Just had a friend tell me that there was no wax on my truck BUT I had just polished and waxed it about 3 weeks ago. I use Meguire's stuff bought from Canadian Tire, but you can get it anywhere. I was alittle distrubed about my friends comment. What do you guys know, use and have heard about the best polish and waxes on the market today? Very concerned Ford Lover !!

Have Fun & Keep on Truckin'
IzzyEddy

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1994 F-150 Supercab, Long Box. Royal Blue in and out with captain chairs, chrome rims, Michlein LTX M/S tires, soft tonneau cover and soooooon upgraded stereo.

 

Blitz Wax!!!
Check out www.carcareonline.com

 

Izzy,
My personal prefernce is Meguair's. I've been using the professional & deep cyrstal series products exclusively. They give me the best results. My old ride, a black 88 Toyota P/U, looked great. Even after 11 years of exposure and abuse, the paint looked good.
My new truck, all of one week old, received the meguair's treatment today. Show car glaze, followed by hi-tech yellow wax. Looks like a mirror. BTW, this truck is also black.
Between polishing & waxing, I'd dust it off with one of those Califonia dusters & apply some 'quick detailer' or 'final inspection'. The Meguair's product line is very complete. If you're looking to change products, then you might try Mother's or Wax Shop. Either of these would be my next choice. Good Luck.
LM

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'99 Black F250 SC 4x4 4.6L 5Sp 3.73LS Rear
Bug Shield, 'Snapless' Tonneau, Alarm
Plenty of mods in the plans.

 

In between the real waxing, I wash my truck every weekend with a wash/wax soap. I've just tried out a different product called carnauba wash I think put out by coral blue. Not a lot of soap here but really pours on the "shine". When I do wax, I use pure carnauba made by Royal.(got it from a detailer) This stuff is like a cake of soap and I apply w/a small wet sponge. My truck is now 3 years old and looks show room floor new & shinny. I use the meguairs cleaner/wax about twice a year to remove hard water spots. And I always dry w/a leather chamise. (that really helps w/water spots)

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97F150 XLT SC 4x4 Flairside 4.6 V8 5sp Dk Toreador Red,skid plates
leaky sliding rear window, Hard tonneau cover, p255/70rx16 tires
(it came with sm. tires) 40s Flowmaster, 3.55 LS, Pioneer CD w/4 Polk Speakers
bed liner, side window deflectors, reese hitch K&N air filter, superchip

 

I use the same Blue Coral Wash that Tina does - I but it by the gallon for my big truck. To save time waxing, I tried the new "Easy on - Easy Off" wax from Turtle Wax. (Someone else mentioned it here on the board.) Works great. Looks great. I wash weekly and dry with a chamois.
See the pictures on the truck's web-site (only a click away...)

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1999 F-250 XLT Super Duty Crew Cab Long Bed
V-10, Automatic 4R100, 4.30 Limited Slip.
GVW = 6700# Towing Capacity = 13,300#
Dark Hunter Green. Ford Running Boards.
Grey Rhino-Liner. Captain's Chairs. CD+Tape
* * * Non-Leaking Sliding Window * * *
http://members.home.net/jchartier/jnctrk.html

 

J C: That is one BIG (BIG) truck. It takes me 1 hour to wash and 2 hours to wax. What are your times. I have a hard tonneou cover to clean too

 

You all with black or dark trucks, do any of you use an orbital buffer just for polish and wax jobs? Anyone see any problem using one of these? thanks!


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J Randall
elktag1az@aol.com
Arizona F150 4x4 SC '97

 

I recently started using liquid glass. I know it's been around for a while, but I've been pretty impressed so far. I believe it's a polish...not a traditional wax.

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Eric
'99 Lariat SC 5.4 4x2 3.55ls Tow-pkg
Oxford White/Harvest Gold

 

I have used Meguires for the past couple of years and it works great. A friend of mine said Zymol works even better, but it is about 3 times the cost of Meguires and I couldn't see spending that much on wax. My friend bought me a bottle when I got my 99 F150 and he is right, Zymol is worth the extra money. I have never used a wax the goes on and buffs so easy but still lasts and looks great.

