*** The Car Cleaning Thread ***

[Overlag]

Oh good advice, didnt know that at all. Anyone got recommendation for a good sealant?

autoglym extra gloss protection seems to work well, and is easy to get off... but its the only one Ive used.

i got 3 megs microfiber cloths, i use 2 for drying, and the 3rd to buff off the EGP, works well.



turtlewax platinum series has a sealant (extra gloss) that looks great from what ive seen

 

[Toker]

And then is it ok to use a wax such as nattys blue over that?

yea you can put any type of wax or sealant on top of a glaze

 

[Toker]

Sealants are more pushed for paint protection than show car looks. Sealants are synthetic and consist of wierd things like polymers and acrylics which bond very tightly to the paint surface. It locks in the paint moisture, protects from UV radiation and prevents oxidisation. At the same, as you would expect, it causes rain water to bead off the car. The sealant layer is very thin, much thinner than a carnuba wax. But a sealant can usually be layered to build up a thicker layer. A side affect of sealants is they do give a fairly good glossy finish but that isn't really their main purpose.

Most professional detailers will apply a sealant and a wax. One for protection and one for looks.

i've never heard of a professional detailer using both, they tend to machine polish, polish then use some sort of LSP, whether it be a wax or a sealant as they know both give different finishes and don't mix well really. You'll find the general concensus is light colours = sealant, dark colours = wax.

you'll also find sealants tend to sheet water rather than bead, they'll bead for a day or 2 then it sheets, a la zymol.

a good sealant layered properly will give better "show car" results than a wax on light cars, especially if they are metallic due to the flake pop element.

Sealants don't offer much in the way of gloss, they offer crisp 3d reflections rather than the wet look gloss that wax offers

 

[Toker]

Oh good advice, didnt know that at all. Anyone got recommendation for a good sealant?

I am also looking for some decent wax for black pearlescent paint, currently looking at either the dodo juice blue velvet or the collinite stuff which a lot of people recommend. Has anyone had any experiences with the Dodo juice stuff? Are they worth the extra cash?

Don't bother with sealant if your cars black, go straight from polish to wax or throw a glaze in the middle.

Dodo juice wax is great stuff and definitely worth the cash, another one you might want to look at is raceglaze or blackfire

 

[NeilMick]

i've never heard of a professional detailer using both, they tend to machine polish, polish then use some sort of LSP, whether it be a wax or a sealant as they know both give different finishes and don't mix well really. You'll find the general concensus is light colours = sealant, dark colours = wax.

you'll also find sealants tend to sheet water rather than bead, they'll bead for a day or 2 then it sheets, a la zymol.

a good sealant layered properly will give better "show car" results than a wax on light cars, especially if they are metallic due to the flake pop element.

Sealants don't offer much in the way of gloss, they offer crisp 3d reflections rather than the wet look gloss that wax offers

Or get some Blackfire stuff and layer both sealant and wax

 

[Toker]

So :

• Soak
• Wash
• Clay
• Condition
• Polish
• Glaze?
• Wax
• Seal

or do you use sealant after the polish then wax after?

Also, the great rotary vs random orbital polisher debate; as long as you're not cack-handed you should be ok to use a rotary?

• Soak
• Wash
• Clay
• Polish
• Glaze
• Wax or Seal depending on the finish you want

I prefer random orbital polishers to rotaries, you can be quite lazy with them. Rotaries are only really needed for major correction work and they can screw up paint a lot easier than orbitals if in the wrong hands

 

[Toker]

Or get some Blackfire stuff and layer both sealant and wax

yea i've mentioned that already, I'm yet to try it though. Seen the results but goin to get some and try it for myself.

 

[mcc49]

Don't bother with sealant if your cars black, go straight from polish to wax or throw a glaze in the middle.

Dodo juice wax is great stuff and definitely worth the cash, another one you might want to look at is raceglaze or blackfire

Thanks for the advice, I am looking at the following products after reading this thread.

