Polishing up your act

Car Care

Returning a vehicle expertly detailed will often create a customer for life. Check out these products for that extra shine.

Tailor-made car care for crash repairers
Ever wondered if there was a detailing system tailor-made for the crash repair industry? Ever wondered what the 'true cost' of detailing customer vehicles actually is? Ever wondered how safe your products are and how 'safe' they are to use? Ever wondered when your staff were last trained to get the very best out of your detailing products?
If these factors are important to you, then 3M says it can deliver in all four areas. The 3M Body Shop Clean Up System was developed specifically for the crash repair industry. It is easy to use -- all you need is a hose and the 3M Diluter dispenses concentrated product to the correct pre-set dilution rate, making it both economical and safe to use.
The dispenser delivers five products from four concentrates: car wash; glass cleaner; heavy duty wheel cleaner; all purpose cleaner and degreaser -- internal; and all purpose cleaner and degreaser -- external.
In addition, 3M also carries a range of other car care products suited to the detailing area, including tyre dressing, leather and vinyl conditioner, and liquid or paste wax.
3M Detailing Systems can deliver 'swirl free' finishes with 3M Perfect-it III range of compounds, polishes and glazes combined with the 3M Dual Action Pad Glaze and the unique 'micro -replicated' detailing cloth.
3M is offering a great special offer to Paint and Panel readers on the 3M Body Shop Clean Up System for a limited time.

Enquiries, tel: 136-136 or visit www.3m.com.au.

Seven steps to a great car wash
Kärcher high pressure cleaners provide outstanding results without damaging delicate paint or panels. The high-pressure jets simply flush away dust and dirt, and get into the areas that are neglected in a conventional car wash.
Follow the seven simple steps to a great car wash with Karcher:

1. Use a high quality cleaning agent, such as the Kärcher Vehicle Wash. Kärcher cleaning agents are specially formulated to remove road grime, mud and insects. Follow the directions for correct dilution rates.

2. Spray the entire vehicle surface with cleaning solution using large, circular movements.

3. Leave the solution to act for a few minutes, then clean with high pressure. Do not use a Dirtblaster on the paint surface. The spray lance will supply enough force pressure and ensure no damage to the paint surface.

4. Check the cleaning result with your fingertip by wiping the paintwork with your finger and then rinsing it with water. If there is a notable difference then Karcher recommends that you use a wash brush in addition to the high-pressure cleaner.

5. If you do use a wash brush, make sure it is clean before starting by spraying the bristles with a high-pressure fan-jet. Alternatively, use one brush for sensitive surfaces such as paintwork or glass and a second one for heavier soiling like wheel cleaning.

6. When you have finished washing, use a drying aid or wax coating to protect the paintwork. Follow up with a cold-water rinse. Wipe away remaining droplets with a chamois leather or similar cloth.

7 To avoid unsightly marks, make sure that no wax is sprayed on the glass surfaces of the car.

Enquiries, tel: (03) 9765 2300, website: www.karcher.com.au, email: marketing@karcher.com.au.

Complete car care range from Farecla
Farecla has the complete range of surface preparation and finishing products to cater for all of today's modern vehicle paintwork finishes including very hard anti-marr coatings such as high solids clears.
Fareclas' surface finishing solutions can be broken down into preparation, rectification, and finishing.
For preparation the Advanced G-Matt system provides excellent adhesion prior to blending in new paint work, particularly around local repairs. It creates an even matt finish, is quick and economical to use, and easy to apply and clean off.
Fareclas' rectification products include G3 Paste, Advanced G3 Liquid, G6 Paste, & G10 Liquid. For general use, G3 Paste and Advanced G3 Liquid are ideal because they have a rapid cutting action, high gloss finish, and do not dry up in use meaning they are easy to clean from all surfaces. For harder paintwork G6 Paste is recommended as it can quickly remove P1500 abrasive paper marks, it works well on thoroughly cured paintwork, and delivers a finish that Farecla is famous for. For blow-ins and fade outs, G10 is ideal because it is an extra fine grade compound which works well on soft and delicate paintwork and blends in refinish paintwork to the original paint finish. G10 can also be used after G3 and particularly G6 for a high gloss finish using a Farecla white G-Mop Compounding Head. For superfine swirl free finishes G10 can be used with a Farecla black Polishing Foam.
Gold Top Machine Glaze and Black Top Hand Glaze are ideal for final finishing. It should also be noted that G10 can be used for final finishing because it will remove fine scratches especially on darker colours. All of the Farecla finishing products work best when used with genuine Farecla applicators such as the
G-Mop or the Finishing Cloth.
Farecla is distributed in Australia by Australian Warehouse Distributors and is available to buy from most paint trade outlets.

