Category Archives: Guides & Tips

Drying automotive paint with a microfiber towel
27
Feb
Behind the Detail, Ceramic Coatings, Exterior Detailing, Garage & Equipment, Guides & Tips, How To, Professional Detailing, Tips

How to Dry Your Car (Without Scratching the Paint)

Posted on by Jim Lafeber

Drying a vehicle is often perceived as a quick, final step after washing with little risk.  It is not. Drying is actually one of the highest risk steps in the wash process if your goal is maintaining paint clarity and preserving the clear coat long-term.  Although they are often called “wash marks”, most swirl marks, […]

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How to remove bird dropping etching in car paint
03
Sep
Behind the Detail, Exterior Detailing, Guides & Tips, Paint Correction

How to Remove Bird Dropping Etching from Car Paint

Posted on by Mike Phillips

When a bird dropping sits on a car’s paint for too long, it bakes in the sun and becomes acidic, eating into the clear coat and leaving an imprint that can only be removed through paintwork correction. Ideally, you’d never let a bird dropping get to this point. But we don’t live in a perfect […]

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1969 GTO NSP GL case study header image
28
Jul
Behind the Detail, Exterior Detailing, Guides & Tips, How To, Professional Detailing, The Detail, Videos & Media

Removing Windshield Swirls, Scratches & Wiper Marks on a ’69 GTO with Dr. Beasley’s NSP GL by Mike Phillips

Posted on by Mike Phillips

Perfecting glass to match perfecting the paint I’m fortunate that I get asked to detail a lot of classic American Detroit Iron, cars built before the 1980s when a lot of changes took place, like chrome bumpers being replaced by color-matched plastic bumper covers. Blech. Most of the cars I work on are the kind […]

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Mike Phillips gives his tips on random orbital polishers
30
Jul
Behind the Detail, Exterior Detailing, Garage & Equipment, Guides & Tips, Live Detailing Classes, Paint Correction, Tips, Videos & Media

Random Orbital Polisher Tips from Mike Phillips

Posted on by Mike Phillips

Random orbital, free-spinning polishers are the easiest type of polisher to use and are safer for beginners than more advanced tools like rotary polishers. But don’t let their user-friendly reputation fool you — random orbital polishers are complex tools with many ins and outs to know. In this condensed reel from a recent live detailing […]

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Swirls in automotive paint
21
Feb
Behind the Detail, Exterior Detailing, Garage & Equipment, Guides & Tips, How To, Paint Correction, Professional Detailing

How to Avoid Swirls & Scratches in Your Car’s Paint

Posted on by Mike Phillips

Now follow me. It takes hours to buff out a car. For example, this black 1957 Chevy. I have literally hours into perfecting the paint. It takes seconds to put swirls and scratches back in. And the question is, how did the swirls and scratches get back in the paint after you remove them? In […]

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How to Clean Wheels Beginner's Guide Mike Phillips
11
Oct
Behind the Detail, Ceramic Coatings, Exterior Detailing, Guides & Tips, How To, Matte Wheels, Videos & Media

How to Clean Wheels on Cars | Beginner’s Guide

Posted on by Mike Phillips

When it comes to cleaning your car’s wheels, a simple mistake could cost you thousands of dollars. I’m going to show you how to clean your wheels safely to get them surgically clean. And at the end of the video, I’m going to show you how to protect them. If you choose the wrong wheel […]

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Dr. Beasley's Guide for Ceramic Coating Care
13
Sep
Behind the Detail, Ceramic Coatings, Guides & Tips, How To, Videos & Media

Beginner’s Guide to Ceramic Coating Care | DIY Step-by-Step Tutorial

Posted on by Mike Phillips

You know, ceramic coatings have become all the rage. They are the best way to take care of anything that you care about. But the question becomes, how do you take care of a ceramic coating? Whether you installed it yourself or you paid someone to do it for you, that’s the topic of this […]

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How to Polish Black Paint
13
May
Behind the Detail, Exterior Detailing, Guides & Tips, How To, Paint Correction, Videos & Media

How to Polish Black Paint for a Show Car Finish

Posted on by Victor Espeland

There’s a saying in the detailing world: “Black isn’t a color — it’s a full time job.” There’s a lot of truth to this statement, as black paint on cars is notoriously difficult to maintain. It’s not because it’s any more sensitive than other paint colors, but rather because it shows scratches and swirls more […]

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Ceramic coating the wheel of a Land Rover, how to clean wheels
22
Sep
Behind the Detail, Ceramic Coatings, Exterior Detailing, Guides & Tips, How To, Videos & Media

How to Apply a Ceramic Coating for Wheels

Posted on by Kevin Podas

Wheel protection is one of the most important, yet overlooked, aspects of detailing your vehicle. When it comes to protecting your wheel, it’s best to use a solution that’s durable and doesn’t need to be reapplied frequently. Ceramic coating offers the best of both these approaches. Many people associate ceramic with paints, but it’s also […]

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How to Remove Water Spots from Automotive Paint
23
Aug
Behind the Detail, Exterior Detailing, Featured, Guides & Tips, How To, Paint Correction, Videos & Media

How to Remove Water Spots on Car Paint | Beginner’s Guide

Posted on by Mike Phillips

Transcript Today we’re going to talk about water spots. I would say that, besides swirls and scratches, the other most common annoying type of defect in your paint that people absolutely hate, and it makes your car look ugly, are water spots. Now, water spots come from different types of chemicals in the water and […]

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