| burnside |
I've read the posts about the swirls on the Black MDX (which I have) but was wondering if someone can point me in the right direction about the steps needed to take place.
1. Do I buy from Zaino and what do I buy?
2. For rags and towels, what do I buy and where can I buy them? |
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| ryan87500 |
I just ordered from http://www.hcvind.com/ he has both the DF towels that Zaino recommends and some microfiber towels. He was quick to answer all my questions and send out my order. I am supposed to receive the order today so I can let you know tonight if everything arrives as expected. The nice thing about ordering from him is that you have one flat shipping costs for your towels and zaino instead of ordering from two different places.
Hope that helps. |
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| burnside |
| Awesome. Which Zaino products do you use on your car? What are your steps to washing your car beginning to end? Sorry for all the questions, but I just want to do this right the first time and have a good routine. |
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| ryan87500 |
quote:
Originally posted by burnside
Awesome. Which Zaino products do you use on your car? What are your steps to washing your car beginning to end? Sorry for all the questions, but I just want to do this right the first time and have a good routine.
I actually have never used Zaino before, so I can't help you to much. Read this forum and http://www.autopia.org/forum/ to learn more about the products and how to use them. Also on Zainos website they have a good description on how to use the products etc. I personally ordered the ZKit-2, I figured that should include just about everything I need, and I also got some DF towels and the micro weave drying towels. |
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| Heat00 |
I have a thread with the same questions.
I was going to buy this Zaino stuff but I'm not interested in 125 coats lol.
I did find a bottle of Meguirs Scratch X and I tried on a small portion in the back and it did remove the swirls/scratches/spider webs (whatever you call em).
I plan on using it on the whole car this weekend and then following with a coat of Liquid Glass to protect it.
They have this stuff at any auto parts store, both the Scratch X & Glass.
just another option. |
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| burnside |
quote:
Originally posted by Heat00
I have a thread with the same questions.
I was going to buy this Zaino stuff but I'm not interested in 125 coats lol.
I did find a bottle of Meguirs Scratch X and I tried on a small portion in the back and it did remove the swirls/scratches/spider webs (whatever you call em).
I plan on using it on the whole car this weekend and then following with a coat of Liquid Glass to protect it.
They have this stuff at any auto parts store, both the Scratch X & Glass.
just another option.
Interesting too. I wonder if anyone has any pros/cons about Zaino vs. Meguirs. Also, what kind of cloth do you use to apply Meguirs? |
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| machz990 |
I have a whole shelf of Zaino products. They are excellent and they are not cheap! It takes many hours to do a proper job with all the steps to Zaino. I use it on my Mercedes and used it on my Porsche before that.
With that being said let's get real. The Acura is not a sports car. It's not a collectable. For 99% of us it is a daily driver. Go to any decent auto store or maybe even Target and buy some Meguiar's products. Meguiar's products are readily available and they do an excellent job.
If you want to get rid of the swirls you have already put in your finish use Meguiar's Deep Crystal System, steps 1 and 2. If you don't have any heavy swirls go straight to step 2 which is basically a hand glaze. Finish with Meguiar's Gold Class paste wax and you will have a mirror finish that will last through many, many car washes.
These products are best applied in the shade and I apply to a small section and immediately start buffing with a nice terry cloth towel, flipping it frequently. Don't let them dry or they will be harder to remove.
I've been doing this for more years than I care to admit and I'm very picky about the appearance of my cars. If you are going to a Concours or auto show with your MDX use Zaino. If you are going to the grocery store and soccer matches, use Meguiar's! |
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| burnside |
quote:
Originally posted by machz990
I have a whole shelf of Zaino products. They are excellent and they are not cheap! It takes many hours to do a proper job with all the steps to Zaino. I use it on my Mercedes and used it on my Porsche before that.
With that being said let's get real. The Acura is not a sports car. It's not a collectable. For 99% of us it is a daily driver. Go to any decent auto store or maybe even Target and buy some Meguiar's products. Meguiar's products are readily available and they do an excellent job.
If you want to get rid of the swirls you have already put in your finish use Meguiar's Deep Crystal System, steps 1 and 2. If you don't have any heavy swirls go straight to step 2 which is basically a hand glaze. Finish with Meguiar's Gold Class paste wax and you will have a mirror finish that will last through many, many car washes.
