Prepping for cquartz

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mattkoyak

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Mike,

I've been scouring YouTube in preparation for my first paint restore and cquartz application. In doing so, I came across a video Carpro has on prepping before cquartz (https://youtu.be/GJ-P0CdGoZk). My question is, would their process be better than what I was planning (see below)? I guess, if I can, I'd prefer to avoid working the whole car with a clay bar as I have a bad back -maybe only trouble areas.

Carpro Process...
  1. IronX Soap Gel wash
  2. Eraser Oil Remover,
  3. Polish (which I'll use Wolfgang Total Swirl Remover and Finishing Glaze for)
  4. IronX Soap Gel wash again
  5. Eraser Oil Remover again
  6. Apply cquartz

My Plan...
  1. Wash
  2. Mothers California Gold Clay Bar
  3. Polish (Wolfgang Total Swirl Remover and Finishing Glaze)
  4. Apply cquartz

The car is a black, 2012, Infiniti FX35. Can I get away with the Carpro process?

Thanks for your time!
 
Hi Matt, welcome to AutoGeekOnline!

In the CarPro process you mentioned, you wont need step #2 or #4.

1. Wash
2. Docontaminate
3. Polish
4. Eraser
5. CQ

The decon step is where claying will be needed and possibly an Iron-X application. If your back is bothering you, you can pick up the Nanoskin pads and clay the paint via machine or pick up the Nanoskin wash pad. But do not use the Iron-X Snow Soap as it will degrade the Wash Mitt.
 
The key when applying any coating is to have the cleanest surface as possible. I just applied CQ to a car that I had applied CQUK 2 years ago, the coating was still there despite heavy fallout on horizontal surfaces. My process was
1. IronX soap
2. Trix soak and wipe down
3. Nanoskin med clay mitt
4.Optimum Compound followed by Erasser
5. CarPro Essence
6.CQ
Now I had the proof right in front of me in that the CQUK I applied 2 years ago was still present and yes the CQ is great but the prep is the difference between being disappointed and being rewarded with the coating bonding.
 
Mike@DedicatedPerfection said:
Hi Matt, welcome to AutoGeekOnline!

In the CarPro process you mentioned, you wont need step #2 or #4.

1. Wash
2. Docontaminate
3. Polish
4. Eraser
5. CQ

The decon step is where claying will be needed and possibly an Iron-X application. If your back is bothering you, you can pick up the Nanoskin pads and clay the paint via machine or pick up the Nanoskin wash pad. But do not use the Iron-X Snow Soap as it will degrade the Wash Mitt.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the quick reply! Would you say the Nanoskin wash pad could be used with/during wash with the Iron-X (not the Snow version of course)? Or should I use it with a regular wash soap and *then* Iron-X?
 
mattkoyak said:
Or should I use it with a regular wash soap and *then* Iron-X?
Click to expand...

Pretty much what Mike states, but here is my process which varies a little:
1.) Thorough Rinse to remove lose dirt / pre-wash
2.) Iron-X
3.) Foam Cannon / Wash
4.) Clay (nano-skin) I use Meg's D114 (1:128) as clay lube, but any ONR or NR wash will work. - work in shade out of sunlight
5.) Polish - work in shade out of sunlight
6.) Erasure - best if in shade and out of sunlight
7.) CQ - work in shade out of sunlight (can cure too quickly if in direct sunlight), heat/humidity and temp dependent.
8.) Reload - work in shade out of sunlight

If you can spread this over a couple of days, might be better for your back, i.e. get through steps 1-5 on day one or two, and day steps three 6-8.

Iron-x is a chemical decontamination to remove iron/rail dust that has bonded to the clear, the clay (or nano-skin) is mechanical decontamination to remove above surface contaminants that have bonded. Light/Mild detailing clay for a car that's paint is relatively in good shape will not cause any marring. Medium Clay is used to remove heavier contaminants and over-spray and may cause some marring, thus the need to polish after.

Doing coatings is really more about the preparation steps rather than the actual coating itself and is very time consuming process.
 
Thanks!

I was planning to allot 2-3 days for this, starting Friday night and then working into the 3-day weekend. I've done cars with Mothers California Gold Clay Bar kit before and had great results, but the process just destroys me now. I'll probably go with the Nanoskin pads for my Porter Cable buffer and use the Meg's D114. This info is gold!

