not sure which route is a better option for me cleaning agent and wax or comet...? hmmm. how can i tell if the original paint is to thin to work with?
You can get a paint depth gauge that'll tell you exactly how much paint you have to work with. They can be expensive though.
In recent years, detailing has come a long ways. There are many ways to skin this cat but what I would do is take the approach that a professional detailer would. Wash the car thoroughly by hand, go over it with a clay car to remove ASBC's (Above Surface Bonded Contaminants, aka the junk imbedded in the paint which you can feel but not see), wipe down the car with a 50/50 mix of isopropyl alcohol and water to help remove any oils that may be left behind, and then polish the paint. When you're done, put a proper coat of wax on it and use proper wash techniques so you keep the paint in tip-top condition. You can try a million old school ways to bring the paint back or you can just do what needs to be done which is remove the dead paint and scratches by polishing to reveal the fresh paint underneath.
What you want to use is a dual action polisher (Like the Porter Cable 7424xp, Griot's Garage 6", or Torq 10FX which is what I have), not a rotary, and not a wax spreader (Often referred to as a buffer, usually looks like a big sander with a wool pad or a bonnet). Polishing by hand will take an eternity and you will get better results with a machine anyways. A rotary will burn through paint much easier and will leave behind swirls that will need to be removed with a DA polisher. With DA polishers you've got random orbital (The ones I listed above) and forced rotation (Like the FLEX XC3401), the random orbital is your best bet because it won't burn through paint and a forced rotation polisher will. Both types of DA have the same pattern except the FLEX mechanically forces the pad to rotate, with a random orbital you can freely spin the pad and it rotates on it's own as the machine oscillates. They really are fool proof, if you put the DA on an edge and press down it'll just stop spinning the pad and it'll just vibrate around not causing damage. You can pick up a cheap DA at Harbor Freight but i'd invest in some quality pads(I use Hex Logic pads but Lake Country makes some of the best on the market). If your paint is single stage I think you could get away with not compounding (More abrasive, removes more paint), and only polishing. Clear coats are harder and require more aggressive means of correction. Also, when you're claying it's very important to have a lot of lubricity between the paint and clay. You can use soapy water as clay lube, you can buy dedicated clay lube, or you can mix your own like I do (I put half a cap of Optimum No Rinse in a 16oz spray bottle of distilled water, works great).
Tools and supplies needed:
-Stuff to wash the car
-Detailing clay
-50/50 Isopropyl alcohol/water mix
-Random Orbital DA polisher (I'd go for the Porter Cable 7424xp, or Griot's with a lifetime warranty)
-Polishing pads (Two heavy, two medium, two light, and a wax pad)
-Polish (For a compound I'd go with Meguiar's M105, and for a Polish M205)
-Quality Microfiber towels (I'd start at The Rag Company- they have nice towels)
-Good wax (I recommend Collinite 845, it's absolutely fantastic stuff and it's affordable)
-Patience, this takes a while but it's worth it.
As if that wall of text wasn't enough, here's a video too. Larry Kosilla is one of the best detailers in the business and he knows his stuff. His channel (AMMO NYC) is worth checking out if you want to learn how to make old paint look new again and want to keep it looking new. This Porsche was in rough shape and you can see the difference he made. You can do the same with a little patience. [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hikW5GwRGW8"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hikW5GwRGW8[/ame]
I know all that's a lot to take in at once but I guarantee you that you will get the best possible results by polishing the paint correctly. One of the great things about taking this path is that when you're done you'll have a DA polisher that can be used to do everything from applying and removing wax, to cleaning carpets and upholstery. It's one of the most versatile and critical tools in a detailer's arsenal. I used my polisher to wax a Ford Raptor in about 20 mins.
Hopefully that was at least a little bit helpful. It may sound like a lot of work, and it is, but you will not get better results than by polishing. I'll promise you that.
