Guest prescience Posted January 19, 2006 Share Posted January 19, 2006 This information was provided by a Zaino expert Dr Bonz - some of the links may not work but the instructions are still valid - I followed them myself pretty much to the letter. Contact Dr Bonz at 350zfrenzy.com where he is an Admin As usual, I'd like to refer you to a few threads on other boards which already have a TON of Zaino info. to start. The New Formula Zaino Thread: http://www.350zfrenzy.com/forum/showthr ... eadid=1718 Here is my first experience with Zaino and my Z: http://www.my350z.com/forum/showthread. ... experiment Another New Formula Zaino Thread: http://www.my350z.com/forum/showthread. ... experiment Here is my VERY FIRST experience with Zaino. I did the full detail job on my 1992 Dodge Stealth Twin Turbo (which I still have) a few months before I got my Z: http://www.my350z.com/forum/showthread. ... ight=zaino More info can be found in my editorials over at Frenzy: http://www.my350z.com/forum/showthread. ... ight=zaino OK, now that that is out of the way, here are the products I personally use: Z-2 (optically pure polymer sealant) Z-5 (polymer sealant for swirl marks) Z-6 (detailing mist) Z-7 (carwash) Z-16 (tire dressing) Z-18 (claybar) ZFX (cures the polymer faster) The "bare minimum" in my opinion would be: Z-2 One bottle Z-5 One bottle Z-6 Two bottles Z-7 One bottle You can order these at www.zainostore.com Someone mentioned a group buy in another thread but unfortunately Sal doesn't do GB's. Most people are really reluctant to tackle this process when they first read about it but it really is only the first time process that is someone grueling. The maintanence is really very easy. Easier actually than any other detailing product/process I have ever used (and I have used MANY). There is a learning curve but it is not steep. Once you do this once or twice is is very simple. It is important to start from scratch. You have to get to bare paint. To do this I wash with Dawn dishwashing liquid. I don't know what the equivalent of Dawn is in the UK but I'm sure you all know what I mean. This is the ONLY time you ever should use this stuff to wash your car though. Dawn is fairly alkaline and not great for your paint on a regular basis. Zaino Z-7 is perfectly pH balanced at 7.0 however. You then rinse the car thoroughly. I then use a dilute solution of water and Z-7 carwash. A gallon of water to roughly a capfull of Z-7. I then mix this up and put it in a squirt bottle. I do the car in sections. I mold the Zaino claybar a bit to soften it up. I usually use half a bar for one clay session. You get two whole bars in the jar Zaino sends you. I flatten out the clay into a little pancake shape thing about 4 inches in diameter. Some recommend using only straight line swipes of the clay but I have done it this way and in small cirlcles and have seen no difference. You need to make sure that the car is well lubed with your squirt bottle of dilute Z-7. You simply rub the car with the clay making sure to knead the clay to keep a fresh surface on the paint at all times. Do not drop the clay!!! If you do, don't use it anymore. You'll scratch the paint. One neat test to do to convince yourself you are really doing something (when you use the clay you'll swear that you aren't) is to place your hand in a clear plastic sandwich bag before you start. Run your hand (in the bag) over the paint. You'll feel every little rough spot and every little imperfection or speck. Then do the clay and repeat the above. SMOOTH as a baby's but! Next you'll need to thoroughly rinse the car and rewash it with the Zaino Z-7. Again, you'll only need about a capful in a bucket of water. Make sure you use a good quality microfiber wash mit so as to not cause scratches or swirls. Go here for some AWSOME towels: http://www.dftowel.com/ Next you'll need to dry the car. Again, it is critical to use non-swirling towels. You can you the above MF towels or a waffle weave drying towel works very nicely as well. You can get them here: http://www.autopia-carcare.com/mf-200.html This is the drying towel I use. I use the California water blade to dry the car. Most detailers (Sal included) may cringe over this but as long as you're careful it is fine. It is a "medical grade" silicone blade that squeegies off the water nicely. Helps prevent any water spots. I then dry the rest of the car with the waffle weave towel. Next you hit the car with the Zaino Z-6 detailing mist. This is