Detailing - load of tosh

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Yugguy said:
OP you could appy your logic to ANY walk of life. Why are we all in Mercs when there are cheaper, just as well-equipped cars? Why do some audio enthusiasts pay a grand a metre for cables? You pays yer money and you takes yer choice. Developers car looks fantastic. BTW no true detailer would be seen dead with a can of t-cut. That's well out of favour these days.

Completely agree. I gave up reading this thread as found it
 
I'm off over to the av forums to say my Alba stereo is the same sound quality as a Linn.
 
Perfect timing

Mine has been having it's "Winter Detail" today using all sorts of weird and wonderful products like GT Technic. In my eyes it's just getting a bloody good clean and polish with some decent materials, by someone who takes pride in what they do and has the (is being paid to) 7 hours to spend doing it.

I find the coatings applied do make it easier for me to get it back to this condition in between details with less effort than it used to take just to get a car clean, each to their own own but for less than £200, including the interior, supporting a one man local outfit and getting the car looking like it does I have no issue, in fact I think it's great value.

Car.jpg
 
Op, are you related to knighterrant ???
 
Alex 225. Thanks for a constructive response.

I would add however, that my brother employs/employed several detailers who charge anything from £500 to £1000 for a detailing/paint correction, call it what you want.

The MAXIMUM time he spends on any car (because time IS money) is 10 hours and this is normally associated with his higher prices for obvious reasons!

On the whole and because he has tested the market, his 'rates' are more or less £100/hour. [Minus all the materials which amount to about £50 (for him)).

He admits that this is a total rip off but there are no end of punters willing to swallow the dazzle and hype attached to this cottage industry (and it is a small industry). He provides a service and propaganda provides the clientelle - end.

Good luck to you and your fraternity for being very entrepreneurial and dynamic. I wish you true success in your endeavours.
BUT never ever try to kid a kidder!:rolleyes:
...I think we all love a clean car and we on here all take pride in Mercedes ownership...but !!!.. 100 an hour to super clean a car and all its bits ?!... very few people can afford or justify the costs.. but then again I have absol nothing against people making a good living either..i don't get the point about biz,s spring up all over the place cleaning other peoples cars ?? .. have we lost use of our hands ??...I just wonder why in this day and age all these roadside cleaning /valeting companies exist...spose there are many people who are prepared and can easily afford to bung an eastern European 5-25 quid for 20 mins work.. just my observation.. it does make me smile watching car owners sitting there watching other toil ..so to sum up detailers work hard.. the cars look lovely for a very short period.. but after a few weeks of winter driving they would look no diff to mine cleaned twice a week.. good thread this ,...shows the level of passion by owners to look after their pride and joy ..
foxy 52
 
Pretty much everyone is weirdly, freakishly obsessive about something. With some, it's about their cars; with some, it's about the cleanliness of their cars. It takes all sorts....
 
If you're over 25 then that's technically correct as your high frequency hearing is shot by that age :thumb:

Not true for everyone.

Mine wasn't in my late thirties...
 
Quote:
Since the white Hexlogic Quantum is a closed cell foam intended for light polishing....

Quote:
there was absolutely zero splatter. An occasional spritz with de-ionised water extended the product life even further and guaranteed no clumping from excessive accumulation.

Quote:
.....doing a jewelling pass for that final crisping.



Can you believe detailing even has its own language!

The Emperor has no clothes methinks.......

Just noticed these quotes from Post #15 were lifted from a thread I started some time back about polishing black cars. In my defence I'd like to point out it is very hard to pitch what is essentially a review article at a level that everybody is happy with. As I posted it in the technical section, I kind of assumed those taking the trouble to open the post would be requiring a slightly more in-depth explanation. As those who contribute to the forum know, it takes a fair bit of effort to compile an article, take photos and make it presentable. I did this solely to share an experience which I thought others may find interesting and maybe benefit from. I suppose it is far easier to ridicule somebody else's efforts rather than offer your own contribution. If I could just clarify the quotes:

1. Chemical Guys Hexlogic Quantum is a brand of polishing pad. A white foam denotes a particular abrasiveness. Using the wrong grade of polishing pad could damage the paint surface or equally be totally ineffective.
2. Some polishes clog the foam pad if over-applied. Deionised water, as supposed to tap water, is contaminant-free and serves to slightly dilute water-based polishes without adding any further unwanted ingredients which may alter the desired result.
3. Jewelling is a polishing term used across many industries and in this case refers simply to a particular way of using a polishing machine to produce the finest possible scratches given that all polishing is simply a succession of reduced scratches.

Zoros, reading your profile, you purport to being both a pilot and trainer of pilots. I assume you chose this career path because of its lack of technical language :rolleyes: A cusory glance at your previous postings certainly shows a propensity for you to regularly take a contentious and acerbic standpoint. I'm sure you will play the "banter card" as an explanation but don't you think your comments would be better received in the non-technical section of the forum. I feel the observation I posted in the Wheel Wax thread remains valid.
 
Haha. I always enjoy reading your posts TooBad. Then again I've spent most of my adult life fixing the ac that the op is probably flying (if he flys Hawks) and most people say I spend more time "cleaning" and fiddling with my cars than I do driving them. Did 15 hours flying training and hated it but love fixing them. As said above everyone is obsessive about something.
 
I applied for a job with Emirates to fly one of their new A380s out of Birmingham. They had a stack of instruction manuals as tall as me that they expected me to understand! What a "load of tosh", I'd already done a couple of hours on Microsoft Flight Simulator from the comfort of my own sofa. How hard can it be? :thumb:
 
£600 for 4-6 hours work?

That's what plumbers charge where I live.
 
£600 for 4-6 hours work?

That's what plumbers charge where I live.

Worth every penny. Just think of all the diesel fumes and pollution they've got to fight their way through to get to your gaff. Allegedly...
:D
 
Microsoft Flight Simulator from the comfort of my own sofa. How hard can it be? :thumb:

I've landed a few planes in simulators using the 'Ryan Air' or 'Easy Jet' method :bannana:
 
I've been involved in detailing for 13 years and the most odd things about the OPs initial rant is that he has a collection of expensive cars when a used Skoda would do the job perfectly well.... Why buy a Mercedes when other automobiles are available ? Because you have researched the alternatives and are prepared to pay a little more for something you want that you feel gives you benefits, however esoteric or baffling they are to others.

One pays for ones pleasures in this life and if you want a shiny car that lasts, then you do have to pay for a good product professionally applied - like the gtehniq images. Anyone who doesn't get comparative quotes for any product or service is a rarity these days.

I also dislike anyone who runs a business and considers his customers mugs deserving of being ripped off.

However, the whole 'wipe on wipe off' polymer coating, which to my knowledge isn't even always applied in some cases, and where the price is dependent upon the prestige of the marque, not the vehicles size, is a rip off. But companies sell it hard and the customer, knowing little about it, trusts them.

Much of the OPs info doesn't stack up tbh, but good luck to his brother in retirement. I hope he buys a few timeshares.
 
Can't believe some are comparing the skill level of flying a plane to being able to polish a car.
 

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