anyone here use Tuff Shine? I have a question

[Kappy]

I had a very similar experience.

In the past year I've attempted to clean the tires with a variety of cleaners, just to see if I could stop the black from coming off on the tire brush or sponge I use when cleaning them. The tires themselves never look that dirty - they just turn everything that touches them black. I've watched videos that show the release of brown foam and tried some of the suggested products, including two different AP cleaners at full strength. I've never seen brown foam released from my tires, no matter what I used for cleaning, and after cleaning they don't look much different from where I started, other than they could use some tire dressing.

After reading some great reviews for the Tuf Shine Tire Cleaner, I wanted to see if it would give me better results. I followed the directions posted on the Tuf Shine website, which are a little more detailed than those on the bottle of cleaner.

I applied 3 coats of Tuf Shine Cleaner to each of my tires using the Tuf Shine tire brush. As with other cleaners, I wasn't able to get the Tuf Shine Cleaner to foam up, and very little dirt seemed to come to the surface.

After the initial application to the first tire, I rinsed the brush using the hose as instructed, and it came out perfectly clean. After a second application of cleaner, the Tuf Shine brush stained and I couldn't rinse it clean. I tried a third application, and there was no change in the tire or the brush.

When I applied the first coat of Tuf Shine cleaner to the second tire, for some reason the brush rinsed almost completely clean, but that was the last time it did that. After the next application of cleaner, dirt remained in the brush after rinsing, and it was never as clean as when I started. When I finished cleaning all four tires, I soaked the brush in mineral spirits, which removed most of the dirt.

I hadn't ordered the Tuf Shine kit - only the cleaner and brush - because I wanted to see if I could clean the tires thoroughly before applying a different dressing or coating. I didn't want to try the Tuf Shine clearcoat, unless I knew that I used the cleaning product correctly and the tires themselves were properly prepared. Opti-Bond is the only dressing that's been applied to the tires since I've owned the car, other than a few applications of EcoTouch Tire Shine.

I used almost an entire bottle of Tuf Shine Cleaner for four tires, and maybe it still wasn't enough product. It just seemed that no matter how much I applied, and how much I scrubbed, there was no foaming action during brushing, or any indication that the cleaner was doing anything, other than getting the brush dirty. When dry, the tires looked like they did when I started, minus the tire dressing, which is what happened with other cleaners.

I called Tuf Shine and spoke to Bob to see if he could recommend something else that I could try, or figure out what I did wrong. We traded some emails, and he said it's an unusual situation and recommended an application of lacquer thinner to see if it could remove whatever might be on the tires. I'm not a big fan of lacquer thinner and I think I'd rather live with the problem. Since the tires don't actually look bad, and I have a lifetime supply of Opti-Bond, I probably won't worry about getting them clean enough for the Tuf Shine Tire Coating.

[swanicyouth]

If you have a silicone/solvent based dressing on the tire (Dub?) - you may not get foam for a few cleanings. It's very important to clean the bristles of the brush when they turn dark/black with clean running water (not in a bucket). I can not stress this enough. If not, you will just re-deposit the old dressing or dirt onto the tire.

Also, I have a few other tips. First, always use the cleaner (non concentrate version ) diluted with DI water 1:1. This is a tip directly from Tuff Shine, and makes the cleaner go twice as far (costs half as much) - and doesn't really impact the cleaning ability much - if at all. Use DI water (not tap) - as mineral free water will ALWAYS suds up better than hard tap water.

Second, always use the cleaner with a foaming sprayer. Mixing it with water seems to make it foam up even better. I use the Griot's Foaming Sprayer - but any will work.

Third, if your tire is gunked up with some silicone nasty dressing, clean with a strong APC first to get the majority of it off first. I recommend LA's Totally Awesome - which costs $1 for 16oz at the Dollar Store. In fact, I just bought a whole bunch of bottles of this product and dumped them in an empty gallon bottle with a pump dispenser. You can use LATA neat, or cut 50% with water.

