The ilogikal1 test thread

[Ekona]

I really enjoy your OCD... I mean, attention to detail in these write ups, y'know.

 

Seriously though, this is one of the most enjoyable threads to read on here, not just because I have an interest in the subject matter but also your writing is both entertaining and informative. Good work sir, I probably don't say that often enough.

[Ricey]

Whilst we're on the subject of iron fall out......check this out

 

 

Sent from my HTC One mini using Tapatalk

 

 

[Stutopia]

That's nearly in as bad a state as Matt's wheels

[Ogman]

I really enjoy your OCD... I mean, attention to detail in these write ups, y'know.

 

Seriously though, this is one of the most enjoyable threads to read on here, not just because I have an interest in the subject matter but also your writing is both entertaining and informative. Good work sir, I probably don't say that often enough.

 

Amen.

[ilogikal1]

That's nearly in as bad a state as Matt's wheels

 

It's not quite that bad!

[TT350]

I do enjoy rubbing one out and polishing my favourite thing and seeing the liquid drip down her body.

 

But this is next level Defcon 1.

 

Excellent thread.

[ilogikal1]

Firstly,

I really enjoy your OCD... I mean, attention to detail in these write ups, y'know.

 

Seriously though, this is one of the most enjoyable threads to read on here, not just because I have an interest in the subject matter but also your writing is both entertaining and informative. Good work sir, I probably don't say that often enough.

 

Cheers Dan, that means... probably a lot more than it should do actually. I do appreciate the kind words though.

 

 

Now, as you (should) know stuff has happened recently. The stuff that happened included some new products, however time constraints resulted in a lack of photographic evidence so words will have to suffice for now.

 

First up was GTechniq W4 Citrus Foam - I had 150ml of this to play with courtesy of Waxybox (yes, I'm a little bit behind on them, I know already!) so I used all of it, mixed with 100ml of water in the bottle. Then I discovered a leak in my foam lance. Then I remembered I didn't have/use any PTFE tape last time I put it back together. Nevertheless I persevered (read; couldn't be arsed to swap it over) but apply that information to the following as you see fit. It may have affected how thick the foam was applied. It may not have done. Anyway, that said...

First point to note of W4 is that it's a much thicker consistency to every other snow foam concentrate (that I can remember anyway), it's more of a typical shampoo consistency - this is largely why I had no issue with diluting it slightly in the bottle. When applied the foam itself wasn't overly thick (in fact it was about the same as Car Chem Snow Foam) it had a fairly good dwell time of about 10 minutes or so but it didn't linger on the driveway (again, very similar to Car Chem) and it had a mild citrus smell even after being diluted by the pressure washer (unlike Car Chem). Cleaning wise it was pretty good. It wasn't the best I've tried, but it was certainly towards the top of that list.

At £14 per litre it's priced just above the Auto Finesse Avalanche level, which used to be quite expensive compared to others, however there are now a number of offering that are considerably more expensive (Gyeon, Dodo Juice, I'm look at you!) so W4 can now be considered mid-market on price. That doesn't make it cheap though...

 

All in all I'd quite happily use it if I couldn't get any of my preferred Car Chem or Bilt Hamber foam, but like Avalanche I would resent paying that much more for it.

 

 

 

 

Next up Koch Chemie Green Star Universal Cleaner. This was used neat on the tyres - sprayed on, allowed 2-3 minutes to dwell, agitated with a stiff brush, rinsed and repeated. It did a good job of cleaning up three months of filth from the Michelins on the first application (the 2nd was just to make sure they were clean as much as anything) and even before agitating you could visibly see it drawing the dirt out. Once agitated it began to foam up nicely which drew more dirt out and it rinsed freely. It's got a fairly neutral smell, so not too "chemically" like some others can be. It can be diluted for various other jobs but I've not tried that yet. It currently retails at £5.95 per litre.

 

My verdict on Green Star Universal Cleaner is that it's a good product that does what you need it to, however it's still just an APC so at £6/litre it's still £5 more than Tesco's and it does nothing differently. Even Flash will only charge you £2.30/litre if you fancied a different scent for time to time. Conclusion; good but expensive.

