Having gone down the rabbit hole of detailing. It's far more economical to pay someone 1k to do it for you. Then buy all the tools and products to do it yourself.
IF you are dead set on doing it yourself there's lots to consider. The more expensive the machine polisher the easier it will be on your wrists generally. Rupes for instance is very well balanced and "smooth" whereas the much much cheaper Griot Garage g9 has more vibration, meaning lots more fatigue after paint correcting for hours on end.
I'll take a stab at providing some general info i guess:
Polishers:
15mm throw (general use)
Tier 1. Rupes LHR15
Tier 2. Maxshine Shinemaster M15 Pro (lots of other products in the 200$ dollar range fit here)
Tier 3. Griots G9
Honourable Mention:
Lake country UDOS polisher is a true home detailers dream as it can be set to 5 different settings.
3inch and 1 inch polishers:
The Flex PXE80 is the only 3inch/1inch DA/rotary polisher anyone needs imo.
Polishes and pads
This is more subjective but for soft paint I like Rupes and lake country.
Rupes yellow medium wool pad for cutting
Lake Country HDO orange for Polishing
Lake Country HDO black for Finishing
For Compounds for soft paint
Koch Chemi system is good.
Rupes DA system is good.
3D one is incredibly versatile for both cutting and polishing.
Sonax perfect finish is great for Polishing
Carpro Reflect is great for finishing.
Pressure washers:
Kranzle is the best, but more than i'd personally pay
Active VE51/52 best bang for the buck
Pressure Washer gun/foam cannon:
https://www.obsessedgarage.com/colle...n-upgrade-kits
Just buy this and be done with it. Don't cheap out on this part.
Products:
Too many to list but you can get a good start by watching this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkD2...anTheOrganizer
Microfiber cloths:
You'll need an assortment of cloths for detailing. From drying clothes to polish removal clothes to sacrificial clothes for coatings etc.
https://www.obsessedgarage.com/colle...-mitts-brushes
They don't stock anything but the best products in each category so basically buy whatever you need from this page. Or find the products separately (they are made by The Rag Company) and buy them elsewhere.
Other Awesome But not necessary tools.
Drill + Drill brushes for cleaning soiled carpets. Imo just don't get your car dirty you won't need this.
Steamer (Dupra One or McCullough is good) Incredibly useful for interiors and engine bays.
Extractor: Bissel SpotClean professional is good enough for most people
Detailing Brushes: I like Work Stuff and Carpro brushes. Detail Factory is apparently good too.