UNLEASH YOUR INNER PAINT WHISPERER

E.K. COZZENE . October 06, 2022 . All Feature Vehicles

Save ArticleLogin to save it

Prep Your Ride for the Show Season or Weekend Drive

Washing your car is pretty straightforward: a hose, a bucket and suds aplenty. Let the foam fly, use microfiber mitts and towels, and you’re golden, but if you really want to capture all of your ride’s glory, step up your game, go the extra mile and attain a state of paint care nirvana. The payoff is big. Savvy owners know washing and drying a car is the beginning of the journey, not the destination. It’s what you do after that last bead of water is wiped away that truly adds pop and vitality to a car’s finish.

CLAY

Jim says the road to perfect paint begins with clay. Paint clay lifts away embedded contaminants that resist the typical sponge-and-suds approach. He says running your fingers across your paint is a great way to determine if you’ll benefit from claying. “When it feels rough and gritty, I bust out the Griot’s Garage clay and Speed Shine. The Speed Shine quick detailing spray acts as a lubricant. I just rub down the paint with a few strokes from the clay, wipe off the Speed Shine and run my fingers across the treated surface. Try it, you’ll be amazed at the results, and have a new definition of ‘clean paint.’” After some time you’ll see a dark residue on the clay. This indicates that you’re making progress. Fold over the clay bar as you work to introduce fresh clay to the process. Jim recommends limiting your work area to 2-foot squares to keep the job manageable.

Jim Olson, one of the founders of the King’s Men car club of Tacoma, Washington, is among the savvy. He’s a hands-on, old-school rodder with an encyclopedia of tech tidbits relating to paint care. We met up with him at his home garage to see how he preps for the show season. The King’s Men car club was established in 1959 with a dozen members, and Jim rolled a ’39 Ford in the early days. Today Jim’s pride and joy is a two-tone green ’52 Chevy. Since many King’s Men events are cruise-ins, poker runs and the like, his car sees the road quite a bit, and consequently, Jim gets lots of detailing practice.

Scratches and Swirls

The next step is to inspect your paint for scratches, swirl marks or other defects. If you’re like most rodders, these blemishes will jump out at you during regular washings, but it’s a good idea to look the car over at this point in the proceedings because claying can bring out some of the flaws, which is good because if they can be seen they can be defeated. The seriousness of the scratches you discover will determine the seriousness (read: abrasiveness) of the polish you’ll use. Also the type of pad you use can impact the effectiveness of the polish. Jim likes microfiber pads for big scratches and some moderate blemishes because, “they have more horsepower and work quicker than foam pads.” He goes with foam pads when dealing with light imperfections or addressing overall maintenance where the entire vehicle needs a light refreshing. The best way to optimize your polishing prowess is by using a random orbital machine. Since an orbital both spins and circles its pad there’s very little chance you’ll burn through your paint, a reputation that direct-drive polishers of decades past have deservedly earned. A random orbital saves elbow grease and loads of time, while providing vastly superior results. When polishing, always start with the mildest polish and either reapply or move to a more abrasive compound if your first pass doesn’t eliminate all defects. Polishing enhances the reflectivity of paint by smoothing the scratches, ridges and defects, which induces shine.

Jim and his first love, a ’39 Ford, were featured in Hot Rod Magazine in 1964—quite a feat for a guy from the great Northwest considering the SoCal-centric nature of the scene in those days. When asked about the origins of the club’s name, Jim quipped, “Oh, that was a long time ago. The club started at Franklin Pierce High School in Tacoma, but we are unsure who or how the name came to be. I’m not saying I don’t remember, I’m saying some of the originals all got together and collectively we can’t nail down where ‘King’s Men’ came from.”

Wax or Sealant

Now it’s time to add a wax or sealant to protect your hard-earned shine against the dulling effects of the elements and potential blemishes. The big choice here is wax or sealant. The major difference between the two is that wax is natural, while a sealant is made from synthetic ingredients. Generally speaking, a wax delivers deeper, richer color but a sealant will last longer. Savvy detailers use a sealer then follow up with a natural wax as needed throughout the show season. Jim is a carnauba wax man and he prefers to apply by hand. He says working in the polish by hand gives him more of a direct connection to the car. Since wax is a wipe-on and buff-off proposition, it’s less physically demanding, but rodders can also elect to apply carnauba paste or a sealant using a random orbital.

Jim’s current driver is this ’52 Chevy with two-tone green paint, frenched headlights, an airbag suspension and conservative rally-style wheels. The Bow Tie is motivated by a 307-inch small-block backed by a TH350 automatic.

Goodbye Cord, Hello Convenience

Jim is all about being ready to roll, and he was excited to show us his newest toy, a cordless random orbital from Griot’s Garage. He’s found the unit quite useful for at-show touchups or during poker runs. “The cordless is really easy to handle, has enough power to wax or remove light swirls, and one charge will do the ’52 with power left over for a friend. I find myself using it for quick detailing here in the garage, too. It charges quick and is great for the maintenance type of stuff we’re talking about.”

Jim urges anyone with show-worthy aspirations not to be intimidated. He says using a clay bar is easy and the enhancement in the feel and luster of your paint will be mesmerizing.

Jim calls applying product “buttering the pad,” and he recommends spreading it out with the bottle cap prior to polishing. He’s also quick to point to the importance of ensuring the pad is on the surface of the vehicle when the random orbital is turned on or powered down. “Failing to do so will fling product all over the car, garage and your clothes.”

Jim prefers a palm pad holder and 3-inch wax pad to apply his carnauba wax. Like a lot of rodders, he likes the intimacy of a hands-on approach.

“These random orbital machines are worth their weight in gold. The Griot’s Garage 6-inch machine has a big 5/16-inch orbit which moves a lot of product around so I can really work the paint.”

The beauty of these advanced steps is that once your paint reaches this state of grace it’s easy to keep it there. “Once I get my paint to this level it’s all about maintenance. I garage park the Chevy so I’ll use Speed Shine or Griot’s Spray-On Wax to keep the car layered in wax and free from dust to preserve the polish work and extend the shine. A typical wipe down is five minutes and I’m ready to roll.”