I purchased the car used and it needs some swirl and surface scratch removal, then some minor rock-chip fill, well before I can CQ. The comments from both you and Mike have me feeling pretty confident!
 
Use the wash mitt or any of the Nanoskin products with a normal car wash. The Snow Soap/Iron-X are too aggressive and will begin early degradation of the Nanoskin products.
 
OK, so I have the Nanoskin pad (medium since the surface contaminates are abundant) and I'm using the Porter Cable 7424XP. What setting would you recommend? Normally I'd use the 5-to-6 setting to remove swirls, is that too high?
 
If your going to put cquartz on i highly advise you to use CarPro Essence.

After essence you can go straight to coating, no washing, no eraser, no ipa.

After i perfect paint do you think i am enthused about touching it ? Washing it? Not at all infact i hate it, you can make paint look so perfect the littlest contaminants can scratch and marr the surface.

That is why i love essence when i use Cquartz.

Some paints are so soft that even the highest quality towels will leave micro scratches.

Like Mike Phillips says IPA has horrible lubrication and you can very easily marr the finish with doing this step.
 
I would say depending on the application is what would dictate what you would need to do to prep it for a ceramic based coating system. Not every application is the same. This is where consulting a professional would be the best advice if you wanted to optimize your coating.

As far as not washing your vehicle after paint correction and before paint protection because you are afraid to cause micro-scratching, I personally haven't ever had this issue even with the softest of paints. I inspect after each wash under all sorts of lighting and with a microscope for validation. I use softened and filtered water with a microfiber wash mitt. I do not press. Just enough to control the mitt over the surface. I use foam canon for super sud action and i constantly sud the vehicle and mitt. The drying part is always the most difficult. I use the guzzlers. I lay them on the panel and let them soak and pick them up. On the sides I do not press just easily glide over the surface. I am a big proponent of washing the vehicle before protection to get rid of all those oils and waxes from paint correction. I will say sometimes depending on your polishes they contain fillers that hide the scratches so once you wash the car and remove the fillers you may think you applied those scratches when in actuality those were there to begin with its just the fillers hid them from you. Also by removing all the oils/waxes whatever you chose to protect the paint with will actually bond better and have a more effective coating. At least this has been my experience. Not saying anyone is wrong here. Just wanted to share my experiences with you.
 
OK, so everything went really well! Thanks for all the insight! The finish looks amazing!
I have a new question however...
It was probably about 86 degrees (F) when I was applying my cquartz layer. I was only allowing 1-2 min before wiping off with my microfiber cloth. Was that too soon? If so, I'll probably apply a second coat this weekend (which I was thinking about doing anyway). I can't imagine I'll need to do the same decontamination process again. What *should* I do prior to applying a second coat of cquartz? Wash, Reset, Iron x, Eraser?
 
mattkoyak said:
OK, so everything went really well! Thanks for all the insight! The finish looks amazing!
I have a new question however...
It was probably about 86 degrees (F) when I was applying my cquartz layer. I was only allowing 1-2 min before wiping off with my microfiber cloth. Was that too soon? If so, I'll probably apply a second coat this weekend (which I was thinking about doing anyway). I can't imagine I'll need to do the same decontamination process again. What *should* I do prior to applying a second coat of cquartz? Wash, Reset, Iron x, Eraser?
Click to expand...

Your leveling time for that product and temp range sounds appropriate. For second layer just make sure area is free of debris (you should not have to decon the paint again). Depending on amount of debris will depend on if you need to do a full wash or just a quick detail wipe down. Only difference is the second layer will normally cure alot faster.
 
The timing of this post is perfect. I've been reading posts about cquartz uk and the application process and based on that I've gone ahead and purchased some items. 50 ml Cquartz uk, reflect, eraser, iron-x, cg citrus wash and gloss and reload. I am in the process of ordering a da polisher, I've decided on the Griots Garage 6 as I've read many good reviews on the effectiveness and ease of use. I am a newbie when it comes to using a polisher and coating for that matter and I'm hoping to draw on the knowledge of this forum for some much needed help.
I have a black 2014 Mustang Gt which I recently picked up and there are the obvious swirl marks and touch ups from stone chips. I understand that I need to clay the car, I'll likely go with the nanoskin autoscrub wash mitt (which I have never used before) because, again after reading reviews, it seems like an efficient way to decontaminate the paint. Now seeing as I am completely new at virtually every item and step of this process, I may be overthinking things and feel somewhat overwhelmed. Can someone really dumb things down for me and tell me the step by step process for prepping and applying the products in the correct order? I know it's been discussed many times and forgive me for continuing the discussion, but everywhere I look I see different processes and although I understand each scenario may be different, I'm hoping the items I purchased are the correct ones and that someone can outline what I do with each.

