Detailing

Like dressing up your tires with armor all or tire foam but hate the mess on your wheels? Try this; measure the outer most part of your wheel, trim ring or wheel cover and make a cardboard disc to that size. Put two finger holes in the middle and next time you spray your tires, place the cardboard over the wheel to keep overspray off. Works great! Bob-"bobs409"

Keep on old toothbrush for cleaning out excess dried wax from around emblems and moldings. Bob-"bobs409"

Looking for a product to clean interior plastic chrome that won't damage it? I found that never dull wadding polish works great on plastic chrome as it has no abrasives in it. Nothing will help chrome that has worn off or peeled but it works wonders to clean off any corrosion or to clean those moldy junkyard finds. I recently turned a set of moldy green radio knobs into bright shiny, almost NOS looking knobs by using this product. Bob-"mr409"

Scratches on your speedometer or gauge lenses? I recently polished one using traditional paint buffing products and it worked great! In my case, I buffed with Mequires fine cut polish, then their show car glaze. If you have a scratched lens, give this a try, you'll be surprised at how nice it works. You only need to do the outside surface as the inside shouldn't have any damage at all. Try this on exterior light lenses and plastic rear convertible windows too! P.S. there are products sold especially for polishing plastics as well. Bob-"mr409"

If your shining your car up the night ahead of time for a car show but still have to drive it there, try covering the bumpers with clear kitchen plastic wrap before you leave. When you get to the show, simply peel off the wrap to unveil those shiny, bug free bumpers! Bob-"mr409"

Getting some parts poweder coated? Consider having your battery tray done as well. Battery acid is a never ending problem for this area but with the tough powder coat, that acid won't be a problem anymore. Bob-"mr409"

If your Chevy's moldings have black painted areas like alot of the pieces on my 66 Impala did, after polishing these pieces, you'll need to put the black back in. My first thought was to simply paint it back in with a small brush but quickly found that no matter how careful I was, I could not get a straight line and it looked terrible. Also, it was NOT durable and scratched off easily. I had a brainstorm and decided to try using black vinyl pinstripe and it worked perfectly! For the side trim, I bought some 1/4" and just trimmed a bit off so it fit exactly and pressed it in place. My grill had thin stripes so I used 1/8" there with no trimming. Not only did it install in minutes but is very durable and has nice sharp edges that you can't get with a brush. (at least not with my shaky hands!) Bob-"bobs409"

To test an "unknown" paint job to see if it has a clear coat, get a piece of white cloth like a piece of t-shirt and rub some paint cleaner, or a cleaner wax on inconspicuous area of your car's finish, if you pull the color off your car, there is no clear coat, if the cloth remains white, (or the color of your paint cleaner or cleaner/wax), then you have a clear coat. Bob-"bobs409"

Tip: (this is a 2 part tip) 1) Purchase a small plastic kitchen strainer that fits inside the bucket you wash your car with. (It should be about 1/3 to 1/2 as tall as your bucket) Place it in the bucket, bottom side up. The strainer will allow any dirt to fall to the bottom and not allow you to scoop it back up on your sponge! 2) To make it easier to find the correct size strainer, purchase a new bucket at the same time. That way, you can make sure the fit will be correct before you buy! Bob-"bobs409"

When waxing your car, be sure to let the wax dry long before removing it. If the wax is not dry enough, it will smear and be difficult to remove. Use the smear test: Run your finger over the wax. If it comes off clean, it's dry and ready to be removed. If it smears, wait a little longer. As long as you're out of the hot sun, (and you should be-NEVER wax in the sun or on a hot surface) you can leave the wax on for as long as needed. Bob-"bobs409"