[Desertnate]

You will definitely get faster over time. I can detail out a vehicle with only mild paint defects in about 12 hours not including the cure time for the coating, which is normally around 24 hours. I'll typically start in the afternoon with the wash, clay, and maybe some of the polishing. The next morning I'll start early and finish the polishing and apply the coating or sealant. Stuff like trim and tire dressing can go on while the coating is curing.

The trick is finding ways to save time/effort. I few of my tips:

- While the rinse bucket is good for the wheel brush, I use the hose and blast out my brushes after each wheel. I have the hose in one hand to rinse off the wheel cleaner anyway so there is no need to move the extra bucket. I do still use a rinse bucket if the wheels are REALLY bad.

- When I clay the car, I use my car wash soap as the lube and clay while I wash. I'll wash/rinse the panel. After that I'll use my mitt to slather on another dose of soap and water which keeps the clay from marring the paint. The Optimum Car Wash soap I use is really slippery and well for this use. There are also synthetic clay mitts on the market that allow you to wash and clay all at the same time. Either way, this saves you from having to wash off the QD spray you used to clay the vehicle.

- Depending on the swirls you're removing you can probably polish it out in one step. By experimenting with pad and product combinations, I found a combination that removes the swirls and polishes out the surface perfectly. This not only saves TONS of time, but I'm also not removing more of my clear coat than is absolutely needed to get the job done. Unless there is heavy damage each time, you shouldn't have to compound the car all that often.

- Keeping the car clean over time and being careful how you wash/dry will save you a lot of time when it comes to your full "detail" since you'll have less grime to remove and swirls to remove.

[jsanatx]

Ok, so I did some very amateurish waxing the other day using paste wax (I know, I know), the problem was that some of the wax got into some of the cracks in the moldings and dried. Now I have white residue that's very hard to get off. Any recommendations? Thanks

[John in VA]

Originally Posted by jsanatx

Now I have white residue that's very hard to get off. Any recommendations? Thanks

Put some fresh wax in those areas - it'll soften up the dried wax between the body panels. Paste wax (or any wax, sealant, etc., really) just needs to be applied as a light coat.

If you have dried residue on black trim, you could try an all-purpose cleaner (APC) or isopropyl alcohol with a soft toothbrush to loosen it - protect your already waxed paint. Believe it or not, you can also try peanut butter. The oils in the peanut butter will break down the old wax. Once it has broken down, you can clean it with some APC to ensure you removed every last trace of the wax and the peanut butter.

Next time mask your trim with painter's tape or use a product that doesn't dry white/stain trim. Good luck!

[Desertnate]

Originally Posted by John in VA

If you have dried residue on black trim, you could try an all-purpose cleaner (APC) or isopropyl alcohol with a soft toothbrush to loosen it - protect your already waxed paint. Believe it or not, you can also try peanut butter. The oils in the peanut butter will break down the old wax. Once it has broken down, you can clean it with some APC to ensure you removed every last trace of the wax and the peanut butter.

Next time mask your trim with painter's tape or use a product that doesn't dry white/stain trim. Good luck!

Peanut Butter is my go-to solution for dried polish, wax, or sealant residue on black trim. People laugh at me when I tell them I used it, but it has removed residue I couldn't remove with anything else like an APC.

Masking tape goes a long way towards preventing the problem. One place you REALLY want to use tape is the "mouse fur" area commonly found around sunroofs/moonroofs. Once that stuff is stained with residue, it almost never really comes out.

When I first started dabbling in detailing I rarely ever taped anything off. Now I do it quite often. It takes a little bit of time on the front end, but will save you tons of hassles down the road.

[jsanatx]

I ended up using a pink eraser on the areas that had the residue, both on the rubber trim areas and the moldings, and the wax came off quite easily. Didn't need any lubricant, just rub away and it disappeared.

[RaKuu]

Excellent guide, easy to follow with lots of useful tips. Thank you!!

My results:

View post on imgur.com

Followed all the steps then added two layers of Dodo Juice Purple Haze and then sealed with Gtechniq c2.