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Need some good wax

12K views 85 replies 17 participants last post by  b.lockhart28 
#1 ·
Well just about that time again to get cold, need to wax my car before winter, what yall like to use? i do not have a buffer so i just hand wax and I know it may not do much but it does a little i reckon, thought about the adams buttery wax but yall like anything better? plus what are some good applicators that wont swirl clearcoat?
 
#3 ·
I have a buffer but still apply my wax by hand. So no worries there. Besides, I like the karate kid wax on wax off theme!!

As far as the swirls go, that isn't the wax doing it. It's either damage to your clear coat that's already there or your choice of "towel" used in removing the wax.

I assure you, all microfiber towels aren't the same....... The standard microfiber towel, made in China from your local auto parts store, is more like sandpaper than microfiber.

Your choice of a good quality wax will be fine. The difference will be how long it lasts on the car vs other more expensive brands.


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#4 ·
I also use "Mothers paste wax" There are two kinds Carnauba paste and Carnauba cleaner.
Big John
 

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#5 ·
I've used Meguiars Gold Class since day one on my car. I haven't found a reason to use any other brand.

 
#7 ·
A couple of things OP. First, Adam's Buttery wax will last you about 2 weeks in the winter. You definitely want to avoid that. If you want to use anything by Meguiar's, the label needs to contain the words "Mirror Glaze" or you are buying their consumer junk. That leaves you the choices of M20, M21 or M26. M20 and M21 are sealants and a sealant is the longest lasting protection that you can use on a car. It also takes the longest to apply because it has to cure during the application process. There are other brands out there like Hi-Temp (HT-62 Terminator Polymer Sealant), which you don't get to hear about on most forums because a lot of information just gets repeated by people who don't know, and have never ventured outside of the forum information zone. So if you want to use a product that will last the longest, use a sealant and stay away from that over the counter crap. That's consumer grade stuff and doesn't stand a chance next to professional grade products.
 
#8 ·
If you want to use anything by Meguiar's, the label needs to contain the words "Mirror Glaze" or you are buying their consumer junk. That leaves you the choices of M20, M21 or M26. M20 and M21 are sealants and a sealant is the longest lasting protection that you can use on a car.
I totally agree with you on M20 and M21 being Megs best and longest lasting sealants. On their website, Meguiars claims that their Ultimate Liquid and Paste waxes are their "most advance hydrophobic waxes" that form their "longest lasting protective barrier." I just find that hard to believe and I haven't read any reviews or tests that support that claim.

GTO_04
 
#9 ·
Keep this in mind. Meguiar's is NOT going to push one of their products over another unless you specifically tell them that you are working within a specific platform (like in a body shop environment for example). Other than that, they are going to push them all equally. Thus, any advertisement that you see must take into consideration that they "have a dog in the fight."

Since that is the case, you have to base your decision on someone with an unbiased opinion or through extensive testing yourself. I like to think that my opinion is unbiased because I don't sell anything by Meguiar's, Meguiar's doesn't pay me anything to use or suggest their products and I take pride in offering my opinion based on my own experiences with the products I suggest. So watch out for the hype because there is plenty hype out there and Meguiar's in NOT the only company that puts out the hype.

"Most advance hydrophobic waxes?" What consumer even knows what that means? Dazzle them with big words and the consumer will buy anything. That's what a LOT of detailing companies do to push their crap. I cut through all the hype in my videos and feed you the actual truth.
 
#15 · (Edited)
In the detailing business, hype runs amok. Companies are trying their best to get you to buy their products and word play or flat-out lies are everywhere in this business. Other businesses do it too. Take the Car Fax commercials. The little fox mascot tries to sell the service as your best protection to finding out what kind of history your car has. He prefaces that claim by saying, "Nobody knows everything..." Those 3 little words were CAREFULLY thought out by the people making that commercial because saying, "Not all of the events experienced by your prospective car gets reported to Car Fax because some businesses don't bother to participate in our service or they may want to hide what has actually been done to the car. They also may not be exactly forthcoming with anything that they do report."

Upon hearing that, one would say that although getting a Car Fax report may help, it's still a crap shoot. If you were to look at a Car Fax report on my car, you would NOT find any mention about this because I did all the repairs myself and I don't have a clue about how to report it to Car Fax. Not like I'm going to lose any sleep over figuring it out either because I never plan to sell the car.

So keep that in mind as you travel through the land of detailing hype. I have already addressed the biggest hype in detailing on multiple forums (wax makes paint shine). None of the professionals ever responded to me questioning that hype and I put that challenge and video on You Tube for the world to see.

Don't believe the hype that sounds too good to be true!
 
#19 ·
I've used Meguiars for years now. When I traded my 07 Charger, she still looked new.
 
#22 ·
yeah, junkman is back!
 
#26 · (Edited)
Thanks AJ. Watching your claying videos again tonight. It will be at least a couple weeks before I could be ready for polishing so I will watch the 8 hour series. Thanks for that link. Yes, I should know the quick step to m20 won't work since it is a sealant. I did watch your one claying video that said that. Those commercials about the one-step waxes that promise to do everything keep coming back into my head. I have to keep reminding myself "There are no shortcuts to good results".
 
#27 ·
... "There are no shortcuts to good results".
There truly isn't. If you're married, think about all the work it took to land your wife. Was it worth it? Hopefully the answer is yes and you clearly appreciate the fruits of your labor. Had she been a $14.95 shelf item at Wal-Mart, would you have married her? :cowsmile:
 
#28 ·
Mopar 11 Charger in the Dealer's Showroom. Fresh off the truck with 1.4 miles on the ODO. You can see the orange peel in the finish from a mile away, even in a crappy BB pic...





