I bought a bottle of Meguiars at wal-mart and the instructions say that you should use it after a dust / rain storm. I am confused, can you just spray it on and wipe off after rain / dust or do you need to wash first?

I just found out the hard way that the water blade is not a great idea, I washed the car and began to dry when I noticed dust forming on the wet car.......yup, I scratched it just a bit but had only made 1 or 2 swipes w/ the blade when I noticed. Ahhhh!

I guess I will have to detail it with Zaino sooner than I had expected.

 

I would advise against rubbing/wipping anything on a car unless it has just been cleaned (cleaned well at that).

 

you'll need to polish first. Zaino is very clear the scratches will just show up worse.

 

OK - I knew something was wrong with those instructions.

I was planning on doing the whole zaino process: clay, z5 etc.

 

Z5 will fill scratches to a degree, but you need to polish with an abrasive to really get them out. Otherwise, you'll see some improvement, but certainly not perfection. The whole Zaino process is a good place to start, and it will make an improvement to a degree if you use Z5 only, Z2 will make the scratches show up worse as it's so close to optically perfect. I'd say I recommend that you polish first, but if the swirls aren't bad it might not be worth it to you, I certainly don't polish every time I see a scratch, it takes too long.

I'm going to try to compile some links (probably to autopia) about Porter cable usage and polishing this weekend, I'm in Navy nuclear power school right now and working 14 hours a day during the week, so I'm a little thin on time....

 

i use the meguiars detail spray, if you use a damp microfiber towel, you can wipe off dust and water spots without scratching the car. if there is considerable dirt on the car, it must be washed first.

hope this helps

 

I only use it directly after a wash for extra gloss and to wipe off bird bombs before they etch.

 

"bird bombs".....lol

 

I've used the water blade for years with out marks. But, you have to be sure you get the original purple blade model.
The purple handle model has the softer original blade.

www.californiacarduster.com

The new models available at most retail stores suck, I've complained to California Car Duster about it. You have to be sure the car is perfectly clean, and you must wet the blade first and be sure it's dirt free.

 

It wasn't the blade (I had the purple handle), it was bit of debris that blew onto the car just after I washed it and stuck. I could see the piece of debris stuck onto the blade and noticed the tiny scratch.

 

it is also convenient to use the detail sprays after a rain. just let the rain dry on the car, then spray on the detail spray and wipe off with terry or microfiber- you will be amazed as to how much dirt comes off from the rain.

 

Aren't you afraid that is going to scratch your paint?
What do you think that dirt is doing be dragged across the paint.
Once it rains it's time to wash for me.

I only use the detail spray after a wash or wax and for bird crap.

 

dirt dragged across paint- not sure what you mean? It rains daily in florida and for most part i use armor all car wash wipes which i think are great. detail sprays i agree, i do not use to remove all the rain usually but for water spots including when you go out to the car in the morning and the humidity causes water spots- that detail sprays are very good for. In general I agree that detail sprays are better suited for small areas- birds, water spots etc. however you can spray on large areas and if use terry cloth or microfiber you will not get noticeable scratches. Swirls and minor scratching(that most people can't see) are unavoidable. If you use microfiber or terry cloths you will never cause major scratching. Save yourself time and look at armor all car wash wipes- no spotting or drying and they are found in most stores. they keep clear coat shining nice.

 

You guys should try the Wizards product line. I have a black TSX and have had black in the past and I assure you that no detail spray works better. Mist on , wipes off streak free. Can even be used on slightly dusty cars(though you usually dirty up 2-3 clean microfibers) or after rain. Generally everything that touches your car will scratch it to some degree, even applying and wiping off waxes. All you can do is keep her waxed and hope for the best. The only cars that have a shot at little on no surface scratches are those who live in a garage and only come out for shows. The rest of us are forced to suffer a harsh reality and work ou tails off to keep our babaies as clean as possible. Oh yeah, The spray is called Mist-N-Shine. They have some other products that are worth using too. Good luck!

 

the key shuld be to get RID of the scratches, not hide them. That's why I don't follow the zaino steps. Get a good polish out that will remove the marks. DOn't just hide them.

 

Not to argue with you CL, but paint and body is my job. Now Im not saying its impossible to get every scratch out, just that its not practical. I hate seeing all the little scratches on my black tsx, but being that I work 12-14 hrs. a day plus 5-7 hrs. on weekends its just doesnt make sense to me to spend 20 hrs. to detail and perfect my car that Im just going to drive on dirty, dusty, rock infested roads where all my hard work will be unnoticeable in two days time. Now, that said, I try to wash mine once a week and every time she gets a quick polish and fresh wax(soon to be zaino), but I have resigned myself to the fact that my car will never be the picture of perfection that I would like it to be. At least not if I want to enjoy driving it.

 

who spends 20 hours to detail a car? A quick once over w/ a good polish will handle the scratches. And I do understand what you are saying. I'm just saying that the key is to remove the swirls, not just hide them

Since you do paint and body for a living, I assume you have access to a buffer. Shouldn't take more then say 20 minutes or so to do over a car w/ something like Meguiars # 80 speed glaze which will remove your swirls, scratches. If you have time to do the full zaino treatment, you've got time to do that.

 

The thing is being black its hard to fully eliminate the swirls w/out spending an enormous amount of time on it. The 20 hours was in reference to the guys who spent 12-14 claying the car and then started polishing. And youre right about the zaino, but Ive tried countless combinations of buffing/polishing pads w/countless compounds/polishes/glazes and the bottom line is black isnt easy, but when its clean I think it looks the best. 90% of the other colors out there will hide the small little imperfections on the surface so that the vast majority will never see them. Obviously you are not one of those people and for that I give much respect. Were always in awe at my shop at the amount of people who flat dont take care of their vehicles, so its good to talk to someone who does.

 

I hear you on black, that's why I repainted my car

 

i think the nighthawk black looks by far the best in the tsx and am glad to have it. a clean waxed black tsx looks amazing. many of the other tsx's i have seen in other colors look nothing special and the car looks like a mirage in many of these other colors. Black shows dirt which is good in my opinion- it motivates me to clean it.

 

For sure

 

I'm addicted to Z-6. Not because it makes the paint slick as ice, it smells sweet.

 

i am becoming a big fan of detail sprays particularly pinnacle crystal mist which has one of the highest carnauba wax content of any detail spray- can only buy it direct from company. when i have a clean car i use it to wipe ordinary dust off, spots from the rain etc... can spray whole car in a few minutes and buffs very easily. no need to worry about scratching if use terry,diaper cloth or micorfiber. a lot easier than using soap and water all the time.