 

 

 

 

Another product I tried today on a Leon's very dirty wheels (that hasn't been washed in months either!) was Glimmermann Non Acidic Wheel Cleaner. Due to a lack of litmus paper I can only assume the non acidic claims are correct, however this usually means it's heavily alkaline instead (which can be just as bad if not worse - hence using it on the Leon ). The instructions call for spraying it on the wheel, allowing 2-3 minutes dwell time, agitating with a brush and rinsing (deja vu anyone?), so that's what I did. This appeared to be doing very little whilst it was dwelling, what little it did remove was akin to just pouring water over the wheel. After ~3 minutes, I agitated the filth with a couple of damp Wheel Woolies and the dirt just lifted off and rinsed away leaving a spotless wheel (well, nearly, I clearly missed the odd bit of the wheel with the Woolies here and there, such was the filthiness! But a quick scrub - with no additional product - and that too just lifted and rinsed away). In an attempt to fully test this wheel cleaner, I attempted just rinsing the wheel with the pressure washer after ~3 minute dwell (before agitating) and that lifted nothing off at all, however again no additional product was needed to lift the filth with a Woolie. I also attempted to agitate the filth with just a damp Woolie and no product, whilst some dirt removed it clearly wasn't as much as with the wheel cleaner too. It currently retails at £10.95 for 2 litres - however it should be noted that it is recommended that this is then diluted up to 1:20 - my sample came pre-diluted to 1:20 apparently so this should make 40 litres of product.

 

The verdict; a very good product at a bargain price compared to others at £13/litre (and dilution ratios of 10:1, to make 11 litres of product). However, it should be noted that the MSDS sheet is only available by contacting Glimmermann directly to request them, as such although it's fairly safe to assume that this is non acidic I cannot confirm whether this is highly alkaline or not and the product should be used with due caution. Also, whist it may not bother some that MSDS sheets aren't readily available, it's something that does bother me so I won't be buying this simply as a matter of principal.

 

 

 

 

Dr Beasley's Glass Wax is also being put to the test. In terms of application it's very much like using a glass cleaner - spray, spread, buff - but this has the added advantage of sealing whilst "cleaning". It claims to be a glass polish and sealant in one, however I assume they mean a glass cleaner rather than a polish as it clearly doesn't have any cut. When I applied it, it struggled to lift water spots and the instructions even state "clean and dry the glass first", so I question the ability to clean (or polish) at this stage. Application, however, was remarkably easy. It spread well and had the perfect flash time allowing you to cover a good area to get it nice and thin and then buffing off effortlessly. I suspect, as with my previous experience of Dr Beasley's product, that it will be another one of those "apply little and often" products as previously the products have worked very well but not for very long, however this remains to be seen. I can't currently see it for sale on the one Dr Beasley's retailer that I know of in the UK either so I don't know what it costs. It should not also be noted that it receommends NOT using this on the windscreen *this isn't true, I was mistaken*. So But I haven't, I've topped up my G1 with G5 instead (tried and tested, and all that), however Glass Wax is currently on all the other glass on my car.

 

Verdict; I'll get back to you on that one.

Edited September 11, 2015 by ilogikal1

[ilogikal1]

You might have guessed that I've washed the Z for the first time in three months this week. Well, I can't actually remember what was on the car previously (I'm sure Quartz was on somewhere, it might have been everywhere, it might not have been but I'll be buggered if I can remember) however the point is, whatever was on the car was well and truly not there any more. Except the Dodo Juice Infinity on the rear bumper, the Gyeon Prime on the side skirts, and whatever the hell was on the rear quarter panels from the door to the wheel arch (both sides, only parts of the car that was still beading at all. Very odd, I agree).

The G1 on the windscreen had been suffering of late, however a few miles in the rain with the wipers on was enough to clean whatever invisible film was interfering with the G1 to bring it back to life for the rest of the journey north to a degree (it wasn't quite as good as it was when fresh, but it was clearly working still).

 

So the car was foamed with W4 (see up there), then left out in the rain over night before being Car Chem Citrus Pre-washed and washed with WaxAddict development shampoo - I forgot the review of that, so... it cleaned well, rinsed badly and left a streaky finish, I'm not really a fan but I've got another one to try again some time. I might remember a proper review then. I might not. - and then the LSP of choice was applied, on this occasion Car Chem HydroCoat applied neat with the above combination of G5 and Glass Wax on the glass. It really needs a proper wash, decon and everything, but I simply didn't have the time to do it on this occasion, I just wanted some protection on the paint to last me until I have more time.

 

What's going on? I've not seen a wet bead since the water tank burst and soaked my sex toys.