Modern cars in the price range of the Charger will never come from the factory with anything but shine from the fresh clear coat. Mirror finish will never happen.


That part is up to you...if you want it.




;)
 

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#32 ·
When you look at the "guys" doing the painting, it makes sense why orange peel is standard.
Do you think the new VOC safer formulations have an impact on orange peel?
 
#31 ·
Incorrect. Orange peel is in the clear coat and the reason that YOU DON'T want to try and fix it on a new car (or a car that has never been painted aftermarket), is because there is NOT enough clear coat on the car for you to work on without risking the possibility of clear coat failure. In order to get the paint to look like it does on that Cobra, you have to apply MULTIPLE coats of clear and sand multiple coat down until they are perfect. This repeated process will build up a layer of clear that will look like glass.

Not all painters are good at this (especially some of the hacks that dealerships employ), so before you pay someone to do this, you had better have done your homework and seen their work first hand. This is something a custom shop will do, NOT a insurance body shop or dealership.
 
#34 · (Edited)
Okay, my claying seemed to go pretty well. Definitely a big difference using the plastic bag test. I only got the horizontal surfaces done because I ran out of elbow grease to do the whole car. Only did the bonnet, boot, and roof. I put a coat of NXT on them to help protect until later. Dang, it looks much better already.
Next weekend will wash again and clay the rest of the car. Maybe go over the horizontal surfaces again too in case I missed anything.
For the next step I need to order a PC 7424XP but not sure what is a good deal. Amazon has them the cheapest but that is without a backing pad or any polishing pads. There are several kits with a rainbow assortment of pads and polishes I don't want. I'm thinking I only need the tool, a 5" backing pad, and the 5.5" orange and white pads. I can't find the hex pattern pads in anything but 7". Does anyone know if they are made in other sizes?
Any suggestions for a good source and price for the 7424XP and pads?
 
#35 · (Edited)
Okay, my claying seemed to go pretty well. Definitely a big difference using the plastic bag test. I only got the horizontal surfaces done because I ran out of elbow grease to do the whole car. Only did the bonnet, boot, and roof. I put a coat of NXT on them to help protect until later. Dang, it looks much better already.
Next weekend will wash again and clay the rest of the car. Maybe go over the horizontal surfaces again too in case I missed anything.
Only if the baggie test shows that you missed anything.

For the next step I need to order a PC 7424XP but not sure what is a good deal. Amazon has them the cheapest but that is without a backing pad or any polishing pads.
Tool-Plus has the PC and the back plate all day long. Here's the PC without the plate.

There are several kits with a rainbow assortment of pads and polishes I don't want. I'm thinking I only need the tool, a 5" backing pad, and the 5.5" orange and white pads. I can't find the hex pattern pads in anything but 7". Does anyone know if they are made in other sizes?
Any suggestions for a good source and price for the 7424XP and pads?
Google is your friend, all day long. If you do a search, you will be directed to Chemical Guys website where you can not only find the 5-inch backplate and Hex-Logic pads, but you can also find the 6-inch and 4-inch pads. Here's a link to the 5-inch pads in black (for waxing), orange (medium to heavy cut) and white (light polishing), as well as the 5-inch backplate. I give this information in my videos so that people can find these items easily. Have you watched my videos where I talk about these items and where to find them? :confused:
 
#41 · (Edited)
You should NEVER, EVER use anything other than consumer grade clay, unless you're trying to end up at the body shop to have someone fix your paint. The use of any clay that is more aggressive than consumer grade clay requires a solid knowledge of how to do paint correction. No novice has that kind of experience. So never, ever think about using anything on your paint other than consumer grade clay.

If you can't see the dirt on the clay, then keep using it. You're not as much worried about dirt showing up on the clay as you are about the results the baggie test is telling you. When you can see dirt on the clay, flip it. If you can't see the dirt, keep using it.
 
#42 ·
You should NEVER, EVER use anything other than consumer grade clay, unless you're trying to end up at the body shop to have someone fix your paint.
Oh, thought you meant I needed to hunt for aggressive clay and use that instead of consumer grade. I like the Meguiars Smooth Surface clay because the dirt showed up so well in the white clay. Okay to use that?
If you said in the video what clay you were using, I missed it. All I caught was that all clay is made by the same company, Clay Magic, and you suggested going to them; but their clay is blue, so maybe you were using their polymer clay or another brand?
 
#44 ·
Two vehicles on the Dealer Showroom floor today. How much orange peel you get from the factory is apparently related to the price of the car. The Dart looks like it was painted by Maaco. The photos are untouched and exactly as they came from my iPhone. The difference was even more dramatic in person.


 

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#45 ·
The price doesn't necessarily reflect the amount of orange peel, it's the work that's done to the paint after the paint job that does. At the Corvette plant, every Corvette that is a "nursery delivery" (you pick it up from the showroom floor at the production facility instead of a dealership), gets a complete prep and once over by a skilled detailer. He can eliminate a good deal of orange peel before the car is seen by any customers.
 
#50 · (Edited)
No, it is new, not reconditioned. Price was $117, but when I checked out, Amazon applied a $20 promotional discount. That was a pleasant surprise. It is just the polisher and foam pad. I found it searching under "tools and home improvement" instead of "automotive". I have a Prime account because we buy food and all kinds of stuff. Membership costs, but we save gas to the store and tax.

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