm certainly getting a good orbital buffer soon for when I do my families cars. It was way to much work to do by hand again when I know I can get it all done at once with a proper buffer.

[nfpgasmask]

Do it!!! It was so easy I damn near think about doing it on the side for a fee!!!

Bart

[RickOKC]

Great works Bart! My friend's VX had almost as bad of scratches and I was able to get most of them out polishing it by hand, but after seeing your results I'm certainly getting a good orbital buffer soon for when I do my families cars. It was way to much work to do by hand again when I know I can get it all done at once with a proper buffer.

Before you buy, check around town to see what size bonnets are being stocked. EVERY store here stocked a wide variety of 7-8" bonnets for at least a decade, then one day - as if someone flipped a switch - they all dropped that size and changed to 5-6" and 9-10" bonnets. Coincidentally, they also started selling buffers to match. Of course, if you're good at planning ahead, you can buy bonnets of any size online cheap enough that you pay less even after shipping.

That being said... I actually prefer the smaller buffers. A larger one may cover a little more area, but the smaller sizes make it so much easier to get into tight places and concave curved areas.

[PittVXr]

Dude, if you haven't already, send the before and after pics to Griot's. You deserve to be in the catalog.

I bet it feels good not to have to spend money on getting it repainted!

Oh, and for those wondering about clay bars, I think they are the most cost effective thing you can use to improve the finish on your car. You can get a kit for around $20 and you will be amazed at how much crud it sucks out of your paint. They won't remove scratches though...that's for the polish.

[Etfren]

Before you buy, check around town to see what size bonnets are being stocked. EVERY store here stocked a wide variety of 7-8" bonnets for at least a decade, then one day - as if someone flipped a switch - they all dropped that size and changed to 5-6" and 9-10" bonnets. Coincidentally, they also started selling buffers to match. Of course, if you're good at planning ahead, you can buy bonnets of any size online cheap enough that you pay less even after shipping.

That being said... I actually prefer the smaller buffers. A larger one may cover a little more area, but the smaller sizes make it so much easier to get into tight places and concave curved areas.

Yeah, we have an older buffer that is one of the larger sizes (planned to use it on the motorhome, never did) and I looked for new bonnets for it but after trying to use it on my dad's truck I decided it was way to big for automotive use. I plan on buying everything online when I do get one since I don't know of any stores around here that have that kind of specialty stuff. Looking at getting a kit like this, but haven't decided what polishing compound to go with. Pretty set on the 7424 and the CCS pads.

http://www.autopia-carcare.com/porte...uiars-kit.html

I mostly use Meguairs products right now and have heard good stuff about their 105/205 combo, but I am looking for alternatives if anyone has suggestions.

[VX KAT]

Yeah, it looks even better in person.

The clay bar is pretty amazing actually. It will make your paint feel like a new piece of glass. Griot's Garage sells this stuff called "Speed Shine" that you use with the cleaning clay. It works really well and if you decide to try a clay bar, I definitely recommend the Griot's Garage clay and the Speed Shine. It worked really well. I'd say the whole process only took me about 3-4 hours.

I just order a bunch more of their stuff including the #2 polish.

Bart

I just got my Griot's clay bar & Speed Shine today. I didn't buy any of their polishing/rubbing/etc...since I have a bunch of stuff already.

What step was right after the clay bar?

[nfpgasmask]

I just got my Griot's clay bar & Speed Shine today. I didn't buy any of their polishing/rubbing/etc...since I have a bunch of stuff already.

What step was right after the clay bar?

After I clayed everything, I did the polishing.

Bart

[MSHardeman]

My typical detailing process is:
1. Wash with Dawn (gets rid of old wax)
2. Clay bar
3. Wash to get rid of clay bar residue
4. Anti-swirl wax (slight abrasive to get rid of swirls in dark paint)
5. Wax (1st coat)
6. Wax (2nd coat)
7. Wax sealer (really locks a deep shine in)
....and that's just for the metal parts of the VX....

After all that Vicki ends up looking like an oil slick.

[VX KAT]

OMG!
I finally got around to using the Griot's Garage products that Bart used.
Oh dear Gawd this stuff is simply fantastic!

After the 3 step process, my paint actually looks different than I've EVER seen any paint before.

IF NOTHING ELSE, DO A CLAY BAR ON YOUR PAINT, IT'S THE MOST AMAZING PRODUCT WITH THE BIGGEST IMPACT, IMHO.


I put the detailed info and pics in another thread about Griot's Garage products to keep it all together.
http://www.vehicross.info/forums/sho...943#post248943
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.
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[nfpgasmask]

Yeah, it really looks amazing when you are done. I need to give my VX another treatment with the deeper polish to see if I can remove the remains of those tree scratches.

Bart