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Automotive Detail Shop Resource
The Finer Details in Car Detailing - part 3
How to Detail Leather:
Thoroughly clean all leather panels to be restored. Use a water based and alcohol cleaner for best results.
Sand out all cracks using 320 or 400 grit sandpaper, as far down as to bare leather if necessary.
Once you have achieved your level of surface smoothness, seal all of the cracks and sanded areas using a water-based leather sealer or primer. Be diligent in this process, as if the leather is not sealed adequately it will absorb moistness and then stiffen.
You can re-color or re-coat water based leather using vinyl paint. The result is highly flexible. This process is not to be mistaken for dyeing.
Your last step is the clincher and seals the deal! Finish with a clear coat (non-aerosol.) The gloss can be adjusted with a duller or gloss reducer additive.
Using this method a well-trained detailer will produce an exceptional result that is durable and pleasing to the eye.
Keep in mind that this is not the same process used for a crack and peel job.
Color Matching Detailing
The number one rated, top color in automobiles is gray. Here is how to match the color gray.
Begin with the lightest color of the pigment structure.
White, then yellow (90% of time it is yellow,) then black.
It is common for a detailer to select a small amount of red or orange between the yellow and black. This helps to dirty up the mix. The eye matches best!
Detailers can hone their skills practicing. They will go to an upholstery warehouse and request an auto vinyl sample book or pick up scraps used at an auto trim shop. They have all of the colors to work with and can take their time learning until they get it just right.
Detailers will also visit car-wrecking yards and purchase car parts such as a seat, console, headrest, or a door panel. They then set up a workshop and get busy. By the time they are done they are well skilled in this area of color matching. Practical experience is a good teacher in this case!
For practical reasons it is a good idea to work on both colors and repairs. Do some good damage to your practice piece and then work to repair and re-color it.
When the detailer feels they are comfortable with this process they can move next to doing work on a willing friends car.
Even after receiving expert instruction a detailer is smart to continue practicing until they feel entirely skilled in these specialized areas.
The best and most qualified car detailing shops can go to great expense in providing superior franchised equipment, however, unless they can also provide the best and experienced detailers to operate the equipment, using the proper technique, they can very well find themselves without any customers. The bottom line will always be in customer satisfaction and quality of service.
You cant have one without the other.
Building up some interest ahead of time can help to ensure a good grand opening. By the time they are done they are well skilled in this area of color matching. A customer who jumps into their vehicle during the warmer weather wearing very little can cause serious damage to the interior surfaces of their car, truck or van. The car itself provides plenty of ammunition. Rubber seals and bumpers will turn white, dry out, and then become hard as granite. Take a digital photo of your customers car and feature your shops logo along with it. |