These products are best applied in the shade and I apply to a small section and immediately start buffing with a nice terry cloth towel, flipping it frequently. Don't let them dry or they will be harder to remove.
I've been doing this for more years than I care to admit and I'm very picky about the appearance of my cars. If you are going to a Concours or auto show with your MDX use Zaino. If you are going to the grocery store and soccer matches, use Meguiar's!
Ok, you got my attention! I'm on the Meguiar's site and I have this in my cart:
- DEEP CRYSTAL CAR WASH
- MICROFIBER WASH MITT
- SUPREME SHINE MICROFIBER TOWEL - 1 PACK
- GOLD CLASS PASTE CAR WAX
- EVEN COAT APPLICATOR PADS
I was going to use the Supreme Shine Microfiber Towel to remove the wax, but which towel should I buy to dry the car after I wash with the Deep Crystal Car Wash? Also, which tire applicator would look good?
Thanks for all the advise so far! |
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| Heat00 |
sweet.. .if it would just stop raining, Meguiars will go on this weekend, pics will be posted, of course :)
I too, have been using both Meguiars and Liquid glass for many years and I love both.
Glass is a nice sealant/protectant but will not really "clean" the paint like Meguairs, even after using the glass pre-cleaner. |
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| jhue |
I'd never let Scratch-X touch the paint of any of my cars, or most of the other crap being recommended in this thread.
Scratch-X actually contains fillers, in addition to fine abrasives, so it's likely that the swirls disappeared due to the fillers, rather than them actually being removed by the abrasives. Removing swirls requires a rotary polisher, or a heavy cut polish worked for a very long time with an orbital. There is no way the swirls were actually removed by hand working Scratch-X. They'll be back as soon as the fillers are washed away.
You're much better off getting advice on a site like detailcity.org, autopia.org, or roadfly.org. 90% of the people posting in these threads have little useful knowledge regarding detailing and give bad advice. |
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| burnside |
| Arrrgh. Now we're getting conflicting stories on what to use. I was afraid of this. |
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| machz990 |
quote:
Originally posted by jhue
I'd never let Scratch-X touch the paint of any of my cars, or most of the other crap being recommended in this thread.
Scratch-X actually contains fillers, in addition to fine abrasives, so it's likely that the swirls disappeared due to the fillers, rather than them actually being removed by the abrasives. Removing swirls requires a rotary polisher, or a heavy cut polish worked for a very long time with an orbital. There is no way the swirls were actually removed by hand working Scratch-X. They'll be back as soon as the fillers are washed away.
You're much better off getting advice on a site like detailcity.org, autopia.org, or roadfly.org. 90% of the people posting in these threads have little useful knowledge regarding detailing and give bad advice.
Like I said, the MDX for most of us is a daily driver. It's not being judged at a car show. I just used Meguiar's Gold Class on my MDX yesterday and I've used it on other vehicles. It holds up very well and gives a very deep shine. |
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| Heat00 |
quote:
Originally posted by jhue
I'd never let Scratch-X touch the paint of any of my cars, or most of the other crap being recommended in this thread.
Scratch-X actually contains fillers, in addition to fine abrasives, so it's likely that the swirls disappeared due to the fillers, rather than them actually being removed by the abrasives. Removing swirls requires a rotary polisher, or a heavy cut polish worked for a very long time with an orbital. There is no way the swirls were actually removed by hand working Scratch-X. They'll be back as soon as the fillers are washed away.
You're much better off getting advice on a site like detailcity.org, autopia.org, or roadfly.org. 90% of the people posting in these threads have little useful knowledge regarding detailing and give bad advice.
You're crazy brah... that's what put them there in the first place, the orbital buffer... no, not by me, by the detail expert at the dealer when I bought the car 2 weeks ago.... so the orbital will remove what the orbital created??
and as stated previously, I don't think my MDX is going on display in the 2008 Auto show, just needs to look nice, protect from oxidation, and remove some swirls.... i think Megiuars, Liquid Glass, & or Zaino is probably sufficient for most of us here, don't you think? |
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| Heat00 |
| heres my old M, not long after a coat of glass..... |
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| Heat00 |
here's the "G" after a coat... I miss the "G" Ride...
anyways, the proof is in the pudding my friends |
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| epiney |
quote:
Originally posted by jhue
I'd never let Scratch-X touch the paint of any of my cars, or most of the other crap being recommended in this thread.
