Wax on, Wax off.

Ratmagiclady · 06-02-2010, 01:03 PM

Haha! Victory!

Applied wax and got car under carport before thunderstorms arrived.

Since for most of the past week, it's been about my only hope to keep moving as much as I can while getting over the last of nicotene withdrawal and hoping I'll get as much benefit of exercise while I can't sit still anyway, so that after the probably-inevitable arthritic laid-up-ness I may not end up worse off than before... I've been doing a lot of unthinky-work.

One of my favorite kinds of unthinky-work is in fact... Polishing things. And thus, our four-wheeled friend got some slightly-overdue special treatment.

Seeing as how there's a lot of car people here, I was wondering what people may have seen out there that's good for minor clearcoat wear and tear.

I was wondering what you guys use for car polishing.

I've been using this tin of Meguiars' apparently best-consumer-packaged stuff (as of maybe five years ago, whenever I bought this) Kind of works, is easy enough to use, but pretty much refuses to build up nice and shiny and reward polishing effort. But for all that it's nice.

I used to use some product of theirs not-particularly-for-clearcoat finishes, if I recall. (May have been 'No. 7' or No Something? Came in a beige bottle, looked and smelled kind of like a bizarre flavor of Kapoectate? That stuff was pretty awesome. I don't know if they make it anymore. ) That would work nice on things. I would top it off with plain old Turtlewax and it'd look like a really expensive paint job.

I ramble. Anyway, what do you car guys use on cars? Particularly more modern ones.

r0ckstarr · 06-02-2010, 01:35 PM

Wash the car really good. Get every bit of dirt off that you can see. Then get the Meguires Claybar kit. Claybar the painted surfaces of the car. After you've done the paint, claybar the outside of the windows. Then come back with your favorite wax and wax the paint and windows. Compared to just washing and waxing, the claybar will make the car look new again.

Watch this video:

You Tube

It worked miracles for my '96 Ford.

Reguardless of what anybody says for what wax to use (I prefer turtle wax paste, myself), or how to properly wash your car, if it hasn't been claybar-ed before, and is more than a couple years old, I suggest doing so.

**Sailor** · 06-02-2010, 01:50 PM

I second Brian's recommendation to clay first - it's easy, generally doesn't take too long (depending upon the condition of the car) and makes an incredible difference. As Brian says, there's a bunch of info on the web on when and how to clay.

I've used a lot of different waxes (sometime preceded with a cleaner and polish) over the years, but recently I've taken a liking to Meguiar's NXT Generation Tech Wax 2.0 (liquid) - it's easy to apply and remove, has a light cleaner in the formulation and gives a great shine. I also use Meguiar's Ultimate Quik Detailer after I wash my cars; this stuff keeps the shine going. I wax often (I'm retired and perverse enough to enjoy it), so I don't know how long Tech 2.0 will last before water no longer beads.

I'm sure you'll get good recommendations from others; I'll keep my eye on this thread to see what I learn myself.

Jer

Parallax · 06-02-2010, 02:21 PM

I saw the title of the thread and after hesitating for a moment, clicked on it.
Half way through the first sentence I swallowed hard, but kept reading.
You can't imagine how relieved I was when I realized by the end of the sentence
what the thread was actually about.

Ratmagiclady · 06-02-2010, 02:35 PM

Originally posted by Parallax

I saw the title of the thread and after hesitating for a moment, clicked on it.
Half way through the first sentence I swallowed hard, but kept reading.
You can't imagine how relieved I was when I realized by the end of the sentence
what the thread was actually about.

I'm not going to ask what leapt to your imagination.

The only other connotation I am thinking of would likely be painful for you.

I have not seen this clay bar thing. It is of benefit to cracked and chipped clearcoats, or just acts like an artist's eraser and gets gunk out? I think I grok the concept: it might mean fewer go-overs with stone chips.... But. can't see how it'd solve the chips and all.

I honestly am quite far behind the times.

Parallax · 06-02-2010, 02:44 PM

Originally posted by Ratmagiclady

I'm not going to ask what leapt to your imagination.

The only other connotation I am thinking of would likely be painful for you.

I was concerned that you might be taking Karate lessons, because that
would probably hard on you physically. I can't imagine what else you could have thought I meant.

Ratmagiclady · 06-02-2010, 02:50 PM

Originally posted by Parallax

I was concerned that you might be taking Karate lessons, because that
would probably hard on you physically. I can't imagine what else you could have thought I meant.

