Washing & Waxing Your Car\'s

Grizzly · December 16, 2007, 04:10:31 PM

Quote from: elford_timDown here in the SE, they also seem to be a bit rare - hence me going Oop North to a mate\'s bodyshop in Bolton when I need that kind of work done.

Find your self a 911 dealer in your area and ask who they use. I can guarantee two things they will be expencive and they will be Very good. The guys who look after 911\'s rather than Ferrari\'s etc are better as the Typical 911 owner is a Pain in the rear (no offence) don\'t exactly know why but its a well known fact in the Body world, properly as most of the expencive ones are Black.

We have a place Ooop North that is called Loyds they are REALLY good but you will pay for it, what you mean is a Body shop that is really good that isn\'t really Expensive, now there rare.

johnf · December 16, 2007, 04:12:49 PM

Thr guy I\'ve spoken with is self employed, works on his own out of a small unit, with ovens etc. So he\'d be doing it himself, Â£60

elford_tim · December 16, 2007, 04:13:17 PM

I think we may have a slight misunderstanding here - I was talking about mopping the car, not painting it. I\'ve also seen some stunning home paint jobs[1] and I know that they\'re possible. I was more referring to doing the usual "consumer" type valet as opposed to using all the right tools, compounds etc which of course you can do at home if you\'re willing to invest the cash and the time to learn the skills.

Good point about choosing your valeter, though.

[1] I\'ve also seen a few really horrible ones, like the motorbike tank that someone resprayed with a rattlecan. Pity that it wasn\'t even the correct colour and that you could see the original colour shine through where Mr Rattlecan had masked off the stickers a tad too generously.

elford_tim · December 16, 2007, 04:26:05 PM

Quote from: GrizzlyFind your self a 911 dealer in your area and ask who they use. I can guarantee two things they will be expencive and they will be Very good. The guys who look after 911\'s rather than Ferrari\'s etc are better as the Typical 911 owner is a Pain in the rear (no offence) don\'t exactly know why but its a well known fact in the Body world, properly as most of the expencive ones are Black.

... and as we know, black\'s the worst colour for bodywork. That\'s actually good to know if I need to look for a bodyshop in a new area which may well happen in 12-18 months, as shipping a car to the UK to get it painted may turn out a tad expensive then.

Quote from: GrizzlyWe have a place Ooop North that is called Loyds they are REALLY good but you will pay for it, what you mean is a Body shop that is really good that isn\'t really Expensive, now there rare.

Hmm. You may actually be surprised to hear that I am happy to pay for quality work, and pay well. The main reason I ended up having the FC redone at my mate\'s bodyshop wasn\'t because of an attempt to save a fiver or to snaffle a mate\'s discount, but because I found it hard to find a decent place after my initial disappointment down here (and that place wasn\'t that cheap either, plus they did come recommended), and my mate is very meticulous about his work so simply got them to do the job because the last thing I needed was another car-related headache. Mind you, if I factor in the duplication of the work, the transport cost and the additional hassle and time I wasted, I spent way more on the respray for the FC than the car is worth. As you do

.

Grizzly · December 16, 2007, 04:26:42 PM

Quote from: johnfThr guy I\'ve spoken with is self employed, works on his own out of a small unit, with ovens etc. So he\'d be doing it himself, Â£60

Don\'t mean allot, i don\'t check my own work, if he\'s the boss then who checks the level of his work?? we have a QC guy who wanders round checking things are done correctly and the job leaves at a standard he is happy with (Higher standard than the Customer usaly) its a well known fact you don\'t check your own work because if you missed something in the booth when you painted it then there is a fair chance a second party will point it out before it gets to the Customer.

In this day and age you don\'t get anywhere in the Body trade as a One man band, i would be very wary. Don\'t get me wrong there not all like this but most people that have 150k of gear and work on there own as a one man band are Dodgy.

johnf · December 16, 2007, 04:28:49 PM

You\'re right I am talking about mopping the car.

Surely this small paint shop should be able to bo it, he says it\'s no prob.

Thought I would get better service from a small guy and he\'s on the same estate as me, so hopefully he\'d want to do a good job.

Grizzly · December 16, 2007, 04:31:38 PM

I think you may have to sign up to read this but here is what i mean about people (not pro\'s) getting there car Polished to a "Good standard" possably better than most new cars. (BTW sorry is on a F**D web site, can\'t bring myself to say it)

http://www.passionford.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=272023&sid=147fcdf6c7796193047e1138f85f0f61

Grizzly · December 16, 2007, 04:34:02 PM

Quote from: johnfYou\'re right I am talking about mopping the car.

Surely this small paint shop should be able to bo it, he says it\'s no prob.

Thought I would get better service from a small guy and he\'s on the same estate as me, so hopefully he\'d want to do a good job.

Fair enough its not hard to do i admit but mopping the car is only the first stage, and that has to be done spot on to get a good end product. As an example i can spend two days polishing a car properly and at Â£40 an Hour a valeter would be ALLOT cheaper (If you see my point)

Grizzly · December 16, 2007, 04:34:43 PM

TBH i\'m just a bit confused, i personaly would let the person in the job that suits my needs the most do the work. I have more faith in good valeters to do a job like this properly rather than a Body shop, not saying the guy you have lined up can\'t do a good job but the end product would be better by a guy who cleans cars for a living.

elford_tim · December 16, 2007, 04:36:30 PM

Ah, OK. More misunderstandings then

. Yep, you have to sign up for that but if it\'s worth it, I may as well...

There are a few people on Talkaudio that have been bitten bad by the valeting bug, so I\'ve seen what non-pros can do with determination and the right tools. Pretty impressive, I have to say.

Which reminds me, I hope that next w/e is going to be dry so I can go attack the FD with a vengance, get all the cr*p off and clean it up properly so I can stick it under its newly acquired car cover.

johnf · December 16, 2007, 04:41:48 PM

So - would it be better for me to talk to valeters rather than a paint shop?

John

Grizzly · December 16, 2007, 04:52:41 PM

I admit i hate wax and all valeting products, i have only really cleaned my car properly once (tyre shine and all that) call me paranoid but you know when you wax your car and you can smell the wax on you hands a few days later, thats stresses me out to the degree i don\'t touch anything like Mister sheen or tyre Sine etc etc without Gloves on. I just hate rework.

Timmy · December 16, 2007, 05:11:08 PM

Haveing worked as a valeter, i will tell you now high silicon waxes are there as they look shiney once applied but do not last as it easily weathers off (we used them because we were just contracted to an audi garage). You really want a high consentration or pure carnuba gold wax as such in the very expensive zymol products. It actualy sets as hard as concrete. To get a deep gloss shine it relies on a perfect flat surface this is why you mop the car to remove scratches and particuarly the small onces you don\'t really know are there. As for it being cheaper for a valeter to do i wouldn\'t be so sure they charge alot more than Â£40 per hour. More like a half day valet would be in excess of Â£200.
If the car isn\'t to bad just clay it as this takes off far less clear coat and may well give you finish you want.