The Secret to Trim Restoring: Leather Shoe Dye??

S

specr89

New member
Heres a little trick I found that permanently restores faded/dirty/wax residued trim. USE SHOE POLISH!



When i began my 'trim restoring quest', I originally bought all kinds of vinyl dressings and such (Mothers B to B, Meguairs Trim Detailer, etc). I would apply it and marvel at my brand new, dark, wet trim. That was until a few days later when that jet black look would fade after a few days.



There had to be a better way than applying dressing every few days. So i began my 'quest' again. I stumbled upon a few trim restorer products, most notably "Forever Black". However , i was skeptical about spending $10+ shipping for a product such as FB (its almost impossible to find in retail stores too, as i soon found out). Also, I had just blown $250+ at ADS to order my PC and some other supplies, so i was definately not gonna spend $15 for just a trim restorer that may or may not work.



(you can see im soon gonna be a member of 'Detailers Anonymous :help: )



Then, I had an epiphany (if you will). Long story short, I realized that FB was simply a dye..and nothing more. So i headed out to walmart and picked up a bottle of leather shoe dye/polish for $2.84 plus tax. (much better price than FB)



kiwi.jpg


I applied it as the bottle said, and wiped off the excess product with a terry cloth, and was amazed. The finish on the trim didnt look all greasy like the dressings made it look. It really looked like the color on the trim was restored. Of course, i was still skeptical that a $3 shoe polish from walamrt could fix my faded trim permanently. So I waited a week.



Another week.



and



Another week.



Guess what??? It was still black. It even rained a few times and the dye didnt run or anything. So here I am, sharing my newfound secret to you guys. I snapped some pictures beforehand to show you guys before and afters too :bigups



heres the trim before..faded, with wax residue I tried to get off with an eraser that never worked :rofl

before4.jpg




after applying dye to section....the pic speaks for itself

after8.jpg






:nomore: faded trim.
 
I actually use this on the propellers of planes. Just have to buff it out very well, but it works great and lasts a long time.



sorry for the blurry pic

3115876d.jpg
 
Did you try Poorboy's Trim Restorer during your "quest"? I've never found anything that works easier or better than it for restoring trim and removing wax stains.
 
Thanks for the good tip! That's the sort of thing were you need some brave soul to try it out for better or worse and see how it really works.
 
Good tip for folks like me. Around here, I can't find things like Poor Boys Trim Restorer. I have some ugly wax stains on my lower air vents in the nose of my cars. I'll try it!!
 
Oh snap, I saw that Kiwi leather dye on Walmart over the weekend as well, but didn't buy it yet. Let me go there after work and pick it up. Im going compare with PB TR and this Kiwi leather dye :D and see for my self.
 
I hit a newer Avalanche that's bed cover had been replaced twice and finally they said no more! So faded and spotty, I hit it with everything and it only looked decent for a few minutes. I gave up. Finally got Chemical Guys Extreme Liquid Trim Shine, went over it three times and bam! Looked great. Now two weeks later it is still holding and looks at about 90% and it sits in the sun (no garage) no shade, and been lots of T Storms. Its the only product that has made a difference.
 
yea when you have bad trim, its almost impossible to find a product that works. Esp. finding one OTC and not online. The price of shoe polish is certainly better...cant beat $3 :bigups





Just a few tips:



* Be careful not to push down too hard for very long on the sponge.....itll that ink will start flowing like none other.



*^----- To prevent spills, bring an old newspaper with you and put it under your work area as you work around the car..i learned the hard way. Anyone know how to get ink stains off from a cement driveway!?!? :help:



*Keep a damp terry cloth around (no need for microfiber..itll be ruined after the ink cleanup) in case you get any of the dye on ur paint. A wet towel will help re-liquify the ink and itll come off like cake.
 
Beason said:
I actually use this on the propellers of planes. Just have to buff it out very well, but it works great and lasts a long time.



sorry for the blurry pic

3115876d.jpg
Click to expand...





is that a bottle of Megs #7 show car glaze?? :kewlpics
 
Just an FYI, I've used the Forever Black and it works very well. One of the Poorboy's polishes wrecked the trim on my wife's CRV and that's what I used to get it black looking again. I also used FB on my Mustang to restore the trim and so far it's held up great.
 
Kenney said:
would this just work for textured trim or smooth trim as well?





thanks
Click to expand...





in my experience, it works on not only both plastic trim (smooth and textured), but also matt black painted metal surfaces that have faded over time. I tried em out on the peice that connects the mirror to the door, and it works as well. Who knew? :eek:
 
The only concern I would have is if it had some solvents in it or other chemicals that could damage the plastic trim over time.
 
scooterguitar said:
I hit a newer Avalanche that's bed cover had been replaced twice and finally they said no more! So faded and spotty, I hit it with everything and it only looked decent for a few minutes. I gave up. Finally got Chemical Guys Extreme Liquid Trim Shine, went over it three times and bam! Looked great. Now two weeks later it is still holding and looks at about 90% and it sits in the sun (no garage) no shade, and been lots of T Storms. Its the only product that has made a difference.
Click to expand...



You should try their new trim gel. Its not as easy to use as the Extreme (which I still use by the gallon on wells and cars with a ton of trim), but man it lasts FOREVER. I used it on a V70 I did 3 weeks ago, and it still looks like I just applied it.
 
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