Solution Finish - The Solution To Dull, Faded Plastic & Vinyl Trim

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Nick McKees37

McKee's 37 Product Support
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When an innovator in the custom car industry comes out with his own surface care product, people tend to perk up and pay attention. Rich Evans, a custom fabricator, painter and designer out of Huntington Beach, California owns and operates a custom shop, Rich Evans Designs. If you've ever seen a one-off car that looked like nothing else you've ever seen, chances are Rich Evans got his hands on it at some point. So when I heard Rich Evan's own product, Solution Finish, would be available at Autogeek, I was eager to get my hands on it to put it to the test.

Solution Finish isn't your typical trim restoration product. Solution Finish utilizes an advanced blend of polymers to restore and protect virtually any black vinyl or plastic surface. While most trim restorers are greasy and oily, Solution Finish dries to the touch and provides long-lasting protection against the elements.



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This is what your typical black plastic bumper trim looks like after years of neglect from sitting outside in the sun, unprotected. Solution Finish can be used on black plastic or vinyl trim that's brand new, or it can be used to restore dull, faded trim back to like-new condition.




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Before attempting to restore any black plastic or vinyl trim, thoroughly clean it first using a pro-strength cleaner. I chose to use Detailer's Pro Series Cleanse-All because although it's formulated to break up bugs, dirt and grease, it's safe on virtually any automotive surface.



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To provide the necessary agitation, I used a Cobra Microfiber Applicator Pad. Microfiber works great to scrub plastic and vinyl trim, releasing dirt and grease.



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After thoroughly cleaning the area with DP Cleanse-All, I dried it using a soft microfiber towel. Solution Finish needs to be applied to a CLEAN and DRY surface.



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After laying down a tape line, I applied a tiny amount of Solution Finish to a poly foam applicator. Hyper-Concentrated does not even begin to describe how concentrated Solution Finish truly is. Notice how I'm wearing Black Nitrile Gloves? This makes clean-up much easier just in case I get any Solution Finish on my hands.



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Solution Finish goes on super thin. With this product, less is more.



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I only had to reapply another pea-sized drop to my applicator to complete half of the rear bumper trim.



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50/50



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A couple more drops of Solution Finish and the rest of the bumper trim was restored to a like-new finish.



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Solution Finish is easy to use, goes on extremely thin, and it works. After completely restoring the rear bumper trim to like-new condition, I still had about 85% of the 1 ounce test bottle left.

If you're looking for an alternative trim restoration product for all your faded black vinyl and plastic trim, give Solution Finish a try.


Solution Finish Black Plastic & Vinyl Restorer
 
So clearly this is not a dye. What is the expected durability?
 
Nice write-up Nick and very nice photography work.

As someone that takes a lot of before, process and after photos I know how much work goes into getting the pictures off the memory stick in "inserted" (not simply attached), into a thread to make it so easy for everyone to see and enjoy.

Excellent framing up of the shots too...


:Picture:
 
Looks Awesome, now I am a believer. I will have to give this stuff a try this summer.:dblthumb2:
 
Mike.Phillips@Autogeek said:
Nice write-up Nick and very nice photography work.

As someone that takes a lot of before, process and after photos I know how much work goes into getting the pictures off the memory stick in "inserted" (not simply attached), into a thread to make it so easy for everyone to see and enjoy.

Excellent framing up of the shots too...


:Picture:
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:iagree:
 
The results look amazing. Very interested to see how long they will last.
 
the result looks really good, but the price is kind of high compare to Ultima and black wow.
 
Does the mfg state any durability claims?

If it is durable, that is what will set it apart from the other ho hum products saturdating the market
 
I am willing to bet that the poster- Clean , in his Forever black thread, wished he had seen this post first.Im the MAN
 
07 z-oh-6 said:
I don't think UTTG or Black Wow will restore faded trim as well.
Click to expand...

I agree. In severely faded trim it does not darken it nearly enough.




Thanks for posting Nick. I really have wanted to try this out and I think I'll do it after seeing your review.

My only concern is on plastic trim with designs. For example on my truck the bumper and nurf bars have plastic that has a honey comb design cut into it. Applying the product in the groves proves to be a challenge. Any suggestions? I have an idea but it would require more product and no doubt be wasteful when compared to using the foam applicator
 
umi000 said:
Did Nick tell you before he started testing on it? :D
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Well no not really, he just asked to sneak out my office door, since he had some items in his hands and my vehicle is parked right at my door I was left to assume he was using mine as a tester car. At least he did the whole bumper, sometimes I go outside and find ONE tire really clean and shiny! Or one door panel is nice and buffed out half way down the middle, you can clearly see where he left the tape line! :)
 
Twister said:
My only concern is on plastic trim with designs. For example on my truck the bumper and nurf bars have plastic that has a honey comb design cut into it. Applying the product in the groves proves to be a challenge. Any suggestions? I have an idea but it would require more product and no doubt be wasteful when compared to using the foam applicator
Click to expand...

I know exactly what you're talking about, my father has a Infiniti G37 and it too features a honey-comb design on the lower air inlets and it can be a PITA to dress. I've found Lake Country's Detail Sticks to work the best.


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Meghan said:
sometimes I go outside and find ONE tire really clean and shiny!
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Hey that only happened four times, the other nine times I cleaned AND dressed BOTH front tires. :dblthumb2:


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Meghan said:
Or one door panel is nice and buffed out half way down the middle, you can clearly see where he left the tape line! :)
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This only happened once! ;)


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:work:
 
Question:

Theoretically speaking, when using something like this, after it has dried and "set in," could it then be Opti-Coated?

Just curious.

Thanks!
 
Looks great Nick, Please keep us updated on the durability.
 
Vegas Transplant said:
I am willing to bet that the poster- Clean , in his Forever black thread, wished he had seen this post first.Im the MAN
Click to expand...

I gather it didn't work out for him. I'm surprised because in my experience it is a great product. I've used it countless times on lots of different vehicles with great results. Their Tyre Gel is another great permanent product, which can be used standalone or as a base for any other favourite tyre dressing.

Forever Black can be a little tricky to apply as it has a consistency pretty much like water. I wouldn't just rely on the dispenser on the bottle, you also need a pad to help evenly spread it out and multiple light coats are a must. Also a must is using the cleaner that comes in the kit, prior to applying Forever Black. I've had it on the door protection strips and bumper inserts on my BMW 3 series for about 15 months now and it still looks like the day I applied it.

Because of the water like consistency I'd recommend removing door protection and bumper strips and do the job off the car.

This new product does sounds interesting, but does it last? Every other product I used prior to Forever Black would eventually just wash off. In my opinion you need a dye type product if you want it to be permanent.

Forever Black does seem to get some bum raps from time to time, which I can't help think must be due to "user error".
 
gmck said:
I gather it didn't work out for him. I'm surprised because in my experience it is a great product.

Forever Black does seem to get some bum raps from time to time, which I can't help think must be due to "user error".
Click to expand...


Please see the post. I assume that it was not properly prepped.IDK . Also assume he did not test product first before applying to a customer vehicle. Anyways was a good laugh on my part-not that it was funny -but shows how ill prepared people are dealing with others property.
 
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