Review and Extreme Testing: Opti-Coat 2.0 and CQuartz

I just used Optimum Products to restore the roof rack rails on my 01 Pathfinder. The truck was Opticoated last month, but I removed the roof rack because the rails needed a little TLC because they were kind of faded. They are metal, and have a crinkle black single stage paint finish. I didn't take before pictures, because I didn't expect them to turn out so good. Also, Opticoated the plastic seals around the outside of the windows. First I washed the truck. Then I polished the roof rack rails with Menzerna IP. This was failing, as the IP was staining them white! So, I decided to try some Optimum Finish Polish. This worked much better than the Menzerna. It seemed
that the Optimum polish just had a lot more work time, and it was "oil like"(which was a good thing). Also, it was blue not white, it actually removed the white stains from the Menz polish and left a nice matte black. Then I cleaned them with ONR and IPA. After that, I used some vinyl
wrap to cover up the front of the rails where the paint had just chopped off. It came out really well. Opticoat is great on external plastics and trims because it darkens them and it's permanent. Here are some after pics
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All of the after pics are just dried Opticoat with no trim dressing on anything at all.
Also did the external window plastic parts with OC. This is tricky, because it can faintly streak after it sits for a minute, a second very light coat fixes it if applied while the original coat is still tacky
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fenderpicks said:
But Corey stated that OC is easier to apply if u get used to it...
But CQ is more for beginner entry... wont leave high spots and what not...
that's the only reason i got the CQ over OC... but now seeing how OPT have like amazing customer support/service. I really regret getting the CQ in a way lol

Also does anyone know if a 30ml bottle CQ will be able to coat 2 cars?
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Hi Ivan,

OC is easier physically to apply since you don't have to buff it off. Unless of course you left a high spot which would add more physical labor. You shouldn't have to remove a high spot after you know what your doing which should become apparent after one application on a test panel.

CQ is mentally easier to apply because you can't leave high spots that have to be polished out and you don't have a narrow window to get it right. Of all the coatings: CQ, OC, C1, System X, CQ is the only one that is left on the paint like a sealant (apply very thin) and then buffed off awhile later. All the other coatings either need to be buffed off or made mostly level almost immediately. Someone correct me on C1 if I'm wrong about that one.

Yes, 30ml of CQ will coat two cars if applied correctly.

What question about CQ do you need answered? I am very happy to help.


Rsurfer said:
I think both Optimum and Car Pro have great products.
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I agree!
 
So... CQ will not leave any high spots? But if there are it will have to polished out?

CQ has to be buffed out once is dry?

What type of MF do i need to buff it? Because the ones they included with their 30ml kit does not have any lint and is thin...
 
fenderpicks said:
So... CQ will not leave any high spots? But if there are it will have to polished out?

CQ has to be buffed out once is dry?

What type of MF do i need to buff it? Because the ones they included with their 30ml kit does not have any lint and is thin...
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No, CQ does NOT leave high spots. You will not have to polish anything out.

Yes, just like a sealant applies you allow it to haze before buffing off. If applied correctly nice and thin there is really very little to buff off. But you still want to buff the entire vehicle.

Do it like this...

After preparing the paint COMPLETELY remove any oils left from polishing....

Apply CQ very thin but with full coverage with the small 4" suede mf wrapped around the foam block that comes with it. You could use a foam applicator if you preferred but I haven't tried it.

Continue doing this in overlapping sections across the vehicle. As you do this you will see most of the product flash off. In Florida at least this flash happens very quickly but it doesn't matter because there will be no high spot regardless. You don't have to concern yourself with the fast flashing. Just keep moving and finish the entire vehicle. By the time your done with the vehicle you can likely start removing what very little product is hazed on the finish.

Take any high quality mf towel including one of the larger suede Carpro towels or a plush towel that does not lint or a rolled edge towel from AG. Wipe one small area and examine to see that it wipes off cleanly. It should and this shows it's ready to buff off if it isn't wet or oily at all. Thoroughly buff around the vehicle in the same direction you started and from the same starting point.

The towel you use must be immediately soaked in APC and water when you are done unless you prefer to toss it or demote it to non-paint duty. I prefer to use a rolled edge or Carpro suede towel because I can throw these away or use them for tires from then on out without it costing much. I personally do not reuse towels that I touched coating (of any kind) applications on paint. I demote them.

The reason for this is the CQ is a coat of glass or quartz silica over your paint. The tiny bit of stuff you buffed off are tiny crystals that will become very hard if left to cure in your towel. You don't want them to further crystallize in your towel and then be used on paint again later.

If you use the large Carpro towel to buff off the hazed CQ but are concerned with how thin it is you can wrap it around the Carpro foam applicator block.
 
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fenderpicks said:
Thank you for all the information Corey...

