61 Corvette & 996 Turbo- Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT

[PinnacleAutoCT]

This 61 Corvette has been in the owner`s family for two generations, was repainted approximately sixteen years ago and just had the engine (327 IIRC) refreshed before I detailed it. The repaint was of good quality; it had been wetsanded nearly flat and showed only a small amount of minor ripples in the body and other flaws, basically it`s a very nice driver and not an all-out show car. After sixteen years the paint was as you would expect it to be; riddled with swirls and light scratches from years of wipe downs and also hard to correct. You can see in the before pictures that the paint didn`t really glow in the sunlight and the finish was dulled significantly by the marring in the finish.

Pictures before beginning work:
DSC03517 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03562 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03560 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03518 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03519 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03521 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03526 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03527 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03556 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03563 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr

Given the severity of the marring we decided to shoot for an 80+% correction rate to improve the gloss, depth and reflectivity of the paint while not going for perfection since the owner isn`t obsessive about keeping the paint in pristine condition. Given the age of this car I used ONR to wash, making sure to keep excessive water out of any cracks or crevices. The paintwork was then clayed, all trim was taped off and I began identifying areas of the body where gaps and edges didn`t align. Where panel heights differed I taped off edges and corrected one area, then taped the corrected area and moved onto a new panel to ensure that the edges were protected from over buffing. Correction was performed using the Rupes 21 & 75E polishers, with Optimum`s MF cutting pads and a M101/D300 mix used for compounding work, followed by two stages of finishing via Lake Country Polishing and Finishing pads with HD Polish. Protection was provided by two coats of DoDo Juice Supernatural.

Some pics during the correction process:
DSC03620 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03609 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
Paintwork starting to look much improved:
DSC03652 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03670 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
Afters:
DSC03680 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03682 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03687 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03688 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03690 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03691 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03692 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03696 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03699 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03700 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03703 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03705 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03712 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
Close to 90% correction was achieved and the client was very happy. It was a beautiful car and fun to work on and see the improvement in appearance as the polishing process went on. Thanks for looking, as always, any comments and questions are welcome. (996 writeup in the next post).

Mike
Pinnacle Auto Detail- CT

[PinnacleAutoCT]

This 911 Turbo was previously owned by the owner of the 61 Vette, he drove it for a short time and then sold it to his father. The car had been in storage at his house over the winter and was mainly in need of an exterior detail. Given that the car is black, the paint is relatively soft and the owner isn`t super picky we decided on a one-step correction. The car was washed with ONR, clayed, taped up and polished with the Rupes 21, HD Polish (great amount of correction on this soft paint and an excellent finish) and lake country foam finishing pads. Protection was provided by Optiseal and DoDo Juice Supernatural.

Before pics:
DSC03849 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
Lots of marring:
DSC03862 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03865 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03869 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03874 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on FlickrDSC03895 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr

Wheel barrels hadn`t been cleaned in quite some time:
DSC03890 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03909 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr

Test spot revealing a nice amount of correction and a lot of metallic flake popping:
DSC03911 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03925 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
Afters:
DSC03965 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03964 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03966 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03980 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
Outside for some reflection shots:
DSC03951 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03946 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03942 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
Wheels dialed in:
DSC03937 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
DSC03934 by Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT, on Flickr
Thanks for looking!
Mike
Pinnacle Auto Detail - CT

[GearHead_1]

Wow, you only waited 16 months to post quality work like that? Great results.

[PinnacleAutoCT]

Wow, you only waited 16 months to post quality work like that? Great results.

Lol, thanks! Yeah, I took a while to start posting on here, I`ll probably be a little more active from now on.

[GearHead_1]

Actually I meant it took you that long to make your first post once registered.

[rottenII]

WOW! Both jobs are amazing!

[Pats300zx]

Awesome job !!!!!

[jtford95]

Great job on both cars!! Love the 996.

[Ronkh]

Nice on both

[PinnacleAutoCT]

Thanks a lot guys, I appreciate the compliments.

[RaysWay]

Whoa! How`d I miss this!? Great job!

[WaxAddict]

Fantastic one-step on the 996. What did you use for tire dressing?

[PinnacleAutoCT]

Thanks!

Wax addict- I used 3d Thick Dressing topped with 3D Ultra. Both are water based so they`re safe for use on any type of tire, and the combo of Thick topped with Ultra gives very good durability and a dark, even appearance.

[WaxAddict]

Thanks!

Wax addict- I used 3d Thick Dressing topped with 3D Ultra. Both are water based so they`re safe for use on any type of tire, and the combo of Thick topped with Ultra gives very good durability and a dark, even appearance.

Wow. That`s why you`re the boss!