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Post by alf on Mar 29, 2021 9:03:16 GMT
It was a "no kids" weekend (they alternate for us) and n preparation for the new arrival taking my attention I thought it was time for a spring clean. It's also usefully ahead of the May fly explosion as there is a chalk stream near here and on an unwaxed surface they settle then can barely be cleaned off!
So on saturday I cleaned the insides of the Audi and Jag, washed the outsides (and more around the doors/boot/bonnet than usual) and blacked the tyres. On Sunday I waxed them both, going right around the doors, boot, under bonnet, etc before Rain Xing the glass. Used up the last of an old tub of Meguiars NXT on the (white=easy) Audi, and Armor All Shield "better than a wax" on my car. This is weird stuff in that it always looks a bit streaky even after removal (this goes by itself) and doesn't leave the paint feeling as slippery as a normal wax, but it repels water/muck even better and on my car in lockdown last year with too much time on my hands I toyed with all the waxes I have and this was the least swirly and best looking on my car. It also leaves no white marks, indeed it seems to dissolve old polish residue and works on black and metal parts too.
I didn't clay bar this time as both cars were done this time last year and not much used since and the paint feels smooth - though I think on the white Audi it might have helped in places as the colour shows tar marks so badly.
Anyway that's two very mint looking cars, and no small amount of backache - though it's testament to my new life that I also took a decent walk each day, cycled 35k saturday and ran 16k sunday - after spending hours each time doing the washing/waxing - and felt better for it, and feel fine today. My watch concludes that hand washing/waxing is indeed good exercise, I was in the 120-140bpm area for long times both days which is as much as gentle cycling!
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Post by Martin on Mar 29, 2021 9:25:31 GMT
Good work! Have you tried Bildt Hamber Double Speed Wax? It won't be quite as quick/easy to apply as the Armor All stuff, but it gives you a really good shine and lasts well, plus if you give it a thin/quick top up every couple of months (so before it's worn off) it doesn't take long at all. I've bought some Gyeon WetCoat as I'm interested to see how good that is (it gets good reviews), my thinking is it will give good protection in addition to the wax and won't take long at all as it's spray on and power wash off, then I'll rinse it with filtered water so no need to drying. I was surprised by how many move calories/exercise minutes I get when car cleaning, but waxing/running/cycling wouldn't be how I'd be getting my exercise / bad back on a kid free weekend  |
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Post by alf on Mar 29, 2021 10:33:37 GMT
I have so much wax, and it seems to last so long (I only apply it once or twice a year) I don't get to try many news ones! I had a few Christmases years ago when people decided to buy me car care kits, just after I'd bought some Meguiars stuff, I had tonnes :-)
The Jaguar has looked amazing ever since I used the Meguiars Ultimate Compound ( which was seriously hard work by hand) then waxed it almost 2 years ago, I swear it changed the colour slightly (for the better). I wouldn't do it again on the same car though... The Armor All stuff is not supposed to have a gloss coat on top but I do have a bottle of turtle wax stuff I bought after it did well in reviews, maybe I'll try that on the Porsche before long, assuming they clay and wax it well, which I'll find out when I can work out how to collect it later this week.
PS there was horizontal exercise too.......... Truly it was a high calories burned weekend!
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Post by johnc on Mar 29, 2021 11:21:25 GMT
Good work! Have you tried Bildt Hamber Double Speed Wax? It won't be quite as quick/easy to apply as the Armor All stuff, but it gives you a really good shine and lasts well, plus if you give it a thin/quick top up every couple of months (so before it's worn off) it doesn't take long at all. I've bought some Gyeon WetCoat as I'm interested to see how good that is (it gets good reviews), my thinking is it will give good protection in addition to the wax and won't take long at all as it's spray on and power wash off, then I'll rinse it with filtered water so no need to drying. I was surprised by how many move calories/exercise minutes I get when car cleaning, but waxing/running/cycling wouldn't be how I'd be getting my exercise / bad back on a kid free weekend Gyeon Wet Coat is good but it is a sealant that needs a squeaky clean surface to bond to - you must wipe down the whole car using panel wipe or Gyeon's alternative, to rid the paintwork of any oily or waxy residue from previous products. If you don't, you will be looking at a few weeks longevity at most. With the proper preparation, Wet Coat will visibly last about 4 months on a daily driver which is washed regularly. EDIT. SORRY MARTIN. I was thinking about Can Coat, not Wet Coat. |
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Post by Martin on Mar 29, 2021 11:40:08 GMT
Good work! Have you tried Bildt Hamber Double Speed Wax? It won't be quite as quick/easy to apply as the Armor All stuff, but it gives you a really good shine and lasts well, plus if you give it a thin/quick top up every couple of months (so before it's worn off) it doesn't take long at all. I've bought some Gyeon WetCoat as I'm interested to see how good that is (it gets good reviews), my thinking is it will give good protection in addition to the wax and won't take long at all as it's spray on and power wash off, then I'll rinse it with filtered water so no need to drying. I was surprised by how many move calories/exercise minutes I get when car cleaning, but waxing/running/cycling wouldn't be how I'd be getting my exercise / bad back on a kid free weekend Gyeon Wet Coat is good but it is a sealant that needs a squeaky clean surface to bond to - you must wipe down the whole car using panel wipe or Gyeon's alternative, to rid the paintwork of any oily or waxy residue from previous products. If you don't, you will be looking at a few weeks longevity at most. With the proper preparation, Wet Coat will visibly last about 4 months on a daily driver which is washed regularly. EDIT. SORRY MARTIN. I was thinking about Can Coat, not Wet Coat. No problem! It was just a regular/quick top up I was looking for and WetCoat gets good reviews so I thought it was worth a try. |
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Post by Big Blue on Mar 29, 2021 12:12:30 GMT
My watch concludes that hand washing/waxing is indeed good exercise, I was in the 120-140bpm area for long times both days which is as much as gentle cycling!Your idea of "gentle" is clearly wrong. 140-150bpm is rowing machine sub-2min/500m stuff for me and I'm in no way shape or form in more than the "won't die running for a bus" category. |
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Post by racingteatray on Mar 29, 2021 12:17:06 GMT
I'm feeling bad now. I think I might have waxed my car once in 4 years. It must be said that life under a cover generally is good for the paint finish though - it still beads well.
Our neighbour opposite has acquired a black 15-plate Conti GT Speed, which he spent most of yesterday jet-washing and then waxing.
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Post by PG on Mar 29, 2021 12:20:40 GMT
I'm just working up to giving both the Shogun and MINI a good spring clean as they've not been washed since whenever that thread was where I posted before and after photos. I will treat them to Autoglym Aqua Wax. |
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