Will these towels be fine? Super Soft Deluxe Blue Microfiber Towels, microfiber detailing towels, buffing towels, micro fiber towel, detail cloth

Also what if u touch the trim/plastic with the coating?
Will it stain it or anything?
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My pleasure Ivan!

No problem on trim. Just wipe it back off of the trim.

Those towels have worked very well for me! When I first received them I thought these look suspect but they have become my most often used towels on most cars due to the price. Never seen a scratch or mar from them. I use PS and Sonus towels on my Sky and a few cars. Those towels you linked are the ones I called "rolled edge" towels in my previous post. Those and the CarPro towels are all I use for coatings.

Something you should do with all new microfiber towels is the following:

When you receive them throw them in the washer and wash them once to be sure nothing from the factory or warehouse is left in them. You don't need much microfiber detergent (if any) You aren't trying to remove any oils or chemicals... simply removing any loose particles, dust, threads, etc...

You probably know this stuff but for those who don't....

If you use a regular washing detergent use one with no fragrances or anything. Use something like "______ free and clear" and don't use dry granualized detergents... only liquid. If you were to use granualized detergents run the washer cycle with no towels in it until it is completely desolved before adding the towels.

Never use fabric sheets or anything in the dryer with the towels.

Never dry on a hot cycle if you use a dryer. Only very gentle coolest cycle.
 
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Okay and if i do miss the spot and didnt know i got it on my trim, it's fine right? It will not stain it in anyway?

CQ could be apply to trim anyways right?

Also one last question for now lol...

I just finished sealing and waxed my car this weekend.... I plan on not coating my car until i did someone elses... but now i changed my mind and i want to coat it just so i will never have to worry about it for another year or 2....

So... if i have wax and sealant on my car already.... Can i just use Dodo juice prime lite paint cleaner to get rid of the wax and sealant and use eraser for wipe down and coat it?
 
Correct, CQ can be applied to plastic trim as well and buffed off after hazing.

However- I won't make a straight general comment that theres no way it can stain any trim no matter what. There could be some dressing on some plastic trim somewhere or some type of plastic it doesn't react well with. I have only had one less than stellar issue with it on plastic and simple buffing off and reapplication of dressing took care of it.

Personally I don't care for using it on plastic (I just prefer UTTG or Solution Finish) but have never had a stain issue.
 
Corey just in case u missed that i edited my message earlier lol...

Also one last question for now lol...

I just finished sealing and waxed my car this weekend.... I plan on not coating my car until i did someone elses... but now i changed my mind and i want to coat it just so i will never have to worry about it for another year or 2....

So... if i have wax and sealant on my car already.... Can i just use Dodo juice prime lite paint cleaner to get rid of the wax and sealant and use eraser for wipe down and coat it?
 
An update to my earlier post. I just washed my wife's Infiniti that was coated with CQuartz in June 2011. It has been washed only 3-4 times since then. I washed it with Zaino Z7 and dried with one of my Guzzler towels. Even though it has been at least 6 months without a wash, the grime and bugs released very easily. I was pretty surprised honestly. When rinsing, I tested the beading/sheeting characteristics. The vertical surfaces still bead very well. The horizontal surfaces sheets and will bead in spots, but the protection seems to be mostly gone on them. I am going to hit it with Reload tomorrow to get some protection back on it.

This car leads a pretty harsh life. My wife is in outside sales and drives a lot. One of her territories is southern West Virginia. They use some type of cinder or coal dust on the roads over there in the winter. It coats the wheels, suspension, under the hood, etc. The car also sat outside all the time until the last few months. I think 2 years of protection would be optimistic for this particular car. One with a more normal life might get closer though. I'll probably use OC on it when it finally stops completely.
 
Rsurfer said:
It bothers me that you say that OCW will only last a few weeks. Granted it's so easy to apply, but when Optimum states that it could last up to 5 months, I'm a little shocked at your statement of a few weeks. I understand all the variables, but five months to a few weeks is a huge difference.


Chris@Optimum said:
If you like a Nuba look, just use something like OCW to top and it won't matter that it only last a few weeks because it only took 10 minutes to apply.
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I'm sorry that bothered you, but I'm sure you took it out of context. We were discussing topping Opti Coat with a wax for the look. When you top Opti Coat with anything it will only last a few weeks. I was not referring to OCW as a stand alone LSP. As a stand alone LSP, you can expect 1-3 months on average and 5 months on garage queens. I know that is still a huge variance, but there are tons of variables.
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fenderpicks said:
Corey just in case u missed that i edited my message earlier lol...

Also one last question for now lol...

I just finished sealing and waxed my car this weekend.... I plan on not coating my car until i did someone elses... but now i changed my mind and i want to coat it just so i will never have to worry about it for another year or 2....

