Born To Be Mild Shampoo - Quick Take

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addysdaddy

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Here are a few quick thoughts after my initial use of BTBM Shampoo. Scale is 1-10 with 10 being the highest.

suds - 5
Sorry to admit that I'm partial to sudsy shampoos. It performs better in the bucket straight away then in the foam gun. But assuming I can't have high suds and high lubricity, I'll pick latter every day of the week.

cleaning power - 7
Understanding that this product is intended to be used on well maintained cars, it's perfectly fine in terms of its cleaning ability. Wouldn't use it on distressed or cars that are ultra dirty.

lubricity - 10
• I use a Lake Country Wash Wedge which literally glided over the surface. I've tried numerous shampoos and there is nothing else on the market which compares in this aspect.
• residue left behind on paint- 0 (in this case 0=highest marks) Inspected surface in my garage - in the dark using a Brinkman inspection light. Best I've seen. Literally nothing left behind. No smudging, streaking or cloudiness. Really fantastic!! fyi, I use the new DP Turbo Car Dryer (does about 90% of the work) and a Microfiber Madness Dry Me Crazy towel to blot completely dry.
• residue left behind on glass-0 (again top marks - the glass looked significantly better than any other shampoo and didn't "require" window cleaner so that was a big time saver)

cost - 7
On a per gallon basis assuming 1/2 oz of product to 3 gallons water, BTBM cost 2x my current favorite which is Ultima Paint Guard Wash. I mention price because I wash two cars every weekend so that's would be 2 oz of product to do both cars. (.5 oz in wash bucket & .5 oz in foam gun) so price becomes a factor since it costs $17 for 8.5 oz.

Considering the higher price point I've decided this is worth the expense for use on my car. I can truly see a difference in what is NOT left behind so clarity of the paint is truly top shelf. I'll continue to use UPGW on the family SUV to keep costs down. Wondering if it's sold here in the States in larger containers therefore making the price a bit more palatable, though I cannot find it in larger containers from any online detailers.

And finally I want to give a big shout out to PJ who took the time to explain the different DDJ products in depth to me at Detail Fest. It was a real pleasure meeting you and I wish you all the success you so richly deserve. Your one of the good guys!!
 
Thanks for the awesome review! I recently purchased Born To Be Mild .. but haven't used it yet. I have D114 I use regularly got some Chemical Guys Citrus Red for pre-detail.

Do you have any experience with Car Shampoos for neglected vehicles/ultra dirty car?
 
Why do I feel like this thread is going to turn me into a Car Soap connosuore LOL
 
I've used several of the CG shampoos..citrus clear, citrus red, citrus wash +gloss, sonax, Iz Perl, duragloss, optimum, meguiars, pinnacle, wolfgang, dp etc etc. Most are good, few differentiate themselves in any significant way other than foaming action, color and scent which is meaningless other than personal preference.

I have two white cars and it can be a challenge "seeing" the impact different products have on the paint. To that end after using my new DP Turbo Dryer and a MM Dry Me Crazy towel to blot the remaining water, I viewed the paint in the garage; in the dark, with my inspection light. It was literally streak & residue free. This was a first and why I posted up this review.

Nick has lead me through a wide gamut of shampoo products and I finally selected Ultima Paint Guard Wash as my go to shampoo - highly concentrated and very good lubricity. But I typically had to take a towel and some detail spray once I put the car back into the garage & wipe down the paint to get rid of the streaks & hazing when I'm really fussing. I understand not many look at their paint with an inspection light after a simple car wash, but...on white it's the only way I can see what's going on.

DDJ BTBM shampoo is outstanding in the lubricity department. I was a little disappointed when it first came out of the foam gun because it didn't cover the surface in foam, but once I started washing from the bucket, it was apparent that this product was different. (for some reason it yielded more suds from the bucket than the foam gun) It felt like the sponge was gliding over the paint - with little to no resistance. It's pricey so I'm not sure it's the ultimate end game when it comes to shampoos. But I would encourage you to give it a try.
 
No wonder BTBM has been a winner for several years in a row in user poll awards on the DW forum. I think the 32oz variant (not in US does help bringing the cost down further).

By the way, have you used Meguiars hyper wash ? I think it's fantastic in its working while being great value for money. But then I haven't tried the whole lot from other brands.


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addysdaddy said:
tried the Gold Glass, not the hyper wash.
Click to expand...


You should give hyper wash a try. Works great for foam wash too. Gallon size, 1:400 and autogeeks 20ish % off (whenever that happens).
at that price is an unbeatable combo.


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Thanks for the review Stuart. I'm a ban of BTBM, although I'll admit I don't use it that often because I'm usually busy testing new shampoos.

You should also try Sour Power. I took a bottle of this home one day to test it out and I was pleasantly surprised. It is by all means a gloss enhancing shampoo. Left the paint looking like I sprayed it down with a detail spray after washing it.
 
I have also tried many soaps! Agree on hyperwash. It just works. Great in the gun and bucket. Currently on the bottom of a gallon of CG MAXI SUDS II. Not a bad soap at all. Once that is done, i picked up DP POWER WASH & WAX to try. I have read nothing but raves on this soap.
 
Nick@Autogeek said:
Thanks for the review Stuart. I'm a ban of BTBM, although I'll admit I don't use it that often because I'm usually busy testing new shampoos.

You should also try Sour Power. I took a bottle of this home one day to test it out and I was pleasantly surprised. It is by all means a gloss enhancing shampoo. Left the paint looking like I sprayed it down with a detail spray after washing it.
Click to expand...

Thanks Nick, I'll consider adding it to my list though I've been moving away from anything that contains glossing agents. Simply put, I would rather not trust that to my shampoo and instead take an extra 5 minutes and wipe the paint down with BFCS - now we're talking gloss & protection.

:dblthumb2:
 
Nick@Autogeek said:
Thanks for the review Stuart. I'm a ban of BTBM, although I'll admit I don't use it that often because I'm usually busy testing new shampoos.

You should also try Sour Power. I took a bottle of this home one day to test it out and I was pleasantly surprised. It is by all means a gloss enhancing shampoo. Left the paint looking like I sprayed it down with a detail spray after washing it.
Click to expand...

Wondering if you've given DDJ Supernatural Shampoo a test drive Nick? Most of what I've read is good and the only real complaint is lack of suds - which I know doesn't bother you. It's almost 2x as concentrated so it presents itself as a better value. $.23 vs $.32 per gallon.
 
After experimenting with DDJ Supernatural Shampoo this weekend, it's safe to say I much prefer BTBM.
 
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