Lincoln LS Detail

I'd be afraid to see how it would turn out if I did my own tint. I think you should find a shop with a warranty on the life of the tint instead. You get what you pay for in the end.

But if you do decide to do it....

Clean the window
Claybar the window
Use a finishing glass polish
Clean the window with rubbing alcohol.

I think you want the surface of the window to be as flat as possible so bubbles don't form.

Don't quote me 100% on this.
 
I think I can do it. I just think the rear is going to get me but the rest don't look so hard as long as I take my time.
 
Learned something new today. Supposedly static electricity is one of the main reason thats dirt and dust settle on cars. I knew static electricity could build up after driving a vehicle, anyone with metal doorhandles knows this, but I didn't know it had to do with dirt. This turned me on to research and to new products. I found a quick detailer that can be layered as normal wax is, and provides great shine and anti-static characteristics. The company is called Finish Kare, new to me. Apparently their finishing polishing have been tested and are very good, can't say the same for the rest of the stuff. The quick detailer I am suggesting is #425 Ultra Slick Poly Wipe Spray Detailer - Anti-Static under the Express Detail section. #146 Finish Restorer Poly Wipe Spray Detailer - Anti-Static is also a good product, but it has less gloss than the #425.

http://www.fk1usa.com/products-professional.htm
 
Yeah static helps allot of pollen and dust settle.

BTW, I got bored and took off the tint today. Man did that suck!

I really think I am going to get a kit and give it a shot. Those that do it regularly had to get a start somehow.
 
Absolutely man. What is the worst that can possibly happen? You might as well give it a shot. Maybe I'd practice on some cheap tint beforehand.
 
I just ordered a gallon of the #425 and some Chemical Guys Gatorskin Nitrile gloves. I'll be doing a carwash and review with both of these whenever I get them in the mail. I'll also do a test of the Diamondite Glass Cleaner for those interested.
 
links to products? the only thing I could find on autogeek when I search 425 is meg's degreaser.
 
J, this is for you again. I've been researching and have found another glass cleaner that a lot of detailing enthusiasts swear by. The brand is Surf City Garage, and they were just recently picked up by Autogeek. If you order off of the Surf City Garage website, you get free shipping on your products. A refill bottle of their glass cleaner is 12.99 and consists of 2 liters, which is a pretty damn good deal if you ask me.

http://www.surfcitygarage.com/detail1.php?product_id=50

I've also read that their Road Trip Grime Destroyer and Beyond Black Tire Pro are great products. I've yet to try any of these out, but when my Armor All stash runs out I'm sure to pick up the tire dressing.

BBTP- http://www.surfcitygarage.com/detail1.php?product_id=5

RTGD- http://www.surfcitygarage.com/detail1.php?product_id=56


Their Barrier Reef Carnauba Wax is supposedly very similar to Poorboy's World Natty's paste wax, but it is in liquid form. I haven't even gotten a chance to try my Natty's out yet. It's very good and very bad that my car doesn't get dirty that often. I'd like to test some products out.
 
Thanks KD. Ill look into that stuff.


On terms of the Stoner's: I have a glass desk at home that gets messy pretty quick, things are pretty fast paced around my apartment and I clean the damn place everyday. I gave the Stoner's a shot on my desk and it did the same thing. It just left a smudged streaky mess and fine dirt was smeared around. I know its a bad can or something cause I also used a fresh microfiber straight out of a brand new pack. I wiped it with a wet towel then went over it with a dry microfiber again a fresh one and that worked perfectly.


Oh well, the Stoner's is cheap enough not to feel all that ripped off. I think I am going to try it out again sooner or later seeing on how it just had to be bad luck.




I have a question on something on a new topic. Whats the best way to clean the engine bay up and make it look nice for pictures?


I gave the brake cleaner a shot but it did nothing. Well nothing much anyway.
 
Coincidentally, I just did this. Took about 10 minutes. 120K on the clock, and this is the FIRST time the bay has been detailed. I just cleaned where I could with 4:1 diluted simple green. Then I covered the bay in Armor All Tire Foam. Then I started the engine, closed the hood, and went for a short drive. Here's the result. The second pic is after 4 days:

bay1.JPG


bay2.JPG
 
Ok, time to show off my car in here. :D

Finally had a chance to wash the car myself for the first time in years at the woman's place. I used Turtle Wax Ice soap and a chamois (the one that comes in the plastic tube..forget the name), Meguiar's wheel cleaner spray (crap!), some microfiber towels and wash mitts (one for the car, one for the wheels)...nothing crazy. It's been two days since I've washed it on Saturday and the car still isn't dusty, compared to it being dusty after having to have it done at a local car wash.