So... if i have wax and sealant on my car already.... Can i just use Dodo juice prime lite paint cleaner to get rid of the wax and sealant and use eraser for wipe down and coat it?
Click to expand...

You ninja edited on me! Lol I do that too.

I have never used lime prime so not sure how much any oils in it bond to the paint or leave any primer for the wax that people apply after but I would expect it should only be oils that could be removed with eraser as you said. You might contact dodo to be sure it doesn't leave anything that doesn't come off easy behind.

Basically the answer to your question should be yes. It will remove the lsp and eraser should remove the oils left behind.

Maybe after you do lime prime and eraser on a section run some water over one section to make sure it's stripping completely so you know. Then you could trust the process over the remainder of the car.
 
If that's the case.... are there any product that can strip the LSP and leave no oil or anything behind so is perfect for cquarts?

Also will Trix do the work instead of the lime prime?
I figured that should strip all the LSP away right o.O?
 
fenderpicks said:
If that's the case.... are there any product that can strip the LSP and leave no oil or anything behind so is perfect for cquarts?

Also will Trix do the work instead of the lime prime?
I figured that should strip all the LSP away right o.O?
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If you use Optimum polishes and compound, you need only a damp MF to prep surface.
 
Lime prime with machine followed by eraser should work fine too.

Eraser was built for the step of removing polishing oils before applying a coating. It is not however designed to remove sealants. It's assumed that a detailer is going to polish a car before applying a coating.

Jim is absolutely right as usual!! A water based polish like optimum should do most of the work. I would still use Eraser between Optimum polishes and an lsp from a different brand unless Dr. G disagrees. I know Optimum polishes and lsp go hand in hand but I can't recall if Dr. G ever said that was fine to do with a different brand.
 
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Dawn, P21S TAW,etc, etc can strip sealant remnants but your sealant is so fresh I wouldn't expect it to be removed with just one wash. Depends on how well you go at it, the dilution, etc...

I would still use Eraser after those washes if applying CQ.
 
Old Tiger said:
If you use Optimum polishes and compound, you need only a damp MF to prep surface.
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Would u like to supply me with the Optimum polishes and compound =]?

Also how about i just use the entire 16oz bottle of CG Citrus wash =]?
That should STRIP everything?
 
fenderpicks said:
Corey just in case u missed that i edited my message earlier lol...

Also one last question for now lol...

I just finished sealing and waxed my car this weekend.... I plan on not coating my car until i did someone elses... but now i changed my mind and i want to coat it just so i will never have to worry about it for another year or 2....

So... if i have wax and sealant on my car already.... Can i just use Dodo juice prime lite paint cleaner to get rid of the wax and sealant and use eraser for wipe down and coat it?
Click to expand...
I dont think Dodo juice is strong enough to remove sealants. use strong oil and sealant remover , APC too, CQ must applied on neat paint , nothing on it , if you use the CQ on sealant it wont hold long.

Sunstealer said:
An update to my earlier post. I just washed my wife's Infiniti that was coated with CQuartz in June 2011. It has been washed only 3-4 times since then. I washed it with Zaino Z7 and dried with one of my Guzzler towels. Even though it has been at least 6 months without a wash, the grime and bugs released very easily. I was pretty surprised honestly. When rinsing, I tested the beading/sheeting characteristics. The vertical surfaces still bead very well. The horizontal surfaces sheets and will bead in spots, but the protection seems to be mostly gone on them. I am going to hit it with Reload tomorrow to get some protection back on it.

This car leads a pretty harsh life. My wife is in outside sales and drives a lot. One of her territories is southern West Virginia. They use some type of cinder or coal dust on the roads over there in the winter. It coats the wheels, suspension, under the hood, etc. The car also sat outside all the time until the last few months. I think 2 years of protection would be optimistic for this particular car. One with a more normal life might get closer though. I'll probably use OC on it when it finally stops completely.
Click to expand...

Hi
im not familiar with Zaino z7, as much as i googled it , it say it has conditioners , conditioners are silicones, these stick to car surface and add you the glossy like shine ,but mostly it affect the hydrophobic effect you have from CQ,

wash your car with APC, very simple, no need complex shampoo's, it will clean the best way your car paint ,and will revive the water beading, your car paint is still well protected im 100% sure for that.
 
Avi,

I didn't think Z7 had anything like that, but the description does now say it has polymers. I have an older version and don't remember that in the description. I have been using it for years. Their big thing is to use their whole system, so I wouldn't be surprised if it had it before and just wasn't in the description. The Z7 is almost gone and I will be going with a regular car wash once it is all used up. My Zaino usage has gone from everything they make down to just just their wash, leather cleaner/conditioner, and tire shine.

I hit my wife's car with Reload this morning. I took some pictures of both cars and will post them soon.
 
It looks like gmck has been put in queue. Glad to see that this thread is back on track.
 
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