how to keep paint on an older car looking good?

[humanoid]

Jason, Justin or you other fine folks at Adam's, I've got an '80 Triumph TR7 that's Inca Yellow. The paint seems to be in pretty good shape. I know they didn't have clearcoat back then, so what should I do to bring some of the shine back and keep it protected? I'd rather do this by hand, really uncomfortable working with a machine, wouldn't wanna frak up the paint. Thanks!

[Pb]

To bring back the shine it needs to be polished. 1 stage paint can be polished, and it can actually be made to look even better than newer clearcoated paint. Is the paint thin in any areas? If it was me I'd still use a buffer, but you can polish it by hand if you're worried about it. Then wax or sealant like normal.

[Jason@Adams]

It's very common to find people that are weary of machine polishing. Everyone's dad knows someone who "burned their paint" using a machine.

That's virtually impossible today. High speed buffers - yes - can damage paint, especially soft paint or paint lacking a clear coat.

The Porter Cable 7424 though is a random ORBITAL dual action polisher. It does not spin at all, instead oscillates providing an even coat of polish or wax without any fear whatsoever of burning paint. If you watch the Adam's DVD we have on our website, Adam shows how even at full speed you can hold the buffing pad with your hand.

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On to your question.

Clear coat or not, even lacquer only paint, our products will honestly be the easiest to use and provide the best results.

If you REALLY only want to go polish and wax by hand - I'll give you those steps.
Start with a good wash using a mild dish washing soap to help remove any old wax or polish. Yes, polishes are cleaners themselves and will remove wax so if you want you can skip the dish washing soap and use our pH neutral car wash soap.

I'd never ever suggest to anyone to polish before a clay bar, so step 2 is the clay process. NOT SCARY!

This video provides EXCELLENT tips on how to clay and shows how really easy it is:
http://www.adamspolishes.com/t-Videos_DVD5_16.aspx

After the clay process you can move on to the hand polishing. If you have swirls and spider webs you can use the Swirl and Haze Remover we offer and to even make life easier you can mix it with the Revive Polish (one of our most popular products.) Both go on very easy with microfiber applicator pads. Best part is there is ZERO dry time. Honestly, apply and remove. There is no baby powder added also so no need to dust off the car once you are done removing the polish.

After polishing comes the wax. For hand polishing I suggest our Buttery Wax. It really has to be the world's easiest to use wax. Goes on think so it does not run all over. Again, apply via micro fiber applicator pad and wipe off (with no dry time required) with a micro fiber towel. That sealant will last months and your yellow will never be more reflective

-Jason

[humanoid]

Sweet, thanks Kent and Jason!