Scratch-X actually contains fillers, in addition to fine abrasives, so it's likely that the swirls disappeared due to the fillers, rather than them actually being removed by the abrasives. Removing swirls requires a rotary polisher, or a heavy cut polish worked for a very long time with an orbital. There is no way the swirls were actually removed by hand working Scratch-X. They'll be back as soon as the fillers are washed away.
You're much better off getting advice on a site like detailcity.org, autopia.org, or roadfly.org. 90% of the people posting in these threads have little useful knowledge regarding detailing and give bad advice.
jhue, you are technically right and probably more particular about your detailing than 99% of the people here. I used to polish, glaze and then carnuba wax my car. It took way too much time and work. Now days I look to get 80% of the result with 30% of the work.
Personally, I would not use Scratch-X on a new car either, but if other people are happy, it's OK. I use Four Star UPP and will try NXT and maybe some Zaino CS.
burnside: if you want to remove the swirls you need to buff them out. If you want to fill them in then some of those other products may give you a temporary fix. No way to avoid swirls or cob webs with black though. Keep away from automatic car washes. |
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| jhue |
quote:
Originally posted by Heat00
You're crazy brah... that's what put them there in the first place, the orbital buffer... no, not by me, by the detail expert at the dealer when I bought the car 2 weeks ago.... so the orbital will remove what the orbital created??
It wasn't an orbital that created the swirls. An orbital buffer is incapable of putting swirls into paint. All the pad does is "wiggle" a little, and spin freely. You can't damage the paint with a freely rotating pad making tiny little orbits. On the other hand, a rotary in the hands of an incompetent operator can easily swirl paint. And yeah, I could easily remove with my rotary what an incompetent hack put in with his.
Most of the butchers employed by auto dealerships can't operate a rotary polisher worth crap. Last time I was at the local Acura dealership I could not believe the badly swirled paint I saw on the used vehicles there. The vehicles I saw looked like those pictured here:
http://www.detailcity.org/forums/pa...logramming.html |
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| eujinc |
quote:
Originally posted by burnside
Arrrgh. Now we're getting conflicting stories on what to use. I was afraid of this.
What the heck, let me throw in another option :). I went down the Klasse AIO and Sonus route a couple of years ago for my TL after researching many forums & sites (bought them from autopia-carcare.com). Good friend of mine went with the Zaino products for his black Land Rover. His results were excellent but when he saw my TL, he said he was switching to Klasse when his Zaino finishes. Main influence would have to be time and effort. Bear in mind the LR and the MDX are large vehicles which a lot of surface area to cover. I needed something easy to apply (wipe on, wipe of), lasting and takes care of (ie. hides) scratches and swirls since I just don't have much time to dedicate to waxing/polishing. Oh, and Klasse also works on light lenses and glass.
So far, I have been extremely satisfied with the results especially since I've had the TL for 7 years & 105K miles. Did the same treatment for the SLK and will be doing the same thing for the X. |
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| eujinc |
| The X after 1st wash and a layer of Klasse & Sonus. Should have taken a before shot with the layer of salt from the beach trip. |
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| epiney |
quote:
Originally posted by eujinc
Main influence would have to be time and effort. Bear in mind the LR and the MDX are large vehicles which a lot of surface area to cover. I needed something easy to apply (wipe on, wipe of), lasting and takes care of (ie. hides) scratches and swirls since I just don't have much time to dedicate to waxing/polishing.
That's my main criteria now as well. Funny how kids do that! What specifically are you using in Klasse and Sonus? Do you use a polisher to apply? |
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| eujinc |
quote:
Originally posted by epiney
That's my main criteria now as well. Funny how kids do that! What specifically are you using in Klasse and Sonus? Do you use a polisher to apply?
Yep, kids definitely rearranges your priorities in life. :4:
I got the Klasse All In One and the Sonus Acrylic Glanz sealant. No polisher needed. Just the applicator and a couple of polishing cloth of your choice. |
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| burnside |
| I live in the Vancouver/Portland area. What kind of store would carry the Meguiar's products? |
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| machz990 |
quote:
Originally posted by burnside
I live in the Vancouver/Portland area. What kind of store would carry the Meguiar's products?
Not from there but any large auto parts store such as Auto Zone, etc. should carry the product line. I have several different auto stores in my area that carry them along with a couple of body shop supply dealers. |
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| Heat00 |
so since I got yelled at for suggesting to use meguiars to remove the scratches/swirls, I do not remember hearing a better solution??
