Collinite 845 - the "Rocky Balboa" of waxes

**Shane731** · 01-30-2011, 07:40 PM

Yes, I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, "Rocky Balboa? Why does he call it the 'Rocky Balboa' of waxes?" Well, if you are familiar with the Rocky movies, then you will recall that Rocky (played by Sylvester Stallone) was an underdog, little known or respected until his big fight with Apollo Creed, and after that fight he became a legend almost overnight. But he had to fight for his place - he had to show that once he stepped into the ring, even an underdog can take on the big dogs. And that's what Collinite 845 is - an underdog. It doesn't get mentioned a whole lot, it doesn't get praised a whole lot, and at such a low price, it very quickly and easily gets brushed aside in favor of prettier, more expensive waxes/sealants.

I washed, clayed, and applied two coats of Collinite 845 to our 2000 Honda Accord right around the end of November/first of December. Since that time, it has received no QD wipedowns, no waterless washes, no rinseless washes, no regular washes, no DIY washes, no automatic washes, no touchless washes, nothing. Nada, zip, zilch, zero. Part of the reason for this is that we have had some just plain nasty weather the past couple months, and I have no space to work in. Also, I work 6 days a week at two part-time jobs (45+ hours a week), so my time spent detailing is quite limited. Well, low and behold, it was in the upper 50's today, and it was a Sunday, so I didn't have to work. Perfect time to wash this car and see how my previously applied coats of 845 were faring. Truth be told, I was fully expecting to have to clay and wax the car. I didn't think Collinite 845 could possibly have held up to the rain, snow, ice, and dirt that had accumulated from regular driving and sitting outside 24/7. I thought my notions were confirmed when I did my initial rinse. As it was, after washing the dirt off, I was very pleasantly surprised and downright amazed. My wash solution was about 3 ounces of Duragloss 901 and 2 ounces of ONR. Check it out (sorry there is no sound - my camera does not have a microphone to record sound):

After wash beading

Let's see how well the side panels fared:

after washing pic

Let's see how well Aquapel is holding up - applied at the same time as the Collinite:

Some pics after washing and drying with a Cobra Guzzler using DP Final Gloss as a drying aid:

There was even still some slickness to the paint afterwards (although this may have been partially due to the Final Gloss). A quick application of Aquawax and it was good to go! Truly amazing that an underdog could stand up to that kind of abuse and still come out ahead. If you're a skeptic who's been wondering whether or not you should buy this, I don't know what you're still waiting for. You need to just plain buy it! Hope you liked my review. Comments, suggestions, and criticisms welcome! Thanks for looking.

**BobbyG** · 01-30-2011, 07:46 PM

Shane, I could not have said it better and the proof is indisputable!

Collinite 845 is The Eye of The Tiger......

**Old Tiger** · 01-30-2011, 08:05 PM

Good job Shane!

**mdb917** · 01-30-2011, 08:30 PM

Looks like there is a turning tide towards the underdogs of late. The review of the Megs UQW and now this news.

Nice write up and thanks for putting this together.

**TLMitchell** · 01-30-2011, 08:49 PM

Originally Posted by CieraSL

And that's what Collinite 845 is - an underdog. It doesn't get mentioned a whole lot, it doesn't get praised a whole lot, and at such a low price, it very quickly and easily gets brushed aside in favor of prettier, more expensive waxes/sealants.

Only by those that haven't tried it. I've been on the 845 bandwagon for over 30 years. Doesn't make any sense to me to use anything else.

TL

**pfix** · 01-30-2011, 08:49 PM

It really is a nice wax. We just put 2 coats on my wife's Volvo this weekend and she was amazed how easy it was to remove and how good it looks.

This is another product that I will not be without in the future.

**James K** · 01-30-2011, 09:07 PM

To say it doesn't get mentioned is highly misleading. I think it is mentioned in any thread about wax. Everyone who mentions it praises it. I have not tried it, but it is in my shopping cart for my next order because of all the mention on this and other sites.

**BillyJack** · 01-30-2011, 09:14 PM

About 30 years ago I was having a beer with a co-worker. We had just started stocking the Meguiar's line at the dealership and were discussing our favorite waxes and polishes. An old man leaned over and said "Collinite, kid-that's all you need". I just blew it off. I had seen the stuff at my local hardware store. Plain bottles with names like Insulator Wax, Metal Wax and Sapphire, no advertising in the car mags, certainly couldn't be any good.
Fast forward to 2010. After joining up here, the name Collinite appeared again. I went back to the same hardware store, dropped 15 bucks for a bottle of 845, and laid a couple coats on my winter driver. Great stuff! Applied in early December, it's still beading in late January. I use it on glass too. Windows stay cleaner and I do less ice scraping than I've ever done before. We've had 25 days of snow in January and I've never had a window refuse to open because of ice.
I know the old guy has long since passed, but if I ever see him again, I owe him a cold one.

Bill

**BillyJack** · 01-30-2011, 09:22 PM

Has anyone had any experience with their Sapphire Cleaner Wax paste? If it's anything like 845, it ought to be a good choice for the times when you need a bit of cleaning action.

Bill

**Shane731** · 01-30-2011, 09:30 PM

Originally Posted by M.P. Cobra Fan

To say it doesn't get mentioned is highly misleading. I think it is mentioned in any thread about wax. Everyone who mentions it praises it. I have not tried it, but it is in my shopping cart for my next order because of all the mention on this and other sites.

Perhaps I phrased that wrong - particularly on "wax wars" threads, at least the ones I have seen, when somebody asks, "What is the best wax," I usually see the big dogs get the most mention - Zaino, Swissvax, Zymol, Wolfgang Fuzion, Souveran, Victoria's Wax, Chemical Guys, Dodo Juice, BFWD, DGPS, Power Lock, etc. Collinite 845 only seems to get mentioned by the "Collinite faithful". Any time an underdog gets mentioned, somebody gets all sore and snooty about it. It just doesn't command the same respect that, say, Swissvax or Souveran do - the "waxes with a rep". That is why, in my mind, I perceive Collinite 845 to be a less-mentioned underdog.