Surface comes out streaky and oily

[TH0001]

^ I appericate what your saying but......

Its a sealent, not rocket science... If I apply it thin and let it dry to a haze please explain to me what I could be doing wrong.. Thanks...

If I was applying it to oxidized paint, I could maybe understand the prep thing, but I'm not...

As far as my NXT Liquid is about a semi solid white chunk that has about 4 inchs of clear liquid on the top, I am sure this isn't from my technqiue either

[inthedetails]

I'm thinking it has more to do with curing time, but I don't know. It just seems odd that you would have problems with 4 separate products.......

[TH0001]

Yeah, I here you on that. I think it seems odd also

I have let 21 cure for up to 2 hours though, ya know? It was still streaky and not cured fully. I do have the new bottle of 64 oz 21 that Meguiars was kind enough to ship to me, so I will be trying that out soon (I keep putting it off, because I don't want to try it on a customers car and have more streaking).

I will update when I use it on my car (which will probably be a while since it looks so good with the two coats of NXT paste I applied yesterday )

[F-150]

It might have to do with the humidity, I remember when I was in Florida. It was a hot moist air there. In AZ at least it's just burning hot.

[RCBuddha]

I applaud meguairs for looking into this streaking issue, it's good to see that they take consumer feedback very seriously.

However, before I write off my bottle of #21 as being from a bad batch, I have yet to see (or test more in-depth myself) if 21 just streaks over meguiars products, or if it will streak using other brands (like Menzerna, Poorboys, 3M, Optimum, Zaino etc). Maybe this just simply could be a weather-related phenomenon.

FWIW, I've gotten a few cases where it has streaked, and cases where it hasn't. I'm hoping others can chime in with their experiences of applying 21 over other brand polishes.

So I ask again: When the #21 application streaks on you, what polishes (if any) are you guys using?


AND


Has anyone tried #21 over polishes OTHER than meguiars?

[TH0001]

I have had it steak over #80, #82 and #7 specifically, I have not had it streak over #83 (though I really don't have enough experience using #83 as a final step because I usually finish with #80 or #82)... I have also had it streak after Menzerna FPII, though not as bad (again, I really don't have the experince with Menzerna because I perfer Meguiars polishes over the Menzerna, so I think I have only applied #21 over Menzerna twice).

I have had my NXT liquid streak on #21, #80, #82, #7, DC2, and a clean paint that I had just clayed... I never tried NXT liquid over Menzerna polishes.

That said, I recently applied NXT Paste over on my Jimmy (which had been previously cleaned with 83, 80 then polished with 7, then followed by 2 coats of 21 and 2 coats of 26) and I am happy to report no streaking, and it absolutly gleams. I mean it is by far the best finish I have ever seen in person. I usually top 21 with 26 on dark cars because of the warmth and depth carnuba is supposed to deliever, but IMO, I am so impressed with NXT on top of 21 that my 26 will probably be resorted to the back shelf

[OctaneGuy]

Anyone ever considered installing a dehumidifier in your garage to dry your wax??? May seem a bit drastic but on the other hand, if time is money and you live in a humid environment...

Here in California, it's normally pretty dry and cool, but yesterday I worked on a car while it was super hot and humid, and normally #21 takes about 10 to 15 minutes to dry, but I waited an hour and it still wasn't ready to be removed--according to the Swipe Test. It took nearly 1.5 hours before it was ready.

[sneek]

I just applied M21 to my car about 1.5 hours ago and its still not ready to make it woorse, its raining out side so i cant drive it even when the wax has cured

[RedSoxRacer]

I too used #21 on a black car today and had no issues with it. It was about 80 degrees and fairly humid. I washed the car, clayed, used ColorX and finished with the #21. It did take about 45 minutes to fully cure before I removed it, but I did not have any streaks.
My batch of 21 does seem to have some separation and also has a small amount of "chunky" product at the top, but after mixing it up well it seems to work fine.

