Accumulator Made Me Do It

fries- Heh heh...here`s where Autopian Perfection runs into Accumulator`s Practical Perfectionism :o

I wouldn`t top it at all because I`d want to be able to add more FK1000P/BigWhiteMarine-101 (heh heh, I`m enough like Floyd that I`ll stick with "FK1000P").

I like to reLSP before it`s really necessary and thus stay ahead of the curve.

I would want the second coat of FK1000P on there no matter what, so I`d get that done first and see what you think of the look (well, unless you already have the Pink).

I honestly don`t know which would be best if you do want to top it with the Pink, but *I* would probably wait until after the next wash. I`ve noticed the FK1000P often looks just a bit different after a day or three, and IMO that means something is happening; I`d want that something over and done with before I added another product to the mix.

EDIT: Now watch Ketch see this post and email/etc. to say I`m off-base! Don`t think I am, but..never know.
 
That massive thread here about FK is what caused me to buy it, that and the claims of a high temp sealant which is suitable for phoenix weather.

This product baffles me, it seems mis marketed towards marine supplies, its not marketed at all, has a homely can, super low priced with a lot of product....and it performs so damn well. It seems well known among enthusiasts/pros but something a hobbyest would never pick up due to its looks, not that they could ever find it at a store.

Whats wrong with this company? I bet if they remarketed this stuff with a smaller can that looked all fancy and got it in stores the stuff would be legendary. Why have they sat for an eternity ont his stuff and done nothing with it as far as marketing it as a great hot weather sealant?

Id be pissed at them if i was accumulator and top stock holder tbh. FFS if they sold this stuff in a clean white tin to Chemical Guys, and let them slap a sticker on it, add their own degenerate name to it, sprinkle some cotton candy scent or whatever into it, and market it, this stuff would give give them a good name in the industry beyond over hyped stuff that smells good and disappoints for a higher than normal price.

It`s a really confusing product and company if you ask me, seem ok with and above average product performing poorly in the market. IDC if it ruins the cheapness of the product, i already have a can and im set for the next 50 years of waxing....
 
crunchyblack- Maybe Ron Ketcham, who worked there with Floyd Meguiar, will see this and chime in. Ketch would know the real story if anybody does, though I dunno if he`d want to discuss it for obvious reasons (he`s *NOT* some disgruntled ex-employee or anything like that and as an honorable guy I doubt he`ll say much about his past employers).

The FK target demo has always been skewed towards the Pro/"insider" end of the spectrum other than a modest attempt at mainstreaming by their old distributor who marketed it under the "FinishKare1" label. When FK1 went out of business that ended. At least it`s not as hard to find as some other product lines that can only be ordered direct from the makers or "approved sources" (e.g., Leather Doctor, Malm`s).

The part number-like product descriptions where what Floyd liked, and it was his company (I dunno whether it`s privately/publicly held but I suspect the former). FWIW, I myself *like* that as I find most Detailing Product names silly at best and misleading at worst. I also like the "chemical scent" and lack of vibrant coloring (notable exception- FK425). But hey, that`s just me :D

Finish Kare was Floyd`s baby and he ran it his way. Since his death I don`t know who`s been running it or how.

FK1000P was originally developed as a competitor to the M16 sold by Floyd`s family, which was a jack-of-all-trades LSP for ages. FK1000P`s durability makes it suitable for Marine applications, similar to how Collinite`s 845 Insulator Wax is sometimes marketed (many have found it in boat/etc. shops) and maybe they figure they`ll sell most of it for that use.

With Floyd long gone, I`m just glad FK is still in business, and apparently doing well enough to stay viable. They`ve dialed back their product line dramatically, so I can only guess as to what the future may hold.

No, I`m not stocking up on FK1000P or FK425! I learned my lesson about, uhm...accumulating...large stashes of preferred products when I bought all that Pre-VOC M16 and Collinite 476s that I`m now stuck with. IF FK were to go out of business, I`d pick up two tins of FK1000P and that would easily last me for the rest of this lifetime, with plenty left over to get thrown away when they settle my estate. FWIW, I`m still on my *first* tin of the stuff, not counting the tiny (and dried-out, but it worked just fine) little sample tin that intro`ed me to to it. That big can oughta last most people well over a decade even if they`re doing big vehicles all the time the way I do. (Well, not "all the time" as I hardly ever have to reapply since it lasts so long for me.)