I am open to it as my MDX does need help and this weekend I'm going to break out of my lazy state and get to work on this. lol |
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| machz990 |
quote:
Originally posted by Heat00
so since I got yelled at for suggesting to use meguiars to remove the scratches/swirls, I do not remember hearing a better solution??
I am open to it as my MDX does need help and this weekend I'm going to break out of my lazy state and get to work on this. lol
Meguiar's has products to remove swirls. I've never used ScratchX so not familiar with that product. They do have several consumer and professional products (for use with a rotary or orbital buffer) available. You can see and read about most of them on their website and others on the internet. Most polishes have some form of mild abrasive in them. That is how you get rid of swirl marks which are fine scratches. If you have a new vehicle with swirl marks I would figure out where they came from and avoid or you will get them again. I don't recommend polishing your clear coat more than a few times over the life of the paint. You are removing a fine layer of paint each time you use polish. |
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| jhue |
quote:
Originally posted by Heat00
so since I got yelled at for suggesting to use meguiars to remove the scratches/swirls, I do not remember hearing a better solution??
This same question has been asked at least a dozen times in the short time that I've been a member of this site. At some point answering the same questions over and over for people who are apparently too lazy to use the search function becomes tiresome. Most of the people I know who are knowledgeable about detailing and who participate in online auto forums have given up trying to combat all of the misinformation and bad advice that gets posted, and don't even bother posting responses in threads like these. That's a shame, because they have a lot of good information and experience to share, and their advice could help you get better results for less time and effort, as well as prevent you from making a costly mistake.
I wrote what I would use three postings below yours in this thread: http://www.acuramdx.org/forums/show...&threadid=29657 |
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| jhue |
quote:
Originally posted by machz990
I don't recommend polishing your clear coat more than a few times over the life of the paint. You are removing a fine layer of paint each time you use polish.
Someone on one of the auto detailing web sites did some tests using an electronic paint thickness gauge and the results were somewhat surprising, at least to me. While what you wrote is definitely true of using a rotary polisher, an orbital barely removes any clearcoat. You could use a medium cut polish (polish, not compound) with an orbital polisher twice a year for ten years and still have half your clearcoat left. With a rotary, I'd be nervous after maybe four times. But unless you really abuse your vehicle, you shouldn't need to take a rotary to it with a medium cut polish more than a couple times in ten years (and hopefully just once in its lifetime). |
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| Heat00 |
while we appreciate your input, we are NOT professional detailers.
I went to the site that you mentioned and it is not written in english.
First of all, I don't own a professional orbital/polisher/buffer/whatever, I'm talking about doing this by hand.
so, the simple question still remains:
How do I get the swirls/scratches out, working by HAND and with a fairly simple product that I can actually buy somewhere and that doesn't require 15 coats, as the MDX is a fairly large vehicle. And being I have to do this by hand, this 5 coats of Zaino, doesn't sound to great.
If it is just a Meguiars paint cleaner/polish or whatever, followed by a coat of NXT, then I'm good. Will a simple process like this remove the swirls or not? |
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| epiney |
quote:
Originally posted by Heat00
How do I get the swirls/scratches out, working by HAND and with a fairly simple product that I can actually buy somewhere and that doesn't require 15 coats, as the MDX is a fairly large vehicle. And being I have to do this by hand, this 5 coats of Zaino, doesn't sound to great.
If it is just a Meguiars paint cleaner/polish or whatever, followed by a coat of NXT, then I'm good. Will a simple process like this remove the swirls or not?
You can't get them out by hand, you can only fill them in. A Porter Cable 7424 runs about $100 and pads another 20 or 30. The orbital will last you for years. |
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| machz990 |
quote:
Originally posted by Heat00
while we appreciate your input, we are NOT professional detailers.
I went to the site that you mentioned and it is not written in english.
First of all, I don't own a professional orbital/polisher/buffer/whatever, I'm talking about doing this by hand.
so, the simple question still remains:
How do I get the swirls/scratches out, working by HAND and with a fairly simple product that I can actually buy somewhere and that doesn't require 15 coats, as the MDX is a fairly large vehicle. And being I have to do this by hand, this 5 coats of Zaino, doesn't sound to great.
If it is just a Meguiars paint cleaner/polish or whatever, followed by a coat of NXT, then I'm good. Will a simple process like this remove the swirls or not?
Simple answer - Yes. |
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