well i decided to detail my moms chevy...I still cant believe she didnt get a ford ...
heres the process:
Wash with Meguiar's gold class
Mother's Clay
Mothers Showtime instant detailer
Meguiar's M81 hand polish
3m Imperial hand glaze
Mother's Carnauba Cleaner Wax
Dupont teflon spray wax
Hyperdressing
Stoner's Invisible Glass on windows

Pictures:


roof:


side:

 

side:


I have never really detailed a silver vehicle before so i am not satisfied with the results maybe it was the products...

 

Silver is a tough color to make stand out and pop. I have detailed several siver vehicles, and while they turn out very nice in terms of swirl marks (or lack there of), they lack that super deep and rich shine that you can get out of black and some other colors.

 

Although Silver will never be as deep as black, I dont know if I agree with that... I think on silver it takes the following:

1. A LOT of time to get it ABSOLUTELY perfect (swirl-wise)
2. a GOOD polish (ie: #7)
3. a GOOD sealant (ie: EX-P)
4. a GREAT LSP (ie: Nattys Blue or white)
5. somewhat decent lighting
6. a QD spray to add that last little bit of pop
7. (Sort of the most important, but in light of the fact that I dont want to sound arrogant or anything, I put it last...) good technique

when I went to JP's house to detail my truck, it took us the better part of a day, but it turned out STELLAR. Some products will inherently darken the looks, others increase pop, some bring out the flakes, others make it glossy, etc. The right combination of products with proper skill and technique can yield virtually anything.

 

It looks good. I love working with Silver. Although it's not as rewarding as a Black vehicle is ...

 

Looks really good. How do you like the DuPont Spray Wax? I bought a bottle at Big Lots last weekend. I figured for $3 it was worth a try. I really like synthetics on silver. I used Four Star Ultimate Paint Protection on my Honda and it made the silver look like chrome. Zaino looks great on silver too.

 

You basically described my truck. but I am using #26 wax right now. When it is gone (probably next detail) I am going to try something different, do you have any recommendations?

 

Wow...

Yeah, Although I like #26, I really liked Nattys. PBs says to use White on Silver (I never got the chance to try it), but when I used Blue, I fell in love...

Honestly, I have kinda limited experience with LSPs... I am trying to get rid of some of my stash right now to make room for some more goodies. A lot of what I have taking up space is A-line type stuff that I bought before I dove headlong into this detailing adventure...

I bet RockPick can offer some insight. I seem to remember him saying something about CIW#845 doing well on silver, but I havent used that either.

 

Well i can say the Dupont made it a bit shinier and reflective...it also made the paint feel smoother. I don't know if it's cause the Mothers wax sucks or what but i wasn't getting that smooth feel. My neighbor gave the bottle to me but if it's only $3 give it a shot

 

one of my favorite cobo's on silver..

Collinite 845 Insulator Wax topped with Mothers Pure Carnuba paste

 

Just passing through, nothing to add from what other posters already covered.

Nice job on the car, looks fantastic. Well done.

JP

 

Great job Gipraw! 845 IW with a carnuba topper look great on silver (My go to combo is 845 and Liquid Souveran Wax)! I've recently learned of a 75% 845 25% Liquid Souveran Wax mix that does a fantastic job on my silver '05 STX R/C.

 

Gip, help me out as I continue to learn from this forum. Aren't both of the applications you used considered LSP's? What is the advantage of applying a 2nd LSP on top of the other? Coverage? BTW, it really looks good!

 

no advantage other than looks.. I was just experimenting .. I was looking for something to give the silver some more depth, so I was playing with a bunch of different things.. I liked the 845 in the silver ..

then wondered if I would get anything more from the carnuaba. to my eyes, I did ..

what you are actually seeing there is:

#20
845
Mother's

 

I've been wanting to top 845 with something on black, maybe Natty's Red. How long did you wait before applying the mothers? Wait too long and contaminants might be present, do it too soon and you just strip the previous carnauba.

Any thoughts?