Hee, nope. Not karate, though I do see the movie reference, which I thought was obvious. Did I miss a fine point about conservative humor, or shall we see where *brazilian* wax comes off?

as fighting styles go though I am scared scared scared of karate, please don't *ever* attack me with *karate! * *overdramatic gasp.* *faint.*

JeffJS · 06-02-2010, 03:20 PM

Originally posted by Ratmagiclady

I'm not going to ask what leapt to your imagination.

The only other connotation I am thinking of would likely be painful for you.

I have not seen this clay bar thing. It is of benefit to cracked and chipped clearcoats, or just acts like an artist's eraser and gets gunk out? I think I grok the concept: it might mean fewer go-overs with stone chips.... But. can't see how it'd solve the chips and all.

I honestly am quite far behind the times.

The only thing that can solve chip problems is paint. You had it right the first time, the clay would act more like an artist's eraser. As to what wax to use, nothing touches the 1969 vette except Mothers. I don't know if it's best, It isn't modern. It's just all I've ever used.

Just after an application (shown this colorized photo before)

As to the meaning of the thread, I can think of at least 3 pictures that could come to mind, though one of them, I don't think most would discuss on a photography forum. My mind being somewhat clean most days, the Karate movie reference is the one that I thought of.

seacapt · 06-02-2010, 04:50 PM

Hi Rat, Quit smoking huh, congratulations I do remember the pain. It has been my experience that the more you mess with a clear coat the shorter it's life expectancy. I've seen in the past where people will use some of the clear coat safe cleaning products like Finesse It to bring back a shine but this is only temporary. There are also some water borne poly vinyl products out there that you wipe on and let dry. Unfortunately automotive clears unlike industrial and marine clears were really not made to buff so "bringing them back" is tough.

r0ckstarr · 06-02-2010, 04:53 PM

The vette may not be a modern car, but is it wearing the original paint or has it been repainted within the last few years?

JeffJS · 06-02-2010, 06:44 PM

Originally posted by r0ckstarr

The vette may not be a modern car, but is it wearing the original paint or has it been repainted within the last few years?

I believe it's been repainted but it was long before I put my hands on it, in 1993. The car is actually a little closer to a sky blue than in the photo (originally B&W) but the shine is still the same.

Ratmagiclady · 06-02-2010, 11:09 PM

Originally posted by seacapt

Hi Rat, Quit smoking huh, congratulations I do remember the pain.

Yeah, they finally came out with a generic lozenge, which was just the tool I needed to not risk a month of my life on another investment of fourty bucks and a month's discretionary income on heart palpitations.

But, yeah, this actually constitutes 'quit.'

Four days since even a nicotene substitute. Can't stop moving or quite speak a linear sentence, but that's where I was when I started the f'n things, anyway.

If I can no longer afford my 'Not sounding like I was kicked repeatedly in the side of the head' privileges, well, so be it. Regressive taxes suck.

Gods' honest truth is, it's kind of a relief. No one listens anyway, being articulate as you can is just one of those burdens.

Yeah, it was pretty hellish, as I understand the concept, but eh.

I'm not sure I understand what many are talking about here in backscroll anyway.

Quote:

It has been my experience that the more you mess with a clear coat the shorter it's life expectancy.

This may seem to be so, but our car is not at fault here, nor is there a big choice of time tunnel interventions. Actually, paiontwise, he's in pretty good cshape, apart from one corner where clearcoat is cracking off entirely down to the pigment, and chips ansd deep scrapes.

We do love this car but may have to trade him in .;... he's a good boy but not meriting precious paint treatment as a car, as such.

It would be beneficial to be able to put help on the clearcoat though. If anyone understands this. I'dlike people to understand this. More or less ordinary car. Would like decent wax. More or less. Not saiid too much, have I?

I've seen in the past where people will use some of the clear coat safe cleaning products like Finesse It to bring back a shine but this is only temporary. There are also some water borne poly vinyl products out there that you wipe on and let dry. Unfortunately automotive clears unlike industrial and marine clears were really not made to buff so "bringing them back" is tough.

r0ckstarr · 06-03-2010, 03:57 AM

If you want it to shine like new again, claybar and wax.
If you want to fix peeling and cracked clearcoat, or chips, a repaint is your only option for perfection.

seacapt · 06-03-2010, 05:13 AM

Plasticoat actually makes a pretty fair puff can clear , available at most decent parts stores

**dadipentak** · 06-03-2010, 08:21 AM

I haven't even washed a car of mine (or had it done) for 30years--much less waxed one. I never understood why anyone would do that.

