Helping a neglected '72 Skylark

[MosportGreen66]

Hi Guys,

My brother and were hired to come to the aid of this poor '72 Skylark. Original owner car, female owner and very proud of her car. Was painted about 15 years ago. A true northeast body with some rust issues. When we got the car it had faded paint, a stained interior, was running poorly with fouled plugs and wires. Changed all the fluids, changed the intake gasket, added some NGK plugs and wires, rid the engine compartment of the heavy grime, installed some new KYB shocks, and topped off the job with a nice set of BFGs.

Here are some pictures of the work.

Day 1:




50/50 shot of the mold removal on the canvas top




looking whiter now


Back to the body. After 3M clay and lube




More to come...

[MosportGreen66]

Moved her inside for the three day paint correction.

1) Mask your subject, mind your gaps and edges and begin compounding. I chose Menzerna Power Gloss compound (high cut) and a Lake Country yellow pad. I could have gone more aggressive with the pad but the paint meter was reading off the charts. The yellow pad offered just enough cut.

Note the swirls and hazing against the halogens.

[MosportGreen66]

The paint was very tough to cut through but Power Gloss was great.

50/50 shots below of the corrected v. the untouched. Amazing results to follow.

corrected on the left, untouched on the right






A great trick when detailing is to use the light to guide your work.



After compounding was complete. Hard to believe this was the same car. I forgot to add... this is single stage.

[MosportGreen66]

Fender 50/50 shot



I finished the detail with Menzerna Super Intensive Polish and a Lake Country White pad and then topped that off with Menzerna Nano polish (PO85rd) and a Lake Country black pad.

The Halogens don't lie





Last but not least, I capped off the detail with an even coat of Meguires paste wax to protect the polish. The detail took about 15 hours. I went through five pads. The end result looks good. Owner will see it tomorrow. I will report back the verdict.

What was:


Is now:

[Smokey]

What made you choose that paste over using 3M's compounds and pads??

Now it just needs a set of Buick Chrome 5 spokes and the white letters popped out with a fatter tire in the back

[MosportGreen66]

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What made you choose that paste over using 3M's compounds and pads??

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A very similar result can be had with 3M's products. I love their clay and hand glaze but it just boils down to personal preference. Menzerna works just as good if not better than your run of the mill 3M, Presta, Megs 100 series compounds, etc.

-Dan

[agtw31]

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The detail took about 15 hours.


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[MosportGreen66]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]

The detail took about 15 hours.


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Andy, buddy, you must not be into detailing. Or maybe you are but you don't strive for the level of perfection found here. This is not some base-clear job. 15 yr old single stage paint that is sun burnt to the point of cracking. You'd be hard pressed to find a single scratch, swirl or hologram on this car. Anything short of 12-15 hours is rushing.