Megs 16 still protecting after 15mo!

F

firegate

New member
Last February, my uncle asked me to help polish out my aunt's '02 Century. I clayed it, went over the whole car with FPII and planned to wax it with #16. My uncle, however, insisted on using the Nu-Finish he had just bought since it "lasts for a year".



After trying to talk him out of it for about 10 minutes, I relegated myself to the fact that arguing with him was useless and I let him go ahead and use his stuff. I did, however, make a small bet with him that #16 would far outlast the Nu Finish, and he agreed to let me apply some to the gas lid.



Long story short, we had both long forgotten about the bet and I hadn't seen the car since then. I went to visit them this past weekend and decided to wash and rewax the car. Here's what I came upon:



century.jpg




Yes, the #16 is still there and beading after 15 months!.



The car is not garaged or covered. He says they haven't washed it very often - maybe once every 2-3 months or so, using the Megs GC and Sheepskin Mitt I left for them. It does, however, see plenty of rain. They've never used any kind of QD or Booster on it.



I was amazed to see that the 16 was still beading after all this time. It's been pretty durable in my experience, but not like that by any means. Made me an easy $10 off that old bet ;).
 
firegate said:
Last February, my uncle asked me to help polish out my aunt's '02 Century. I clayed it, went over the whole car with FPII and planned to wax it with #16. My uncle, however, insisted on using the Nu-Finish he had just bought since it "lasts for a year".



After trying to talk him out of it for about 10 minutes, I relegated myself to the fact that arguing with him was useless and I let him go ahead and use his stuff. I did, however, make a small bet with him that #16 would far outlast the Nu Finish, and he agreed to let me apply some to the gas lid.



Long story short, we had both long forgotten about the bet and I hadn't seen the car since then. I went to visit them this past weekend and decided to wash and rewax the car. Here's what I came upon:



century.jpg




Yes, the #16 is still there and beading after 15 months!.



The car is not garaged or covered. He says they haven't washed it very often - maybe once every 2-3 months or so, using the Megs GC and Sheepskin Mitt I left for them. It does, however, see plenty of rain. They've never used any kind of QD or Booster on it.



I was amazed to see that the 16 was still beading after all this time. It's been pretty durable in my experience, but not like that by any means. Made me an easy $10 off that old bet ;).
Click to expand...





This may be a silly question, but what is the gas lid made of? On my car, its plastic and it always beads better than metal.



It seems to me that a better test would be #16 and Nu-finish side-by-side on the hood.
 
Coupe said:
The paint looks naked to me, sorry man but i dont believe there is anything on the paint.
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There's definitely not much there, that's for sure. But it is still beading. After 15mo, for it to still be beading is still impressive, to me at least.
 
firegate said:
There's definitely not much there, that's for sure. But it is still beading. After 15mo, for it to still be beading is still impressive, to me at least.
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Not to be a jerk, but for the last time beading is not an indication of product still being there.



Taken from another forum:



Water Beading and Sheeting... as a Measure of Durability







Almost all polishes, waxes, etc. bead water initially. As they are removed, breakdown or dissipated by washing, exposure to sunlight and heat, expansion and contraction, abrasion, abrasion from pollen and other pollutants, the water beading is diminished. This is due to the reduction in surface tension of the polish or wax once it is removed or breaks down.



If the surface has any protection when there is little or no water beading is the subject of much controversy. Especially when the polish or wax exhibits good water beading immediately after the initial application. If there is any protection left, how would one know? There are no scientific tests to my knowledge that can determine this. Most consumers and especially wax/polish manufacturers use the reduction in the height, contact angle and diameter of water beading as a gauge to know when to re-apply polish/wax for continued protection.



If a polish/wax gives water beading initially but then stops beading after washing, part of the polish formula has been removed. If this happens, is there any protection left???? Was the chemical or film that caused the water beading also the protection????



If a manufacturer claims that their polish/wax will bead water initially and then magically change to sheeting... I say B.S.!!!! Let them prove that the polish/wax film protection initially applied is still there...



Until a specific test is developed and not some fake, razzle-dazzle test, these questions will remain unanswered and I will continue to use water beading, (height, contact angle and diameter) as a major factor in gauging a polish/wax protection.



P.S. Please remember that healthy paint will bead water without any polish/wax applied. This confuses many people to believe a polish/wax is lasting longer than they think.





To test your favorite polish/wax, you must measure the water beading of your paint (height, contact angle and diameter) without any polish/wax applied. Next, measure the water beading of your paint (height, contact angle and diameter) within 24 hours after initially applying your polish/wax. This is your starting point. This will also be the gauge for determining the water beading (longevity, duration and changes) for that specific product. As the water beads start to diminish (get wider and shallower and loses contact angle), the polish/wax and its film protection factor is going away. When the water beading is the same as before you apply your product, the polish/wax and its protection are gone.
 
WilliamHBonney said:
Not to be a jerk, but for the last time beading is not an indication of product still being there.



