BIG "A" DETAILING Shop Introduction & Pricing

[AndrewBigA]

04 E46 M3 paint restoration project!

shots are taken from the passenger door. the entire car, every single panel has really bad paint damage from automatic car wash abuse & the previous owner mustve hired a butcher to buff the car out. i saw the car under the lights a few months ago @ the GPNY meet. I know the car was bad but big jobs never intimidate me, i was up for the challenge as always.

list of paint problems:

hollograms/extremely deep "buffer trails"
the cause: inexperienced butcher detailer with improper use of a rotary machine. wheel speed was probably around 1700-2000 rpms, may be even 2200. the pad obviously was not kept moist. this is what happens when you run the machine on too high of a speed with a dry pad. im surprised there were not any burn marks in the paint.

heavy & deep swirl marks
the cause: previous butcher detailer

dull/flat reflection
the cause: all these dam paint defects & buffer trails giving off a horrible reflection, making the car not shine to its maximum potential

i am really excited about working on this car. i know the customer will be more than happy. everyone at the local meets has been on his case & telling him to go to me. this car will deffinitly turn heads the next time you see it!

all prepped up & ready to get started on:









50/50
right side after wash & clay
left side after compound, polish, wax


i wanted to cry after inspecting the paint under the halogen lights


i can not wait to finish this car & see every panel looking like this!


---------- Post added at 10:49 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:49 AM ----------

teaser shots of the dr side qp

after wash & clay

every single panel of the car looked like this after wash & clay!

after compound then polish


i apologize to everyone, i had some sick progress pics & before shots of every panel but i deleted them by mistake. i think that happened while i was taking pics of the car before it left the shop that night. im pissed i lost those pics! =/
i hope everyone can get an idea how bad the paint was from the few before pictures i posted.every panel was glassed out to perfection. this was one of the biggest full car paint restoration jobs ive done in a long time.

enjoy these after shots, taken last night just before anthony left the shop finally after 14 total days here.!

I used my Dewalt DW849 rotary machine for this one & heres how it went:


3M Perfect-It Extra Cut Rubbing Compound with an orange 6.5" DD pad
3M Perfecft-It Ultrafine Machine Polish with a green 6.5" DD pad

i rinsed the car off after compounding & polishing to remove the light dusting that was on the paint.
just water, no car soap.
blown dry with the leaf blower & a few absorbers then tapped up again

3M Perfect-It Ultrafine Machine Polish with a blue 6.5" DD pad

1Z Einszett Glanz Wax as a bottom coat to seal the clear
Adams Americana Paste Wax as the top coat for an extra wet & clear reflection

all glass was polished with #000 steel wool to remove some over spray & other grond in dirt on the glass
the glass was sealed with rejex
the head & tail lights were also compounded & polished then sealed with rejex
all wheels were also given a coat of rejex

enjoy the final shots!

outside under the street lights



pics taken under different 1000 watt & 500 watt halogen light & 75 watt flourescent light

---------- Post added at 10:50 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:49 AM ----------

hood



one of the doors

drivers side

about to leave the shop & be taken for a drive by its owner

hood

from the drivers side

from the passenger side


trunk


right quarter panel

roof

passenger door up close



I wish i didnt erase those 15 before & after pics of each panel. i had much better, closer shots but what can i do? up to this week for the last 2 months ive been working till 8,9,10pm & leaving the shop around midnight so i can keep up with all of the forums that i sponsor & search for new ones to sponsor as well. we have been extremly lucky to stay this busy up until now. usually the shop starts to die down once november comes but that didn't happen this year. i type my writeups when im half asleep with my eyes half closed. i think when i was uploading the 20 pics onto my laptop that i took of the car before it left the shop that night that i hit a wrong tab on the monitor to "delete old pics" or something like that =/

this was a fun car to work on. many late nights were spent alone while listening to a few country music cds.without the shop phone ringing every 5 minutes & me not wasting time running my mouth all day long talking to the customers & joking around with juan & johnny =).

---------- Post added at 01:22 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:50 AM ----------

what were you guys doing on thu 12-31-09 around 9am?
this is what me & johnny were up to...

hand wash, paint dried with a leaf blower & absorber
clay bar, wheels glass head & tail lights poilshed & REJEX applied

exterior:
1Z EINSZETT GLANZ WAX on the bottom to seal the clear coat
LUSSO ORO WAX on the top for extra protection & shine
REJEX on all glass,head & tail lights & wheels

interior:
vac, wipe & blow out dust on dash & vents
shampoo all floor mats

Kelvin & "Becky" are shop regulars
they like long drives on the LIE & drifting on snow covered slippery streets





finished

lol @ kelvin

 

[AndrewBigA]

tomorrows work!

