I have a 2005 Radiant Red Tacoma and use it regularly at work in the bush - therefore Monday to Friday the truck is on gravel, muddy roads.
Several times a year I claybar, polish with Meguires swirl remover #9, and add a coat or two of Meguires NXT. I do this maybe 2-3 times a year, but wash the truck 1-3 times a week depending on my work road conditions. The muddier the road, the more often I wash. Usually a coat of NXT every 2-3 weeks.
Since I'm out of Meguires #9, and almost out of NXT, maybe its time to try something new? I hear Zaino provides some good results.
What would you guys reccommend for a guy who polishes 2-3 times a year, and waxes every 2-3 weeks? I use an orbital buffer for polishing, but have no experience with a rotary.
I have a 2005 Radiant Red Tacoma and use it regularly at work in the bush - therefore Monday to Friday the truck is on gravel, muddy roads.
Several times a year I claybar, polish with Meguires swirl remover #9, and add a coat or two of Meguires NXT. I do this maybe 2-3 times a year, but wash the truck 1-3 times a week depending on my work road conditions. The muddier the road, the more often I wash. Usually a coat of NXT every 2-3 weeks.
Since I'm out of Meguires #9, and almost out of NXT, maybe its time to try something new? I hear Zaino provides some good results.
What would you guys reccommend for a guy who polishes 2-3 times a year, and waxes every 2-3 weeks? I use an orbital buffer for polishing, but have no experience with a rotary.
Thanks for the suggestions!
I would read Zaino's application tips and FAQ's page before you go that route. It is not a simple process, even though some people swear by Zaino and get great results.
Synthetics tout longevity, but in every case I've investigated, it comes with a price. Either the stuff itself is very expensive, takes a long time to apply, or has 'conditions' for curing like long cure times, low humidity, etc. Just do the research; these companies don't hide this information and it is typically easily found on their web sites.
Consider SYSTEM ONE Spray wax. It's a carnauba, which gives a great shine, but it is almost as easy to apply as a quick detailer. Under normal conditions, the wax lasts about 8-12 weeks. It probably won't last you that long.
You can apply SYSTEM ONE Spray Wax to hot paint, cold paint, in the sun, in the shade, before a rainstorm, in high humidity, etc. I've applied it on paint so hot that steam came off the surface, but it still shined up beautifully. Also, unlike your typical carnauba, it won't stain plastic or rubber trim. In fact, it works great on those surfaces. When I'm done waxing my truck, I wipe down my dash, steering column and door panels with the cloth I used to apply the wax with.
SYSTEM ONE also makes a great polish, which is NOT a diminishing abrasive. It can be applied by hand or with a buffer. If you are using a random orbit, you may not get great results unless you use a forced rotation random orbit tool.
Canada is an exclusive area and I cannot sell there, so please realize that I will not gain financially if you buy SYSTEM ONE. However, the products are fantastic and I think you will be pleased with the results.
Feel free to visit my web site (link below) for more info, but again, you can't buy from me. Apparently, your local Sherman Wililams paint store carries SYSTEM ONE or can get it for you. PM me if you can't find it or if you have any more questions.
Also, visit CustomTacos.com for more information on SYSTEM ONE; there are several posts about it there.
Last edited by PolishAndWax; 09-04-2007 at 09:37 AM.
The Zaino sealant itself doesn't do anything for swirls. They do have a polish now I believe, but I don't have any experience with it. You'd have to go to a domestics forum to get the fanatical scoop on that. Mustang boards are typically full of Zaino zealots who think it is the greatest thing since Mustangs. lol I don't trust such blind enthusiasm of a product when they discount the possibility that anything could possibly shine better.
If you are working by hand then you are probably using the right products. Meguiar's #9 is really light on their scale of polishes. It would be a 3 on a scale of 1 to 10. Much of what it does is actually fill the swirls instead of removing them. NXT Tech Wax does about the same thing. It has micro polishes that can remove swirls, but it also does more filling than anything else. That is not a good way to remove imperfections in your paint. Machine polishing is really the only way to perfect your paint. Regardless of what Polishandwax.com says about the ineffectivness of random orbital polishers, I can tell you from a decade of experience with them that they are very effective at removing swirls. In fact, I can introduce you to thousands of people who feel the same way. P&W.com is the only guy I've ever heard tell people that they don't get you good results. I can post dozens of pictures of swirl removal with a PC. I've even got video of it posted that I can show you. But enough about that. The point is that in order to get the best results, you really do need to use a machine. The Porter Cable 7424 has long been held as the standard for enthusiast detailers who don't need the hazards of a rotary, but need more muscle than their muscles can provide. CoastalTool.com has the best online price for that tool outside of ebay, but wherever you get one doesn't matter. It will still be the same tool.
Once you have the right tool then you options for polishes greatly expand. Something like Poorboy's SSR2 is something that wouldn't work very well by hand. Meguiar's #83 doesn't work well by hand either, but use it with a machine and you can just watch the swirls disappear. I've been playing with a lot of swirl removers lately with awesome results. You simply need a machine to get the swirls gone though. Unless you are built like an ox with massive shoulder muscles, then you aren't going to get far polishing by hand unless you are using something that fills them like #9 or NXT.
Regardless of what Polishandwax.com says about the ineffectivness of random orbital polishers, I can tell you from a decade of experience with them that they are very effective at removing swirls. In fact, I can introduce you to thousands of people who feel the same way. P&W.com is the only guy I've ever heard tell people that they don't get you good results. .
