Review: BLACKFIRE One-Step Cleaner/Wax by Mike Phillips

Kevin845 said:
Well I tried out my 2oz sample of Blackfire One Step and was amazed.

Having used HD Speed for years and loving that product, this one is better IMO. Super easy to apply, no dusting, better cut than Speed and the wipe off is incredibly easy.

I suspect the longevity will be better as well but will report on that later as Speed tends to be on the short side in that department.

My daughter's 2007 Elantra came out beautiful.

Sorry no pictures. Cleaning the pads was a breeze too.
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Thanks for sharing!


I'm so far behind but I have a black Mercedes-Benz I detailed last week and used the BLACKFIRE One Step and it came out AMAZING!


Just need more time...


:)
 
Are there any limitations to waxes/sealants applied after One-Step? More specifically sealants. I would assume just about any wax could be applied over One-Step, but how about sealants such as Rejex or Wolfgang Deep Gloss?
 
Just tried the sample i got:
- smooth application
- very forgiving if over-applied
- easy removal
- no dusting
- glass and trim friendly

I applied it by hand
- because i cannot find a good 220 volt polisher
- it is a daily driver
- my goal is to clean and protect the paint; the minor swirls i can live with
 
Purchased this product a while back but didn't get to try it until this week on a black Chevy Cruze with major swirls/scratches. The customer was blown away and so was I for all the reasons outlined in previous posts. Flex 3401 and LC Orange Hybrid pads.

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Will be purchasing more in the future!

David
 
Anyone have any longevity experience with One Step yet?
 
After trying my 2oz sample and being impressed, I bought a bottle.

I used it again today and its no fluke, its a great product.

Had a chance to try McKees37 360 as well. Here are my thoughts vs 360

BF One Step's wipe off is much easier than 360.

BF One Step doesn't stain pads like 360 an the pads clean easier too.

BF One Step cuts better and has longer working time.

Dusting is not an issue with either product.

I don't know how longevity will be, but have 2 cars with BF One Step and a 3rd with McKees37 360, so will report on that later.

I am a huge fan of the McKees37 line and 360 is a solid product / performer no doubt.

BF has taken over as my go to AIO hands down.

Mike is right, "you won't be disappointed"
 
I had to make the call yesterday and went with 360 on a neglected car that I won’t see again for 3 or more months. It came out great, hopefully it lasts until I see it again and probably add a new LSP layer. I would have tried One Step if I knew I would see the car again in 2 months or less.
 
JCDetails said:
Any uses in direct sunlight or high heat yet?
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Anyone? Hate to buy a 32oz bottle to find out it's no good in direct sun.


And does anyone have any ideas about durability? I've seen 3-4 months in a couple places on the net.
 
JCDetails said:
Anyone? Hate to buy a 32oz bottle to find out it's no good in direct sun.
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Happy to say I have not had to use in direct sun. When it's sunny around here it's freakin hot outside.

Here's the deal, this product wipes off really easy, so as long as you don't tackle to large of an area when working outside in direct sunlight, you'll be okay.

Also, there's a difference between working in direct sunlight in early morning and One O'clock at noon in Arizona. Plan your day accordingly to work when it's cooler out. Somewhere around here I have an article on working in direct sunlight that has some good tips.



JCDetails said:
And does anyone have any ideas about durability? I've seen 3-4 months in a couple places on the net.
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I have it on our Lexus and it's been 3 months, water is still beading but of course, not like it was the day after I applied it. Generally speaking, most cleaner/waxes last about 3 months.

What I've been doing is topping the horizontal surfaces with SONAX PNS, quick, easy and you get an easy 6 months.

Of course how long any product lasts comes down to how the surface is "touched".


:)
 
I used Blackfire One-Step over the weekend and while it worked well I had a fair amount of dusting and the pad got caked more than I thought it would. Wondering if I was doing something wrong? I used a G21 with the yellow pad and used on speed 4-5. I noticed the dusting slowed down as I worked throughout the detail. I may not of noticed as much dusting later as I did the sides but horizontal surfaces it did. Any suggestions are welcome.
 
timmy6262 said:
I used Blackfire One-Step over the weekend and while it worked well I had a fair amount of dusting and the pad got caked more than I thought it would. Wondering if I was doing something wrong? I used a G21 with the yellow pad and used on speed 4-5. I noticed the dusting slowed down as I worked throughout the detail. I may not of noticed as much dusting later as I did the sides but horizontal surfaces it did. Any suggestions are welcome.
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Youre looking at most likely a combination of new/dry pad, running the machine too fast, and not enough product.

Especially with a 21mm orbit you don’t need a lot of machine speed to get the job done. I normally run my g15 (which I’m getting ready to swap for a 21) at 3-3.5 ish when working AIOs with an orange boss pad.
 
JCDetails said:
Youre looking at most likely a combination of new/dry pad, running the machine too fast, and not enough product.