Chemical Guys citrus wash
Dodo juice Lime Prime
Poorboys Blackhole glaze
Dodo juice Blue Velvet wax
Chemical Guys QD for claying/quick touch up

Is this a good combo for a black pearlescent car? If not what would you change before I take out the credit card?

 

[Toker]

Thanks for the advice, I am looking at the following products after reading this thread.

Chemical Guys citrus wash
Dodo juice Lime Prime
Poorboys Blackhole glaze
Dodo juice Blue Velvet wax
Chemical Guys QD for claying/quick touch up

Is this a good combo for a black pearlescent car? If not what would you change before I take out the credit card?

sounds like a great combo to me, the only thing I'd change is the shampoo to meguiars shampoo plus - great stuff and far better value for money, lasts forever

 

[Overlag]

So :

• Soak
• Wash
• Clay
• Condition
• Polish
• Glaze?
• Wax
• Seal

or do you use sealant after the polish then wax after?

Also, the great rotary vs random orbital polisher debate; as long as you're not cack-handed you should be ok to use a rotary?

almost right.

• Soak
• Wash
• Clay
• Condition
• Polish
• Glaze?
• Seal
• Wax

Wax's need to "breath" so putting sealant ontop of them would cause issues.

 

[Aspect]

Im getting seriously confused with what to do and when. Soak, Wash and Clay i fully understand, but Condition? Glaze? Seal? No idea what these are lads. Can anyone explain is simple terms?

 

[NathanE]

i've never heard of a professional detailer using both, they tend to machine polish,

Not true. A professional detail (not a cheap job, but more £400 plus type job) will in most cases involve a sealant and wax. Detailers often have their favourite combo that always look good together.

It really depends what type of sealant we are talking about too. Unlike with wax, there is a very wide variety of sealants. Spray on, wipe on, smear on... all different compositions. That's because they're made by whacky scientists with all wierd and wonderful different formulas. Whereas wax is always a natural substance and the only differences are how it is processed.

The reason a good detailer will use a sealant is because they are a very good protective barrier against most things that can damage paint. Where a wax will quickly succumb to a particularly nasty bug splat, a sealant probably won't. Remember not all detailing is about making the car look its absolute show car best... it's about paint protection too.

 

[NathanE]

Oh good advice, didnt know that at all. Anyone got recommendation for a good sealant?

I am also looking for some decent wax for black pearlescent paint, currently looking at either the dodo juice blue velvet or the collinite stuff which a lot of people recommend. Has anyone had any experiences with the Dodo juice stuff? Are they worth the extra cash?

I was going to get some Collinite myself but in the end decided I couldn't be bothered with the buffing It is pretty hard to buff off apparently. But it does last a long time. 6 months most people say... depending on mileage of course.

There's too many sealants... they're all much of a muchness really. I put some heavy duty "Car lack 68" stuff on mine a couple weeks ago and it came up looking good and water beads *really* nicely. But Zaino do some popular ones too. The stuff I put on mine is said to last 12 months very easily and in fact there is a video on Youtube where the guy shows beading still after 19 months That's why I went with sealant rather than a wax - because I can't be arsed to keep redoing the wax every few months!

 

[Toker]

Not true. A professional detail (not a cheap job, but more £400 plus type job) will in most cases involve a sealant and wax. Detailers often have their favourite combo that always look good together.

It really depends what type of sealant we are talking about too. Unlike with wax, there is a very wide variety of sealants. Spray on, wipe on, smear on... all different compositions. That's because they're made by whacky scientists with all wierd and wonderful different formulas. Whereas wax is always a natural substance and the only differences are how it is processed.

The reason a good detailer will use a sealant is because they are a very good protective barrier against most things that can damage paint. Where a wax will quickly succumb to a particularly nasty bug splat, a sealant probably won't. Remember not all detailing is about making the car look its absolute show car best... it's about paint protection too.

very true, I know lots of professional detailers and my friends run pretty much the top company in scotland (talking £600+ for full correction there).

any detailer mixing sealants and waxes, unless specifically requested by the customer, doesn't know what he's doing if they are going for the best possible finish. Real detailers will know that if its a light metallic car, if they wax on the sealant the flakes will be muted. If you're putting on top quality wax it's not going to succumb to anything, good wax is very durable. Ask anyone who knows what they're talking about and they'll tell you mixing the two is pretty much a waste of time and product, unless as mentioned before you're mixing it with a wax specifically designed for the job such as the blackfire. Most normal waxes don't bond properly with a lot of sealants anyway.

