#26 smearing

[bumboola]

I've always noticed this to a slight degree in my garage but the last two days have been overcast so I applied and removed two coats of #26 out in the driveway, 24 hours apart, and the smearing was extremely obvious both times on a black car, very oily looking streaks and patches. I've tried micro thin coats to medium coats and the finish was properly prepared so that is not the issue. Normally I just live with it, it pretty much goes away after the first wash but I had a photo shoot yesterday so I wanted the finish to looks it's best. I was able to get rid of it by applying some muscle (ok, a lot of muscle) to the mf towel in slow motion for the final wipe and I am wondering if I was basically just removing the coat of wax I had just applied? I have always assumed that I should use the least possible amount of pressure it takes when removing wax to get the job done. I have also seen this smearing when using NXT - is this normal when using any of Meg's "high tech" waxes?

On the other hand, the finish was brilliant, the best it has ever looked so i'm a little stumped - can you eliminate a fresh coat of wax by applying too much pressure when removing it?

Thanks.

[Mike Phillips]

M26 is a very reliable product, by this we mean if you're doing everything correctly, and it sounds like you are, then applying a thin coating, and after allowing it to completely dry, it should wipe off and leave a clear, high gloss finish without any of the other issues you've described.

You could try this,


The Swipe Test

How to tell when a Meguiar's wax is ready to remove


A good rule of thumb for knowing when a Meguiar?s wax is ready to remove, is to wait until the wax dries to a haze and swipes clear using the Swipe Test. In most cases, in most climates, this should be approximately 10 to 15 minutes after application. In warmer climates, it will hedge towards the 10 minute range, and in colder, wet climates, it will take longer and hedge towards the 15 and even 20 to 25 minute range. Other factors include how thick of a coat you applied, relative humidity and air flow.

Another way to test if the wax has set-up long enough besides measuring with time, is to perform the Swipe Test.



"Swipe Test"

The swipe test is where you take your clean finger, and swipe it briskly across the finish with the wax on it. If the paint is clear, without residue where your finger made the swipe, the wax is ready to wipe-off. If the area you have swiped is smudgy, or streaky, or there is noticeable wax in the swipe area, then the wax has not set-up long enough and you should allow more time for the wax to set-up before your remove it.

If you remove it before it has set-up, you will risk removing too much of the wax from the surface and thus leave less than engineered to remain behind on the finish.

Once enough time has passed and your coating of wax swipes clear, remove the wax using a clean, soft premium microfiber polishing cloth such as Supreme Shine Microfiber polishing cloths, or with a clean, 100% cotton, terry cloth towel like our Ultra Plush Terry Cloth towels

Followed by 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.

[the other pc]

The only times I've seen any streaking or blotching with #26 have been when the paint itself needed attention. As a pure wax #26 should be applied to a pristine surface.

When I saw streaking I went back and used a cleaner or cleaner/polish, Deep Crystal "step 1," ScratchX, MPPC, #80, etc and then #26 again. No streaking then.


PC.

[Jeepster04]

Sounds to me like you didnt let it dry long enough. You said you were outside, maybe it was REALLY hunmid or something? I used #26 in my garage and it came off great using a MF.