Primers for coatings

M

Mike lambert

New member
Im just looking for opinions on this. Do products such as essence, Modesta, Kamakaze ACC and whatever other "primers" for coatings do anything to help durability? Or are they just helping get that little bit extra?
 
Im just seeing what opinions are out there. I would think if they help promote bonding to the surface they would help , maybe not extend durability?
 
My thoughts are that its like you said, maybe it helps promote the bond but doesnt exactly add longevity. I am not familiar with the ones you listed except for Essence, but maybe theyre also to cut down on time due to the fact that an IPA wipe down isnt needed after polishing with these products? Now if that is not the case with the other products then disregard that, but like I said Im not familiar with them.
 
I would also think that if these primers enhanced durability that manufacturers would be advertising that as well as a selling point. Im not a chemist so I cant comment on the coating aspect, but I dont see how what is underneath a coating (such as Essence) would play a role in how long a coating lasts. The coating itself is what gets broken down so how would a primer help that?
 
I think it depends on which primer your referring too. Optimum Primer has a catalyst in it to help with bonding where Essence does not, but both enhance the finish through polishing, albeit CarPro admits/advertises Essence also has durable fillers. In Optimums case I think this helps ensures proper bonding of their coatings, thus giving maximum durability and reducing premature failure from using other manufactures polishes with unknown ingredients. I dont necessarily follow all the coating manufactures out there now and I dont know how each has designed or formulated their "primer". If they are indeed designed with the sole intent to be a primer for the coating, I have to believe the chemists know whats best and would expect the best durability to come from using that companies coating in conjunction with their "dedicated" primer, regardless of whether it has fillers or not.

I also dont believe Essence was designed to solely be used as a primer for coatings like some other manufactures, and because of that Im still on the fence if they are the best option to use prior to coating. That being said, I also know Optimum suggests that their installers wipe down the car with ONR and/or Opti-Prep even after using their Primer, so its obvious that any remaining polish residue (even Opt Primer) can still have an affect on bonding.

At the end of the day I hate doing solvent wipe-downs and really like the idea of a dedicated primer. I also want to believe the brains behind all these products know whats best. If theyre wrong, it will come back to bite them.

Im riding the seesaw right now and only time will tell.

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I agree and I think people way smarter than I knows whats best for that particular coating. I am a fan of essence but since I dont use Carpro I stopped using it under the coatings I use for the same reason. I think eventually all the pro coatings will have theyre own primers. But it is an interesting discussion!
 
RaskyR1 said:
I also dont believe Essence was designed to solely be used as a primer for coatings like some other manufactures, and because of that Im still on the fence if they are the best option to use prior to coating. That being said, I also know Optimum suggests that their installers wipe down the car with ONR and/or Opti-Prep even after using their Primer, so its obvious that any remaining polish residue (even Opt Primer) can still have an affect on bonding.
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Could that be due to possible dusting? Just a guess on my part, but in my pea brain it kinda makes sense.
 
Ronkh said:
Could that be due to possible dusting? Just a guess on my part, but in my pea brain it kinda makes sense.
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Zero dusting when using Opt Primer. I cant recall who from Opt posted it, but it was to ensure all polish residue was removed. A quick wipe-down with a dampened ONR towel was all that was needed. I think the Opti-Prep has the catalyst in it too, but Im out of the loop meow. ;)
 
RaskyR1 said:
Zero dusting when using Opt Primer. I cant recall who from Opt posted it, but it was to ensure all polish residue was removed. A quick wipe-down with a dampened ONR towel was all that was needed. I think the Opti-Prep has the catalyst in it too, but Im out of the loop meow. ;)
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well, so much for my theroy
 
Then why use a primer if you still need to do a wipe down? Im with you Rasky and would want to avoid any touching of the vehicle before coating, so a primer makes sense. To me its kind of hard to tell what is really the best route to go and what is just marketing more products. Obviously following a companies guidelines for their coating is ideal, but is there really any noticeable difference?
 
my 2 cents- all I have used is Essence

to me, essence is a gloss enhancer that you can move directly to coating after

now the extra step of a panel wipe seems to defeat the purpose of using essence in my above described manner but thats just me...


any of the other products in this category, I have no comment on as I know nothing about them




now does a product like essence prolong the coating? unsure,,here is my thoughts on that......if essence says it will last (used alone) up to 1 year...what happens when you top essence with an up to 2 or 3 year coating...does the essence fail underneath it or is that layer locked in and theoretically once the 2-3 year coating wears away you still have the si02 deposited from essence sitting there to protect the paint


I could see if all the same products were working in conjunction (synergistic compatibility- I believe it is called) then I could see an argument for the primer enhancing longevity but in the case of essence I believe it just gives you that extra pop and you can coat over it
 
To phrase it differently, I dont believe primers are meant to "extend" durability, I think they are simply meant to ensure proper adhesion and avoid premature failure.
 
RaskyR1 said:
To phrase it differently, I dont believe primers are meant to "extend" durability, I think they are simply meant to ensure proper adhesion and avoid premature failure.
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thats a great explanation

I am definitely grateful to be learning in the detail world that HAS these types of products
 
I will always use essence under my hobbyist coatings. Spreads better, looks better, and I appreciate some filling, done well, as well.
 
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