I said you wouldn't get great results with a non-forced random orbit with SYSTEM ONE polish. If you are going to call me out, please get your facts straight.
That's all I've ever said when talking about a non-forced rotation random orbit tool. People are finding that with SYSTEM ONE Polish, if you are going to go the random orbit route, the forced rotation random orbit tool is the way to go. That's because SYSTEM ONE Polish is not a diminishing abrasive. It uses microscopic aluminum oxide cutting particles that need more than just a good 'shaking' to get the job done.
Even people that are not using SYSTEM ONE polish are liking the forced random orbit tools more and more and they're not using their PC's anymore...tools like the Festool Rotex 150 FEQ, the Makita BO6040 and the Flex XC 3401 VRG are taking it's place. They are faster and produce as good, if not better, results.
Go to Autopia and you will see several threads on this.
All I wanted to do was warn ForTech that if he tried SYSTEM ONE polish with his non-forced r/o he may not get great results.
EDIT: Here are some sites on the forced-rotation versus non-forced rotation polishers, for anyone who's interested.
I'm an original member of Autopia and was on the administration staff for a few years even. Just because something is posted over there does not make it the gospel. If I go post something that says just the opposite, will it gain credibility?
What I'm saying is that if your product doesn't get results with a random orbital polisher then that is a shame. There are many products out there that get terrific results with one and that is what he was asking for. He wanted product suggestions and my suggestion was to use a polish that was user friendly and could be applied with a random orbital polisher. I read where you had something to say about PC like machines in another thread, so that is what I was refering to.
Anyway, this is not going to turn into another war between you and me. Take it to PMs if you want to battle opinions on this. I won't participate in anymore thread hijackings with you.
I'm an original member of Autopia and was on the administration staff for a few years even. Just because something is posted over there does not make it the gospel. If I go post something that says just the opposite, will it gain credibility?
What I'm saying is that if your product doesn't get results with a random orbital polisher then that is a shame. There are many products out there that get terrific results with one and that is what he was asking for. He wanted product suggestions and my suggestion was to use a polish that was user friendly and could be applied with a random orbital polisher. I read where you had something to say about PC like machines in another thread, so that is what I was refering to.
Anyway, this is not going to turn into another war between you and me. Take it to PMs if you want to battle opinions on this. I won't participate in anymore thread hijackings with you.
ForTech, you have my advice. Peace out.
EDIT: BTW, your job sounds like fun! At least the driving part (I have a 2005 Radiant Red Tacoma and use it regularly at work in the bush - therefore Monday to Friday the truck is on gravel, muddy roads.)
Last edited by PolishAndWax; 09-04-2007 at 11:31 AM.
I have a 2005 Radiant Red Tacoma and use it regularly at work in the bush - therefore Monday to Friday the truck is on gravel, muddy roads.
Several times a year I claybar, polish with Meguires swirl remover #9, and add a coat or two of Meguires NXT. I do this maybe 2-3 times a year, but wash the truck 1-3 times a week depending on my work road conditions. The muddier the road, the more often I wash. Usually a coat of NXT every 2-3 weeks.
Since I'm out of Meguires #9, and almost out of NXT, maybe its time to try something new? I hear Zaino provides some good results.
What would you guys reccommend for a guy who polishes 2-3 times a year, and waxes every 2-3 weeks? I use an orbital buffer for polishing, but have no experience with a rotary.
Thanks for the suggestions!
Sounds like you have a good routine. NXT and #9 are both good products.
With all the mud riding you do, the washing process is causing a lot of the swirls you are seeing. Keeping a good layer of wax on the paint will make washing much easier requireing less pressure to get the dirt free. Use as gentile a touch as possible when washing the truck. Also use a nice soft washmit and keep it CLEAN. The two bucket method is highly advisable for your amount of mud. One bucket with soap another without. After washing a section of the truck the mit is dirty, rinse it in the non-soapy water first to leave most of the loose dirt in to that bucket before dipping into the soap bucket. This keeps the soap bucket water clean so you don't wash the last parts of your truck with dirty water.
If you have deaper swirls and want to restore the paint to like new condition, you need to polish with a more aggresive cut #3 swirl remover. You can look at Meguires medium cut and/or fine cut, followed by a cleaner wax/sealant (KLASSE AIO, Megs clenaer wax, mothers clenaer wax, etc) then extra coats of pure wax/sealent (Klasse SG, Megs yellow wax, etc) that will layer. Cleaner waxes don't layer because they clean the previous layer off when applied.
If you go with Carnuba, you need to apply it more freqently than 2-3 times a year. Most carnubas require a fresh cloat after 4-8 weeks. Sealants are better for longevity. You might look for one that has a spray on wax/sealant for a quick detail after a wash to keep a layer of wax between the paint and the dirt.
For the Klasse system there is Sonus make some product for this purpose. I'm sure Zaino makes similar products.
Also use the appropriate pad with you PC. I recommend Lake country orange pad for polishing and a white pad for finer cut/swirl removers/cleaner wax.
The white pad that comes with the PC is not very good. Get some LC pads and soft backer plates before you go to work.
Apply final coats of wax/protectant by hand.
Have fun.
Last edited by DanEz_yoda; 09-04-2007 at 02:54 PM.
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