Agreed on all counts. Also, you'll be paying that guy $250 to do it and you can buy in for $300 and easily detail your car 4-5 times with the product you buy.
Edit:
Not to sound like a dick, but you have to learn somehow. It's damn near impossible to burn your paint with a PorterCable. The first time I ever used one my paint came out better than any "professional" ever had any of my previous cars looking. It's not hard and the product may cost you $300 total with PC, but it lasts so much longer than 1 "professional" detail and if you don't like there are plenty of us on here that will buy your product off of you.
Edit 2:
Here are some detailing steps I have written up (tried to remember everything I do and put it in this write-up)
As far as detailing steps, I used a porter cable 7424 to make it easier and get the clarity you saw in the black lightning. You can buy a kit here (what I did, includes all the pads you need): http://www.tropi-care.com/Porter_Cable_7424_buffer_kit_p/tcpc-10.htm and enter in the code "10offTC". I used all of Tropi-Care's products and it was a bit expensive, but well worth it; especially on a red vehicle.
The products that I have from them are:
- Super Plush MF towel x 3(http://www.tropi-care.com/Super_Plush_Microfiber_Polish_Towel_p/tc-m4.htm)
- Waffle Weave Drying Towel x2 (http://www.tropi-care.com/Waffle_Weave_Drying_Towel_p/tc-m3.htm)
- Tropi-Care Premium Car Wash (http://www.tropi-care.com/Tropi_Care_Car_Wash_p/tc-6.htm)
- Clay Magic Clay Bar Kit; any clay will work, though (http://www.tropi-care.com/Clay_Magic_kit_p/tc-1.htm)
- Menzerna PowerGloss Compound (http://www.tropi-care.com/Menzerna_PowerGloss_p/men-pg.htm)
- Tropi-Care Swirl Cutter (http://www.tropi-care.com/Swirl_Cutter_p/tc-8.htm)
- Tropi-Care Sealant xP (http://www.tropi-care.com/Sunburst_Sealant_xP_p/tc-3.htm)
- Tropi-Care Carnauba Paste Wax (http://www.tropi-care.com/Tropi_Care_Carnauba_Paste_Wax_p/tc-pwax.htm)
Remember, for everything you do, ALWAYS use either up and down motions or side to side motions on the vehicle! This helps to reduce and ultimately eliminate swirls from the vehicles paint.
Your first step is to clay the vehicle to get a clean slate and get all the contaminants off of the paint. This should take a while but remember to go slow. If you drop the clay, throw it away and get another one. It is now worthless and has picked up little rocks in it that you can't see and it WILL scratch your paint.
Once you are finished claying the car you should rinse the car off. To speed up drying, I use a California Jelly Blade. It literally gets almost all of the water off of the vehicle and only leaves you a minimum amount of water to get up with a Waffle Weave MicroFiber.
Compound is very aggressive. Unless you have used finer grits (higher number = less aggressive/finer) do not jump straight to a compound. Try some polishes, first.
The next step is by far the longest part of the detailing process. This part is the polishing (compounding) step. Get your light cutting pad out (for this write-up I will refer to it as the "orange pad") and put some of the Menzerna PowerGloss compound on the orange pad. Also put a little compound around the area you will be compounding (one panel at a time, or for large panels, 1/2 panel at a time). Push the pad onto the paint in different areas to spread out the product. You don't want it flying everywhere when you go to turn on your PC! Now, set your PC to around speed 2 and work the product into the vehicle. Remember, ALWAYS use up/down and side-to-side motions!!. Let the PC do the work. You don't need to press down much if at all! Once you feel that the product is worked in (shouldn't be super white, a little more translucent but not all the way) turn the speed up on the PC to around 5-5.5 and put mild pressure on the PC. Once the product is translucent and hazy, turn the PC off and grab a MF towel (I used Tropi-Care's Super Plush MFs) and some alcohol solution. The alcohol solution will help get any oils off of the car/truck that could be hiding more imperfections. Lightly mist the area you just compounded and wipe off the compound. You should not be getting big chunks of white and the product should come off relatively easily. Repeat all of these steps for the entire vehicle and then move on to the next phase of detailing.
Note: Your orange pads may get caked on with product during this phase. Simply take the pad off of the PC and rinse it off with the hose nozzle. Put the pad back on the PC and turn the speed up to 6 and turn it on (make sure you are standing an arms length away) and watch out for the spray of water. Let it dry just a bit and then start using it again. This step really needs 2 orange pads to work out well, IMO.
This next step is to get out a polishing pad (lighter cutting than the orange pad and for this write up, I'll refer to it as a white pad) and your Tropi-Care Swirl Cutter. This polish is much thinner and less goes a longer way than the Menzerna PowerGloss. Use the same steps as the previous phase except when you turn up the PC after working the product in, turn it up to around 5.5-6 to really work out those fine swirls. Remember, up/down and side-to-side motions ALWAYS!
Note: you may want to do 3 steps of polishing if you really want to get that depth and shine to your car/truck. Remember to always go from more aggressive to less aggressive (so final polish should be finer/higher number than the previous polishes).
Now, have a beer (or two) because you have just finished the hardest part about detailing a vehicle! Your vehicle should look fantastic right now and you should be pumped about finishing in time to go get pictures (at least I always am lol). Now, get out a finishing pad (I used the blue pad from tropi-care and will refer to the finishing pad as the "blue pad"). Take the Sealant xP and put 5 pea sized dots on the pad (while on the PC) and then just a little bit on the panel you will be applying product to. Dab the pad into the paint just the same as when you were in the polishing phase. Set the PC to around 3.5 or so and turn it on. Apply the product a little bit faster than you did the polish but don't speedy gonzalez it, either. Once you have applied the product to the panel turn the PC off (no need to turn up the speed here) and let it haze quickly (30sec-1 minute) and then, with a clean MF towel (super plush is what I used) wipe the product off. The product should come off very easily and effortlessly. Repeat these steps for the entire vehicle and then move on to the waxing phase.
For the waxing phase you can either use the PC or do it by hand, it's up to you. If you use the machine, it will go quicker, but if you do it by hand you use less product and, IMO, looks better. If you use the machine, set the machine to 3.5, apply wax to the blue pad, place on the paint, and turn on. Up/down and side-to-side motions to apply product and then buff off once lightly hazed. If you are applying by hand, take the applicator and get some wax on it. Remember to use up/down and side to side motions only to apply the wax. Move one panel at a time, also and move slowly. Let the wax lightly haze and then buff off with a clean MF towel (super plush, again).
Congrats! Go out and take a few pictures of the newly detailed ride then go home and down the rest of the 6 pack in celebration of a hard days work!
Other products I use for dressing the wheels and tires and exterior:
- Tire Foam (whichever you prefer)
- Meguiar's Chrome Polish for chrome wheels and exhaust tips
- Meguiar's Quick Detail Spray (any will do, actually). I use this to clean up the wheels after each wash. Works well to get brake dust off.
- Meguiar's Back to Black. Works wonderfully for dulled black trim
Upkeep of paint:
During washes, use two buckets. One to rinse and one for the wash. Rinse vehicle down and then start washing. Remember to again use up/down and side-to-side motions when washing. Try to use as much foam as possible. You may have to refill the wash bucket and foam it up. After each panel is washed, rinse your mitt in the rinse bucket.
Each month-month and a half a new layer of wax should be put on to maintain maximum protection IMO. If it is a weekend warrior, every 2-2.5 months should be OK.
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