 

Zymol is that good? I will have to get some. I too have been using Mguires (I think Liquid Gold). Do you think I should strip off the old stuff before using Zymol, or did you get your results by putting the Zymol on top of the old wax?

Also, has anyone heard of California Clay? I saw an add in Motor Trend showing a waxing product that came with a bar of soft clay that was supposed to remove foreign particles from your paint. The add copy is very convincing so I wanted to see if any of you knew anything about it..It claims to remove the impure dust and what-not that had been embedded in the paint pores. They say you can tell when they are there by running your finger over the paint and feeling little bumps.. Oh well, it is probably a gimmick, but I just wanted to see if any of you had heard..



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BLACK 99 F-150 XLT Supercab, Flareside. 4.2 auto 3:55. K&N Airfilter and soon to be Superchipped (as soon as I can overcome the no-start problem)

 

Steve, that clay sounds familiar. I think someone here does use and like it. Do a search and see what you come up with.

 

I have used a product called Clay Magic that Pep Boys sells. I thought what the heck so I tried it. That stuff really works. It takes off all the embedded dirt and other stuff that won't wash or wax off. Just be sure to set aside alot of time because it will have to be waxed afterwards. I think it was 12 or 13 bucks. Hope this helps.

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'97 XLT Reg. Cab, 4.2V6, 5spd, Superchipped, Lund Deflector, Dash Mat, MagnaFlow Muffler, Hellwig Rear Sway Bar, Edelbrock Shocks, Duraliner, Extang Saber Tonneau, Bell-Tech 2" Rear Drop, Amer. Rac. Atlas Wheels Clad in 275/60/17 Eagle GTII. Likes straightaways, loves twisties.

 

The detailing clay is not a gimmick. I use the clay from Mequiar's. same stuff as clay magic. It removes fallout, overspray, water spots, etc. You spray the quick detailer or finisher on the clay and on the paint to keep the clay from sticking, then form the clay into a little patty and run it over the surface.

 

Steve. I'll second what the other members are saying about the clay. I detail from 1 to 3 cars a weekend and it saves me hours of buffing and wear on the paint.
As far as the liquid/lubricant is concerned, if you're going to wax after you use the clay just mix a solution of water and armor-all at a ratio of 10 to 1. It's cheaper than the other products you're supposed to use and just as slippery.
A warning. Go easy with the clay. It may seem non-abrasive but if you lean on it hard enough it will remove the "tops" off the orange peel and you'll have to polish afterward. You can generally "feel" or "hear" when the contaminants have been removed.

 

ELKTAGAZ,
I use an orbital buffer with the dark paint. It really helps to speed up the job & lays down product pretty quickly & evenly. You can use the machine to remove porduct as well. I prefer to remove by hand so I can examine the finish as I go. I use thick terry cloth towels for buffing, and go through a lot of them. Old white undershirts are pretty good too, for the final pass.

If you use the machine correctly, you can lay down wax really thin and even. This makes buffing easy. After a good wash & dry, I'll try to get two to three coats of product down before I call it finished. I've found that the Meguair's liquids work really well with the machine. As a side note... Buffing/drying glaze is a drag for me no matter how I apply it. (consider yourself warned.)

As long as you're careful & attentive, you should be satisfied. Even my old ride of 11 years had paint that looked so deep and smooth. That vehicle saw constant exposure to the elements. Never garaged or repainted, just well maintained.

Note: BE CAREFUL. You can damage the paint if you don't use the machine correctly. This is especially true if using a rotary style machine. Take care around edges, corners & such. Keep the machine moving while it's running. Don't hold it in one place or apply pressure to it. The weight of the machine is enough to be effective. I've learned the hard way by taking paint down to the primer on a high edge of a hood already. (Not on the new truck, thank heaven.)

Hope this helps & good luck,
LM

------------------
'99 Black F250 SC 4x4 4.6L 5Sp 3.73LS
Bug Shield, 'Snapless' Tonneau, Alarm
Plenty of mods in the plans.



[This message has been edited by hogluvr (edited 06-16-99).]