06-02-2010, 01:03 PM	#1
Ratmagiclady Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: GA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 13,563	Wax on, Wax off. Haha! Victory! Applied wax and got car under carport before thunderstorms arrived. Since for most of the past week, it's been about my only hope to keep moving as much as I can while getting over the last of nicotene withdrawal and hoping I'll get as much benefit of exercise while I can't sit still anyway, so that after the probably-inevitable arthritic laid-up-ness I may not end up worse off than before... I've been doing a lot of unthinky-work. One of my favorite kinds of unthinky-work is in fact... Polishing things. And thus, our four-wheeled friend got some slightly-overdue special treatment. Seeing as how there's a lot of car people here, I was wondering what people may have seen out there that's good for minor clearcoat wear and tear. I was wondering what you guys use for car polishing. I've been using this tin of Meguiars' apparently best-consumer-packaged stuff (as of maybe five years ago, whenever I bought this) Kind of works, is easy enough to use, but pretty much refuses to build up nice and shiny and reward polishing effort. But for all that it's nice. I used to use some product of theirs not-particularly-for-clearcoat finishes, if I recall. (May have been 'No. 7' or No Something? Came in a beige bottle, looked and smelled kind of like a bizarre flavor of Kapoectate? That stuff was pretty awesome. I don't know if they make it anymore. ) That would work nice on things. I would top it off with plain old Turtlewax and it'd look like a really expensive paint job. I ramble. Anyway, what do you car guys use on cars? Particularly more modern ones.

06-02-2010, 01:50 PM	#3
Sailor Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Coastal Texas Photos: Gallery Posts: 26,203	I second Brian's recommendation to clay first - it's easy, generally doesn't take too long (depending upon the condition of the car) and makes an incredible difference. As Brian says, there's a bunch of info on the web on when and how to clay. I've used a lot of different waxes (sometime preceded with a cleaner and polish) over the years, but recently I've taken a liking to Meguiar's NXT Generation Tech Wax 2.0 (liquid) - it's easy to apply and remove, has a light cleaner in the formulation and gives a great shine. I also use Meguiar's Ultimate Quik Detailer after I wash my cars; this stuff keeps the shine going. I wax often (I'm retired and perverse enough to enjoy it), so I don't know how long Tech 2.0 will last before water no longer beads. I'm sure you'll get good recommendations from others; I'll keep my eye on this thread to see what I learn myself. Jer Last edited by Sailor; 06-02-2010 at 01:56 PM.

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06-02-2010, 02:21 PM	#4
Parallax Senior Moderator Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: South Dakota Photos: Gallery Posts: 19,333	I saw the title of the thread and after hesitating for a moment, clicked on it. Half way through the first sentence I swallowed hard, but kept reading. You can't imagine how relieved I was when I realized by the end of the sentence what the thread was actually about.

06-02-2010, 02:35 PM	#5
Ratmagiclady Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: GA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 13,563 Original Poster	Originally posted by Parallax I saw the title of the thread and after hesitating for a moment, clicked on it. Half way through the first sentence I swallowed hard, but kept reading. You can't imagine how relieved I was when I realized by the end of the sentence what the thread was actually about. I'm not going to ask what leapt to your imagination. The only other connotation I am thinking of would likely be painful for you. I have not seen this clay bar thing. It is of benefit to cracked and chipped clearcoats, or just acts like an artist's eraser and gets gunk out? I think I grok the concept: it might mean fewer go-overs with stone chips.... But. can't see how it'd solve the chips and all. I honestly am quite far behind the times.

06-02-2010, 02:44 PM	#6
Parallax Senior Moderator Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: South Dakota Photos: Gallery Posts: 19,333	Originally posted by Ratmagiclady I'm not going to ask what leapt to your imagination. The only other connotation I am thinking of would likely be painful for you. I was concerned that you might be taking Karate lessons, because that would probably hard on you physically. I can't imagine what else you could have thought I meant.

06-02-2010, 02:50 PM	#7
Ratmagiclady Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: GA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 13,563 Original Poster	Originally posted by Parallax I was concerned that you might be taking Karate lessons, because that would probably hard on you physically. I can't imagine what else you could have thought I meant. Hee, nope. Not karate, though I do see the movie reference, which I thought was obvious. Did I miss a fine point about conservative humor, or shall we see where brazilian wax comes off? as fighting styles go though I am scared scared scared of karate, please don't ever attack me with karate! overdramatic gasp. faint.