Here is how I "believe" it should go.
1- wash car with cg citrus wash (do I dry it?)
2- apply iron-x, let sit a bit, wipe off and rinse
3- clay car with nanoskin
4- polish car using reflect (which pads do I need for this?)
5- spray and wipe down car with eraser
6- apply cquartz uk in small sections. It's summer here now and I plan on doing this in the garage so from what I gather, it's basically wipe on in a criss cross pattern and wipe off, no waiting time.
7- once car is complete, apply reload. spray on, wipe off.

Is this correct? Any advise would be greatly appreciated, or suggestion on what other items I should look into such as microfiber towels or applicators.

Thank you in advance.
 
My initial process went flawlessly. Including the paint chip repair. Nanopads FTW! My paint was in terrible shape before, thanks to the schmucks-of-previous-owners. While I probably could have done the whole car again, one pass was a vast improvement so I moved on. The finish Cquartz left is amazing! Deep. Black. Gloss. It looks like a Piano. Now though, I see every bit of dust the car collects! lol If I can give you any advice about applying the Cquartz, it's don't wait to buff it off if it's warm. It was about 80 degrees when I applied my second coat last weekend and I ended up with some shadows (dark spots) in spots.

But to answer your question on pads...

For polishing, I use the White Polishing CCS Smart Pads. And for swirl removal I use the Orange Light Cutting CCS Smart Pads. I didn't apply Reload until the next weekend. I wanted to add another layer of Cquartz so I washed, used Spotless, then applied another coat of Cquartz, THEN Reload. If I can give you any advice about applying the Cquartz, it's don't wait to buff it off. It was about 80 degrees when I applied my second coat last weekend and I ended up with some shadows (dark spots).
 
Matt, when you say don't wait to buff it off, how long are we talking here? I assume you are simply wiping it off by hand pretty much after you finish the criss cross pattern.
 
For example, I divided the hood of my FX into fours. I was buffing off the 1st area after I finished applying CQ to the second area. I was essentially buffing out half the hood before moving on the area 3 and 4 -if that makes sense.

So it's probably curing in just under a minute. On my second coat I waited a good minute and ended up with shadows in spots.
 
So far, Reload has been a major pain in the ass. It's leaving streaks and shadows, and clouding the high polish finish I spent 12 hours on. A) what am I doing wrong, and B) how do I fix the clouds and hazy dark spots?

I applied it as instructed on the bottle.
 
Hey Matt, it seems like Reload is pretty tricky to use. A few people are saying to dilute the mixture half and half with distilled water and they've reported good success with that. As for fixing the clouds and hazy dark spots from using Reload, a review done by Dr_Pain (A rather experienced member here) said one of the best fixes seems to be either use a damp MF towel and gently wipe it down until it's gone or for some, to put a spray of Reload onto a dry MF towel and re-apply to try to get rid of it by wiping the panel down with that. Now some of the posts related to his review by others seem to cause the effect to be lessened but not completely taken away so you may have to re-polish the entire panel with CarPro Reflect lightly and try again. I know from personal experience from using Cquartz UK on my own car, Reflect with a MF towel working in small areas seem to take off the high spots and the oily streaks and what not from overapplying Cquartz UK so that might be something to try first before you break out the ole buffer and redo the entire panel and re-coat.
 
mattkoyak said:
So far, Reload has been a major pain in the ass. It's leaving streaks and shadows, and clouding the high polish finish I spent 12 hours on. A) what am I doing wrong, and B) how do I fix the clouds and hazy dark spots?

I applied it as instructed on the bottle.
Click to expand...

You should be able to level out the Reload high spots with an Eraser or IPA wipe down and/or by re-applying Reload to the affected areas.

You might be applying Reload too thick which is causing high spots. I usually only use 1 or 2 sprays per panel. I also like to apply Reload while the vehicle is wet and use it as a drying aid. It seems to have a significantly lower chance of leaving high spots if it is partially diluted with water. If you prefer to apply Reload to a dry surface try diluting it 1:1 with water to mitigate the chance of high spots.
 
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