NOW...returning to your concerns about the heat in AZ...I`m *VERY* curious how it`ll work out for you. With the differing experiences of others in hot climes, I just don`t know which way it`ll go. When you report back we`ll have more data, and if it doesn`t work out for you I bet somebody will buy the rest of it.

Thin, *thin*, *THIN* :D If you can clearly see it on the paint you used many times more than necessary, at least IME. I have to go by feel as I can`t readily see the minute amount that I apply. Fog the surface with your breath when buffing off, which will make for easier buffing and will also let you see the product on the paint. (Gee, wonder how that "fogging" will work in AZ!?!). Yeah, I`m sure you`ve already read all that before, but IMO it`s worth repeating.
 
Accumulator said:
Wonder how many here *have* bought some based on my recommendation.

Even more curious about people who`ve discovered/tried it on their own.

And I`m truly serious about wanting to know about any negative takes on the stuff.
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I bought some this weekend from AG and I know your comments on this product have had an effect on the purchase. Can`t wait to try it!
 
Accumulator said:
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Thin, *thin*, *THIN* :D If you can clearly see it on the paint you used many times more than necessary, at least IME. I have to go by feel as I can`t readily see the minute amount that I apply. Fog the surface with your breath when buffing off, which will make for easier buffing and will also let you see the product on the paint. (Gee, wonder how that "fogging" will work in AZ!?!). Yeah, I`m sure you`ve already read all that before, but IMO it`s worth repeating.
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That there is some interesting back story...

As far as durability in the valley of the sun, its going to be rough to tell. Ill be able to tell water beading in august from the monsoons, but other than that, i have to go more of slickness of feel and water beading from a power washer at a self serve...

I do notice that i can more or less apply and wipe away without much cure time, i dont get much fogging/haze/halos but i have a silver car (2018 cruze) so its only something id see at angles with a light source reflection. I did see some halos after my 3rd coat with a week between, and took detail spray and a microfiber to the whole car and it was gone no issue.

Ive been using FK as my base coat since basically march 1st, and have applied multiple coats with a week or more between, only recently using turtle wax ice spray wax for all the trim bits FK wont work on without staining.

All i can say is that theres no grit stuck to my mirror finish that feels like polished glass (cant feel the micro swirls i have) June/july/August and some of september will be the real test of this stuff, with a potential week long stay at the airport open lot where fallout and heat will be a real issue.

I think this weekend ill sweat out a last coat of FK and leave it be.

Anyone have the idea yet mix in some black light reflectant ink or something into sealants so you can see if its covered still? Its going to be hard to see how this holds up.
 
crunchyblack- Yeah, if you overdo the layering those pseudo-holograms can be a problem. Glad yours sorted out OK, when it doesn`t it`s one *big* PIA!

Heh heh, on that "seeing the coverage", I guess I`m a bit odd in that I see it as an interesting exercise; how little can I use while still getting full, even coverage. I have to work *VERY* methodically and carefully to attain that when I can`t see it on the paint, but I can honestly say I don`t find it difficult. But eh...different people etc. etc. Heh heh, at least the FK is easier than doing Klasse Sealant Glaze that thin! Doing a Suburban-size vehicle, jambs and all, with a fraction of an ounce of a nearly clear liquid? Six coats worth? Now *THAT* is a bit of a challenge.

Gotta say that I don`t get the "silver is different from black" thing as IMO clearcoat is clearcoat, just gotta get the inspection lighting right. It *can* be a little challenging on light colors, hence my "gotta be Accumulator-proof" comments regarding the Ice`s potential streaking.

But then again, OTOH, I sure don`t think people oughta go looking for problems they don`t know they have! I`m sure yours looks great, I just hope it stays that way for a while despite the temps in your area.