 

You've waited long enough. And for that reason... well, partially that reason, mostly because I had too much time on my hands, I've gone all out this time... well, not all out but there's some effort applied at least. So without further ado I present to you some extra special (but still fake) beads;

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I hope that was worth the wait.

 

Also;

 

 

 

Because I didn't have any custard.

[Ekona]

:lol:

 

Now that's dedication!

[ilogikal1]

Apologies are in order. This...

Dr Beasley's Glass Wax It should also be noted that it receommends NOT using this on the windscreen.

 

...actually isn't true at all. Or well spelt. That (when properly spelt) related to a different product that I chose against using this time and I got confused. Dr Beasley's Glass Wax CAN be used on the windscreen. And it has been... but only on the Leon.

 

 

:lol:

 

Now that's dedication!

 

 

Next time I'll try to get the beads a bit more uniform, because that's already bugging me as it is.

Edited September 4, 2015 by ilogikal1

[ilogikal1]

 

...Expect updates.

[Stutopia]

About time!

[Ekona]

MOAR UPDATES PLZKTHX

[ilogikal1]

 

 

Update then.

 

The wheels were washed with Waxaddict shampoo and Wheel Woolies then rinsed, followed by being snow foamed & rinsed with the rest of the car the previous day. The car was not moved between that wash and the following fallout remover test. That meant I was starting with this;

 

 

and this

 

 

I selected today's contestants from the previously posted picture, opting for Dodo Juice Ferrous Dueller and GTechniq W6.

 

GTechniq W6 is relatively new to the market compared to many, but is not the newest... even in my test. It comes in a fairly standard GTechniq bottle - namely a white & red coloured bottle that is completely opaque and thus you cannot actually see how much product remains. Easily remedied by picking the bottle up and feeling the weight though, but worth mentioning for those who care about such things. W6 also smells like a typical fallout remover. There's no pleasant scents or attempt to hide the smell, it's all out rotting corpse here. The trigger spray that comes with the bottle is also typical GTechniq fare - i.e. a simple "on/off" trigger with only one spray pattern.

 

Dodo Juice Ferrous Dueller is somewhat less new to the market but is often overlooked as a less established offering. It comes in a clear bottle and is green liquid. For a fallout remover it smells positively delightful. It has a sweet scent that I've not yet placed and it doesn't have that rotting corpse undertone that most others do - you can actually take a whiff of this without it melting your face!*

*This comes with the warning that I had smelt a number of other fallout removers not before this one. It's probably not going to double for an air freshener but you're probably not going to be overly bothered if you get over-spray on yourself or your clothes using this one. You certainly wont get arrested whilst the police try to find the body that you're clearly hiding according to that smell on your clothes either though... well, not because of this anyway.

 

Onto the usage then.

 

Ferrous Dueller did this on the first wheel, after a ~5 minute dwell;

 

 

 

Whilst W6 did this one another wheel, after ~5 minute dwell;

 

 

Both wheels were then rinsed thoroughly using the hose (because getting the pressure washer out was a little bit too much like effort today). After about 20 minutes (ish) they were slightly less wet but still far from dry.

 

Ferrous Dueller then took the other wheel. It did this immediately after applying (plus the 10-15 seconds it took to get the camera & pics... excuse the rushed-and-therefore-not-entirely-or-at-all-in-focus photo on the right);

 

 

Most of the bottom left came from the brake rotor, but there's clearly an additional reaction elsewhere too.

 

 

W6 was then applied to the first wheel, which looked like this immediately after applying (plus a similar 10-15 seconds for the same reason);

 

 

Which also picked up additional fallout.

 

Both were given about 5 minutes to dwell. Which looked like this;

 

Ferrous Dueller

 

 

Which... er... yeah. There's that.

 

W6 looked like this;

 

 

Which is considerably less of a reaction, most of which was coming from the (iron) weights and some of which could be excused from missing bits with DJ FD... but maybe not.

 

A judgement call from me, on the basis that the 2nd hit of FD generated a much stronger reaction, determines that Dodo Juice Ferrous Dueller is going through to the next round.

 

I do have a bit more W6 (I used some on the paintwork too) so I will endeavour to confirm this decision at a later date, however I suspect that neither would make it much further based on this alone. I haven't yet written off W6 entirely, however as stated I did use this on the paintwork which was checked against a previous loser in the form of Nanolex... Nanolex reacted on all sections previously treated by W6 which suggests this was the right decision. It will be further investigated regardless though.

