so i'm ready to give my black 99 a little makeover. everyone in my local club tells me for the year the paint is in great shape, i just need to polish and wax it. i've always been pretty nervous about doing it myself and have had it detailed a few times, but i think it's time i start doing the work. i've been reading alot and i know i definatly need to clay, polish, maybe glaze (not sure what that really is) and wax. i don't have a buffer and really can't spend the extra cash right now to get one, so everything needs to be hand applied. i know i won't get as good as results this way, but for right now its the way it is. idon't really care about name brands or the big names inautozone,i just want results.my paint has someminor scratches,normal wear from obsessive washing(smallfineswirl scratches).anytips and techniques on application and prouducts would be great! thanks, chris

 

Well, IMO doing it by hand really won't do much for you but maybe bring back some shine and offer protection of the paint. If you really want to POLISH your car (get rid of the swirls, bring back the deep luster, etc...) you really need to spend the money up front and get a Porter Cable random orbital. Trust me, you will be glad you did Talk to Justin over at Obsessive Detail and he can hook you up with all the right products for your car - and at a very fair price.

Think of it this way...you can spend $50+ on the products from Autozone, do it by hand and wear out your damn shoulders/arms/hands - and probably not yield the results you are really after. Or spend ~$200 with Justin and get the right products to do it right the first time with great results - and you could still swing a golf club when you're done

 

As Axeman said, you will get the best results with a Porter Cable polisher, but you can get good results by hand. I would claybar first. Then apply a polish/swirl remover. Poorboy's SSR1 or my Light Polish are good polishes that can be used by hand to correct light swirls and to bring out more shine and reflection. Now if you want to apply a glaze you can't go wrong with the ClearKote Red Moose or my Wet Glaze, both will add a lot of wetness and depth to the paint plus add a really slick feeling. Lastly top with a carnuaba wax or sealant to protect what you did in the previous steps.