Waxing a Black Car

[05PhillyStang]

Originally posted by Estranged
On a black car, you will not get a much noticeable difference by the type of wax you use - its all in the prep for darker shades.

That being said, I like #26 or #16, depending on how easily I feel like removing wax that day.

Estranged - do you top 26 with a polymer or leave it as is?

[Mike Phillips]

One real important thing to remember when working on any color or type of paint and especially darker colors and black finises, and that is two thin coats of any wax will always look better than one coat.

Two thin coats applied back to back will insure,

• * Uniform Appearance
  * Uniform Coverage (for best protection)

Also, remember to always allow any Meguiar's wax to fully cure, or dry before removing it. We usually state to allow our waxes to dry for 10 to 15 minutes or until they dry to a visible haze.

We also teach in our detailing classes a very accurate method of telling when a wax is ready to wipe off and that's by using the Swipe Test


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.

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,

Mike

[Rob66]

Hey Roymorales, Lynx

Unfortunately I dont yet have a PC, but I get excellent results using Show Car Glaze #7 topped with 2 very thin coats of NXT as Mike and others suggest. I have topped with a Carnuba Wax but it really doesnt make that much difference. Heres my car just treated with #7 and NXT.



Best of luck with yours.....

Rob

[Mike Phillips]

Originally posted by Paramedic
QUESTIONS:

Will Show Car Glaze give me a higher gloss then DSC #2?

M07 Show Car Glaze is richest in Meguiar's polishing oils, most people will probably not be able to see a visual difference between the results M07 produces or any other Meguiar's pure polish.

Will Gold Class Wax give deeper gloss then NXT??

Gold Class Wax is a polish/wax, this means it contains a blend of protection ingredients, both natural and synthetic plus rich polishing oils, on a properly prepared dark finish like a black single stage or a clear coat over black, Gold Class may leave a darker, deeper richer look, however it's a trade-off because NXT is better at eliminating fine swirls.

Could I ever top the gold class wax with NXT wax?

Sure! Applying one wax over another different type of wax or over a polish is called topping and is very popular among serious enthusiasts always trying to find the perfect combination of product to take their car's finish to its maximum potential!

It's important to remember that unless you first perform a test spot in one small area with your choice of topper, that you won't know for sure if your choice of topper took your previous results to a higher level or not.

Here's a how to article on topping NXT Tech Wax, but the ideas apply to topping anything. This how to article can be found in the Information Station forum under Meguiar's How-To Articles.

Topping NXT Tech Wax

Topping NXT

There is always a lot of talk about topping NXT with other products, because this is a popular topic, I thought I would offer this simple suggestion.

If you think you would like to apply a topper over NXT, before you apply your choice of a topper over the entire finish, first do a side-by-side comparison and inspect your results carefully to insure that the test area does in fact look better than NXT by itself before applying your choice of topper to the entire finish. If you apply your choice of a topper to the entire car without comparing, you will never know if it improved or diminished the results created by the NXT alone.


Here's how to do a test spot,

First - Wait until you have two thin, uniform applications of NXT Tech Wax over the entire finish. Two thin applications always look better than one application.

Second - Find a nice flat panel like the hood or deck lid so that you can look down on the finish while standing over it. Apply your choice of a topper to a square section about one foot square being careful to do so in a way as to have a very distinct section with only the topper in this section. Allow the topper to dry according to the instruction and the remove with a microfiber polishing cloth or a clean, soft 100% cotton terry cloth towel. To be fair, you should apply a second coat in this same section to insure a uniform application. Again, apply and remove according to the product's directions.

After you applied and removed your choice of a topper carefully, inspect the two areas under different lighting conditions. Different lighting conditions will allow your eyes to see the different dimensions of your finish, such as richness, gloss, shine and clearness or clarity. View the two areas from different angles, from directly overhead, and with a light source centered in the area, like the sun. You may also want to have some friends compare the two areas also, a second set of fresh eyes may see something you miss, especially after you've been working on the finish and staring at the paint for hours.

If after doing this side-by-side comparison test in one small area, your eyes will tell you whether or not you want to continue with applying the topper to the entire finish.

Hope this helps...

Mike

[Estranged]

Originally posted by 05PhillyStang
Estranged - do you top 26 with a polymer or leave it as is?

I leave #26 as is. Haven't gotten into polymers yet - not saying I don't like them, but haven't looked into them that much.

Regarding what Mike said about 2 coats, I actually apply one coat, then when I wash for the first time after that (usually about a week), I put one more coat on. With that said, I have seen the benefits of two coats of #26 (and #16) - just seems to me that it has a "sharper" look to it.

[RamAirV1]

Originally posted by Paramedic
So by hand your guys are recommending;

1) NXT Wash
2) Clay
3) DCS #1
4) DSC #2
5) NXT x2

** ScratchX for problem areas with minor scratches or swirls?

That what I play to do today if things at work slow down some.

Your detailing plan seems like a good one.

QUESTIONS:

Will Show Car Glaze give me a higher gloss then DSC #2?
Will Gold Class Wax give deeper gloss then NXT??
Could I ever top the gold class wax with NXT wax?

Answers:

No. Plus DSC#2 is much easier to work with.

IMHO, no. Gold Class may darken the paint, but it will not give a deeper gloss than NXT.

If I was going to use a topper, I would prefer to use #26 over NXT. The Gold Class is less durable than NXT so it would not make sense to me to use NXT on top of it.

RamAirV1

[Scottwax]

Topping NXT with #16 or #26 will slightly mute the super clear reflections you get with just NXT but they do add some depth and richness. Some people like that difference and some don't. Like Mike said, it is best to try it on a section or two and see which looks best to your eyes.

For me, I prefer a carnauba as my LSP on my own black car.