Now don't get me wrong, I've used the whole Zaino treatment on my truck since day one, and like it enough to continue using it. The visual results are spectacular. Here's the deal: Whenever a bird gets tanked up on burritos and what not, and decides to dump all over my black finish (and this happens a lot, dammit), I'm left with ghost spot etchings in the clear coat that don't want to come out. It's as if it's an acid that burns right through the polish with a mission to permanently stain my paint.This isn't so bad on the truck's factory finish, but horrible on my ARE LSII lid. Now the spots do seem to fade a little over time, but Jeesh, what a pain in the ***. I believe that the aftermarket clear on my lid is a little softer than the factory finish, and maybe that's the problem. But hey, protection is protection, and what difference should it make?

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2000 XLT Sport, Flareside, 2WD, SuperCab, 5.4L. Factory options: 3.55 LS, Class III tow, Dark graphite captains chairs & console w/CD changer, Remote entry , and Slider.
Mod Highlights: Window tint, light covers, Linex bedliner, ARE LSII lid, and a Flowmaster cat-back exhaust kit.
Wish list: K&N FIPK, Belltech 3/4 drop, rear sway bar, SuperChip, and a front bumper cover.
For details, go to: <A HREF="http://home.columbus.rr.com/selva1/f150.html" TARGET=_blank> </A>



[This message has been edited by selva1 (edited 05-20-2000).]

 

Selva,

Its funny that you mention this...my Dad owns a 95 Lexus SC 400. His car is black and he often parks it beside his store. Many birds perch on the top of this building and eat off a bush around back. The berries on the bush are very acidic and in the summer time the droppings on his car combined with the heat from the sun can cook them into the paint. One was so bad, we had the dealer try to buff it out. He worked on it so hard the buffer wound up burning the paint and my Dad had the fender repainted. Point is our black cars and trucks can cook this stuff into the paint and no wax can prevent that.

Any time I see a drop I immediately (at work or home) get a cup of cool water and a paper towel. Poor the water on the dropping (this helps liquify it and cool down the paint) and wipe it off. So far so good, no burned in poo. Hope this helps.

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The Truck: 1997 Black F-150 Flareside. Regular Cab ORP and Towing Package
The Mods: K&N Filter, Eurolid Hard Tonneau, Profile Windstream Side Deflectors and Lund X-Terminator Bug Deflector.
The Site:
Triton's 4.6 Liter Web Page
www.mindspring.com/~acbradley/index.html
<A HREF="https://www.alladvantage.com/joinsecure.asp?refid=LTM-954" TARGET=_blank>I made $450 surfing the web last month...you can too!
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I do the same thing. Get that ***** off ASAP, then wash it good whenever I get the chance. These new spots faded away real quickly this time when I washed the beast 12 hrs ago. It was real cool and cloudy. We'll see what it looks like in the sun later.......

[This message has been edited by selva1 (edited 05-21-2000).]

 

Yep, me too. LOL!

The hard tonneau for my truck also gets marks on it easy. Water, droppings, etc...seems like the paint on it doesn't have any clearcoat.



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The Truck: 1997 Black F-150 Flareside. Regular Cab ORP and Towing Package
The Mods: K&N Filter, Eurolid Hard Tonneau, Profile Windstream Side Deflectors and Lund X-Terminator Bug Deflector.
The Site:
Triton's 4.6 Liter Web Page
www.mindspring.com/~acbradley/index.html
<A HREF="https://www.alladvantage.com/joinsecure.asp?refid=LTM-954" TARGET=_blank>I made $450 surfing the web last month...you can too!
</A>

 

Now don't get me wrong,
You are all correct that it is best to get the poop off ASAP before the sun bakes it in. However, I switched to 3M products about 12 years ago including their carnuba wax "Show Car Shine". I detail all my cars twice a year, rewaxing the hood/roof/trunk areas every three months. So far, even seagull droppings have caused very little paint damage in terms of appearance and easily polish out without equipment. Here's a list of my vehicls with the paint colors/types...

65 Mustang/Midnight metallic blue urathane
90 F150/medium metallic blue urathane w/clear coat
97 Cougar Sport/black/laytex w/clear


Just FYI

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Member: Never trust a person over 40 who drives a Chevy club
Flatheads ain't so bad!
Certified backyard mechanic I & II