Back to detailing after a 10 year hiatus. Seeking new products.

M

m3_sj

New member
Hi All,



Its feels good to get back into detailing after almost 10 years.



Now its for enjoyment and not business anymore. I hope my DA7424 and Rotary and lake country pads are still in workable condition otherwise I may go the route of Rupe.



Anyways, I used to frequent this site and get inspired by two legends of this site in my eyes, GSR35Stilez (Sean i think was his name ? and of course Scottwax's posts along with a few others. ( another NJ detailer I think who used zaino quite frequently on high end cars and post pics of them outside in the lot , i just forgot his board name)



Back in the day i used A LOT of sealants but always seemed to resort back to Zaino's z2 pro for the "deep wet looking" finish I've come to desire vs the "wrapped in saran" look that many gave.



I have recently seen Opti -Coat finishes in the ClickNBrag section of which appears to be used quite heavily nowadays. However, from the photos, I'm not blown away with its finish ? Its simply not "wet looking" enough for my eyes. Shiny and Saran-wrapped imho. Are my eyes deceiving me ? But honestly, that's what I see and I'm not overly impressed. Sorry to those who love the product.



I have read that many have moved on from Sal's stuff. (no need to get into another zealot war)



So out of the sealants today, what is going to give me thee "wettest looking finish" bar none ??? (of course after some compound work of course.) As I mentioned, I used a lot of sealants but always resorted to z2 pro and at times topped it with either Pinnacle Souveran or Natty's Blue.





I trust this forum views, as it gave me my start in my detailing business over 10 years ago and highly regard this site and your viewpoint.



I'm thinking of going back to an acrylic ?



But if so ? Which one ? I liked what I saw from Duragloss ? But I don't see many people using it on this forum ? Or am I going back to Sal's product dare I say for that crazy wet look ?



Off the top of head here were a few of my old arsenal of polish and compounds of which has ALL GONE BAD I'm sure by now.



zaino, Meg's da, Optimum Hyper and polish, klasse, werstatt, 4star, UPP, poorboys range, Wolfgang twins, Pinnacle, Natty's..



Thank you Autopia and thank you to fellow posters who have re-ignited a passion.
 
Funny that you thought other sealants looked plasticky, these days Zaino looks pretty boring compared to the competition. Stuff like BFWD and 3D's Poxy's have amazing looks. Zaino does still beat them in durability though. Consumer stuff has gotten much better, Megs Ultimate is a force to be reckoned with. Polishes have really improved, the 3D stuff is top of the market right now in a finishing polish. Megs still has some serious cutting action in 105 though.
 
after some more research, I"m becoming more partial to the Blackfire brand at the moment.

I'm thinking BLACKFIRE Gloss Enhancing Polish, then, Blackfire Wet Diamond Sealant, then topped with BLACKFIRE BlackICE Hybrid Montan Sealant Wax may be the killer combo I've been looking for.
 
Skip the polishes and the maybe even the ICE. Much better polishes out there. BWED is hard to beat though, fantastic looks on its own.
 
I have been looking at the new stuff recently, and can tell you my experience. I have also been at this for a long time, not as a pro though. For the last 10+ years I stayed with Z2, always cussed at how much work it was though. Over the last few months I tried some of the newer products. Collinite insulator wax, the new meguires nano wax/sealants, and the Opti line. I like OCW (OptiCoat Spray Wax), so easy to spray on and wipe off, and I am trying Opti-Clear on rims to see if it will last long. OCW is super easy, but it seemed to loose effectiveness after a few weeks in the sun. OCW does have a decent wet look just after application, but it goes away fast, like the next day or two. I tried BFWD several times, it looks amazing, is also very easy to work with, but much of the wet look and slickness is from oils that wash off after one wash, and it stains trim.



I judge top coats based on the appearance and slickness, and protection based on water beading and longevity. I just went back to the Zaino website and looked at their definition of a protection performance, I read that water beading is a good measure until someone comes up with something better, I have to agree. Z2 beads well and for a long time.



So I am back to Z2 and the old Zymol Carnuba's. Whenever I use a Zymol carnuba, always wonder why so few talk about it, it is a nice material. I guess Zaino isn't the new thing, so it doesn't get as much discussion. I may not give you any ideas on new wax or sealants, but don't be surprised if you end up back at Z2. On the other hand, relatively new Meg's 205 and 105 worked magic on my Jet Black BMW!
 
m3_sj said:
after some more research, I"m becoming more partial to the Blackfire brand at the moment.

I'm thinking BLACKFIRE Gloss Enhancing Polish, then, Blackfire Wet Diamond Sealant, then topped with BLACKFIRE BlackICE Hybrid Montan Sealant Wax may be the killer combo I've been looking for.
Click to expand...



Blackfire tends to really darken paints IME, gotta watch what you use it on. And the durability/protection wasn't even close to FK1000P (whick is *really* something in that regard and which protects so well against etching that I no longer clean off birdbombs).



Big news in detailing over the last few years:



-Better polishes (check out M101 and HD Polish)

-Better polishers (check out the Griot's Garage 6" RO, which is in a whole 'nother league comared to that PC)

-Better pads (check out Meguair's MF Cutting Disks)
 
Accumulator said:
Big news in detailing over the last few years:



-Better polishes (check out M101 and HD Polish)

-Better polishers (check out the Griot's Garage 6" RO, which is in a whole 'nother league compared to that PC)

-Better pads (check out Meguair's MF Cutting Disks)
Click to expand...



Agree 100%.



As far as sealants go, Opti-Seal (new formula introduced last year) flat blows away anything in the Zaino line up as far as looks IMHO, is just as durable (several months) and is more protective. I've yet to see an Opti-Sealed car get permanently damaged by a bird bomb. Plus its incredibly easy to use. Even side by side with a couple carnaubas (Collinite 476 and Clearkote Carnauba Moose), it had noticeably better depth...and that was two weeks after application.



Opti-Coat looks way better in person that a camera can capture. In fact, everyone whose car I have applied it to has remarked about how great it looks. I guess since the focus is on the durability and protection, people aren't sure what to expect with regards to appearance. I have it on my own car and I've been able to upsell Opti-Coat on numerous occasions based on how my boring desert mist metallic Accord looks. Its really a terrific product.



But the biggest advancement in the last 10 years is like Accumulator pointed out. Much (as in dramatically better) compounds, polishes, pads and DA polishers. You'd be amazed at the amount of correction you can get with a PC XP and Meguiars M100 using a microfiber cutting pad. And the finish is excellent too. Follow with Optimum Hyper Polish on hard paints or 3D HD Polish on softer paints and that's enough to get 90-95% correction (or even better) on most cars. And while the PC XP, Harbor Freight DA and the Griots DA all have more power than the original PC, the Rupes is on a whole 'nother level. Only real drawback for the detailing hobbyist is the price, at $399 it isn't cheap. Cord sucks too, gets all twisted up if you aren't paying attention. But if you detail for money, its a machine that's well worth the premium price. And I wouldn't have believed it until I got one.
 
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