06-02-2010, 03:20 PM	#8
JeffJS Inactive Account Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Michigan, USA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 7,484	Originally posted by Ratmagiclady I'm not going to ask what leapt to your imagination. The only other connotation I am thinking of would likely be painful for you. I have not seen this clay bar thing. It is of benefit to cracked and chipped clearcoats, or just acts like an artist's eraser and gets gunk out? I think I grok the concept: it might mean fewer go-overs with stone chips.... But. can't see how it'd solve the chips and all. I honestly am quite far behind the times. The only thing that can solve chip problems is paint. You had it right the first time, the clay would act more like an artist's eraser. As to what wax to use, nothing touches the 1969 vette except Mothers. I don't know if it's best, It isn't modern. It's just all I've ever used. Just after an application (shown this colorized photo before) As to the meaning of the thread, I can think of at least 3 pictures that could come to mind, though one of them, I don't think most would discuss on a photography forum. My mind being somewhat clean most days, the Karate movie reference is the one that I thought of.

06-02-2010, 04:50 PM	#9
seacapt Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: North Carolina , USA Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,271	Hi Rat, Quit smoking huh, congratulations I do remember the pain. It has been my experience that the more you mess with a clear coat the shorter it's life expectancy. I've seen in the past where people will use some of the clear coat safe cleaning products like Finesse It to bring back a shine but this is only temporary. There are also some water borne poly vinyl products out there that you wipe on and let dry. Unfortunately automotive clears unlike industrial and marine clears were really not made to buff so "bringing them back" is tough.

06-02-2010, 04:53 PM	#10
r0ckstarr Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Texas Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,507	The vette may not be a modern car, but is it wearing the original paint or has it been repainted within the last few years?

06-02-2010, 06:44 PM	#11
JeffJS Inactive Account Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Michigan, USA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 7,484	Originally posted by r0ckstarr The vette may not be a modern car, but is it wearing the original paint or has it been repainted within the last few years? I believe it's been repainted but it was long before I put my hands on it, in 1993. The car is actually a little closer to a sky blue than in the photo (originally B&W) but the shine is still the same.

06-02-2010, 11:09 PM	#12
Ratmagiclady Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: GA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 13,563 Original Poster	Originally posted by seacapt Hi Rat, Quit smoking huh, congratulations I do remember the pain. Yeah, they finally came out with a generic lozenge, which was just the tool I needed to not risk a month of my life on another investment of fourty bucks and a month's discretionary income on heart palpitations. But, yeah, this actually constitutes 'quit.' Four days since even a nicotene substitute. Can't stop moving or quite speak a linear sentence, but that's where I was when I started the f'n things, anyway. If I can no longer afford my 'Not sounding like I was kicked repeatedly in the side of the head' privileges, well, so be it. Regressive taxes suck. Gods' honest truth is, it's kind of a relief. No one listens anyway, being articulate as you can is just one of those burdens. Yeah, it was pretty hellish, as I understand the concept, but eh. I'm not sure I understand what many are talking about here in backscroll anyway. Quote: It has been my experience that the more you mess with a clear coat the shorter it's life expectancy. This may seem to be so, but our car is not at fault here, nor is there a big choice of time tunnel interventions. Actually, paiontwise, he's in pretty good cshape, apart from one corner where clearcoat is cracking off entirely down to the pigment, and chips ansd deep scrapes. We do love this car but may have to trade him in .;... he's a good boy but not meriting precious paint treatment as a car, as such. It would be beneficial to be able to put help on the clearcoat though. If anyone understands this. I'dlike people to understand this. More or less ordinary car. Would like decent wax. More or less. Not saiid too much, have I? I've seen in the past where people will use some of the clear coat safe cleaning products like Finesse It to bring back a shine but this is only temporary. There are also some water borne poly vinyl products out there that you wipe on and let dry. Unfortunately automotive clears unlike industrial and marine clears were really not made to buff so "bringing them back" is tough.

06-03-2010, 03:57 AM	#13
r0ckstarr Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Texas Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,507	If you want it to shine like new again, claybar and wax. If you want to fix peeling and cracked clearcoat, or chips, a repaint is your only option for perfection.

06-03-2010, 05:13 AM	#14
seacapt Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: North Carolina , USA Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,271	Plasticoat actually makes a pretty fair puff can clear , available at most decent parts stores

06-03-2010, 08:21 AM	#15
dadipentak Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Baltimore, Maryland Photos: Gallery Posts: 11,590	I haven't even washed a car of mine (or had it done) for 30years--much less waxed one. I never understood why anyone would do that.