opti-coat prep question

[Bigpat]

Hello, im thinking about going the opti-coat route on my DD, i will be polishing for extended periods of time, but anyway i have a PCxp and menz SIP and nano.... i want my car to be blinding white i found a good combo of wax/sealer i am very happy with but everyone speaks so highly of OC so best way for me to get my "blinding" white???? Im thinking SIP for swirls (ive had good luck with orange pad) then hit her with the nano and a white pad..... possibly a jeweling pad?? Any thoughts... or should i scratch the idea and stay with every 2 week waxings over a sealant.... then every 2 month sealing

[LegacyGT]

I Love Opti-Coat, it is like nothing I have used before. It will prevent your white from staining and and give you something to polish down other than your clear in the future. KC's has an amazing picture showing a 50/50 on a hood that had half of it OC'd for a year, the difference in the color white was amazing.

Especially for a Daily Driver, I think OC is the way to go. I have had it on my Daily driver now for quite a while and I am still impressed every time it rains or I clean it.

Your polishes sound good, Nano on white will finish down very well. It would be a great finish, however, if you want the best quality finish underneath your coating, and are willing to put the time in (which it sounds like you are) you can add PO85RD on Black/Blue/Gold to really amp it up to its full potential.

One of the most important things when applying OC is to get off all of the surface oils and have a surgically clean surface to apply to. Pick up some Car-Pro Eraser to help in this task, it is 100x better than IPA to work with.

Also do some searches, Rasky has a great video on applying OC. It takes a bit of practice to get the hang of it, and thin thin thin is in. It will be very hard to see while applying to white, but just follow up with a no pressure pass with a MF and you should be good to go.

[LegacyGT]

Edit: Here is KC's thread which will show you a comparison with OC over 13 months: http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/show-n-shine/38139-20-ways-you-waste-money-your-car-2.html#post498770

[embolism]

for applying on white, I'd list out the panels in order on a sheet of paper then stick to it or you will forget what you've done...

[TLMitchell]

Any thoughts... or should i scratch the idea and stay with every 2 week waxings over a sealant.... then every 2 month sealing

Depends on your ultimate goal. Regardless of whether you seal/wax or OC your results are dependent on the prep. The "blinding white" is the result of a lack of defects due to polishing.

I've got a white extended cab 4x4. It's a PITA to polish due to size and height. I do enjoy that fresh LSP look & feel but don't particularly enjoy tackling the beast frequently enough to keep it looking pristine. After experimenting with Opti Coat on the paint inside the rear fender wells I was sold. Tar and road crud that accumulates there now washes off with a mitt and regular wash solution or ONR. It used to be a periodic task to deep-clean all that crud out of there, especially in the winter.

I started OC piecemeal.... did the roof, tailgate, hood and front end. After a 7-day road trip I found the bugs washed off the front with ease and everything still had that just-polished look. As I prefer a slicker wipe-off after blowing dry I use DGAW periodically. The sides and anything I missed are getting polished and OCed today.

If you have the time and inclination to polish, wax & seal frequently enough to preserve the look and protection you want, continue to do so. However, if you want your DD to be more maintenance free and shed contaminents and dirt easier go with OC. Once you achieve the "brilliant white" you seek via polishing OC will preserve it. If you're inclined to touch it up from time to time a light polishing for bonding purposes and another dose of OC will refresh things. A touchup with Poli Seal produces nice results as well. Some still top OC with wax or sealants and enjoy that fresh, slick feel... temporarily. LSPs won't bond to OC so, IMO, they're wasting their time. Whatever trips your trigger....

If I owned a garage queen with smooth, sexy lines that I just couldn't keep my hands off I'd probably still be polishing, sealing, waxing, etc. But for a DD that sees all-weather, particularly in NE Ohio winters, OC is the ticket.

Like Opti Seal, Opti Coat is tough to see going on white. I apply in a darkened garage using the halogens and frequently have the applicator in one hand and a Brinkmann in the other.

TL

[CEE DOG]

Excellent advice and information from all :dblthumb2: :dblthumb2:

[tuscarora dave]

I am going to copy and paste something here that I wrote to try to help out another member here. He found it to be useful info, so it may be useful to you as well being it was written concerning applying Opti-Coat on white paint. If you have already read it, just disregard it.


As far applying it on white paint or any paint for that matter what I do is to just forget about trying to be so sparing with it and apply more to the applicator than what Optimum recommends. I look over the car and devise a plan of attack first. I ask myself a few questions.

1. What panels have a gap or seam around the entire panel that will enable me to apply Opti-Coat to that panel and not rub the applicator against it while applying it to another panel later? If such a panel exists I do this panel first, IF it isn't in a location that I may accidentally rub any part of my body against during the application to another panel.

2. Where shall I begin my application and and will I be able to reach my beginning point from the other side when I run over there to apply the product to the other side from the other side of the vehicle? If not then I am sure to get a ladder before I begin the application instead of going to look for one in the middle of the rush of applying the Opti-Coat.

I have a rather large belly so I have to make that part of the plan and start at the top and work my way down to the bottom of the car so my belly doesn't smudge things up.

