Advice on Detailing a '72 Pontiac LeMans

[dkryan]

My friend has a '72 gold colored Lemans that she "wants to wax."

Obviously it is not clear-coated so I am loathe to use the PC 7424 on it regardless of the type of pad.

I was thinking of a thorough wash, followed bo a good polish to put some oils back into the paint, followed by either a sealant (Menzerna Power Loxk) or a wax (Collinite 845).

All applied by hand and using high quality detailing towels for removal.

Constructive thoughts?

 

[fdcg27]

This car would have acrylic lacquer paint so it should respond well to a mildly abrasive all in one product.
If you wanted to get fancy, you could clay it first.
The paint won't be very thick, so use some caution.

 

[dkryan]

Thanks.

All-in-one versus a separate polish (not a compound) followed by a sealant?

It's somewhat near you in Versailles, OH.

Lots of chrome to polish, too!

I've never dealt with "old school" automotive paint so I am soliciting advice from those more knowledgeable than me (most of you) in hopes of not screwing it up.

I am not against claying it.

 

[spasm3]

The question is, is it orginal paint? If so its lacquer. A cleaner wax like meguire's would work well. If its been repainted, what year? Could be acrylic enamel or a urethane, I'd use a sealant on that.

 

[daves87rs]

My neighbor still uses Nufinish on his camaro...

Looks pretty good too!

 

[propuckstopper]

Originally Posted By: dkryan
My friend has a '72 gold colored Lemans that she "wants to wax."

Obviously it is not clear-coated so I am loathe to use the PC 7424 on it regardless of the type of pad.

I was thinking of a thorough wash, followed bo a good polish to put some oils back into the paint, followed by either a sealant (Menzerna Power Loxk) or a wax (Collinite 845).

All applied by hand and using high quality detailing towels for removal.

Constructive thoughts?


Are you sure this car sports its original lacquer paint? If it does, I would approach the polishing process carefully. This paint would be 45 years old if original, and it wouldn't be something you would want to buff through with a product that is too abrasive.

 

[RooflessVW]

I would not hesitate to use a machine with a less aggressive pad and something like Wolfgang Uber AIO or Griot's One-Step Sealant.

A paint depth gauge would be of use here.

 

[gofast182]

As others have said, my first question would be is it original paint? If not, what kind is it? But overall your plan sounds pretty good. Please post before and after pics.

 

[Big Smoke]

Have looked at Liquid Glass? I have always had great success with it. Technically it's not a wax. Shine holds up great. 2 coats in the spring and 2 in the fall.

 

[dkryan]

Originally Posted By: propuckstopper
Originally Posted By: dkryan
My friend has a '72 gold colored Lemans that she "wants to wax."

Obviously it is not clear-coated so I am loathe to use the PC 7424 on it regardless of the type of pad.

I was thinking of a thorough wash, followed bo a good polish to put some oils back into the paint, followed by either a sealant (Menzerna Power Loxk) or a wax (Collinite 845).

All applied by hand and using high quality detailing towels for removal.

Constructive thoughts?


Are you sure this car sports its original lacquer paint? If it does, I would approach the polishing process carefully. This paint would be 45 years old if original, and it wouldn't be something you would want to buff through with a product that is too abrasive.


It has the original paint. Of that I am certain. Which is why I am asking for advice and thinking "less is more" in terms of aggressiveness.

What about using a clay mitt prior to polishing?

 

[RooflessVW]

If you're going to polish the car,I consider it a necessity to clay bar beforehand. You should be able to clay the car with minimal marring if you do it the right way.

I think after claying rhe car an all in one product is your best bet. If you have a DA, use it. You'll get better results than if you do it by hand.

 

[SatinSilver]

I wouldn't polish any car by hand unless you're just doing a small area. The results won't be that good and your arm will probably be sore for a couple of days. Plus it's hard to get uniform results.

An excellent cleaner sealant is Duragloss Marine/Rv polish #501 available on Amazon etc. It also works great on chrome. One of the guys on here is a pro detailer and uses it on occasion.

O'Reillys has Mother's Speed Clay on sale for $18. It's not like the traditional clay with some of it's drawbacks but works just as well.

http://www.mothers.com/02_products/17240.html?gclid=CPvDpYTpn9QCFdU7gQodBosHBA#EPmYxvGjRMWshb86.97

Fast Eddie Detailling Thread using Duragloss #501

 

[dkryan]

Thanks for the input.

I will likely go with the Speed Clay followed by an AIO product.

If I use the PC 7424, I am tempted to use a lower speed (2,000-ish) and a non-cutting pad, i.e., a Lake Country Red or Gold pad.
I'm not dealing with clearcoat and I certainly don't want to screw up paint (it's not exactly pristine) that hasn't seen any detailing work on it in 25 years.

Thankfully, it is in running order and more thankfully, it has been garaged all of this time.

 

[kbmag1]

It single stage paint, after any paint corrections, Megs #7 glaze followed with Megs yellow wax #26 or any wax of your choice

 

[ryanschillinger]

I would wash, clay, wash, HD Speed on a polishing pad and medium speed. Spray wax when done with Meguiars d156 or Duragloss aquawax.