Img_0416-1.jpg


Img_0414-1.jpg



I wound up grabbing a Meguiar's clay bar 'kit' on Sunday and have the Zymol cleaner wax here. If the weather holds up, I'll be doing that this coming weekend.

Also did the newspaper trick for the first time in my 18 years of driving. I used 'non-streaky' Glass Plus with paper towels at first, and during the day the windshield looked fine. Completely different story at night....streak city! Keep in mind that I smoke, so the windshield takes some abuse, but the newspaper works awesome! :)
 
Car looks real good man. The more and more I hear about it, the less and less than Zymol stuff looks appealing. Most pro/amateur detailers say that stuff is way below par, even for the money. I think it's just the name selling itself.

A few alternative waxes for around that price...
Collinite 845 Insulator Wax
S100 Motorcycle Wax (Same formula as the P21S car wax, half the price)
Poorboy's Natty Paste Wax


Also, if you smoke in the car, look for Diamondite Glass Cleaner.
 
Most pro/amateur detailers say that stuff is way below par, even for the money.
Click to expand...


I hear the complete opposite. I used a ton of the typical stuff sold in most stores and Ill tell you I never seen anything as good as the Zymol. Sure those ones that you explain may be just as good but my point is that the Zymol is easily accessible.
 
hey JWerner2 i wouldn't recommend doing the tint yourself if you haven't done it as is. i've done some tints prior to the LS and i did a clean job but the back windshield is a PITA. i always start with that due to the fact that it's the most difficult. if you can't get that one then i suggest you don't do it. or an alternate thing to do is doing your other windows yourself and let a pro do the back and you save some money still. also, if you do decide to do the second option, make sure you take the tint that your going to use on the rest of the car. different tints have different finishes
 
I'm giving it a shot regardless. If I mess it up oh well Ill do it again. I want to get into some of these things anyway and like I said everyone had to start somewhere. Not everyone got away Scot free on the first shot. At this point its not even about money. I had to replace the rear anyway and seeing on how the tint is a bit aged and also knowing what you said about different shades of tint being true I would have gone and have had the entire car done anyway.

Thanks for the concern though Rick.
 
KD00LS said:
Car looks real good man. The more and more I hear about it, the less and less than Zymol stuff looks appealing. Most pro/amateur detailers say that stuff is way below par, even for the money. I think it's just the name selling itself.

A few alternative waxes for around that price...
Collinite 845 Insulator Wax
S100 Motorcycle Wax (Same formula as the P21S car wax, half the price)
Poorboy's Natty Paste Wax


Also, if you smoke in the car, look for Diamondite Glass Cleaner.
Click to expand...

Thanks. Like I said, nothing crazy. I'll try that Zymol stuff and see how it comes out. If it sucks, I can always try something else. I know that my old man used to use that stuff on his then new 96 Town Car, so we'll see if the stuff still works good or not.
 
JWerner2 said:
I hear the complete opposite. I used a ton of the typical stuff sold in most stores and Ill tell you I never seen anything as good as the Zymol. Sure those ones that you explain may be just as good but my point is that the Zymol is easily accessible.
Click to expand...

Zymol Cleaner wax has a mild abrasive in it, which is why it makes your car shinier. Of course it's better than most of the over the counter stuff because most of it sucks.
 
The cleaner wax is by far the tip of the iceberg. People compare Zymol to Zanio. I know of people that used Zanio exclusively and then gave the rest of the Zymol line a shot and never went back.


People that use both products think its great. The rest of the Zymol line is a favorite among high end enthusiasts as well from what I have been reading.


As I said before my point is that this is the best that you can get within a arms reach if you don't feel like ordering stuff.

I'm sure I will get around to ordering the stuff you mentioned and I may end up with a new favorite but for now Zymol catches my eyes. I may try some other stuff from them soon but I am also contemplating the use of some of the products you have mentioned.



I gave the P21S a shot a while back and man I loved that stuff more but it is not as easy to find and is expensive.
 
Zymol in general is the tip of the iceberg, I'll agree with you on that. But the cleaner wax is garbage compared to the rest of their lineup. I'll ask some of my guys on the other site what their opinion is on it.
 
But the cleaner wax is garbage compared to the rest of their lineup.
Click to expand...

Exactly.:p :D

And seeing that the cleaner wax is pretty damn good I could only imagine what the rest of the stuff would do.;)

I want to join that forum, but I feel I should at least own a buffer first:lol:

I did the mist like it says to after shrugging it off for a few applications and it did improve the look allot!

I was just amazed how it is a product on the shelf that does actually take those fine swirls and scratches out and not just say it does like the rest of the stuff on the shelf.
 
Maybe if I feel generous I'll send you some Collinite 845 and we'll see who is better.
 
Sure, once I need a new coat. But that might be a while...:p


j/k!
 
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