Old School No More

[Pappy]

I have always been of the mind set that the best way to wax a vehicle is with a high quality paste wax. For several years I have used Turtle Wax.

I needed to clean and wax the Harley and decided to go a different route. A couple of months ago 'Classic Trucks' had a new wax in the Parts Depatment from Armor All called Extreme Shield and decided to give it a try.

I started by washing the front end of my Dodge and then washing the Harley, letting the hard water dry and spot on them. I have had the Dodge 7 years and probably waxed it twice. I put the wax on the hood with the supplied applicator and dried/wiped it off with a micro towel, also supplied in the box. You don't wait for the wax to haze over and then have to buff it out. Wipe on the wax and dry/wipe immediately. Even on the abused, neglected 12 year old paint the smooth finish and depth of shine is great. Water spots are all gone. I got some on the end of the black bumper cover. Most waxes will turn these rubber and plastic trim pieces white and spotty. The area I hit is almost the original color. Waiting to see how that looks after a few days in the sun.

Moved on to the bike and did the wax job in about 30 minutes, including a lot of the bright work. How well it holds up on the hot chrome of the pipe shields and mufflers remains to be seen.

In addition to the Extreme shield I picked up their Ultra Shine Wash and Wax Detailer to kep the light dirt and water spots off between washings. I'm going to do a bit more reading on some of their other shine products like wheel cleaners and one called Butter Smooth Wax.

If you can't tell.....I am impressed so far!

[Cochese]

I use a bunch of stuff not found in stores. Not saying what I use is better, but perhaps offering some alternatives to people who might not realize the other options out there.

I use a lot of products from http://optimumcarcare.com No rinse car wash, spray wax, instant detailer, etc. The no-rinse wash works very well and very cheap for clay lube.

For my regular washes I use Citrus Wash & Gloss from www.chemicalguys.com Gives a nice foam with my Gilmour gun, but you can get a really nice foam with just about any soap and an Ortho Dial-a-gun.

[leehljp]

Thanks for the tip on the wax.

Youl live in a time in which you can enjoy the best of both worlds - old school and new. There are still some things that still work best the old way. But there sure is a lot of great things out there today that yesteryear mentality can't match.

WISDOM is knowing when to use which and it looks like you are there!

[Pappy]

Note: I edited the OP because I had the name wrong on the wax I used. It is Extreme Shield, not Ultra Shine.

[cabinetman]

Note: I edited the OP because I had the name wrong on the wax I used. It is Extreme Shield, not Ultra Shine.

I'm going to have to try that stuff out. This might date me, but back in the days of my first cars, Simonize was popular, and then came Vista. Blue Coral had the hype. Car waxes now are understandably better. They benefit from current technology and cater to be more 'user friendly'.

.

[JimD]

I have used NuFinish for more than 10 years now on several vehicles. I have waxed most of them about 1 time per year. I keep vehicles 8-10 years. The paint has been in good shape on each one. I even use this "Walmart" wax on my BMW convertible. I get flamed if I mention this on the BMW forums. I believe it is a sealant rather than a traditional wax as are many of the newer products. I use mothers "back to black" before waxing on the black finished items on my SUV and bimmer.

I also like cleaning the glass with "invisible glass" cleaner with the water repellant in it. I keep little 12x12 microfiber cloths from harbor freight around for a spot cleaner and the glass cleaner in the garage and just wash them in the washing machine when they get dirty. I have a bigger microfiber I dry with if I am going to wax. For the bimmer, I clay it once a year too, before applying wax. I think it removes things washing doesn't but the SUV is too big and old for that much attention.

Jim

[jking]

I'm going to have to try that stuff out. This might date me, but back in the days of my first cars, Simonize was popular, and then came Vista. Blue Coral had the hype. Car waxes now are understandably better. They benefit from current technology and cater to be more 'user friendly'.

.

There was something I recall my Dad buying called "Blue Max". Maybe it was actually the Blue Coral product you mentioned. I remember it was highly recommended. I think it got used just a few times before it got tossed in the trash. The stuff did not work well on older paint & it dried so fast and hard that I think you really needed a power polisher.

[tommyt654]

When I was a Mgr. at Motions in Marietta we had to keep a case of Pledge in stock for the salesman to polish up the bikes on the floor displays. Works well, I had to admit and ease of spraying made it really nice as well, plus gave the bikes that lemony smell

[gsmittle]

… and one called Butter Smooth Wax.

If you can't tell.....I am impressed so far!

Hmmm… Sounds like that Butter Smooth Wax has a different use…

g.