I guess this question is best answered by Heather or Octane Guy --
I am going to be working by hand, what applicator is best used for the following products, and what should then be used to buff off the product after application: Swirl, Epic, Nero, Wheel Armour and Amigo.

 

Just adding to this post....I too will be doing a PRIMA detail by HAND for the 1st time on a 6 month old Mini. I am too afraid to do the PC stuff yet. I am planning on claying and Epic waxing, but may want to reduce any minor factory swirl. Which one, Swirl, Finish or Amigo should be used to minimize those and can that be done by hand? I DON'T want to use all 3...just one, then EPIC. BTW, Dark Silver with Black top.

 

I'm neither but I can show you what I used when doing by hand:
Swirl I used this applicator from Sonus - http://www.autopia-carcare.com/son-sfxpro.html

For Epic I did use this - http://www.autopia-carcare.com/vk-101.html

but now I use this - http://www.detailersparadise.com/Vie...-691513519634#


And for removing Swirl - http://www.detailersparadise.com/Vie...272-2491365453

and removing Epic - http://www.detailersparadise.com/Vie...2-691513519674

For Amigo & Wheel Armour, same as Epic.
For Nero I use a trash microfiber from Target that is orange.

 

... what he said...

And, personally, I would not suggest anyone get their hopes up regarding swirl removal by hand... it CAN be done (and HAS been done), but it takes SOOOOOO much work, I don't know that it's practical or worthwhile. Personally, if I didn't have a PC, I'd clay, then do Amigo, then Epic, then Hydro on top after the Epic cures. That would give good swirl hiding, without a lot of effort. Polishing out my car by hand with something as gentle as Swirl or Finish would kill me...

And the PC shouldn't scare anybody - you're more likely to damage your paint washing it the wrong way, than damaging it with the PC, as long as you get it clean before you begin and use good hygiene (don't use dirty pads, don't lay them on the ground, etc.)

 

before i had my griot's random orbital i did sections at a time by hand.

say, like i would do just the bonnet and top of bumper day one.
driver side day two.
passenger side day three.
roof and boot day four.

it's not so bad.

 

... what he said. (not what Ken said but what Blimey said).

I lost both arms after doing our Expedition by hand.
I got better.
That one challenge justified purchase of a PC. Plus Detailers Warehouse is running a special right now for only $100. Buy two - one for each hand!

 

Yeah. Not so bad. Only takes four days of work. Piece of cake. I think I'll take a vacation week and polish out my car.

I rest my case.

Buy or borrow a PC or equivalent... or use Amigo and fill the swirls.

 

when did blimey become a man? (see below)

oh you wimp, i rest my case.

 

Thanks for your help. My eyes feel like I slept in a sand box...been reading ALL the detailing pages for a few days now to get up on this stuff.

...I was trying not to get OC on this...and a PC looks like it may be the onset of OCDetailing. Maybe I should buy a PC and practice on the wife's 06 Rover...it's bright silver and has been a scratch magnet for the previous owner. For now, I guess I will stick with the mini hand job (alway's has been good to me ) and do the Dawn, Clay, Amigo, Epic and Hydro special. Next 6 months I may do a PC job on it.

Thanks again!

 

That's an EXCELLENT low stress way to learn - I learned on our minivan - though, really, once you start doing it, you realize you can't really hurt anything. Only real thing you learn is to go slow for maximum results.

 

Use the OneGrips on each PC and it IS possible to use one on each hand, ol.
http://www.showcardetailing.com/esho...p?id=155&bc=no

I wonder if DW's sale includes the Velcro backing plate? It wasn't clear when I saw their ad if that included the backing plate and pad.


If I had to work by hand I would use a Foam applicator for Swirl, microfiber applicator like the Skinny for Nero, Wheel Armour, and Amigo. Like others have said, your best results will come via PC. But you won't know until you try it. =)

MF Applicator
http://www.showcardetailing.com/esho...exd.asp?id=149

For wiping it off, I would use either the Monster Fluffy
http://www.showcardetailing.com/esho...exd.asp?id=103

or my favorite, MF Starfish Mitt
http://www.showcardetailing.com/esho...exd.asp?id=120

 

now we're all going to look like robots.... wonder wat the wives
would say...

 

They will say..."Wonderful!! Can you now polish out the kitchen, and the bathroom, and while you're at it, the floors, and...."

 

My wife would just roll her eyes.

In her opinion, I'm so far down that path already, resistance is futile. I WILL be assimilated.

 

ok, let's not give our wives any ideas. my hands are full.

 

So yesterday I took my all my detailing gear and the Mini and the GF down to a buddies house as he has a nice big drive, and double garage that we could work in.

The Mini, once washed, really didn't need claying yet, so it got Epic, Banana Gloss and Hydro'd. the GF then did the windows with Clarity and the interior with Nero, vaccumed the whole car, jet washed the floor mats and conditioned the leather seats.

Meanwhile, my buddy and I set about his jet black Jetta. He doesn't have much love for this car after it was in an accident and the bodyshop did some shoddy paint work. Still we set about it anyway. Wash and clay. I don't have a PC, so Amigo by hand was the best I could offer. So we did a test spot and his eyes lit up when he saw the difference. Amigo, Epic, BG, Hydro. Black wow where needed and then all the interior and glass.

The cars looked great afterwards, but my word were my arms killing me. We went to grab some food and both my inner forearms started to cramp up every time I picked up my burger!

I guess seven lots of buffing by hand in an afternoon is a little

 

Haha nice job!! It's amazing what a little love, even by hand can do! A PC can let you do so much more because it lets you do more work easier with less fatigue. So applying wax is a no brainer, 10 minute operation or you can polish for as long as you want making the paint look better each minute that you spend!

 

My wife says great job when I'm done working on either MINI. She knows the value of the work, and that the tools involved do not cross over to other things. So I get a smooch when I'm done, and new tools if something else needs to be dealt with.

Mark