I tot we're talking about glass.....

Dawn Power Dissolver...can be found in ACE Hardware...be warned it's a little expensive but &%$ it ROCKS. Spray on->leave it for an hour->rinse & squeeze only.
Warning: don't leave it overnight or more than a few hours as it *could* spoil the foam (don't ask how I know that....hehehe...).

Don't. It'll harden the fibers rendering them useless on paint. Use liquid detergent for mfs...preferably ones without softener. Dynamo or normal dish washing detergent would do. Just remember to rinse thoroughly or, better still, mix a little distilled vinegar in a bucket of water and soak the mf before your final rinse to neutralise any leftover detergent. Over time the fibers on the mf will harden, but the above *should* prolong its usage.

Yup. I have one. But I do suggest you use that for smaller pads only...like their 3 1/2" LC spot buffing pads. It would be *very* difficult to control larger pads with a drill. My drill is single speed and I'm having so much problem controlling the speed with the trigger. It's practical...but could be better if I have a variable speed drill.....

KEN....my first rotary polisher (yes it's a rotary and not a DA). Manage to do *almost* one whole car with it (my own car - waja). Sold it off after two months.

Comparing the KEN with the Makita is like comparing a proton with a porche. The 'spinning' will bog/slow down immediately once the buffing pad touches the paint - not enought torque on the motor. The head will heat up if you put too much pressure when polishing. There's no cut off if the motor overheat so if it does, then it's into the trash. If you're on a budget and don't mind it behaving like that, or you're just doing occasional polishing, then it could be an option to start with. But if you're seriously OCD like me, I'll rather spend another RM200 or so and get the DeWalt instead.

Just my 2 sen.

....sierra glow is not a coating......
....or is it?

This post has been edited by KrisMas: Jan 16 2013, 03:48 PM

Can. But you'd need to understand the risks and weight whether it's worth it or not to forgo claying. Worst case, the bonded contaminant can be in the form of large dirt/grit. When you're polishing, the applicator/pad would pick up these grits and you'll be instilling swirls/scratches while using the contaminated applicator/pad.

Theres no short cut in detailing....that's why it's called DETAILING. Well....there's no short cut but there IS a QUICKER WAY of doing it...for a price...

...clay cloth.....

At most it'll take me is an hour to clay the whole car.....

ScratchX been discontinued...now is ScratchX 2.0. SwirlX is milder.

You should try looking for a more aggressive clay....

Contrary to popular belief (well...at least from what I've been reading here), clay DOES NOT 'cut' the clear coat. And it doesn't make the surface 'glossy' and 'shiny'.

I can only suggest the few that I've used. Sticking to those that are available locally (though pricing would be another different matter), I'd suggest Meg's Detailing Clay blue or Bilt Hamber Auto Clay Aggressive, the 3M (blue) is also quite decent. I haven't tried any of the OTC clays after some bad experiences with a couple of them (namely PG & can't remember the other one). Maybe somebody else can make a suggestion.

Then again, I'd need to ask, did you really need to go that aggressive avery few months? Cuz I find that I'd need to go aggressive in the beginning only. After a good polishing and protection (wax/sealant), my maintenance claying would normally be using the mild/soft clay only. And this would be anywhere around 4 ~ 6 months and my car also *almost* 24/7 in the open. Which area are you living/working?

First of all, the Makita 9227 is NOT a DA, it's a ROTARY, two very much different machines. The only place that I know where you can buy the machine and also get to buy/choose backing plates of different sizes together with a variety of Lake Country buffing/polishing pads is at Osren. You can also find the same selling at Duragloss Malaysia web site.

I think the 'marring' that they meant is clay residue...like u said...cuz it's 'soft and sticky'. The possibility of scratches might also occur since the aggressiveness of the clay might just shear off and pick up a relatively largher 'chunk' of the contaminant and, if not careful, you'd be wiping that 'chunk' to and fro on the paint. That is just my theory through the limited experience I have with aggressive clay. I say 'limited' cuz I've only clayed a whole car using an aggressive clay twice, ever.

I wouldn't say PG clays are bad. My bad experience with them is when they tend to deteriorate and 'crumble' on me half way through a claying session. It may just be me using wrong choice of lub or some other faults of mine, but the same has not recurred with the rest of the other 'branded' clays that I bought afterwards, namely from Soft99, Meguiars, 3M, Bilt Hamber, Optimum and Riccardo.

I think PG also has different grades, from mild to aggressive. I can't remember which number is which. Some brand even market them as for different paint colour when, in fact, they're actually of different aggressiveness.

Will claying twice clean better? I'm not sure. But I did test out claying with a mild clay until nothing more is being picked up and, when changing to a more aggressive clay, I can still get some more dirt/grit off the paint.

errmm....dry as in ready to be buff off (residue) or dry as in for the car ready to go out? oh...and which wax?

Good luck. I haven't seen any 5 years old cars, as of yet, that 'looks like showroom unit', unless it's just after been detailed by a pro.....

I've learned/heard that 2 years is the max for most of the coatings available in the markets before they start to degrade. And I'm just talking about degradation of the coating itself, and not defects caused by improper maintenance (eg. swirls, wash marring, scratch, scuffs, etc.).

Aiyo...not the Meg's Cleaner Wax that comes in a reddish/maroon color bottle is it? That one you need to work it until it dissapear then, after finishing the whole car, go over another round with a soft mf cloth to remove any leftover residue (shouldn't be much of it left). But, to tell you the truth and sorry to say, the Meg's Cleaner Wax is not much of a cleaner nor a wax...just an average of both.

DO NOT WIPE DRY if the car's been driven. Just rinsing with water alone also won't remove much of dirt on the car so, on both occasions, when you wipe, you'll be picking up dirt with your cloth and moving it around the paint....SWIRLS!!!

Best would be, if you're really anal, proper wash with shampoo or blow (with a blower or course) the water off. This is where a healthy protection/wax comes in handy as the water beads would/could be blow off and leaves the surface *almost* dry....

....but personally, I'd just let it be and wash the car properly in my free time.

^^^GreenJellyBean had just put it better than me...there's plenty of other commitments

Einszett Spray Wax....wanted very much to try this one...but budget too tight lately...saving for 'something special'....
Anyway, reading the descriptions, it's suppose to be just a 'topper' so 3 weeks durability as a stand-alone should be very decent. But what you can try is, after using it on the car, pull out your car under the sun to 'bake' it for a couple of hours. I find that doing this with Meg's Ultimate Quick Wax can stretch it's durability (beadings).

Well...they didn't actually lie. 'Up to' 12 months can be anything between 1 day to 364 days....

Aiyoyo...I know this would come out sooner or later. But still couldn't manage to find the free time lar. Anyway, I'm always known to be VERY slow so if anybody else want to start the new thread please go ahead la....don't mind me....

Not sure why....but I think it helps with the curing and cross-linking or something. Whatever it is, it worked for me with the 2 waxes and 1 sealant that I tried with this method.

Not far...