Especially with a 21mm orbit you don’t need a lot of machine speed to get the job done. I normally run my g15 (which I’m getting ready to swap for a 21) at 3-3.5 ish when working AIOs with an orange boss pad.
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Ok great thanks I will definitely try that next time. I think I ended up slowing down the speed as I went along because it just didn't seem right that it was dusting like that. Ended up finishing with a GG6 anyway because I and Griots thinks the brushes tanked. Glad Griots has great customer service because I was mad as hell second time I used it and it stopped working between panels then ten minutes later worked fine then died again. At that point I just put it on the shelf and did the last two sections with the GG6.

Sent from my PH-1 using Autogeekonline mobile app
 
timmy6262 said:
I used Blackfire One-Step over the weekend and while it worked well I had a fair amount of dusting and the pad got caked more than I thought it would. Wondering if I was doing something wrong? I used a G21 with the yellow pad and used on speed 4-5. I noticed the dusting slowed down as I worked throughout the detail. I may not of noticed as much dusting later as I did the sides but horizontal surfaces it did. Any suggestions are welcome.
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How was the paint you worked on?

If it was oxidized and in bad shape you can get dusting. It's the old paint you remove that the pad could not keep the amount of it in the. Since it got caked with something. It could be that you used to much of the polish too so it got saturated and dried up in the pad and then dusted. Or that you overworked it and it dried while you worked.

How many passes per sections did you do?
How often did you switch to a fresh pad?
And how much product did you use on the pad?
Was it new pads or pads you have used before? If used before do you think you got them clean enough?
What prep work did you do before you started to polish?
Did you work in the shade or in a garage or in the sun?

Many questions but it could be different things that caused the dusting.
 
SWETM said:
How was the paint you worked on?

If it was oxidized and in bad shape you can get dusting. It's the old paint you remove that the pad could not keep the amount of it in the. Since it got caked with something. It could be that you used to much of the polish too so it got saturated and dried up in the pad and then dusted. Or that you overworked it and it dried while you worked.

How many passes per sections did you do?
How often did you switch to a fresh pad?
And how much product did you use on the pad?
Was it new pads or pads you have used before? If used before do you think you got them clean enough?
What prep work did you do before you started to polish?
Did you work in the shade or in a garage or in the sun?

Many questions but it could be different things that caused the dusting.
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The paint was in great shape it was a 2013-14 Altima retired driver garage kept.
I just did a single swirl on the pad per instructions (I think that's what the bottle said).
3-4 passes and used 6 pads total so hood, roof/trunk lid, and then fender/door
At least two were brand new and I thought I got them clean enough but possibly not
Wash with megs hyper wash two bucket and two mitts, dried and used a griots clay mitt with speed shine
Left overnight in garage then started the next morning when it was around 70 in the garage

Another poster said probably had speed too high for that product while using a g21 and it caused the product to be overworked and dried out on me

The car turned out looking great but after seeing so many people say they had no dusting I figured I did something wrong and it's best to ask people who know more than I (I can admit when I am in over my head lol).

Thanks for the help and any other suggestions I am welcome to hear them

Sent from my PH-1 using Autogeekonline mobile app
 
You did a great job and followed instructions well. Can be that is was a little high speed on the 21mm. Next pay attention when you see it starts to dust. If it dries up on you when you polishing it's to the end of the buffing cycle. So look at when the dust starts to fling off the pad. The circle amount of product I do when I start with a fresh pad. The second section I use to only apply 3-4 dots or pea sized drops. It's important to clean the pad between sections or every two sections. A brush or an air compressor to keep them clean when polished a section out.
 
I just used this today on a hood and roof. I got a 2oz sample from a previous order. Used with a Flex 3401. I was rather impressed. When I use a one step, I prefer gloss over 100% correction. HD Speed has been my go to and we all know how awesome it is. I did use speed on the rest of the vehicle so I was able to compare the two. I felt the BF has just a hair better cut while still finishing down just as good as speed. On one spot I did 8 section passes just to see how long it can be worked. That was not an issue and would have been able to keep going. Zero dust while working outside in the sun. Wasn’t direct sun but the panel was still warmish from the suns rays. It smells great. While that is not important, anytime a product smells good, I feel it makes the working experience more enjoyable. Wipe off was a breeze. I did not get 100% correction but that wasn’t the goal on this job. The goal was to improve the paint as much as possible with a true one step product.

If I had to compare it to Megs 166 I would say it doesn’t cut as well but definitely finishes much better. I feel 166 leaves some slight micro-marring and lacks in the gloss department a hair. I prefer the better finish when using an AIO.

All said and done I will be ordering a bottle. I ha e been seeing about 2.5 - 3 months durability from Speed. So if the BF last as long or longer, it’s a winner in my books.

I know I’m a bit late to the party in this thread but I wanted to share my experience.
 
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