Here is my review of PB products. Let me start by saying that I have learned so much from the folks here in my quest to make my car look great. Special thanks to Steve from PB and AWD for their patience with me as I know I ask way too many questions.
First a little story.
A couple of weeks ago my father in law stopped by. I was of course cleaning my car. He said “You are cleaning it again?�.
“Yep. What do you think of it?�
He said “The friggin thing always looks like you just got it delivered from the dealer. Maybe even better.�
This is from a guy who has 2 national champion show cars and spends most of his time at car shows so you can imagine the finishes that he has seen.
Anyway, here is what I did with my car.
Purchased from PB:
SSR1
Trim Restorer
EX-P
Natural Look
Purchased from PAC
PC kit with Megs
Process:
Wash
Clay
Wash
SSR1
EX-P
Wash: To wash I used NXT wash. I really like this wash. Very sudsy and lubricating with great washing ability.
Clayed: I used Clay Magic Fine grade with NXT water mix as a lube. I took the easy way out by claying the whole car and washing after. I could not believe how dirty the clay bar got considering the car was new. A real testimony to the power of claying. I recommend that everyone clay their car at least 1x/yr. At first I was nervous about marring my finish but it is SO easy to do with spectacular results.
SSR1:
Although my car is silver and new I felt that it wouldn’t hurt to try a swirl remover. This is a product that takes practice. As advised I used my PC with a polishing pad. I primed the pad with a sprits of water and put a bead of SSR1 around the edge of the pad about ½ inch in from the edge. I then spread the product on a 2x2 area on speed 3. When I was satisfied it was spread enough I cranked it up to 6 and worked it in. The problem I had was that I worked it for 5 or so minutes in the 2x2 area and it was still fairly wet when I finished. I then let it dry and buffed it off. However, by the time I was done I got the hang of it and was able to work it til it dried. Next time I use it I will know better. As for the finish I can say that it looked much better than before the application of ssr1. Cleaner, clearer and smoother but not oily. All in all I would say that it helped the finis and some minor scratches that I had were gone.
EX-P
I can not say enough about this product. I will start by saying that I applied it 2+ months ago and the car still beads like crazy and the flake is amazing. It was also very easy to use after I got the hang of it. You see my car is silver and it is not easy to put a thin coat as you cannot see it going on like you can with a darker colored car. My first application was way too thick and as a result a real bear to get off. I spoke to Steve at PB after that adventure and he told me that I was putting it on too thick and that I should try to use less and work it longer and better. My first application was with the PC on speed 2.5. I decided to try a second application by hand which Steve recommended. So I got out my yellow foam applicator which I got from Ranney at Pakshak and set out to try again. Dampened Applicator in hand I applied an x of EX-P to the applicator and worked it in by folding it and squeezing it. I then placed a dime sized drop in the center of the app and started to apply. I used this dime sized for each panel and 2 for the hood. Went on really easy. I also decided to wait longer for it to dry this time. 1 hour as opposed to ½ hour the first. The first time it was a good haze after ½ hour so I figured that was enough. After 1 hour it was really easy to take off. I mean really easy. I think it was a combination of longer dry time and thinner layer. The end result was a clean shiny slick as snot finish. The day after the 2nd layer was applied I did the car with QD + and I have to say my car has never sparkled like this before. People comment all the time about how clean and sparkly it is. I also applied to my side and back windows, head and tail lights and rims. Makes the water bead off the windows and lights and makes the rims really easy to clean. I can now clean the rims with just soap and water instead of a rim cleaner as I did every time before applying EX-P
Quick reviews of NL and TR
NL is an amazing product. Not only does it have a great finish but it has cleaning ability too. I used to use the Lexol twins on my leather and Vinylex on dash and trim but no more. Now I simply clean everything with a damp cloth and apply NL, let sit for 5-10 minutes and buff with a clean MF. The interior has never looked better and the application lasts a couple of week (I think as I never let it go that long without re-cleaning)
Trim restorer was purchased to try on my tires and I must say that it works OK. I want to try B&B next time because TR doesn’t last long at all. Maybe a couple of days on a very clean tire. I will say that it works really well on rubber trim cleaning as well as softening.
Hope you enjoyed this and find it at least a little helpful in making your decision. I was a guy who only used off the Shelf products before and discovered the real difference with enthusiast level products.
