Soon the winter will be officially over, and I want to do some paintenance. Was curious what you guys recommend as far as products, techniques, etc. I was thinking of doing a clay bar, then heck I dunno. My previous car was an old warhorse and I didnt do a whole lot of this stuff, haha. But this trucks too clean to dream of lettin it go!

What should I do 1st, 2nd, etc, far as prepping for wax, waxing, etc. I do have a wheel, though I havent used it in a bit. Are typical autoparts products ok? Any to steer clear of...

Thanks!!!

 

https://www.f150online.com/forums/ca...ng-sticky.html

 

I highly recommend Adam's Products. Slightly more expensive (not really if you look at how long they last you) and they have been 10x more user friendly than any other brand I have used.

http://www.adamspolishes.com/

Check out their detailing videos too! Really helps with the thought process.
http://www.adamspolishes.com/t-videos.aspx

 

Point taken, thanks, lol.

 

If by a "wheel" you mean a rotary buffer (not a dual-action polisher) do yourself a favor and leave it in the tool cabinet. You can ruin a nice paint job in a big hurry if you don't know what you're doing with those things.....

In fact, if it's your first time attempting to really detail a vehicle, I'd be inclined to advise you to simply clay it and wax it with a good synthetic product of some kind just to see how it goes. You won't be able to ruin anything, and by doing these basic steps you'll already have a nicer wax job than 75% of all the other vehicles on the road ever receive. After that you can decide for yourself if the next time you detail you want to continue "learning the art" and add some additional steps into your regimen.

FWIW -- most "normal" people won't be interested in spending the amount of time some of the "nut jobs" that hang out around this forum are willing to invest in detailing their trucks.....

 

You might get done and it looks good after applying a wax ( or other last step ), but once that wax goes way, this is what you could see.



Quick example that I could find, for what ddellwo means by this.

You can many more with a search for dealer installed swirl option / DISO or RDS

list goes on paint holograms is another term


Maybe Fast & Furious 27 will come out with RDS jobs on cars, so it is cool to have this...

 

HEY! I resemble that comment.

 

Geez David, just because I comb my lawn! Give a guy a break!

 

When you're spending tens of thousands of dollars on your vehicle why not spend a couple hundred to keep it looking like new?

 

Hey -- you're preaching to the choir, Dude! You're talking to a guy that doesn't drive his "babies" in rain and just spent the past two days out in the garage giving his daily-driver Ranger some love.....

I'm also bright enough to realize that the VAST majority of people don't have the time, inclination or patience to take detailing to the level that some folks around here consider "cathartic"......:o

 

I actually do brush the back yard

Then again it is turf not grass....

 

Yea, but you water it too.

And David is right. 99% of the folks that comment on my vehicles wouldn't want to take the time that I do to make them look good. They've seen too many Billy Mays commercials on TV and think it's easy.

 

Especially with a white truck you can get away with a lot. But make it look really good too!

 

Yea my trucks a real light silver. But, yea i dunno if i needa go 10 step crazy. The paint is actually pretty dang good. However, i would like to do a quality wash, then a clay bar and at least a wax. Kinda keep it simple as the one guy said up there. I guess I was more lookin at what brands or towels, etc to stay away from.

ps it is an orbital, not a rotary.

 

If it's an orbital your on the right path for good paint correction. Sorry thought your truck was white. I love silver paint, because it looks so good after a good wash & wax. It also hides a ton of paint damage (swirl marks or haze). If you are looking the economical route. I'd suggest a good sealant then a good wax. If you don't want to do paint correction (or don't need it)

Adam's Buttery Wax is great for a good protection but nothing compared to the their Americana (but its also $70)

Adam's Machine Super Sealant and a Grey Pad would be perfect protection for the truck.

This is just MSS


Spend more money on your towels than anything IMO. They can really hurt your paint more than anything.

I absolutely love these:
Single Soft Towels