I gauge durability in a pretty general sense: I try to spot changes. If it looks different, well...that`s an obvious one but I trust nobody`s gonna wait that long :D Beading in the rain only works if it rains, so in your case I`d probably go by how it behaves during the wash. Not just the beading, but also how readily it sheds dirt. I`d sure want to redo long before it no longer feels slick, and on cars that seldom get rained on I guess my usual cue is a slight change in that beading during the wash. As soon as the beads become larger and less spherical, I reapply.
 
15 yrs. he recommended Opti-Coat for my impossibly soft black paint and after chasing after all the scratches was just beginning to see primer.
Once applied it was a layer of clear coat that was harder than factory. After every was the black Infiniti looked amazin
So since then I value his opinion and my recent purchase has been FK 1000.
 
bcgreen- Hey, you`ve piqued my curiosity! Why did you switch from the coating approach to the FK? Sure hope the latter works out as well as the OptiCoat did on that Infiniti.

BTW, I wish that original OptiCoat were still on the market, it worked well on the wheels I tried it on.

EDIT: 15 years huh? How time flies...I would`ve guessed about half that :o
 
Alright im testing this FK added gloss thing today. Last night i did what i hope will be my last wax coat of the summer. Under the lights at the self serve i did see some halo`ing on my roof i couldnt buff out, which im fine with, the car now has like 4 coats of FK with some ice spray wax sandwiched between so im sure theres some chemical repelling going on between coats. Its the roof and i cant notice it in daylight very easy. Either way whats going on isnt surface level where a microfiber is going to fix it.

I did notice that perhaps the extra gloss i was talking about was pretty close to a fresh FK coat, i think it dulls after a week and topping it off with a detail or spray wax brings back that high gloss.

My FK coat cured over night so ill hit it with a detail spray to get the over night dust layer off in a few hours and see if it adds to the gloss of a fresh coat or just gets the dust off.

After that, its self serve rinse and dry with their power washer (ill do a high pressure soap if needed, that soap is super watered down though) for the rest of summer.

Ill test by how slick the paint feels and if i can start feeling grit on the paint to tell how long the stuffs working. I guess the rinse wash will show beading, ill do that at least once a week. Really dont care about beading when you get 5inches of rain a year. Repelling dust and allowing it to blow off when driving is more important. Ill update later today or tomorrow about if using a detail spray really does add gloss though...not sure which detail spray ill use, either 303 or Ice...both i know are very glossy.
 
crunchyblack- If I`m reading that right, you plan t rely on touchless washes throughout summer. IMO that`s not gonna work all that great as I believe you`ll need the mechanical aspect of "regular washing" to keep things truly clean. Yeah, I get by for a while with just a home touchless, but I`m not trying it on a vehicle that anyone (except an Autopian) would consider dirty...I suspect that mine wearing the FK are awfully pampered as Daily Drivers go, at least compared to most people`s.

Sorry to hear about the pseudo-holograms. Glad they don`t bug you, I simply couldn`t drive it until I fixed `em :o Heh heh, I find it interesting that I`d care about those while you`re apparently more concerned with the level of gloss than I am...different people care about different things!
 
Accumulator said:
crunchyblack- If I`m reading that right, you plan t rely on touchless washes throughout summer. IMO that`s not gonna work all that great as I believe you`ll need the mechanical aspect of "regular washing" to keep things truly clean. Yeah, I get by for a while with just a home touchless, but I`m not trying it on a vehicle that anyone (except an Autopian) would consider dirty...I suspect that mine wearing the FK are awfully pampered as Daily Drivers go, at least compared to most people`s.

Sorry to hear about the pseudo-holograms. Glad they don`t bug you, I simply couldn`t drive it until I fixed `em :o Heh heh, I find it interesting that I`d care about those while you`re apparently more concerned with the level of gloss than I am...different people care about different things!
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Eh, the glories of apartment living. I have a microfiber mitt, the one with all the yarn dangles like a mop. I use that for agitation if needed. Usually its the rocker panels and lowers, ill use the stratchmaster 5000 brush for windows for the foam.