Enquiries, tel: (03) 9553 1977 or email: stork.awd@bigpond.com.au.

Create an 'as new' look with Bradleys
Bradleys Australia carries a wide range of kits to effectively repair and improve the appearance of almost any vehicle. The Bumperweld and Refinishing System allows technicians to repair, retexture and recolour bumpers, grilles, mirror casings, airdams, spoilers and virtually any other plastic items.

The Bradleys Trim System is a repair system for all vinyl, plastic and leather interior trim, including dashboards. The 14 base colours in aerosols and formulation guide enable users to match any vehicle interior colours. In addition, the Velour System means Bradleys users can fully repair velour fabrics, making good damaged seating, headlinings and velour trim to 'as new' condition. Bradleys manufactures its own velour fibres and offers an accurate colour matching service.

Enquiries, tel: 1800 040 007, fax: (08) 8277 1489.

Quick clean up
Keeping up with current trends, Gelson has released its new black polish and compounds. If you have ever had to clean up a dark coloured car after buffing or polishing with white materials, then you already know it's a tedious and time-consuming job. Every tiny speck of material stands out like a beacon! And of course the insurance companies don't allow you an extra hour or so on the job to cover extra cleaning.
So, on to the solution. For general purpose buffing, use 1010 Black Compound. This grade of compound has been available in white for quite some time and is widely used throughout Australia. It's now available in black in a 250 ml tube so there is no wastage if you only need a small amount.
One Shot Black Compound also comes in a 250 ml tube, is ideal for small areas and can be used by machine or by hand. And for your final cut/swirl remover and polish, T57 1 litre liquid also comes in black and is applied by hand or machine.
The complete package for a job well done -- in half the time!
If you value your time and your sanity, says Gelson, call your local Gelson distributor or ring Oz-Gel for your nearest stockist of Gelson black buffing and polishing products.

Enquiries, tel: 0418 913 426.

Refinish System -- the new name in perfection
The Refinish System offers three unique products that obtain the perfect result when compounding and polishing all types of finishes.
Refinish 1 Cutting Compound is used to cut back defects on aged, hard, high solids clear coatings and single component finishes -- also for use on new coatings. Refinish 1 Cutting Compound provides an outstanding gloss finish without producing significant swirl marks.
Refinish 2 is formulated to remove 1500 grit sanding marks, heavy orange peel, blemishes and other surface imperfections from new or aged automotive paint finishes. Primarily intended for polyurethane based coatings. Refinish 2 also creates an outstanding gloss on acrylic lacquers and cellulose enamels.
Refinish 3 is an easy-on, easy-off hand or machine-applied finishing polish. It is designed to enhance and restore the finish on old, newly painted and buffed surfaces. Like all Refinish products, Refinish 3 is totally compatible and leaves a dry, smear free, deep high gloss shine on automotive finishes.
All Refinish products are completely silicone free and offer outstanding results from both wool and foam buff pads. The creamy liquid texture of Refinish products reduces pad clogging and splatter of product, offering economical use and fast turn around of detailing jobs.

Enquiries, Sydney Automotive Paints & Equipment on, (02) 9568 2233.