Time to Polish Again

[skinnyb]

Drove out to the base auto hobby shop yesterday to change the oil. Had our first cold snap of the year with some mighty stiff winds so the place was nearly deserted. As it turned out, it was only three days short of a year since I'd been there for the last oil change which explains why the car had been nagging at me for an oil change.

Filter was fairly dirty but the oil looked almost new coming out of the pan. Once again, I cussed that damn filter cannister but the 3D printed rig from @pilotgore minimized the mess. (Thanks again, my friend.)

BTW, the young man running the hobby shop must have been still been in the Christmas spirit because gave me a wink and a nod and didn't charge me the ten bones for the lift. <grin>

When I got home, I entered the mileage into the Excel worksheet and saw that I had only put 585 miles on her since the oil change last year and this recent oil change was her ninth since delivery in February of 2020. Current mileage is 5648. Nine oil and filter changes is definitely overkill but it gives me peace of mind. :=) Plus, I have so many FL2087's and multiple cases of oil, I figured I may as well use 'em.

Man that is awesome you have a place to go to get oil changed without having to lay on the ground like I do And 5000 miles, man you need to drive and enjoy that thing, a car like that begs to be driven I do my oil changed every 5K like clock work, and only takes 6 months or so to do it. Mine is due soon (20K, at 19,700 now), and she had 4800 when I got her a year and a half ago

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[kilobravo]

Man that is awesome you have a place to go to get oil changed without having to lay on the ground like I do

Yep, there are some benefits for retirees living near a military base, Alex plus free prescriptions and no tax at the Navy Exchange department store.

 

[fiveoboy01]

You’re really burning money with that interval.

Given normal storage, every other year would be just fine. 9 oil changes in 5K miles is beyond overkill.

 

[Stage_3]

Current mileage is 5648. Nine oil and filter changes is definitely overkill but it gives me peace of mind. :=)

It's a labor of love.

 

[kilobravo]

It's a labor of love.

That it is, S3..no doubt about it.

 

[kilobravo]

You’re really burning money with that interval.

Probably so although I'll never be able to spend what's in the bank before my day arrives. <smiling> Also, the first four were within the first 1500 miles and those miles were in the first six months of ownership. So, the rest were pretty close to every six months which isn't crazy and besides I like seeing nearly clean oil come out of the Fumoto valve. <grin>

 

[MAGS1]

I hope y'all had memorable, healthy, and safe Christmas experiences, I spent the day in the garage. <laughing> That said, it took me until the day after to finally finish this nut cracker project and since I started it on the 13th, that's two dang weeks! But, I'm getting pretty long in the tooth so it takes me longer to do most things. <grin> I used Sonax Perfect Finish with both fine and ultra fine Rupes foam pads and I have to say, I don't think the clear coat could be any smoother and more glossy. It was a helluva lot of work but now that it's behind me, I am very glad I gave her a second polishing.

Related Note: In the thread, "One product for someone who's not obsessive," I want to second @FiveOBoy's comment that gloss and clarity are not a function of what is applied TO a clear coat, they are absolutely directly related to the quality of the polishing effort. My car's clear coat was very glossy with crystal clear reflections before I started this second effort but I can say without hesitation that my girl's clear coat is now absolutely glossier and the reflections are stunning.

ADS Report: Without a doubt, the Pro Ceramic was no more difficult than my previous experience with CP CQuartz on the Mustang and the wife's Caddy. Wipe on, wipe off and the 30ml was more than enough to do the car and the wheels with probably 10ml left over (but geeze, cleaning and coating those wheels was a real ball buster. Only time will tell on the longevity of the coating but she's slicker 'n snot now and will undoubtedly be a breeze to wash.

I also picked up their Trim Coating and again, I was thoroughly impressed. Same as above, it was a no brainer to apply and it really made the black vinyl parts look spectacular, deepening the black and making them super slick and glossy. Also highly-recommended. Had more than half a bottle left over too.

The final ADS product used for the first time was Ghost and as much as I like OG's tire dressing, I think Ghost tops it. Very impressed and I'm betting it will hold up longer as well.

To close out this thread, here are the last batch of photos..

Looks great KB! I was able to talk my wife into Rapid Red for her Explorer, hopefully I can make hers look as good as yours in the spring

 

[kilobravo]

Looks great KB! I was able to talk my wife into Rapid Red for her Explorer, hopefully I can make hers look as good as yours in the spring

Appreciate the kind words, Mark and good luck with the Explorer. Have you decided on pads and compound yet? Meanwhile, Happy New Year.

 

[MAGS1]

Appreciate the kind words, Mark and good luck with the Explorer. Have you decided on pads and compound yet? Meanwhile, Happy New Year.

Happy New Year, KB. Probably going with the Rupes yellow waffle pad and Sonax Perfect Finish but I’ll need to see what the paint looks like in the spring.

 

[kilobravo]

It's been a couple weeks since I coated the car so with some gorgeous weather, I decided to give her a bath. The ADS Pro coating beads up nicely and this is without any topper. Got her clean again and I thought I'd take her up the road for some photos.

​

After blow drying, I topped her off with a coat of Amplify and I'm here to tell you that I have never felt a clear coat that slippery..smoother than a baby's ass. <grin> Then took her out for a few photos.

BTW, these were all shot with the new Fuji X-E5 camera and a 23mm/F2.8 lens.

 

[skinnyb]

It's been a couple weeks since I coated the car so with some gorgeous weather, I decided to give her a bath. The ADS Pro coating beads up nicely and this is without any topper. Got her clean again and I thought I'd take her up the road for some photos.

​

After blow drying, I topped her off with a coat of Amplify and I'm here to tell you that I have never felt a clear coat that slippery..smoother than a baby's ass. <grin> Then took her out for a few photos.

BTW, these were all shot with the new Fuji X-E5 camera and a 23mm/F2.8 lens.

VERY nice. Looks fantastic. I am a HUGE fan of Amplify, it does make the paint soooo slick, coated or not... And that camera take amazing pics Rapid red is kind behind the lens I have a really good friend that has a Rapid Red ecoboost convertible and it comes to me for maintenance washes regularly and I LOVE the color. Plus another, @cerbomark and his Rapid Red PP2, soooo beautiful...

 

[kilobravo]

VERY nice. Looks fantastic. I am a HUGE fan of Amplify, it does make the paint soooo slick, coated or not... And that camera take amazing pics

Again, thanks for the kind words, Alex and you are most correct, Amplify is definitely my new favorite topper and I highly recommend their Pro coating. The combination is unbeatable.

As for the camera, I continue to be blown away by the quality of the images..like this one for example. <grinning>

 

[fiveoboy01]

Phones are pretty good these days but still can’t touch a good SLR.

 

[kilobravo]

Phones are pretty good these days but still can’t touch a good SLR.

Quite so on both counts, @fiveoboy01. Phones are way more than good enough for general photography/videography but if you want some delicious depth of field, or you need lowlight performance or, you're shooting moving people, animals, or objects, you need that SLR and an appropriate lens.

Considering this camera and lens combo retailed for just shy of three times what a new iPhone costs, it makes sense.

 

[fiveoboy01]

I go in and out of photography as a hobby every few years. Currently I don't have anything but my last kit was a Z6ii with a few Z lenses, and it was fantastic.

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