Really all ive needed since i put on the hi temp wax is a solid pressure wash to get the dust off. My wax pad is a microfiber covered foam circle with the velcro knob, last application last night i had minimal film on the pad after use.

I dont think my car has gotten naturally wet in a few months, and last significant rain was dry by the time i woke up. I battle dust really...oh they also tar spray some of the roads to make them look black, so occasionally tar spots usually behind the wheel on the panels.

Other than the sun being murderous, and dust storms in july/august theres not much on my car other than a talc powder consistency dust to contend with. Thus far FK has held up well, is great with dust, and has survived well over what would wreck a carnuba in terms of heat.

Today i used the ice detailer (not spray wax) to top off my fresh coat of FK. I think i like 303 speed detailer best slightly more added gloss but i did notice the ice detail it made the FK reflection more...sharp and vivid...not much but enough i noticed. Definitely less than the spray wax. im about 99% sure my cool season LSP is going to be the turtle wax ice paste and spray wax, surprised it doesn`t get more love given how cheap it is. Can`t wait to try out the paste wax variant.

Until the monsoons ill be rinse and detail spray maintenance. Once the storms start ill need to agitate especially if the car gets wet then dusty...or i actually drive on a wet road for once and get kick up spray from other cars. Ill probably iron decon once the heat breaks in late september as well.

For now im gonna kick back and watch the FK try to survive longer than one month. Real test is august where it will need to sit in the sun for a week at the airport while i visit family and escape the high temps for a bit.
 
crunchyblack- I`ll be looking forward to those updates :D Your situation does indeed sound extremely severe.

Oh, and just FWIW, and with a nod to "different strokes.."/etc., I utterly despise those muppet/dreadlock/yarn-dangle mitts! Big, thick, strands, and few of `em, aren`t what I want. I want a multitude of thin strands for a variety of reasons. Analogy: toothbrushes- would you rather brush your teeth with a brush that had twenty thick bristles or two hundred thin ones? Apologies if you`re not using the kind of mitt I think you are and I just wasted bandwidth ranting; apologies also if you *are* using what I think you are and I just flamed something you like :o
 
Accumulator said:
bcgreen- Hey, you`ve piqued my curiosity! Why did you switch from the coating approach to the FK? Sure hope the latter works out as well as the OptiCoat did on that Infiniti.

BTW, I wish that original OptiCoat were still on the market, it worked well on the wheels I tried it on.

EDIT: 15 years huh? How time flies...I would`ve guessed about half that :o
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I just didn`t think there was another product that was as good the the Opti-coat. Would still be buying if the price hadn`t sky rocketed. And now only the professionals are allowed to purchase.

As we get older the faster time flies.
 
bcgreen- That`s the kind of reasoning that has my recently purchased coating sitting on the shelf while I stew in Buyer`s Remorse :o

As we get older the faster time flies.
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Heh heh, yeah...even for those of us who`ll accept "older" but not "old" ;)
 
Accumulator said:
bcgreen- That`s the kind of reasoning that has my recently purchased coating sitting on the shelf while I stew in Buyer`s Remorse :o


Heh heh, yeah...even for those of us who`ll accept "older" but not "old" ;)
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I really was amazed how great Opti-Coat was, once applied to the super soft Infiniti G35. Every time I washed the car it looked as if I had just finished doing a 3 day detail on the car- it was so wonderful to look at. I cannot say that about any car I`ve done since then. Loved that product.
Have you found another coating that compares?
Sorry but FK doesn`t compare but I still like it together with Collinite.
 
bcgreen said:
Have you found another coating that compares [with the original OptiCoat]?
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Not that I can comment about. I got some 22ple stuff but haven`t tried it yet (kinda experiencing Buyer`s Remorse, not very psyched about trying it).

Sorry but FK doesn`t compare but I still like it together with Collinite.
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I`m doing OK with the FK as I redo them in a kinda-big way when I switch to the winter setup, but I`ll agree it doesn`t last like the OptiCoat did. It did last longer than Collinite for me (by a big margin) and was basically similar to KSG X 6.
 
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