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Writer's pictureBrandon Visser

Make up and Paint Correction

Ever been to that car dealership to search for a quality used car and noticed the finish on it to have, what appears to be a 3-dimensional effect to it? Or maybe, your friend just had his car detailed down the street, and the finish on his now "clean" car still appears to be "hazy." What about when you pick your vehicle up from a collision shop and notice adjacent panels from the repaired panel seem to be "swirled up."


Unfortunately, the reality is, that many folks who work on cars do not have the eye for a perfect finish that a quality detailer may have. Or, even if they can see the imperfections, they do not know how to properly address them and remove them.


Furthermore, living in a petroleum-driven society, large petroleum companies control much more than just the fuel we put into our gas tanks. Many petroleum-derived products exist in the detailing market, that provide a quick "cover up" to mask imperfections on paintwork instead of actually removing them. They're simply applying "makeup." Silicone and petroleum distillates provide a temporary gloss that fades, sometimes in as little as a few days!

Dealer-installed rotary holograms on this Suburban robs the true gloss of the paintwork

Why, then, would the detailing market be still so attracted to using such products? I can think of a few reasons:


1. They're cheap. Unfortunately, small companies are constantly aware of the "bottom line" in their business finances. Saving a few bucks here and there on materials can greatly increase the profit margins of each detail, especially in volume driven shops.


2. They're fast. Especially in many high-volume, production-minded shops, masking the defects on an automobile (with a quick "buff and wax" process) can be done by any untrained technician in as little as 30 minutes to an hour per car. Further speeding up the process, is the use of a rotary polisher. Rotary polishers are very powerful, defect-slaying machines, but also have the highest learning curve and highest risk of damaging the same paintwork that is scheduled to be enhanced.


3. They're convenient. Many product representatives come by on a weekly basis to constantly supply these products to the shops, so they can keep on detailing. Again, time is money, and doing more details in a shorter time means a bigger paycheck- quality often left unchecked and unregulated.


It's unfortunate that many production detailing shops have fallen prey to this mindset. When I started Domain Appearance, I knew that I wanted to break out of this "norm" and aim to set a new standard in the detailing industry. A few items (as I will further address in future posts) that I aim to be different on are as follows:


1. Uncompromised tools and products. I proudly offer only high-end, non-filling products that truly correct the surface defects, not just cover them up. Many times, these products cost as much as 10X the price of competing products. In my opinion, however, delivering the best to my customers is well worth the extra materials cost.


2. Time intensive, true paint correction process. Many times my quote on a paint correction (depending on vehicle/ condition, etc), can be as high as 10+ hours. Even one-step corrections can take 8+hours. Why so long you may ask? I choose to let the product and tool do the work as they were designed and let the finished results speak for themselves. I'm not slow, rather methodical. I also value the mantra of "quality over quantity," so even where I could cut corners, I won't.


50/50 shot of what Paint correction can do for a neglected finish

3. Continuing education. While many shops choose a static mindset, I choose to be dynamic. That means, as the industry changes and evolves, so will I. Any person that has made a difference in history, was first viewed as an oddball by their peers. I'm okay with being different as long as the results are top-notch.


At the end of the day, you have a question to ask yourself- what do I expect from a detail? If lasting results from hard work and commitment to excellence is your style, Domain Appearance would love to invest in your automobile. Excellence is our M.O.


Passion. Reflected.


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