amazing stuff and you'll use more of it than anything. You simply mist it on and wipe it in. Sort of like using Windex on windows. Just doing this will really make the car shine and make the surface as smooth as glass. Make sure you don't over mist and don't let the Z-6 sit on the car more than a few seconds. If you see any hazing after doing this, you are using too much or leaving it on too long. If you do see haze, simply let it dry and redo the Z-6 step and it'll go away. Now you get down to business. I recommend the Z-5 at this point. It will fill in any swirls/spider webbing. How many layers of Z-5 you use is directly proportional to how many swirls you have. If you don't have any or very few, I'd only do one layer of Z-5 and the rest I'd use Z-2. If the car is older and very swirled, I'd do almost ALL layers in Z-5 and only the last one Z-2. A divergence of ideas is encountered at this point. You can do the Z-2 or Z-5 WITH or WITHOUT the ZFX accelerator. ZFX is very expensive ($20 for a 3 ml bottle) but you only use it by the drop. If you want to do multiple layers in one day, you'll need it. You can do roughly three layers in a day with it as the polymer curing time is only about 30-60 min. depending on the outside temp and humidity. Without the ZFX, you'll need about 10-12 HOURS of curing time. Now, many feel Zaino is expensive, and at first glance it appears that it is, however you really use it VERY sparingly. If you think you are applying it too thin, APPLY IT THINNER! Use it like it cost $100 an ounce! I do my entire car (one layer) with a little less than one ounce. Zaino gives you these little mixing bottles. They are 2 oz. so fill one to less than half full with your Z-2 or Z-5. If you are using the ZFX accelerator you mix in 2-4 drops. I use less if it is hot and dry and more if it is cold and damp out. I don't recommend using ZFX if you can't get the car in the shade on a sunny hot day since it makes removing it just a little bit harder to remove. It still will work fine, just a little more buffing. Now you are almost ready to apply it. I dampen my applicator (Zaino gives you a couple but you can use a small MF towel if you want) with water. Some use a couple squirts of Z-6 to dampen it. I did this once and didn't really like the results but others swear by this. You then apply a very small dab of Zaino to the applicator and swirl it around to distribute it. Now it's time to apply. I recommmend using straight lines and NOT circular motion. On the horizontal parts of the car (hood, roof) you go side to side and on the vertical parts (doors, quarter panels) you to up and down. AGAIN, I can't emphasize this enough, YOU DO NOT NEED TO APPLY TOO MUCH! This isn't a wax that you apply until you can't even tell what color the car is. You should almost not even see the product on the car even after it dries! When the polish is ready to remove (again, 30-60 mins. if ZFX was used and 10-12 hours if not) you'll need you MF towels. One way to test if it is ready is to wipe it with your finger and if you see clear shiney paint in the spot you wiped, it's ready. If it smudges, it isn't. I use a straight line buffing motion to remove the polish and then a circular buffing motion to shine. DO NOT let your towel touch the ground. Make sure there is not debris on the towel. Now that you have your first layer on and buffed off, you hit the car again with your Z-6 detailing mist. Same way as before. Now you're ready for you second layer of polish. Do it the same way as the first. You buff that off and again, Z-6 mist. You do as many layers as you want always finishing off with Z-6. My personal preference it to do one or two layers WITH ZFX so I can get them on in the same day and that night I do one more layer WITHOUT ZFX and let it sit on the car overnight and take it off the next day. This seems to give me the best results. As for random orbital buffers, I have no experience with them and Zaino, but I know many have used them without any problems. I just prefer to do it by hand. Something about the Zen of the hands on experience I guess! Maintenance is easy. You wash with the Z-7, dry, and then do the Z-6 mist and that is really all you need. If you want to layer it like me, you then do a couple of Z-5 or Z-2's. That should get you started. If you have any questions let me know. Take care, and HAPPY ZAINO-ING! The Doc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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