 

 

Tune in for the next exciting episode.

 

 

 

P.S. Curse my laptop for shutting down mid-update but thank you to whoever developed and installed the Auto Save on this forum - you, sir, have saved my wall from having a computer thrown at it!

Edited November 10, 2015 by ilogikal1

[ilogikal1]

I forgotted to add in the previous post that Ferrous Dueller comes with an adjustable trigger spray head, so you can determine the spray pattern (to a degree) by turning the nozzle at the front of the spray head. It's a minor point but yeah, just mentioning it.

 

 

Right then, I am acutely aware that a number of people are eagerly anticipating finding out whether Korrosol can match, or better, the long-term market leader in Iron X and, as you can see from the picture above, I now have plenty of both so with much further ado (possibly about nothing) I will not answer that question... yet.

 

Instead I have another question that I want to answer. CarPro currently offer no fewer than 4 (FOUR!!) fallout removers in their range; Iron X, Iron X Paste, Iron X LS and Iron X Snow Soap. I don't care about Paste. At all. So I didn't buy any of that. Iron X Snow Soap has interested slightly, but only slightly so I've only acquired a sample of that. And I've not used it. Yet.

 

So that leaves Iron X and Iron X LS. CarPro says;

We are proud to present the completion of the Iron X line with our newest formula. Introducing IronX LS (Lemon Scent) NO more harsh Odor , with Equal Power of decontamination as you have come to expect from Iron X Classic!

 

So let's find out if that's true then. (The question previously referenced was 'is LS actually as good as "Classic"?' btw).

 

So first up, Iron X "Classic" - "cherry" scented in marketing only. It reeks. The scent is similar-but-stronger in Iron X than in other products like Auto Finesse Iron Out but make no mistake, it masks nothing! I previously suggested that another product is like a rotting corpse with Battenberg in it's pockets, well Iron X is more akin to a rotting corpse in a Battenberg factory. It's unpleasant, you don't want to sniff it, spill it in enclosed (or even well ventilated!) areas and you sure as hell don't want to get any on you or your clothes.

It does come in a clear bottle. It's a slightly cloudy, clear thin-gel-like liquid. The trigger spray head that comes with it is simple on/off affair with no adjustment.

 

Iron X LS then - Lemon scented indeed. Unlike it's predecessor, LS lacks that rotting flesh stench, it's much more similar to AM Iron. It's a very chemically, peroxide-like scent masked with lemon scent. It's much more pleasant to use, you could sniff this (although not advised!) without melting your sense of smell for 3 weeks and if you get this on your clothes you're not going to be arrested whilst the police search under your floorboards for the body that produced that smell.

Same bottle, same liquid, same spray head as "Classic" (I'm going to stop with that now, it just reminds me of when Coca-Cola had to very publicly admit that they got it so very, very wrong).

 

The wheels were prepared in the same way as the last pair, surprisingly - i.e. WaxAddict shampoo wash with Wheel Woolies, & then foamed. This left me with this;

 

 

and this

 

 

Yes, I need to get my wheels refurbished. Still. Move on already.

 

Anyway, Iron X did this in ~5 minutes to one wheel;

 

 

Iron X LS did this in ~5 minutes to a different wheel;

 

 

Rinsing occurred. With a hose. Still to lazy to get the pressure washer out. A bit of drying followed. Then I got impatient and then...

 

Iron X LS did this to the previously Iron X'd wheel after ~5 minutes;

 

 

Meanwhile Iron X did this to the previously LS'd wheel after ~5 minutes;

 

 

So... er... hmmm... I... yeah.

 

More rinsing occurred. Then I returned to the wheel that started with LS followed by Iron X, and did this;

 

 

The reaction was initially both almost instant and quite strong, but it seems to largely run off leaving just the above after a few minutes.

 

I then went back to the wheel that started with Iron X followed by LS and did this;

 

 

This seemed to also react almost instantly but didn't ease off like LS did after a few minutes.

 

Both were rinsed. Again.

 

Back to the other wheel then - that's three hits already. Two with LS, one with Iron X - and this occurred;

 

 

Four hits and still picking up fallout. This was left for as long as I could bear (it started to dry out, ~10 minutes) and then...

 

 

Hit 5 and it's still turning purple!