Taken from another forum:



Water Beading and Sheeting... as a Measure of Durability







Almost all polishes, waxes, etc. bead water initially. As they are removed, breakdown or dissipated by washing, exposure to sunlight and heat, expansion and contraction, abrasion, abrasion from pollen and other pollutants, the water beading is diminished. This is due to the reduction in surface tension of the polish or wax once it is removed or breaks down.



If the surface has any protection when there is little or no water beading is the subject of much controversy. Especially when the polish or wax exhibits good water beading immediately after the initial application. If there is any protection left, how would one know? There are no scientific tests to my knowledge that can determine this. Most consumers and especially wax/polish manufacturers use the reduction in the height, contact angle and diameter of water beading as a gauge to know when to re-apply polish/wax for continued protection.



If a polish/wax gives water beading initially but then stops beading after washing, part of the polish formula has been removed. If this happens, is there any protection left???? Was the chemical or film that caused the water beading also the protection????



If a manufacturer claims that their polish/wax will bead water initially and then magically change to sheeting... I say B.S.!!!! Let them prove that the polish/wax film protection initially applied is still there...



Until a specific test is developed and not some fake, razzle-dazzle test, these questions will remain unanswered and I will continue to use water beading, (height, contact angle and diameter) as a major factor in gauging a polish/wax protection.



P.S. Please remember that healthy paint will bead water without any polish/wax applied. This confuses many people to believe a polish/wax is lasting longer than they think.





To test your favorite polish/wax, you must measure the water beading of your paint (height, contact angle and diameter) without any polish/wax applied. Next, measure the water beading of your paint (height, contact angle and diameter) within 24 hours after initially applying your polish/wax. This is your starting point. This will also be the gauge for determining the water beading (longevity, duration and changes) for that specific product. As the water beads start to diminish (get wider and shallower and loses contact angle), the polish/wax and its film protection factor is going away. When the water beading is the same as before you apply your product, the polish/wax and its protection are gone.
Click to expand...



Water Beading and Sheeting... as a Measure of Durability: Zaino Store
 
is the paint smoother on the gas lid? No doubt there is some beading but after 15 months I am highly skeptical that wax is actually causing the beading. I've used good waxes like 845 and never got anywhere near 15 months of beading.
 
My trunk lid, after 2 passes of Meg's #4 and 1 pass of #80 is beading like my roof does with 3 coats of SG and 1 of P21S... While I have seen a difference in cars beading before and after a detail, from now on I fully give credit to claying and polishing for that beading, and not to LSPs.
 
Yes, I've been through the beading != protection argument many times myself.. but the issue remains - there's some difference between the gas lid area and the rest of the car that is causing that area to bead. It's not the material of the lid since the area around the lid beaded up as well (can't really tell in the pic, but i did wax around the edges of the lid and not just on the lid itself), and it's not the way I sprayed the water (the gas lid would immediately bead up, while the rest of the car reacted just like any other car with no wax on it).



Given that that specific area had 16 applied to it, while the rest of the car did not, and that's the only area that shows any signs of beading, I think it's safe to assume the 16 has something to do with the beading. I can't really say how well it was still protected, and we'll never really know since the paint was cleaned with Prime and rewaxed immediately afterward, but its an interesting novelty to see that something was still going on with the wax this far down the line.
 
And another thread bites the dust, due to the rudeness of others. Yall guys gotta chill out with your attitudes, I have read like 10 threads in the past hour, and every one of them (seems like the same people) turn rude from the pointless comments of others. This is a friendly forum, so why doesent it stay that way?



Firegate-if you made $10 off the bet, then great. I havent ever had anything last that long, but that isnt saying it isnt possible. How did NU-Finish look over FPII?
 
firegate said:
Yes, the #16 is still there and beading after 15 months!.



The car is not garaged or covered. He says they haven't washed it very often - maybe once every 2-3 months or so, using the Megs GC and Sheepskin Mitt I left for them. It does, however, see plenty of rain. They've never used any kind of QD or Booster on it.



I was amazed to see that the 16 was still beading after all this time.
Click to expand...



These are probably the worst conditions for a wax to last in. Especially 15 months. I really don't think there any protection left. On an confirmed unprotected vehicle (like a brand new vehicle), you could clay it and wash with Meg's GC and it would bead water. That doesn't mean there's protection on the finish. Drive by a dealership on a rainy day and look at brand new *clean* cars and they bead water too.
 
IMHO, I think it is highly possible because it is a vertical panel, contiminants have lesser to chance to bond to the paint and attack #16 as compared to a horizontal panel.

Congrats on winning the bet. :D
 
Brandon1 said:
David, give it up. You are being rude and making an *** of yourself.
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Nobody is being rude especially David. We are voiceing our opinions on what we think is truly happening.
 
to play devil's advocate, unless you just didn't let water touch the car around the gas cap or dried it yourself, I'd rather have that result. No water > beads
 
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