Of course, I am talking about LSP sealants, there are some on the market which people will put on for protection - such as jetseal 109, which can have a wax layered on it no problem, but I don't know any professional detailers that use products like this. Another reason is sealants have to cure most of the time between layers or waxing on top - something professional detailers don't have the time to wait for usually.

 

[mcc49]

I was going to get some Collinite myself but in the end decided I couldn't be bothered with the buffing It is pretty hard to buff off apparently. But it does last a long time. 6 months most people say... depending on mileage of course.

There's too many sealants... they're all much of a muchness really. I put some heavy duty "Car lack 68" stuff on mine a couple weeks ago and it came up looking good and water beads *really* nicely. But Zaino do some popular ones too. The stuff I put on mine is said to last 12 months very easily and in fact there is a video on Youtube where the guy shows beading still after 19 months That's why I went with sealant rather than a wax - because I can't be arsed to keep redoing the wax every few months!

http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/complete-detailing-kits/collinite-476s-carlack-kit/prod_408.html

What about a kit like that? Its being advertised as working great together, I believe thats the Car Lack stuff you use?

 

[Toker]

http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/complete-detailing-kits/collinite-476s-carlack-kit/prod_408.html

What about a kit like that? Its being advertised as working great together, I believe thats the Car Lack stuff you use?

car-lack is a protection sealant which works good and combined with the collinite you will have very durable long lasting protection, although not the best finish for the money.

the best durability and finish comes from blackfire in this domain, but for the sealant and wax you're talking about £65

 

[mcc49]

car-lack is a protection sealant which works good and combined with the collinite you will have very durable long lasting protection, although not the best finish for the money.

the best durability and finish comes from blackfire in this domain, but for the sealant and wax you're talking about £65

Where can I get these blackfire products? Money isnt really an issue, just want to make sure I am buying the right thing first time instead of multiple buys in the future because I bought the wrong product.

 

[st@nners]

Ive just been reading this thread http://bbs.rsownersclub.co.uk/showthread.php?t=93885

regarding car cleaning and i recommend you give it a read.

The finish Chris Latham has on his RST, 6th post down is amazing using Poorboys products.

Im still undecided what stuff to buy yet though.

.Chris.

 

[Toker]

Where can I get these blackfire products? Money isnt really an issue, just want to make sure I am buying the right thing first time instead of multiple buys in the future because I bought the wrong product.

www.polishedbliss.co.uk

 

[NathanE]

http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/complete-detailing-kits/collinite-476s-carlack-kit/prod_408.html

What about a kit like that? Its being advertised as working great together, I believe thats the Car Lack stuff you use?

Ya... that's a kit because it works well together and suits most cars just fine.

You can go on and on with this stuff. But in reality the differences between products is not large. It is all subjective too. One guy will swear blind that his favourite brand is the best and another guy will swear blind that his favourite brand is the best... who the **** cares IMO They're all just chemical companies out to make a killing. It's the sort of market where an upstart company will post their own detailing threads in a "viral" style on sites like DetailingWorld in the hope that it makes their product stand out and catch on as being the new "cool" product.

I wouldn't spend silly amounts of money. There is no need to. Just buy a fairly well known and well reviewed brand and give it a try.

car-lack is a protection sealant which works good and combined with the collinite you will have very durable long lasting protection, although not the best finish for the money.

the best durability and finish comes from blackfire in this domain, but for the sealant and wax you're talking about £65

I didn't combine with Collinite. I combined with the car lack "long life sealant" which is 100% acrylic stuff. No cleaners or anything and is layerable.

Looks fab too.