THE 599 Detail Thread.....

It's like a jewel!
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Love this!

 

What a gorgeous color, it fits the personality of the 599 perfectly.

 

Pretty spectacular work!

 

What color is your 599? I love the deep red.

 

Looks good! Did they do anything specific with the carbon fiber?

 

Jim this is Chris I met you at the cars and coffee in Zionsville Indiana. Just wanted to say your car looks FANTASTIC! Hopefully we can meet again soon.

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Beautiful absolutely Beautiful

 

Thanks Jim, I am I the UK so might be a long trip! Did your guy used a machine? and do you know what polish? I tried with light polish by hand. Some results but far from the original shine ...

 

Sonax is great stuff! While I won't go near my 599, I only let pros do the car, I use the Sonax on my S550 and wow!

 

Any help on how to clean / detail or polish the aluminum plate on center console ( where reverse button is) . Mine has always looked scuffed and others may have been abusive in trying to clean?



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Many people are afraid of polishing their cars properly / via machine polisher, but if you follow some simple rules and are realistic in what can be achieved then there is no reason why the average weekend enthusiast / amateur cannot get great results on their cars paint.
Machine polishers:
The Dual Action Polisher ( without driven oscillation ) - eg Das 6 Pro or Meguairs MT320 etc. These DA polishers are getting better, but the oscillation or eccentric throw is not driven, so the amount or degree they can correct paint is limited. Therefore they are not suitable for heavy cut polishes, and thus cannot remove deep scratches etc. Most machine polishes contain micro glass beads, the machine polisher has to spin fast enough and have enough grunt to break the polish down to do its work and remove the paint defect. The above machines dont do this, so when used in conjunction with heavy cut compounds the results are poor, often leaving the paint in a far worse state than at first started.
However all is not lost, they are ideal with medium or light cut polishes, great for removing light swirl marks or very light scratches, they do not generate a lot of heat when used so are far safer, used correctly they will not leave holograms or hazing in the paint finish, honestly, your grandma could use one of these and not damage or burn through your paint.

The Forced Rotation Dual Action Polisher - eg Rupes or Flex etc. Much more expensive but far better at removing serious defects in your paint, can be used with heavy cut compound polish as they spin faster and have a heavy duty motor to back them up. Aimed more at the serious detailer and pro detailers, they are a lot safer to use than a pure rotary machine polisher and thus are now the go to machine for most detailers in the trade. Again the pro DA tends not leave holograms or buffer trails in the paint, so perfect paint correction is achieved 99% of the time, thus saving time and money.

The Pure Rotary Machine Polisher - eg Makita 9237CB, 3M Rotary, Flex PE14, etc. As the name suggests these machine polishers simply rotate or spin, as they normally have a good strong motor and can achieve high speeds then they can generate high temperatures when being used and thus damage your paint ie " burn through". The rotary has a legacy of being hard to use and yes when used in the wrong hands it will shag your paint and cost you money to put right, but once mastered they achieve a superb finish on your paint.
Pros - Good cutting and heavy paint rectification achievable. With variable speed and the correct pad then a host of paint correction tasks can be carried out from cutting to final finish. Now cheaper than a Rupes?
Cons - Build up and generate heat quickly if left in one position. Hard to control over tight curves and contours, tend to skip or hop. Older models tend to be heavy and thus hard on the hands when used for long periods.

Most people have misconceptions about machine polishing their cars paint, most think that layers of paint or lacquer is removed with each pass of the polisher. In most cases we are simply " re-finishing " the surface finish rather than removing any material. Only in extreme compounding, or when we wet sand do we start to remove or reduce the depth of paint, this is when investing in a good digital paint depth gauge is a must.

General machine polishing tips:
1. Practice, practice, practice - practice on an old car, or get a panel from the breakers yard? Nowadays there is a host of tuition on Youtube.
2. Faster does not mean shinier ( more gloss ).
3. Know your cars paint -is it hard, medium, soft paint, metallic with clear coat, single stage paint ( gloss black, pure white etc ). Honda and most Asian cars have soft paint and can be a nightmare to machine polish, and again modern water based paints can be tricky at times.
4. Painted plastic does not absorb heat well, be carefull when polishing front and rear valences.
5. Most polish will stain black trim if left, always mask off black plastic trim etc.
6. Mask off any trim on the panel, modern trim does not like being polished and will mark easily.
7. Use the least aggressive polish and pad to achieve the desired results. Modern polishes have come a long way, invest in a good polish and it will pay dividends, Menzerna, 3M, Koch Chemie to name but a few.
8. Try and buy the best machine and polishing pads.
9. Mask off thin swage lines on your cars panel when polishing, the paint depth or thickness here is usually less than the rest of the panel.
10. Remove as much contamination from the paints surface prior to polishing, washing and the use of a clay bar is allways recommended.
11. Be realistic in whats achievable, if the scratch is deep enough it cant be removed and no amount of polishing will remove it.
12. Practice, practice, practice!

By no means am i the supreme expert when it comes to machine polishing, i have made mistakes along the way and with modern car paints differing from manufacturer to manufacturer there is allways something new to learn, this can also be true of technology as polishes and equipment is getting better day by day.

 

Wow - Ummm OK - This just got saved into my "REALLY KNOWLEDGABLE AND USEFUL POSTS" folder

I own and have owned LOTS of high-end cars and always considered myself pretty good at detailing (worked in a detail shop in my Sr year in HS and year after) and was trained to use machine polishers there but only on fleet cars - not customer cars since I was a bit of a rookie. FF to now (many many years later) and to this day I only detail/polish/wax etc. by hand.

I will take this and give it a try - working my way up from my DD Jetta to my beloved (black no less) 458 Spider.

Thanks so much for the information

 

I know I am a bit late to the party but MY GOSH - your 599 is breathtaking!! It would be breathtaking dusty or in a rain shower but after the incredible detailing is is absolutely stunning! THAT color red on THAT model car is a match made in heaven IMHO and the detailing work is just ridiculous. Hmmm - shipping costs from Denver to Indiana??

Awesome!!

 

Ha! Don't tempt me - I am a good houseguest Seriously though that is a breathtaking 599 - I am loosely/casually looking for one to add to the stabe - would be my first front-engine V12 Ferrari - been limiting searches to TdF blue but may need to expand my horizons a bit after seeing yours.

Thanks for sharing all the pics - And the thread (as you saw) also generated the amazing and informative response from @Autodetaiing -

Take care - Will give you some notice before I show up on your front lawn - just look for a black 458 Spider