Fourth, instead of scrubbing and scrubbing the tire over and over like 10x then rinsing - go around the tire once or twice with minimal cleaner. Then rinse. Then repeat. The silicone needs to be rinsed off the tire, and the cleaner can only take so much off at a time. Scrubbing over and over the same dirty cleaner doesn't yield better results. Spraying tons of cleaner on the tire (without rinsing) doesn't yield better results and just means tons of good cleaner will end up on the ground. You have to frequently rinse and apply more cleaner.

Fifth, after your initial go round the tire and rinse, spray the cleaner directly on the brush as opposed to the tire. Then, work on about 1/3 of the tire at a time. Rinse (brush and tire), then repeat on the next third. You will use less product this way, because you work are will be shrunk to 1/3 of the tire and half the cleaner won't be running off the tire onto the ground.

Sixth, if you can't get the brush clean - it's saturated. Clean it with mineral spirits until it's snow white.this is done by putting some mineral spirits on an old terry towel, then scrubbing the brush on the towel - then rinsing.

I still say nothing cleans tires like TS Tire Cleaner once the learning curve is passed. I did some recent comparisons with Meg's Super Degreaser vrs TS Tire Cleaner - there was no comparison. TS killed SD. TS Tire Cleaner removed body shop paint from a tire. Other APCs wouldn't touch it.

[allenk4]

If your brush was getting "dirty"...the tires must have been getting cleaner; right?

[allenk4]

Great pointers Swanicyouth

[Mizzoutiger]

I use it and love it, but you must invest the time to do it right!

Tips.
- Thorough cleaning (esp in grooves/letters) is critical for best results. I usually spend at least 20 minutes per tire. And I usually use on new tires, since easier to clean if never had tire dressings
- PC makes cleaning easier; Mike shows how https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxO6u2xSbIoAs
- More great tips https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5EJTYvP6w0
- Apply clearcoat in thin layers and allow to dry between each layer; layer until you reach desired shine/gloss

[UglyBetty]

I use DP exterior cleanse all first, then tuff shine cleaner, before TS coating. Works well for me, generally the DP product removes everything and the TS cleaner foams whit on the first try.

[tommythecat]

I just did my tires a couple weeks ago. Pulled all four wheels off to clean and coat them. MY process was as follows...

Scrubbed with:
Megs Degreaser 2x
Megs APC+ 2x
Tuf Shine Tire Cleaner 2x

The first two scrubbings with degreaser had lots of nasty crap coming off the tires. Suds were a little cleaner with APC+. The first scrubbing with the Tuf Shine Tire Cleaner the suds were a little dirty, and on the second they were white. I had suds every time I scrubbed.

I have to say that the tire brush that comes with the kit is awesome. The best tire brush I have ever used.

[Woob]

Try using a dry microfiber with a strong solvent like Tarminator/etc. Repeated APCs/tire cleaners in the wet phase can only go so far.

[JWilliams.RadiantDetail]

If you have a silicone/solvent based dressing on the tire (Dub?) - you may not get foam for a few cleanings. It's very important to clean the bristles of the brush when they turn dark/black with clean running water (not in a bucket). I can not stress this enough. If not, you will just re-deposit the old dressing or dirt onto the tire.

Also, I have a few other tips. First, always use the cleaner (non concentrate version ) diluted with DI water 1:1. This is a tip directly from Tuff Shine, and makes the cleaner go twice as far (costs half as much) - and doesn't really impact the cleaning ability much - if at all. Use DI water (not tap) - as mineral free water will ALWAYS suds up better than hard tap water.

THANKS I would have never assumed the non concentrated one could be diluted. So if I bought the concentrated it could be diluted 2:1 right? This really makes me not look at it as being so expensive. 2:1 @ a gallon would be a pretty damn good deal even if I have to use a decent amount.