I try to do the roof first then the hood then the trunk lid then both front fenders and around the front bumper and grille. Next I decide if I'm going to be doing the side glass or not. If so I do the glass and all surrounding rubber and or chrome trim, then do the side mirror housings before moving down to do the doors. After the doors I move onto the rear quarters.

If there is no seam to separate the rear quarters from the part of the roof that the doors close onto, at this time I open the doors and do the rear quarter and continue up the pillar and around where the doors close at the top. finally I move onto the rear bumper and tail lights.

Earlier I mentioned not being so sparing with the product. I apply more product to the applicator because it helps to allow the applicator to glide easier across the paint and also ensures that I am getting full coverage with the product.

Starting with the roof with a clean microfiber towel in my back pocket, I start applying the opti-coat in the center of the roof about ten inches from the middle of the car. I find that short side to side strokes of the applicator is easier than trying to move the applicator in long sweeping strokes. I do a strip from the center of the roof to the front stopping at the windshield rubber seal, (I apply on the seal) then I go from my starting point in the middle of the roof and work toward the rear glass. I work in roughly ten inch applicator strokes moving the applicator from the center of the roof toward the side where the doors are (against the direction that the air flows across the car).

Next I apply another strip of the product from the rear glass to the front glass as far as my arm can reach toward the center of the roof making sure that I am overlapping the first strip that I did by a few inches. Then I start from the edge of the roof closest to the doors and work in the same direction until I reach the first strip of product that I laid down. So far all I have done is side to side strokes of the applicator on one half of the roof.

Now I will start near the windshield and apply the Opti-Coat in the direction that the air travels across the roof (front to back) in ten inch applicator strokes going over the entire half of the roof that I have already applied the Opti-Coat to but now i am moving the applicator in the opposite direction. This ensures total coverage and takes about 8 minutes in total.

The last thing I do before running over to the other side of the car to apply to the other side of the roof is to grab the rag from my back pocket and lightly buff off the wet spots and/or the haze marks. On white paint you won't see them but they are there, trust me on this. I lightly buff that half of the roof in side to side direction then from front to back and quickly run to the other side of the roof Apply more Opti-Coat to my applicator and repeat the same exact steps ensuring that I do not apply the Opti-Coat farther out on the roof than what I can reach with my towel to lightly buff off the haze and wet spots.

The roof is the hardest panel to do IMO. and once it's done I simply repeat this procedure on all other panels applying the Opti-Coat in two different directions then lightly buff down the haze and wet areas with the towel in my back pocket.

The important thing is to rely more on your memory than on your eyesight and remember what fender you started at because by the time you get around the car and back to that fender the Opti-Coat will have begun to cure and if you apply or buff onto that panel after it has begun to cure you will likely have a smudgy mess to buff off and redo.


You really have to hustle to get the Opti-Coat applied and buffed down if you want the best results. Click the link below to see the results of my process.

Polished my daily driver for the last time.

I hope this helps, TD

[LegacyGT]

Here is Rasky's application Video I was talking about:


Opti-Coat 2.0 application.wmv - YouTube

[Twister]

OC is easy to apply, you will really enjoy it once you have coated your car. Rasky's video has some good tips for application too

[jamores23]

good luck brother! let us know what went wrong while you were doing it and how you perfected it. i will be following you!

[Harleyguy]

If it helps at all when I was at Sema I got to spend some time with Chris from Optimum with plenty of OC on hand a hood in place he showed me how he applies OC instead of making a X or drops on the pad He applies an X on the hood and works his way out from the X since is was a small hood we were able to cover the whole hood on one process . Also Optimum is coming out with a new design pad that I feel is a huge improvement over the present one .

One other thing I learned when Corey and myself were using it on my Harley was having a little less light on the panels it was actually easier to see the product flashing and looking for high spots

[TLMitchell]

If it helps at all when I was at Sema I got to spend some time with Chris from Optimum with plenty of OC on hand a hood in place he showed me how he applies OC instead of making a X or drops on the pad He applies an X on the hood and works his way out from the X since is was a small hood we were able to cover the whole hood on one process .

Makes me wonder what he does for vertical surfaces...


Also Optimum is coming out with a new design pad that I feel is a huge improvement over the present one .

I've been using Anthony Orosco's blue-shop-towel method. Works nice.


One other thing I learned when Corey and myself were using it on my Harley was having a little less light on the panels it was actually easier to see the product flashing and looking for high spots

I discovered that with a white vehicle... dark garage with the halogens aimed indirectly made things much easier to see.

TL

[crxman2010]

I found Rasky's video to be very helpful.

Even though I was working with a dark color car, I would agree with Harleyguy, with all the lights I was using and hitting the panel with, Opti-Coat was easiest to see when I cut back to just my poor dim florescent lights.

Just don't over think it, I had never applied Opti-Seal before nor any other liquid wipe on, (straight to the big time) and I have yet to find something wrong with the opti-coat application we did.

Here is the full brain dump I did after applying opti-coat for the first time: Opti-Coat (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/show-n-shine/42705-2012-acura-tl-6mt-optimum-opti-coat.html)