[RamAirV1]

#21 Issues Resolved!!!

I just got my new bottle of #21 (16 oz.) from ADS! BTW thanks Rick! Difference between it and my older #21 is like night and day. The #21 in the new bottle has a totally different consistency. Thick and creamy as opposed to thin and watery in the ketchup bottle. So I think the old stuff was from the suspect batch.

No adverse issues with the new bottle at all. No "sweating" of the product. It applies and removes very easily. It set up in 10-15 minutes, even with high humidity! And there was zero streaking! Most importantly, the finish of my GTO where I applied it worked great. The swirl filling (hiding or removal) capability is amazing!

to ADS and Meguiars #21, and their customer service!

RamAirV1

[Patman]

I just read through all 25 pages of this thread, that took a while! I came into this thread because I too have noticed streaking when using NXT liquid on my black 98 Corvette. I bought this bottle of NXT in June 2005, and so far have put on 17 coats with it. For the first 15 coats, it came off perfectly and left behind no streaking. It also buffed off very easily with no smearing. But the last two coats were not so lucky, a lot of smearing and lots of streaking. My methods had not changed, it wasn't very humid out, and one of the times that it streaked I had left the wax on the car overnight in my garage before buffing it off, so the only thing I can think of is that the product may have reached the end of it's shelf life? I still have maybe 25% of it left, but I figure maybe it's time to buy a fresh bottle of NXT and see how that performs. I don't know how to tell if the product has seperated since it's in the dark purple bottle and you can't see through it. With other products I've used in the past which come in a transparent bottle you can always see when they've seperated.

I really love how easy NXT is to use, and how it hides the light scratches and swirls in my black paint, and it definitely makes the black look darker than other products, so I don't want to switch products if I don't have to. If I did switch, I would probably still stick with Meguiars though, I'd start using the #26. The detail shop which I go to in the wintertime (when it's too cold to wax it myself!) uses Meguiars products and I get them to put on a coat of #26 every 4-6 weeks during those cold months, with excellent results. They also use #21 as well (but they charge more to use this over the #26)

[RamAirV1]

Originally posted by Patman
I just read through all 25 pages of this thread, that took a while! I came into this thread because I too have noticed streaking when using NXT liquid on my black 98 Corvette. I bought this bottle of NXT in June 2005, and so far have put on 17 coats with it. For the first 15 coats, it came off perfectly and left behind no streaking. It also buffed off very easily with no smearing. But the last two coats were not so lucky, a lot of smearing and lots of streaking. My methods had not changed, it wasn't very humid out, and one of the times that it streaked I had left the wax on the car overnight in my garage before buffing it off, so the only thing I can think of is that the product may have reached the end of it's shelf life? I still have maybe 25% of it left, but I figure maybe it's time to buy a fresh bottle of NXT and see how that performs. I don't know how to tell if the product has seperated since it's in the dark purple bottle and you can't see through it. With other products I've used in the past which come in a transparent bottle you can always see when they've seperated.

I really love how easy NXT is to use, and how it hides the light scratches and swirls in my black paint, and it definitely makes the black look darker than other products, so I don't want to switch products if I don't have to. If I did switch, I would probably still stick with Meguiars though, I'd start using the #26. The detail shop which I go to in the wintertime (when it's too cold to wax it myself!) uses Meguiars products and I get them to put on a coat of #26 every 4-6 weeks during those cold months, with excellent results. They also use #21 as well (but they charge more to use this over the #26)

From your description it sounds like it did reach the end of it's shelf life. Did it possibly freeze? That would do it for sure. I had some #21 from the inconsistent batch (would not un-separate) that would streak while being buffed out. A replacement 16 oz. bottle of #21 (N/C) from ADS fixed the problem. I think they ship to Canada too. You may want to give the #21 a try!

I like the look of NXT, but I use the paste version of it. There are no separation issues with it being in paste form. It is very easy to use.