2010 off to a hot start!
just trying to keep as busy as possible!

 

[AndrewBigA]

these are a few pics of the suby bomb wagon im currently working on.

 

[AndrewBigA]

SATURDAY 1/9/2010 one day sale

$50 for 5 exterior hand washes

$75 for 2 hand wax applications
come in tomorrow for one, come back another time for the second one

$75 for 1 coat of sealant, one coat of wax &
a card for a free exterior hand wash to be used another time

we will be open tomorrow from 8am til 6 or 7pm

send me a PM or CALL the shop if you want to come in

(718) 445 9995

ill check my PM box in the morning as soon as i open the shop

thanks

 

[soonster]

that $50 - 5 hand washes is nice...

 

[jbaker1121]

tommorow is the 9th bro

 

[AndrewBigA]

tommorow is the 9th bro

yea, just noticed that

 

[AndrewBigA]

replied to all PMs, thanks guys
enjoy the rest of the weekend
bbrrrr

 

[AndrewBigA]

just a reminder of our shop hours.

Monday - Saturday

we open up the shop at 8am & close anywhere from 6pm till 7pm.

there are plenty of times when we finish the last car past 7pm.

but we try to get out of here no later than 7pm.

last hand wash on the day will start at 5pm.

we are closed on Sunday.

the only time im at the shop on a Sunday is if i need to finish a big job from the day before.

thanks,

Andrew

 

[AndrewBigA]

BIG "A" JAN 2010 SHOP SCHEDULE & SALE PACKAGES

here are the days & hours we will be open for the remainder of January 2010.
also included are some special sale packages that are good from now through the end of the month.

thu 1-14 open 8am - 7pm
fri 1-15 open 8am - 7pm
sat 1-16 open 8am - 7pm
sun 1-17 open 8am - 7pm
mon 1-18 open 8am - 7pm
TUE 1-19 SHOP CLOSED
WED 1-20 SHOP CLOSED
THU 1-21 SHOP CLOSED
FRI 1-22 SHOP CLOSED
sat 1-23 open 8am - 7pm
sun 1-24 open 8am - 7pm
mon 1-25 open 8am - 7pm
tue 1-26 open 8am - 7pm
wed 1-27 open 8am - 7pm
thu1-28 open 8am - 7pm
fri 1-29 open 8am - 7pm
sat 1-30 open 8am - 7pm
sun 1-31 open 8am -7pm

TUE 1-19 through FRI 1-22 = SHOP WILL BE CLOSED
ill be taking my first real winter vacation with kimmy so the shop will be closed on jan 19,20,21 &22.
we rented a 1 bedroom villa in pennsylvania complete with a full kitchen & fireplace, it should be fun =)
while im gone johnny & juan will be doing a few things around the shop like reorganizing the bathroom & giving it a fresh coat of paint. im leaving them the supplies they need to build a few new storage areas on the back wall of the shop as well. i hope it comes out good!

here are a few packages that are good till the end of the month

1. $50
5 exterior hand washes just to rinse the salt away

2. $75
1Z Einszett Glanz Wax to seal the clear coat
topped with Collinite #845 Liquid Insulator Wax
all glass,head & tails, will be polished & a coat of Rejex will be applied to those surfaces.
Rejex will also be applied to the wheels.

3. $100
2 separate hand wax applications of Adams Americana paste wax
2 full service in & out hand washes

4. $125
full interior shampoo with 303 Aerospace Protectant on the dash board & all other vynal & plastic interior surfaces. all leather will be cleaned & treated with Ardex Leather Perfect conditioning creme. after shampoo, all carpet will be treated with 3M Scotchgard carpet & upholstery protectant.
1 separate hand wax application of Lusso Oro hand crafted carnuba blend wax
2 separate full service in & out hand washes

while im away ill be checking my private messages each day. ill reply to everyone probably either really late at night or early in the morning.
when i get back to the shop on SAT 1-23 ill check my missed call list & give everyone a call back.

Thanks everyone,
Andrew

Suby WRX we did on wed 1-13

1Z Einszett Glanz Wax to seal the clear coat
topped with Lusso Oro hand crafted carnuba blend wax
all glass,head & tails & exhaust were polished & a coat of Rejex was applied.
Rejex was applied to the wheels.






Please CALL the shop @ 718 445 9995 or send me a PM to schedule an appointment for your car.

thanks everyone,

Andrew

 

[AndrewBigA]

tomorrow is all booked up. still have some time to fit in a few cars for sunday & monday then ill be closed for my vacation.

