New car, trying a new combo... Some questions

[mdtony]

I have been detailing my own cars for years...
Here is my process:

To wash, I typically use a foam cannon / power washer and two bucket method. On really cold winter month I ll do an occasional rincelsss, and while it's ok on.my wife's hard VW clear, Toyotas soft clear scratches no matter what I do.



For paint prep I am a big fan of 105/205 and foam lake country pads ( just got a 210) on a PC 7424
I use otc clay from meguires and Mike's IPA formula.

For LSP I love love love optiseal, I think it's looks good on black or white and is super easy. I also love it on trim and glass. I do a proper detail couple times per year... But i use optiseal as a drying aid every few weeks. I once tried collonite 845 on top of optiseal on my wife's white Passat and it looked and beaded great for few weeks and than I think Optiseal took over.


For the past 2 years I drove a black Toyota with a super soft clear and noticed that optiseal did not do a good enough job protecting from bird bombs. In one case few bird bombs left circle outlines on the paint after just few hours in the sun when I was at work, it was a 70 degree fall day so nothing crazy. I had to get the buffer out and the demage was so strong, that 205 with an orange LC pad didn't do it. M105 was needed.

I am getting a new car next week. It's a black VW Atlas . I had four other VWs and I think the clear is very hard.
Thinking to try Jescar powerlock/ 845 combo... But was wondering if I still use optiseal as a drying aide will it all just basically take in the properties of optiseal or will the extra protection from Jescar and 845 still be there ??

Thanks

[Billy Baldone]

Typically PowerLock likes a pure clean surface to adhere to. As for bird crap, the only product on the market that I am aware of that does the best job at holding up against them, is a graphene coating. Even ceramics don’t keep it from etching the coating.

[mdtony]

Thank you Billy, yea Jescar will go on first. Followed by 845 after few hours. Optiseal makes a claim that it will go through wax or other sealants to bond to the paint...
As far as coatings, I am tempted to try something like a cquartz uk, but that may have to wait until summer.

[Markymapo]

I do find that ceramic coatings and Collinite products hold up better to bird bombs compared to other coatings. My wife’s car has CQuartz EXO n monthly treated with SiO2 . My other vehicles had WGDGS and PNS on it and bird bombs had their way with it. Just my personal experience, others have seen different results

[Billy Baldone]

If you use Optiseal as a drying aid, it will bond to the paint before PowerLock goes on

[mdtony]

If you use Optiseal as a drying aid, it will bond to the paint before PowerLock goes on

Right , that's what I figured... Do you think 845 can sit on top of optiseal? Or there is no point...

Btw I still think Optiseal is a way to go for windows and trim. For example when I hear people saying I ran out of window spray liquid in the car, I am like "huh"? Because I almost never have to use it... Also makes the plastic trim just a bit shiny and lasts way longer on plastics than 303, which I love on the interior.

[Billy Baldone]

845 on top of Optiseal is a better combo than PiwerLock on Optiseal. Yes that would be better

[SWETM]

If you have the Powerlock/845 combo on the paint you have the 845 behavior on the combo in the sense of water behavior and self cleaning ability from it. And when you start to wash after it's applyied and use any car soap that leaves something behind as in protection and glossenhancers it will interfear with the looks and behavior at some level until it's wears off and the behavior from the 845 is back usually in a week plus minus. The same if you use Opti-seal then you getting it's water behavior and self cleaning ability from it. This since it's a sealant usually last longer and builds up if you use it at every wash you do. So what do get out of the Powerlock/845 combo is the looks and the protection ability from them. Then I don't know the carriers used in Opti-seal and if they are going to be interfearing with the 845 hydrophobic caractics. This is something that get when stacking different kind of protection products. So if you like Opti-seal what do you want out of the Powerlock/845 combo? And as I understand it you get a good durability of Opti-seal as a stand alone LSP. Since you also use it as a drying aid you adding to the O-S you already have and make it performance to be high for a long time. If you also wash with something like the Optimum Car Wash I think that you will be fine until you get fine marring and scratches from the daily use. Then it's time to be polishing it again. It's how you touch your paint that determind how long it takes before you feel like it's time to be polishing it again. So a gentle wash technique and method is important to dial in as good as possible to make the polishing getting a longer time in between they are done.

It's usually not any problems with stacking products. But useing long lasting protection products very often. Can build it up so it reach a point where it actually can dull the finish on your paint. Happens more often with organic waxes when they are applyied to often it gets like a haze instead of a clear glossy finish.

Is it that Opti-seal on it's own don't get you enough protection? When you get like bird bombs on it. If you have it on the Powerlock/845 combo you still going to be getting etching on the O-S. And it's hard to just get of the O-S and get the 845 left if that's strong enough to not being etched by it. And if that's also gets etched and the Powerlock stands up to it. How are you going to be getting the damaged O-S and 845 off and have the Powerlock intact? Now this is extreme and just to make a point in that if you get etching by anything. And it's not through to the paint but only on the protection. You still need to be doing a fine polishing and reapply the LSP you have on the paint. The benefit with the protection is that you don't need to be abrading off as much clearcoat as if it where being unprotected. The level of protection is often that it stands up to thing like bird bombs a longer time before it's going through and keep etching into the clearcoat. So with stacking many different protection products it's impossible to know how these bonds together and if they deminishing the product you are layering over and such.

My personal view on it is to apply a great sealant or coating. And if topping it use a recommended topper for it. Then when it degrades over time I can start with testing different kind of topper on it. This way I know in some way where I stand and when it's time to reapply the base protection product. So I'm looking for a base protection product that gives me above 6 months at least of longevity. And after the 6 months doing a thorough decon wash and reapply the base protection product again. Then do that until I feel like I have gotten a finish with fine marring that dulling the paint to much. And do a polishing step then. It took over 2 years until I feeled like it where time to do a polishing and applyied a new base protection this time and have used many different base protection products after the decon washes during these 2 1/2 years.

If you like what you get in the looks from O-S. But want to have a higher base protection. I would polishing and apply Powerlock as a stand alone LSP. And if you want to use O-S as a drying aid you can do that. But look at the water behavior when you first wash your and rinse off the car soap. That's what you get from Powerlock. And if you use O-S as a drying aid you will see after the next wash it's water behavior. I think that you will be seeing a small difference between them.

[mdtony]

What I am looking form Jescar / 845 is more of the optiseal that I love... I think because I am excited for the new car, I may be just willing to put more time into it. I have a feeling part of the problem I was having was the soft Toyota clear, after owning vws since 98, I could not believe the horrible paint on the toyota, It would chip, mar, and swirl... And removing bird droppings required machine polish after