What would be a good polish to get 5 years of weather off the paint. I just purchased a 97 F150 with only 20,000 miles, however, it has set outside by a school which uses coal to heat it. There is alot of dirt on the paint that washing just can't remove. Any help would be great.
Thanks

 

Maybe give liquid glass a try?

 

Hard to say but, it sounds like clay might be a viable option to removing the 'stuck on' contamination...

Removing the oxidation might be slightly more difficult. You'll need to use a product that is slightly to moderately abrasive. I'm going to leave it at that and let Intel answer. I'm not really sure what would be best.

RP

 

Ok few things your going to have to do but your truck should look awesome when your done. Gonna cost some money though as your gonna have to order stuff from PRO... wait... you are going to have to find a pro distributor near you because they can't ship the one product. You might also want a pro detailer to do a few of the steps just so you won't have to spend the time doing it but it is up to you.

email Pro (prowax.com) and ask them where the closest Pro distributor is to you. Most will deliver to you so you'll just have to call them and find out what day they'll be in the area. There webpage is Prowax.com

First your going to need Pro's C-45 Liquid Fallout Remover (or whatever it is called) It is a solution of Oxalic (sp?) acid, which eats contaminants out of the paint.

This stuff is easy to use. First you'll wash the truck with a car soap and then dry it to remove all the contaminants. Make sure you really rinse the truck off well so no soap residue remains. Soap will neutralize the C-45 so it won't work.

Then I use the C-45 in a spray bottle and spray the panels with it and rub it with a wash mit. Make sure it is a new wash mit, which you'll only use w/ the C-45 as soap residue will neutralize the acid. Really coat the panels well. Might get someone to help you to keep the stuff from drying on the paint. Just really coat the panels well and rub it with the wash mit. Work on it for around 5 mins. I sometimes go as long as 7 mins on big vehicles simply because it takes so long to coat all the panels. Really soak the panels well.

Now, I mix up a fresh bucket of C-60 car soap. I usually do it at twice the recommened strength when washing off the C-45. This is to help it neutralize the acid. Now just wash the truck really really well. I usually wash a vehicle twice.

Some people will tell you a single step acid bath like this will damage the resin in the paint but this is complete BS. C-45 is very easy to neutralize. One drop of C-60 car soap will neutralize all the acid in a gallon of C-45. C-45 will also neutralize any acid rain in the paint. It'll eat out Rail Dust (ferrous oxide).

After you've washed the truck off twice, then you'll use Pro's Clay Away 4 and clay the truck to make sure you've remove everything. The paint should be getting pretty smooth now.

Oxidation is hard to remove. It isn't difficult skill wise (other than preventing swirls) but it is hard labor. I suggest finding a Pro who is skilled w/ a high speed buffer.

If you want to do it yourself, then I recommend using 3m's Fine cut rubbing compound. Apply it by hand with a foam applicator using straight back and forth motions. You'll probably have to apply it multiple times.

If you have a buffer, then use Pro's DUZ-all or Pro's Creamy Cutter.

For a final polish, then I recommend getting Pro's P-21 Swirl Eliminator and Polish. Use a new foam pad and work it into the paint. It'll remove minor swirls and remove the haze from 3m's fine cut.

Now you are ready for a wax. Since you'll have a Pro distributor coming to you, then I recommend grabbing a bottle of Profection. The wax look is suppose to last 6 months but the actual polymer will stay bonded to the paint for 2 years! It is a product that some dealers use as a warranty product. I'm gonna be grabbing a bottle this week to use on my truck instead of Klasse SG. Klasse SG is still a good wax but Profection is suppose to be easier to apply.

Good luck and post before and after pictures!

 

Intel,
I went to the prowax site and it says that the Profection product that you mentioned contains no wax. Is that the product that you meant to mention?

 

yhea, it contains a resin. I.e. synthetic wax. When they talk of wax, they are talking about carnauba, parafin, beeswax, montan, etc.

 

Here's a Liquid Glass shine for ya'. Only two coats applied & already sparkling.
Larry



https://www.f150online.com/galleries...w.cfm?num=2694

 

yup, LG is some good stuff

(tonneau with 3 coats)









but zaino is even better...


(door with 6 coats, but pic was taken 2 weeks later and truck wasn't washed since the polish!)