First go with my DA

[scotty76]

So my parcel from Juicy Jen arrived this morning and despite the snow I felt I should do a couple of panels. So I washed, dried, Iron X, clayed only the panels I was going to tackle which was bonnet and boot lid. Iron X pulled a bit of stuff from the boot lid but nothing of note from the bonnet which is a bit weird! I would have thought there would be more contamination on the bonnet than the boot. I've only got the sample size and given there doesn't seem to be much on the panels it did fine.

So weapons of choice:
- DAS6 DA polisher
- Dodo Juice Lime Prime
- Hexlogic 5.5" white pad
- Microfibres
- Autoglym HD Wax

For anyone nervous about going down the DA route, don't be. I am a total idiot and had no problem using it. I can also see that Audi paint is indeed as hard as they say. Some of the scratches appear untouched so I can see why you need some polishes and pads with serious bite to get into those! Still, it was not my intention to go for correction so I am pleased with the outcome.

This morning:

After one going over with Lime Prime and one coat of AG HD Wax:

Thanks for looking.

 

[monster_munch]

Results look brilliant mate. Will look good when the whole car is done. Hats off to you doing it in this weather. Your driveway must be like an ice rink now!

 

[scotty76]

Was +3C when I was out there so not as bad as it looks. The snow thawed pretty quickly. I used a watering can to rinse the panels so as not to get too much water all over the place. It all soaked away into the ground as it's block paved.

 

[warren_S5]

Seeings you live local to me, if you want any more practice on a black car please feel free to try it out on my S3! :icon_thumright:

 

[scotty76]

Warren, I'm afraid you'd have to look after my kids for the day so I'd get the better deal.

 

[willowsdad]

Looking good mate. Results with a DA are easily more noticeable than by hand. Judging by them panels you don't need to do any correction anyway. They are definitely a good investment, but if you're like me you won't stop there. More products will soon be sitting in your garage I'm sure.

 

[warren_S5]

Warren, I'm afraid you'd have to look after my kids for the day so I'd get the better deal.

Given my parenting skill which are zero (due to a lack of any kids) your kids don't deserve to be led by the blind so I'll decline for their sake!

 

[scotty76]

Judging by them panels you don't need to do any correction anyway.

Thanks but the photos are taken from a good angle. The bonnet has a fair few stone chips and the boot has some scratches that didn't come out (I didn't expect them to with Lime Prime). You're right though, I am already thinking of how to tackle the scratches with more products. The car's a '57 plate so the paint was never going to be perfect.

I took your advice (from another thread I started) and clayed on the day. I'm pleased to say that since the last time it was done in April 2011 there was not too much to lift off. I guess that's proof that even a little maintenance really helps as the car's been wearing AG HD wax topped with AG Aquawax from time to time. I know HD products are a bit "high street" but I'm careful with the pennies so need to finish up what I have before I'll buy more.

 

[Juicy Jen]

Good start Scott lovely reflections, however like you say photos can be deceptive with no direct sunlight on the area. I'm glad as well that you can see the difference and benefits between polishing by hand and using the DA

 

[drmole]

hand polishing is hard work but can give you some good results if you put the effort in mine is yet to be machined due to do it very soon after a good wet sand these results were achieved by hand