 

 

Meanwhile, on that other wheel. The one what did gone done have Iron X, Iron X LS and Iron X thrown at it;

 

 

You'll notice two things here. Firstly, I've opted for a loser from a previous round to test three hits of Iron X with. Secondly, those f*****g spots haven't been shifted by Iron X² and/or Iron X LS! The reaction here was not only emphatic as shown but also virtually instant yet again.

 

And then for comedy value (and, because I expected much better things from Iron X, I have a litre of this stuff), I then threw hit number 5 at wheel number 1;

 

 

 

In summary then;

 

Iron X LS is not the same as Iron X. Iron X reacts much more strongly and this does not fade at all. LS reacts strongly at first but this quickly fades. It does not appear to be that LS runs off any quicker as there is always product on the surface of the wheel in the above photos, this seems to be because the colour runs much more freely once it's reacted. Either that ot the reaction is temporary and the colour slowly changes back.

 

Incidentally, LS was used on the paintwork after this. It reacted, it was rinsend and W6 followed it on the paintwork. Which also reacted. That too was rinsed and Nanolex was tested on a small area. Which also reacted. Again.

 

Conclusions; much like the previous one, I'm making a judgement call and that call is that Iron X is "better" than LS and thus LS is elimated. Like the previous one, I have more LS to confirm this, and I will. And like the previous one, I don't expect Iron X to progress much further in this test on today's performance.

 

Iron X and Iron X LS have both massively disappointed me today. Korrosol doesn't have much to live up to at this point.

Edited November 10, 2015 by ilogikal1

[Stutopia]

Great to see another mega update

 

To think of the time I could save you though...

 

 

Smells like ripe plums, fresh from the branch in a Japanese orchard. Cleans like a mutha.

[ilogikal1]

Smells like ripe plums, fresh from the branch in a Japanese orchard. Cleans like a mutha.

 

Costs more to import than a family of... yeah I probably shouldn't finish that sentence.

 

I'll stick with Revolt for now.

[ilogikal1]

Mother! Fer!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The only two silver linings to this cloud;

1) it's on the rear bumper. Which needs respraying anyway.

2) I'm not bad with DA...

 

...Fixed it.

 

 

 

 

One small, deep scratch and a one less noticeable scratch that isn't too deep still remains, but it's difficult to see unless you're looking for them now at least.

 

[Stutopia]

Proppa sick DA skillz!

 

Do you own a car boat? (See bottom pic reflection)

[ilogikal1]

 

Sadly not. And now I'm going to be (even more) disappointed every time I see that Leon.

[ilogikal1]

Just to warn you, beading pictures are about to happen... a lot.

 

Those of you who like beading shots, you are in for a real treat. Those of you who don't, you are in the wrong thread.

[ilogikal1]

Right then, this was my winter prep. "detail" (which was actually more like 'a bit of a clean' than a detail this time really) so in terms of LSP I was looking for something easy to use that'll last until the sun is seen again some time in June... yes, I'm being optimistic. Having little-to-no opportunity to even wash the car whilst I'm down south for the foreseeable future I wanted something that I could apply and forget about, no maintainance and ideally something that offered some self cleaning abilities and most-but-not-really importantly offers some good beading. Because I do like beading.

 

Ultimately I chose;

 

 

This should give me ~6 months protection without any maintenance. It's the v3 CanCoat - for anyone who is not aware, the first and second versions suffered from the nozzle getting blocked before the can was finished, Gyeon reacted to these reports for v1 quickly and replaced all purchased cans free of charge only to discover that, whilst fewer, a not insignificant number of complaints that v2 did the same thing. Gyeon went away and created v3 (and again replaced all previously sold cans for free) which was claimed to have solved this issue without the need for taking any precautionary measures to prevent it (initially the response was to remove and wash the nozzle out after use, before any product dried in there, until they could fix it properly with v2. Which didn't really work -v2 that is, not cleaning the nozzle).

 

The idea of CanCoat is simple, it's an SiO₂ coating in aerosol form. Directions for usage are; prep the paint. Once properly prepared, spray CanCoat onto a microfibre cloth & wipe over the panel, or alternatively spray directly on to the panel and then wipe over for full coverage. Then, within 2 minutes (before it begins to harden), buff all streaks out of the treated panel with a dry cloth. Once the car is completely treated, allow a minimum of 1 hour before layering (if desired) and repeat the application process. Allow 24 hours for the coating to fully harden before getting wet and 7 days before using any detergents (washing it basically). An optional, sacrificial layer of Gyeon Cure can be used to help prevent water-spotting whilst CanCoat cures fully.