I am extremely happy with PB products and will continue to use the exclusively.
Pics coming soon!
First a little story.
A couple of weeks ago my father in law stopped by. I was of course cleaning my car. He said “You are cleaning it again?�.
“Yep. What do you think of it?�
He said “The friggin thing always looks like you just got it delivered from the dealer. Maybe even better.�
This is from a guy who has 2 national champion show cars and spends most of his time at car shows so you can imagine the finishes that he has seen.
Anyway, here is what I did with my car.
Purchased from PB:
SSR1
Trim Restorer
EX-P
Natural Look
Purchased from PAC
PC kit with Megs
Process:
Wash
Clay
Wash
SSR1
EX-P
Wash: To wash I used NXT wash. I really like this wash. Very sudsy and lubricating with great washing ability.
Clayed: I used Clay Magic Fine grade with NXT water mix as a lube. I took the easy way out by claying the whole car and washing after. I could not believe how dirty the clay bar got considering the car was new. A real testimony to the power of claying. I recommend that everyone clay their car at least 1x/yr. At first I was nervous about marring my finish but it is SO easy to do with spectacular results.
SSR1:
Although my car is silver and new I felt that it wouldn’t hurt to try a swirl remover. This is a product that takes practice. As advised I used my PC with a polishing pad. I primed the pad with a sprits of water and put a bead of SSR1 around the edge of the pad about ½ inch in from the edge. I then spread the product on a 2x2 area on speed 3. When I was satisfied it was spread enough I cranked it up to 6 and worked it in. The problem I had was that I worked it for 5 or so minutes in the 2x2 area and it was still fairly wet when I finished. I then let it dry and buffed it off. However, by the time I was done I got the hang of it and was able to work it til it dried. Next time I use it I will know better. As for the finish I can say that it looked much better than before the application of ssr1. Cleaner, clearer and smoother but not oily. All in all I would say that it helped the finis and some minor scratches that I had were gone.
EX-P
I can not say enough about this product. I will start by saying that I applied it 2+ months ago and the car still beads like crazy and the flake is amazing. It was also very easy to use after I got the hang of it. You see my car is silver and it is not easy to put a thin coat as you cannot see it going on like you can with a darker colored car. My first application was way too thick and as a result a real bear to get off. I spoke to Steve at PB after that adventure and he told me that I was putting it on too thick and that I should try to use less and work it longer and better. My first application was with the PC on speed 2.5. I decided to try a second application by hand which Steve recommended. So I got out my yellow foam applicator which I got from Ranney at Pakshak and set out to try again. Dampened Applicator in hand I applied an x of EX-P to the applicator and worked it in by folding it and squeezing it. I then placed a dime sized drop in the center of the app and started to apply. I used this dime sized for each panel and 2 for the hood. Went on really easy. I also decided to wait longer for it to dry this time. 1 hour as opposed to ½ hour the first. The first time it was a good haze after ½ hour so I figured that was enough. After 1 hour it was really easy to take off. I mean really easy. I think it was a combination of longer dry time and thinner layer. The end result was a clean shiny slick as snot finish. The day after the 2nd layer was applied I did the car with QD + and I have to say my car has never sparkled like this before. People comment all the time about how clean and sparkly it is. I also applied to my side and back windows, head and tail lights and rims. Makes the water bead off the windows and lights and makes the rims really easy to clean. I can now clean the rims with just soap and water instead of a rim cleaner as I did every time before applying EX-P
Quick reviews of NL and TR
NL is an amazing product. Not only does it have a great finish but it has cleaning ability too. I used to use the Lexol twins on my leather and Vinylex on dash and trim but no more. Now I simply clean everything with a damp cloth and apply NL, let sit for 5-10 minutes and buff with a clean MF. The interior has never looked better and the application lasts a couple of week (I think as I never let it go that long without re-cleaning)
Trim restorer was purchased to try on my tires and I must say that it works OK. I want to try B&B next time because TR doesn’t last long at all. Maybe a couple of days on a very clean tire. I will say that it works really well on rubber trim cleaning as well as softening.
Hope you enjoyed this and find it at least a little helpful in making your decision. I was a guy who only used off the Shelf products before and discovered the real difference with enthusiast level products.
I am extremely happy with PB products and will continue to use the exclusively.
Pics coming soon!