 

[AndrewBigA]

04 g35

optimum polish
1Z einszette glanz wax
collinites #845 liquid insulator wax

 

[AndrewBigA]

m6

with carbon fiber roof & carbon fiber vorsteiner trunk
interior was shampooed with a mild citrus cleaner. all leather was treated with ardex leather perfect after cleaning.
the customer just asked for a nice lease return polish & shampoo. nothing too crazy, hes returning it in 2 months. i wonder what his next car will be.

dewalt dw849 rotary
3m perfect it ultra fine machine polish
1z einszett glanz wax
collinites #885 special heavy duty fleet wax paste

befores





afters


hood

roof, hard to see the carbon fiber weave =(

just a sample of what the entire car looked like just before i polished the paint.it was covered in medium swirls, baked on road dirt & some salt. the paint was pretty gritty as well.

drivers door 1 swirles

drivers door 2 swirles


drivers door 1 after polishing it a few times

drivers door 2 after polishing it a few times


i was able to remove the swirls about 95% with just a one step polish & a few passes on the rotary.
i went beyond what dan & his father were expecting with the results of the detail. both of them were happy, too bad it was raining by the time they left the shop.

---------- Post added at 09:33 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:42 PM ----------

johnny washing an e46 outside in the rain on sun 1/17/10

blurry

juans big melon head doesn't even fit in the picture


---------- Post added at 06:45 AM ---------- Previous post was Yesterday at 09:33 PM ----------

07 highlander sun 1/17/10

interior was shampooed with a mild citrus cleaner. ardex leather perfect for the seats after cleaning.
exterior was polished by hand using liquid glass ultimate auto polish then waxed with ardex topaz yellow paste wax.

sitting outside in the rain waiting for the customer to take her home =/



hood

drivers door

somewhere on the passenger side, i forgot which panel. oh well...


---------- Post added at 11:50 AM ---------- Previous post was at 06:45 AM ----------

97 maxima

1Z einszett glanz wax
collinites #845 liquid insulator wax
rejex on all glass, head & tail lights, wheels

 

[gmgagne]

yes m6!!

 

[AndrewBigA]

gti

1z einszett glanz wax
collinites #885 heavy duty fleet wax paste
rejex on all glass, head & tail lights






03 svt cobra mustang

lusso oro hand crafted carnuba blend wax
never dull to polish the wheels

 

[soonster]

had a hectic weekend, I gotta make it to your shop sometime soon.. (5 washes for $50).

 

[AndrewBigA]

had a hectic weekend, I gotta make it to your shop sometime soon.. (5 washes for $50).

yea thats 5 exterior washes for $50. let me know when you want to come by the shop. rich was here last week & so was john with his mini van.

about to leave for pa & i miss the shop already lol

 

[AndrewBigA]

im having a great time in pa just relaxing with kimmy & having fun. we rode some horses on a trail through the woods up in the mountains yesterday & we also shot a few guns at the shooting range.
shes still laying in bed, i have to make her some fresh pancakes in a few =)

anyway...i have some time to take in a few more cars on sat 1-23 & sun 1-24. PM or reply in the thread to set something up.

thanks guys

 

[AndrewBigA]

ill reply to all private messages & return all missed calls tomorrow morning when im back at the shop.
there is still some room for a few more cars on sat 1-23 & sun 1-24 so let me know if anyone wants to make an appointment.
pa was alot of fun but its back to work tomorrow!

 

[AndrewBigA]

evo
with collinites #845 liquid insulator wax




04 bmw 325i
my oldest customer, mr frankini is 81 yrs old.

ive been detailing his & his brothers cars for about 7 years now. i always get a kick out of seeing these older guys. they tell me a lot of funny stories, they crack me up.
mr. frankini is always asking about my gf & giving me relationship advise. he always asks when am i getting married? he also lectures me about my earings & asks when im going to take them out of my ears. oh im going to miss both of these guys but hopefully the brothers will be around for a few more years =)
he has an 88 grand marquis as his daily but his bmw is his baby. the one special request hes had for me over the years is that i use his favorite
Gliptone Original Carnuba Paste Wax. He wont let me put anything on his car lol! i wonder how many years hes been using this stuff lol!






09 m3
sajad came in a few days ago for a nice hand wash.

i hate cleaning the m3 stock wheels. hes dropping off his brand new wheels next week to me. im going to seal them with a couple of coats of rejex & a few coats of collinites #845 liquid insulator wax. they will be on the car in a few months, i cant wait to see the m3 with them on!

im not sure what happened to the red plastic piece that holds the bristles of my swissvax brush. i guess ill have to order a new one next week.


05 e46m3
just another hand wash, bone sponge to soap it up, absorber to try & a leaf blower so theres no water drippies.
we do this on all hand washes.