 

So I set about preparing the paintwork, however both slight time constraints and major laziness meant that I had no intention of going all out - hence the lack of detailing in my detail... - with the following process;

Citrus pre-wash.

Wash.

Left for a bit to dry, in which time it got dark and I got drunk socialised with friends.

 

The following day I;

De-tarred.

Decontaminated.

Twice (see the last fallout remover test post).

Snow foamed.

Moved into the garage.

Scratches were then polished out of the rear bumper only.

Paint & glass (minus the windscreen) was deep-cleaned by hand;

 

 

That pad had been washed out during the paint cleansing too.

Twice.

That pad will never be the same again. The poor thing.

 

 

Meanwhile the paintwork was given a Gyeon Prep wipe down before applying CanCoat.

 

So a few things to note.

Firstly I didn't clay on this occasion because I had no intention of polishing at all until I discovered the damage to the bumper and I didn't want to even risk inflicting any marring before sealing it with a hard wearing coating.

Secondly, I had genuinely forgotten just how much I like Rejuvinate. Yes, it contains fillers as well as abrasives and chemical cleaners (hence using Prep before CanCoat) but just look at how much grime it's pulled out of the paint!

Thirdly, CanCoat review.

 

I'll start by saying that this should not be used out doors. Aside from the usual reasons why detailing (beyond the wash) outside isn't ideal, this is an aerosol; the slightest breeze is going to ruin your day one way or another. Indoor use only where you can control the environment much better is my first recommendation.

My second recommendation is this; what you're dealing with here is a glass coating complete with all the required solvents that allow application, in aerosol form. That means atomised particles of SiO₂. You will want to use some form of respirator for this one, if not for the solvents then for the glass coating you'll otherwise be settling in your lungs. It won't (necessary - caveat that I can't guarantee that it wont) kill you, but that can't be healthy.

 

With that in mind, I went full on Walter White... all right, not quite full on as I didn't don a yellow romper suit, but I do have a shaved head, questionable facial hair and gloves & full on respirator were donned for this job;

 

 

My third recommendation is forget the idea of spraying directly onto the panel, unless you're masking off every inch of everything you don't want to coat. Yes, it's quicker on larger panels but it's a bit of ballache trying to direct the aerosol where you want it to go and only where you want it go so you'll either be constantly wiping and buffing every surface every time you spray any CanCoat or you'll end up with a crap finish. Think of it akin to spray painting - over spray is b*tch!! V.O.E.

 

So you've decided to apply by spraying onto the cloth first; spray it in a direction that is away from the car. Prime your cloth with extra product every time you use a fresh one - you don't need a lot for an area, but you'll want more on a dry cloth than one that you've done a few panels on. Buy more cloths. You'll need them. You know those eleventy billion cloths you've got? They're not enough. I ended up using 8. Per layer. I did three layers. That's a lot of cloths. Also, forget the idea of using one cloth to apply, refold & buff. It'll become useless for buffing long before it becomes useless to for applying so save yourself a dozen more cloths and do it separately. You should be looking at using 1 or 2 to apply and 6 to buff per layer on a Z. Furthermore, make sure both cloths are suitably folded and within reach before spraying any coating, you're aiming to finish buffing the area you're coating within ~90 seconds (IMO) of spraying the first cloth. With that in mind, work in small areas - I'd recommend no more than ¹/₃ of a bonnet at a time, ideally even working in 6^ths. The boot lid can be done in 2 or 3 sections. The doors, rear wings, bumpers and roof should be done in 2 sections each. The front wings & A pillar trim can each be done in one.

 

Now you remember up there I explained that v3 is designed to require no special treatment to prevent the nozzle from blocking? Well, I dispute that. Mine blocked up completely by the time I got to the fourth panel on the third and final layer - roughly just 4-4¹/₂ hours after I started to use it. The solution is, supposedly, quite straight forward, however it should be noted that I haven't attempted this is yet (but I'll come back to that).

I contacted Polished Bliss when I'd finished who, in their usual excellent service, got back to me extremely promptly with;

 

I am sorry to hear that you are having problems with your Cancoat. We are finding that there are some that have this issue after a period, but you should hopefully be able to remedy the problem fairly easily. Please have a look at the video at the following link which shows how to clear the nozzle so that it can be used again -

 

https://dl.dropboxus...IVE-CANCOAT.MP4

 

If you have any further problems please let us know.

