Im really getting bored doing STi's but heres another one anyways... Brand new 09' obsidian black STi. The car was dealer prepped and it seems they did a horrendous job, but of course I would expect nothing less:doh: Overall the car was pretty well hacked, aside from the standard wash induced fine swirls were deep RIDS, holograms and even sand scratches, which could have came from the factory. Its bad when dealers prep cars that dont already have softee clears but when you mix dealer prep work with a soft clear coat , well thats just a recipe for trouble :shakehead: No wash process pics so straight to the correction work and as I like to say : On with the detail... After the wash and clay RIDS and sand scratches under the infratech I took a quick video of the defects under the fenix LED to give you a better idea of the damage as it was difficult to capture everything on camera I started with the hood as usual. The car was booked as a single step 80% paint correction detail but upon further inspection a 1 step would not have been sufficent to correct and finish the paint. I landed on a combo which worked very well for this soft and in some areas sticky black paint - Gloss It extreme cut compound w/ GI green pre-polymer polishing pad or yellow pp pad - Menzerna PO85rd w/ GI pre-polymer blue finishing pad GI "EVP" was used to prime the pads and extend the work time of both of the above products. I found that using the GI extreme cut w/a polishing or heavy polishing pad rather than a dedicated cutting pad helped to reduce the amount of swirls and holograms in step 1 alone, which of course made for easier cleanup later on when using the PO85rd. To make up for the softer foams used I worked the extreme cut for an extra minute or so to ensure i got as much defect removed as possible before the finishing stage. This car did not receive a 100% paint correction process but in 2 steps I was able to achieve about 95% pc which I was very pleased with. Some sun shots and 50/50s after 2 IPA wipedowns Before After Notice there are about 3 fine RIDS which were not removed (to me those are the difference between a 95% and a true 100% paint correction job) While the sun was out I took some shots of the rest of the car which was, well ,less than stellar... Some more 50/50 shots and video of the car back in the garage under the Fenix LED (awesome on metallics) and Infratech Before After Another video this time a "real time" 50/50 under the fenix (yes my house phone was ringing, sorry about that... definately had my nerd ear protection on so I probably did not hear it :giggle The hood after finishing and an IPA wipedown Hello :afro: The front fenders of this car were a little curvy for a larger pad and I wouldnt have gotten a smooth breakdown so in spite of working against the clock I opted to use a 4" GI pre polymer pad w/ the GI 3" BP to polish the area completely without skipping on the contours I dont really know how this happened but the owner informed me it came from the dealership. I switched out the polishing pads for a 4" GI white fast cut foam pad and compounded the mirror using the extreme cut and again finished with 85rd on a GI blue finishing pad Before After.. far from perfect but a little more presentable, I did not feel comfortable wetsanding the paint on the mirror so using my better judgement I left it be This panel required 2 passed w/ Extreme cut to correct at a 90-95% level before Under the fenix and camera flash again Passenger door panel under 3 spectrums of light to help show the defects (Fenix LED, Infratech and camera flash) after under same spectrums of light 85rd working on the rear bumper, I had a little fun when jeweling Under the fenix I usually turn the lights down in my garage to spot defects a little easier, so heres a minimal lighted photo of the rear bumber And now with all the lights on and no flash after finishing Working my way around the bumper I came to a little problem area the owner informed me of. Some very deep scratches were filled in with a tocuh up stick at the dealer, since paint was clearly removed from the area and underneather the touch up paint was bare metal I decided to simply tape off the area and only polish around it to prevent further damage. the chips which were poorly filled in are highlighted After the car was fully finished I applied the LSP and finishing touches. LSP of choice: Gloss It Signature gloss sealant x2 applied w/ Flex 3401 and a 100ppi pad Gloss It Concourso gloss topped over the signature by hand GI gloss enhancer wipedown Trim was treated with GI TRV dressing after application w/ foam sponge Meet my new best friend btw, rubbermaid utility cart! I just load up all the products I need for the task at hand and simply wheel this bad boy around the vehicle with me... now no more products or towels ending up on the floor:headbang: Outside to do the final wipedown and trim dressing TRV Some last before and afters... Before After w/LSP And finally some final shots (excuse the blur in the upper righthand corner, my lens had some QD mist on it and it blurred some of the shots) While waiting for the owner to arrive I pulled it back inside and the only after pic where the blue on my lens had no effect on the car itself Thanks for looking, hope you enjoyed :thumb:
Nice going. Way to go. It looks beautiful per usual. Your write ups are as good as your details...NICE...:thumb:
Looks great. I don't know what's more enjoyable, your before and after pictures or the faces you make when you are polishing. LOL. Nice job.
Another great job David. I have the exact same cart. Mind you, I got mine before you were born! LOL What rpm are you using with the little Flex. I tried mine for the first time yesterday. Ridiculously light. I love it but I will be getting hearing protection!
The cart is great, im very happy I got one for the garage. On the flex I was doing correction work at about 1900rpm and finishing at about 1400rpm but in some spots where fine RIDS were still present I bumped up to 1900rpm when finishing as well and then eventually worked down to 1100 for jeweling. Thanks Piet! I really like the tire dressing as well, never liked anything shiney so the deep satin look works well for me. I dont use many other pads as of now, im very plased with the GI foams and Lambswool cutting pad so I just stick to something I like. I do however have 10 micro surface tuf buf black wool pads on their way to test out in various sizes. Did you get a Fenix?
I tried to figure out what would have caused the scratches but nothing came to mind that was logical, then again 98% of was dealers do when "detailing" is illogical and irresponsible. But hey I hope they keep doing what they do, more detail business for us.
dsms: i was just about to buy then fenix when i was recommended a similiar ultrafire instead. I'll post up some pics when i get it
Wow, love the Subaru black. Great Job :worship2: I wish my black Subaru looked like that. For that color, do you have any other LSP recommendations? To be specific, 2007 subaru legacy black Thanks for any advice you could share.
I wouldnt be so concerned with LSP combo's as much as achieving a high level of paint correction because that will bring out the true finish and LSP is just icing on the cake. 90% of sealants on their OWN will give black great clarity but they sometimes will lack that depth and glow. I used to get this effect when I applied Zaino to black cars, yes the reflections were crystal clear but the paint almost looked sterile on some applications. My personal choice would be something that gives sealant sharpness coupled with carnauba depth and glow. What do you have in your arsenal for LSP?
