P21S Carnuba, Am I doing something wrong?

SkeptiKal

New member
I recently started my whole car detail all over.



I washed it with Dawn to get rid of all the previous wax and what not and went at it.



This was my process:



DACP w/ LC Cutting Pad

SSR 2.5 w/ LC Polishing Pad to get rid of hazing

AIO w/ Polishing Pad

Clearkote VM w/ Polishing Pad

P21S Carnuba Wax by hand



It rained between the 2nd and 3rd step but I washed the car with P21S Car Shampoo before moving on to the AIO.



My car's paint doesn't look as shiney as I would like it. Although it reflects rather well it doesn't have that 'pop' that I was looking for.



Should I follow it up with NXT and then some P21S?



Maybe some Klasse SG then P21S or #26?



Don't know where to take it from here. At this point I can't say that the expensive container of P21S was worth it.
 
Are you looking for a "pop" that the paint had before you did these steps, or is this just what you imagine you'd like to see from your paint? Have you tried P21S on other paint before and liked the look? Maybe the "look" of P21S isn't quite what you like? Does the paint look "cloudy?" If so, I'd try some other prep steps instead of trying too many LSP's on top of each other. The LSP's won't clarify the paint. Only proper prep will.



Of course, this is all speculation. Got any pics? ;)
 
I'll take a picture now.



It was nice after I put the AIO and VM on it.



The p21s seemed to have toned down the shine and dulled it a bit.
 
Its getting dark out but here are two pictures (hasn't been sunny all weekend and today)



Hood (el rock chipo):







Passanger door:







Don't know if these pictures tell the whole story. Or maybe because of the lack of sun, the real shine hasn't come out yet.
 
Could be that you just like the AIO/VM look better than the P21S carnauba look.



I'd use the AIO and/or the VM again and stop if/when it looks the way you want it to. Or maybe top them with something synthetic.
 
I would suggest just doing AIO then P21S, VM is overkill if the surface is done right. Also you don't need to use DACP and SSR2.5. Just use SSR2.5 Make sure you use P21S in thin layers. It works very well. :xyxthumbs
 
Could be that you don't like P21S, but check out how it looks tomorrow, after it has cured a bit. It tends to become more reflective. Then you can decide how you like it.
 
Should I just go ahead with AIO over the wax? Or do I need to wash with Dawn again?



the SSR and DACP are over with, but it seemed like I needed them to get rid of the huge swirls I had.
 
dmarcus48 said:
I do believe that the aio and vm are doing the same thing. The vm will take off the aio. Use one not both.



Not completely true.. The AIO is a Paint cleaning machine that has slight protective qualities, and the VM is a Glaze with slight cleaning properties. AIO-VM-EX is an awesome combo !!
 
This is just a guess, but maybe you just like the way a sealant looks as opposed to a carnauba wax. If you like the way your car looked after AIO, you might want to consider topping it with Klasse SG instead of P21s. Topping a sealant is strictly optional.
 
Honestly I don't think you want to use SG if you are going to top with P21S. It will dull the look in my experience...
 
I've noticed the same thing with P21S over Z2Pro+Z8...



It sort of "mutes" the finish on my silverstone car. I was thinking I might be able to get some additional depth with the P21S, but no dice. I did wait over 24 hrs to put the P21S on... At least it'll protect the Zaino undercoats and will probably look better after a couple of washes :)



So yeah, basically on a silver/dark silver/metallic finish this has been my experience with P21S layered over super-reflective synthetics. On black and red, I think the results are much better.
 
sQuashed said:
Not completely true.. The AIO is a Paint cleaning machine that has slight protective qualities, and the VM is a Glaze with slight cleaning properties. AIO-VM-EX is an awesome combo !!





AIO and VM are very similar. Both are pre wax cleaners. Both can be used on a variety of surfaces like glass, trim, chrome, ect. Both leave protection behind. AIO leaves synthetic protection and VM wax protection. VM does leave some oils behind that AIO does not. They are more similar than different and I would use one or the other but not both. I would use VM if you are going to follow with a wax and AIO if you follow with a sealant.
 
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