deepbluejh

I waxed my car with Meguiar's NXT 2.0 two weeks ago and it's already gone. I kid you not. It sure did look great for about a week though.

SlowTeg

[QUOTE=akimel,Feb 13 2011, 08:02 AM] If durability is the principal concern, then you want to use either one of the Collinite waxes (845, 476s, or 915) or a synthetic sealant.

SlowTeg

I really didn't want to go nuts, and wanted to stick with more "off the shelf" stuff, but I might as well ask about car washes.

I'm using "Meguiar's Gold Class Car Wash." I've used the cheap "crystal" Meguiar's before, and can notice this is certainly a better product, but do you guys recommend it? The last thing I want to do is spend half a day cleaning/sealing the car, and then use a crappy car wash on the next wash that strips it off. Again, much thanks for the help and info!

akimel

Gold Class is one of the best OTC car washes. There's no reason not to stick with it. Just remember to use it at the proper dilution.

If you want to try something else, give Duragloss 901 a spin.

SlowTeg

Thanks akimel, just wanted to double check that it was good. I'll stick with it then.

akimel

Blackfire Wet Diamond is a very fine product. One rarely encounters negative comments about it. It looks great on all colors.

There are two ways to apply/remove it: (1) Apply it one or two panels at a time and then buff off. (2) Apply it to the entire car and allow it to dry completely (30-45 minutes or so) and then buff off. Each method has its advocates.

Since you will be ordering online, may I suggest that you order a half-dozen (or more) foam applicators at that time. I have found that foam applicators are far superior to the microfiber applicators one buys at the local auto store.

SlowTeg

Thanks again Akimel. I appreciate any tips/suggestions you have, and will order some foam applicators as well when I order the Blackfire Wet Diamond. I guess I'll do some searching online to see what the different advantages of the different application methods are, but it would seem like letting it soak in and fully dry (for 30-45 minutes) would probably help it last longer.

Just to make sure I have this right.. you basically just put the BWD on an applicator, spread it on, wait for it to dry, then buff it out so it looks shiny? You don't have to use a wet applicator, but a dry applicator, correct? Also, you don't want to be in direct sunlight or the car to be too hot, correct?

One general question about paint on the cars.. I see people generally polish the paint to get swirl marks out/etc.. is this actually getting swirl marks out of the paint, not the clear coat? Do clear coats generally not last very long on cars?

akimel

Right. Pour out maybe a quarter-size (or smaller) dollop of the sealant onto the applicator and start spreading. The most important thing is to apply the sealant THIN. Most problems folks experience with waxes and sealants are due to applying the protectant too thickly.

Clearcoat is paint. It's just clear. The base coat is pigmented.

SlowTeg

Well, I finally got around to claying and applying the blackfire wet diamond sealant last weekend.. Man, it's a lot of work. Anyway.. I used a foam applicator, and the interesting part is that I found that the applicator tends to absorb all the damn liquid sealant. Anyone else notice this? I just went with it, but I felt that a lot ended up in the applicator rather than on the car. Because of this, I felt like it was hard to apply the sealant to the paint, and I couldn't even get a thick layer on there (ya, I know you don't want too much). I let it sit for a little over an hour, then buffed it out. I haven't driven the car in the rain yet, and I'll take it out of hibernation this weekend, but it def leaves a nice very smooth surface.

The question I have then is how do you know if you've applied enough? I guess that's why people recommend layers? I'm contemplating doing another layer tomorrow, but we'll see if I feel up to it. It's hard for me to tell it's even there, but I guess that's the point.. lol

Gotcha, that makes sense. I guess I just always thought people called the clearcoat clearcoat rather than paint, but I guess I was wrong.

Anyway, seeing as how the process of washing, claying, sealing takes a considerable amount of time, I probably won't be doing it any more often than once a year, but I found claying to be pretty neat, in that it really grabs all the tiny bits of dirt/grit that are stuck on that paint that normal washing and bug remover don't remove. The fact that my car is rio yellow probably doesn't help, as it shows any dirt.

Last question I have for you guys is.. How the heck do you drive the car after putting in all the work? I mean really.. the car just looks perfect now, and it's going to be painful after a couple weeks seeing it filthy compared to now.. lol

Thanks for everyone's suggestions and input. I did everything by hand (no buffing machine), and buffing the dry sealant off wasn't as bad as I thought it'd be, just time consuming.

akimel

That's interesting about the problem with the foam applicator. I don't think I've experienced that problem. What kind of foam applicator did you use?

The key thing is to apply BFWD (and indeed any wax or sealant) thin. I really wouldn't worry about applying it too thin. That's usually not a problem people have. Remember: only a microscopic layer actually sticks to the paint--the rest you end up buffing off. Apply a thin coat, even whisper thin.

Here's a photo of another sealant:



If the wax/sealant looks like the right side, you applied it too thick.

Waxing a well-prepared surface of an S2000 shouldn't take a lot of time or effort. In the words of Michael Stoop, it should be like "like spreading warm butter on a china plate." Let it dry properly and then buff off. If the BFWD has dried properly (and one hour is more than sufficient), then removal should be almost effortless. If you find that removal is not effortless, then you probably applied the sealant too thick.