RamAirV1

[Mike Phillips]

riginally posted by Patman [/i]

But the last two coats were not so lucky, a lot of smearing and lots of streaking. My methods had not changed, it wasn't very humid out, and one of the times that it streaked I had left the wax on the car overnight in my garage before buffing it off, so the only thing I can think of is that the product may have reached the end of it's shelf life? [/QUOTE]

Well lets just to go over the basics,

• * Shake bottle before using.
  * Work on a clean, cool surface out of direct sunlight.
  * Apply a thin even coating worked in well.
  * Allow wax to dry until it swipes clear.
  Remove using your best, clean soft microfiber polishing cloth fold 4-ways to give your hand plenty of cushion.

Then after removing all of the way, try this,

Final Wiping Techniques

Final Wiping Techniques
One mention about your final wiping technique. (Not initial removal of product, but after the most of a product has been removed and now you're just giving the finish a final wipe).

Often times I witness people wiping the wax off their car, or giving their car's paint a final wipe using fast, spastic wiping motions. Instead, try this, take your wiping cloth, whether microfiber or cotton, be sure it is large enough to fold it 4 ways to give you plenty of cushion to distribute your hand/finger pressure more evenly over the surface of the side of the cloth in contact with the paint, and then wipe the finish slooooowly, not quickly like you're trying to put a fire out.

Wipe the finish slowly. Give the substance on the surface enough time to transfer to the fibers of the wiping cloth. Think about it... if you move your wiping cloth quickly over the surface, you're only allowing nano-seconds for any minute wax/polymer residue to transfer from the paint to the cloth, if you slow down the rate of travel of the cloth over the finish, you improve the chance for whatever it is you're trying to remove to successfully transfer to the fibers of your wiping cloth.

If you follow all of the above, always using clean, dedicated applicator pads to apply your products, then removing them using clean wiping cloths, your finish should look clear, gloss, rich in color.


Place hand on polishing cloth folded in quarters like this,

[Patman]

From your description it sounds like it did reach the end of it's shelf life. Did it possibly freeze? That would do it for sure. I had some #21 from the inconsistent batch (would not un-separate) that would streak while being buffed out. A replacement 16 oz. bottle of #21 (N/C) from ADS fixed the problem. I think they ship to Canada too. You may want to give the #21 a try!

It didn't freeze, as I always kept it inside the house when I was done using it. I took a look at inside the bottle and it didn't look like it had seperated and I poured a little bit of it out and it didn't look clumpy or anything.

I have been thinking of getting my favorite detail shop to put on a coat of #21 in the fall once it gets too cold for me to do it myself. So depending on how that goes I may consider using it in the future. I also remembered this morning that I had a couple of sample packets of Gold Class, so I am going to give that a try tomorrow morning actually and see if I like it. GC is half the price of NXT up here in Canada ($15 vs $30) so that's another bonus if I end up liking it.

[Patman]

Well lets just to go over the basics,

* Shake bottle before using.
* Work on a clean, cool surface out of direct sunlight.
* Apply a thin even coating worked in well.
* Allow wax to dry until it swipes clear.
Remove using your best, clean soft microfiber polishing cloth fold 4-ways to give your hand plenty of cushion.

Thanks for your response Mike! Your advice has helped out a lot of people on here by the way!

I always do shake the bottle very well, and I definitely use thin coats, since I put it on with an orbital buffer and find that is one of the best ways to put on thinner coats. I just put a very tiny amount on the pad each time and don't add any more product until it absolutely needs it. I then remove it with a microfibre towel as well.

I don't always do it in the shade though, a lot of times this year I've been waxing it in the sun, although that usually seems to help as it dries a lot quicker this way. I probably put on at least 5 or 6 coats this year on hot sunny days and never had a problem with smearing or streaking until the last two coats. Actually, the last one was the worst, and it was an hazy/overcast day when I did it (but not super humid)

I will report back after I put on a coat of GC and let you guys know how it went! I'm glad I had those sample packs!