 

That video basically just says turn the can upside down and press the nozzle (hard - it is quite a tough ol' aerosol to use anyway by the way) against the floor/surface until it clears.

 

As said I've not tried this yet myself because in my determination to get the third coat done I pressed on before even contacting PB. I attempted to use another nozzle (from a can of WD40 in case you were wondering) but that didn't seem to want to go on and I had no other aerosols that I could remove the nozzle from. I attempted to clear the original nozzle with a pin but that didn't work... probably because I couldn't find a suitably sized pin to get right in there, but hey ho. I then resorted to basically catching the coating that leaked out around the nozzle (rather than through it) with the cloth. Which worked well enough, but it caused a lot of wastage, so I wouldn't recommend that frankly.

Anyway, I now have considerably less left that I should have but I did get three coats on, as such the can has just been stored, blocked nozzle and all. I will see if I can get it working again when I choose to use it for something else, until then it can remain blocked.

 

All that said (it doesn't seem to be so easy to use now having written all of that...), providing you use a bit of common sense with how and where you spray it along with being aware that the nozzle can/will still get blocked (which is no different to painting using rattle cans really - turn the can over and clear the nozzle after use and you should be fine), CanCoat is actually quite easy to use for a coating. Providing you remember all those things.

 

I did apply a fair amount by spraying directly onto the panel, this led to the rear window in particular suffering from over spray which has taken a glass polish (an actual, proper polish, not that Auto Glym s**te that they sell as "glass polish" by the way) to almost remove about half of that over spray. From a surface that it's not designed to bond to. It would take machine polishing to remove it from paintwork, especially once it's fully cured after 24 hours. That would ruin the finish on the paintwork if you missed any at all - - this isn't a self-levelling product, so you end up with specks of coating, like a colourless dust everywhere - and it would really ruin your day if you got any on the windscreen at all! Seriously, don't spray it directly on the surface (unless the panel you're treating is stripped off the car ).

 

So with a c**p weather providing terrible lighting it looks a bit like this when done;

 

 

The lighting doesn't do it any favours, the gloss isn't as far off Gyeon Prime (which is still on the side skirts here) or Dodo Juice Infinity (on the non-polished rear bumper... which is mostly not in this picture!) as it appears - for those of you who can remember and/or be bothered to go back to the pictures of those - but it's not quite as good as those two "proper" coatings either. That may be due to over spray that I've missed though. I have also noticed at least one smear that I missed which is now fully cured until the coating fails. Which might prove to be a fair indication of when the coating has fallen off (if the car is clean enough to see it!) though, so silver clouds... or something like that.

 

 

I have covered just about everything in CanCoat, some intentional, some not so much - paint, badges, headlights, door handles, wing mirror trim, door window seals, over spray on the rear window. The good news is that it doesn't mark rubber or plastic trim at all. The bad news is that it's not necessarily designed for anything other than paintwork so it'll be interesting to see how long it lasts on various surfaces.

 

Had I not had the issue with the nozzle, I think I would have used little over half the can for three layers. I suspect with more practice I could get the usage down to (just) under half a can, but certainly not enough to get three cars out of a single can. That places costs at about £13.50 per car (plus two dozen cloths!), which for a coating is certainly reasonable. If 3 coats last 6 months, £27 for a year's protection isn't too pricey at all really, but that remains to be seen.

 

I'm really not sure if I would buy CanCoat again though. It is easy to use, especially for a coating, but it's not as easy as it's made out to be. As you can see from my experience above there can be a lot to remember - although it has to be said most of that is common sense... hence I needed someone to tell me first . I'd quite like to have more of a play with it before writing it off entirely but at the same time I can't help but feel that all things considered a full on, all out coating is worth the small amount of extra effort for the greater results.

 

Or, to conclude, it's a good product (and despite how negative this post feels to me as I'm writing it, it is a good product) but I may have just found the first Gyeon product that would overlook in future...

[Stutopia]

Beads?

 

General question on coatings, is it all worth it over a decent sealant applied quasi regularly?

[ilogikal1]

Okay, so I've managed to narrow the beading pictures down to 153.

 

No, really.

 

Luckily for you lot, the forum won't let me post them all at once.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Expect more.

[ilogikal1]

Moar!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I will drip ( ) feed even more through later.