I was able to get the truck done over the weekend. Lot's going on so had to take time in bits to get it done.

The focus was solely on the paint, so the trim, wheels, wheel wells, etc are all still un-detailed.

- Two bucket wash with Meg's MF mitt and my new Grit guard washboard
- Clay with Nanoskin mitt with ONR @ QD ratio
- M101 on a 0rang LC smart pad (5")
- Chemical Guys V04 on a white LC smart pad (5")
- Poor Boy's Liquid Red by hand with foam applicator
- Menzerna Power Lock used on Mirror Skull caps and bumpers

Products used



Paint before. Mostly deeper marring, not much in the way of swirls


Tape job


After clay, I went straight to the V04 on a AIO Orange Superbuff pad. It did have some cut, but not enough to get out the marring I had. So I moved to a LC Orange pad and M101. The V04 is VERY thick and took a bit of dialing in to figure out how much product to put on the pad. I would say it's cutting power is a bit less than M205. I did a ISO wipe down to see what there was for fillers and it didn't appear to have much. It did go on ans come off pretty easily. It didn't leave a very "slick" feeling paint behind, which I didn't like. I wasn't sure on the protection and wanted to try out the liquid red, so that was the LSP. Liquid red was really, really viscous. It soaked right into the applicator pad, I've never had a wax that was that thin before. It did make it really easy to apply super thin and removed very easily.

Liquid red prior to removal


Overall, very happy with the end result. the Liquid red left a very nice slick feeling paint and added very nice depth. the paint looks deeper and more "liquid" than when I use Menzerna PL.

It was cloudy out, so no good sun pics, but here are some afters

 

Looks good......

I've spent the last week detailing the wife's new daily driver (2008 Taurus with 3500 miles on the odometer) and am almost done. Now I'm anxious to get to work on one of my "babies" as soon as the weather cools down a bit. Going to be taking my 2009 Ranger (Oxford White) from "sometimes daily driver" status to "garage queen" status. Going to break down and finally try some of these boutique products rather than just "off-the-shelf" Meguiar's compounds.....

Been piddling with it all summer doing the undercarriage detail -- basically just using a sponge and soapy water to remove any trace of dust and dirt from beneath the truck. It's kind of awkward work to do since everything has to be done from beneath the truck on a creeper, but once it's finished it should be pretty easy to keep in pristine condition moving forward since it will never be driven in wet conditions.

 

Thank you!

I'm a fan of using a soft brush on the frame the odd time I do more than just rinse it. It can get a bit messy and wet, but it's quick and effective. I usually follow up with a spray of fluid film and a rag wipedown.

Any idea's on the Products you are looking at using? Do you do most of your work by hand or have DA? You'll get a lot more time out of the non-sythetic waxes if you keep the rig's garaged most of the time.

 

Yeah -- the frames of Rangers are weird in that they are not painted -- instead they receive a factory coating of some kind of tacky compound that you can't really detail since it will wipe off the metal quite easily. All you can do is let the frame itself be and simply clean any other areas that surround it.

I do have a DA and am anxious to try the 101 -- I typically just use Ultimate Compound since most of my vehicles don't get much in the way of surface degradation. I could have really used the extra "cut" of the 101 on the wife's Taurus!

On the Ranger I'm thinking compound (either 101 or Ultimate Compound depending on which seems to work best), followed by a polish, followed by a sealant, followed by a good Carnuba (maybe Collinite 845?) for some added depth. After that, based on the way I will be using the vehicle (probably less than 500 miles per year in only dry and sunny weather conditions) I'm thinking I won't have to do much more than put another coat of Carnuba on it every so often.....

 

Best color ever on the F150! I'll trade you a Kodiak Brown

Looks great!

 

Helped ya out there

 

For a off the shelf product, Ultimate Compound works very well. I actually cut my M105 with it to eliminate dusting. Once you have the paint corrected, it will be easy to maintain.

I think Coy's comments cover you pretty well product wise.

Good luck with the details!

 

Thanks!

I think I'll stick with lighter colors from here on in. I love black and darker colors when clean, but they are a pain to keep that way.

 

Yeah -- I think he must own stock in Black Fire.....

 

Here you go, you can thank me later . BY the way 20 percent off if ordered tonight using Manic20 promo code

http://www.autogeek.net/blackfire-wet-ice-combo.html

 

I've had great success with the 105/205 Megs combo on several vehicles ranging from dark shadow grey, oxford white and ruby red.

 

M105 is a very, very good product. I now prefer M101 as it is meant for foam pads, doesn't dust and has a longer working time. It is pricier than M105 though.

 

M105 can be a bit difficult to work with and may be too aggressive - remember, LEAST aggressive first, you may not need it.

 

Very good point GLC.

Also, if you are going to step up to a heavy cut compound like M105, I always suggest starting with a medium cut pad. Don't jump straight to a heavy cut pad unless needed. This will remove less clear/paint and reduce the time and work needed on the second step to clean up the compound step.