swanicyouth
New member
- Mar 3, 2011
- 9,388
- 0
I wanted to try TuffShine Black Restore (TBR) ever since trying their tire coating. I was so impressed with the tire coating, I was expecting a lot of this product. This product is for black plastic trim. I wanted to use it specifically on the cowl / wipe area trim on my Pathfinder.
While the plastic isn't particularly "faded", it has been outside for 12 years. "Dressing" it with a trim dressing makes it look great. However, I hate dressing this area, as it s difficult to dress it without getting any product on the wipers and the glass. I wanted something I could use once, and it lasts many washes.
The kit comes with a 6oz bottle of product, directions, and rubber gloves.
Oddly enough, the directions mention an "included applicator". Even though I received it in a sealed bag, I received no applicator. The kit costs $20 for 6oz. Considering I spent $30 for 1 oz of another "trim black product" - this is a phenomenal price.
Like the Tuff Shine tire coating, your trim must be 100% clean and free of silicone (from old dressings) to get a good result with TBR. In order to do this I ended up cleaning the wiper cowl trim with a total of four products! First I use Sonax All-In-1 APC 10:1. I used this product during a wash with a Raceglaze paint brush to get off the old dressing.
After that, I went over it again with Grime Reaper. Then, as the directions recommended, I used the Tuff Shine tire cleaner. This stuff removes "silicones" left from old dressings better than anything I've tried on the market. Finally, after all that, and rinsing in between, I cleaned it with 70% IPA.
Even after the first 2 APCs, I was still able to get this off the plastic with the Tuff Shine Tire Cleaner, then IPA:
Now that the surface was prepped, its time to crack open the product. What's in the bottle? Black water!
Knowing how sensitive Tuff Shine is to silicones, I decided to use a new applicator. Once I saw the consistency of the product was water, I thought "painting it on" would give me the most control and allow me to use the product sparingly. Also, I was concerned about picking up dirt from the surrounding engine bay, as I did the area of the trim under the hood as well for an even look.
I picked up this foam paint brush with a replaceable head. I use it with a variety of products, and change the "head" for applying different dressings in tight areas.
Here are some before pics of the plastic. As you can see its not too bad, but it could look better, mainly I wanted to add a darker more even black look:
I decided glass and TBR probably wouldn't mix, so I taped around the windshield. Also, as you can see, I cut out a square of tape to cover a "control"/test area - so I can monitor the products durability:
Basically, I poured a small amount of the black liquid into a cup and painted it on. Here are some "during" pics while the product is still wet. You can see the uncoated areas as a comparison:
Here is immediately after. I removed the tape square as soon as it was dry to the touch:
As you can see, the difference is drastic. The black restore looks very "bright". Being familiar with Tuff Shine's Tire Coating, and thinking this uses the same technology - I expected the coating to "even out" and "calm down" the next day. As often I notice the tire coating "evens out" after it cures for a day.
I was right. This is what it looked like 14 hours later:
Look closely, you can see the where the tape square was in this pic:
Next day close up of where tape square was:
So, I'm pretty impressed with this product. Oddly enough, I'm really not to worried about the durability. Knowing the durability of the tire coating (and that this uses similar technology) I know it will last a long time. The coating in person looks very black.
This coating has a huge potential to make a mess during application. I recommend applying it with some sort of paint brush, as once its on your hands or gloves - it's everywhere. The product is literally a staining black liquid, and drips like water. Taping around whatever trim you will be applying it to is a good idea. I did get a drop or two on the paint, as long as it's wet - it wipes right off.
After 14 hours it looks much more "natural", like a new piece of plastic. I would say I used less than an 1/8 ounce of product to coat this piece. As an aside, I also polished the wiper arms with Optimum GPS by hand and waxed them with NaviWax Dark. They came out great as well:
The TBR seems to be an excellent product for a great price. The product does "self level", which means it doesn't dry with streaks where it was applied. I was concerned about this. It dries very evenly.
Considering what other companies are charging for an ounce or two for "trim coatings" this stuff is awesome. It not only protects the trim, but it darkens it black and evens it out. Unlike other trim "coatings", it has a black dye in it, so it has the ability to restore trim that has faded significantly.
I will keep the durability updated via the little tape square. So far, this is the best "trim restore" product I've used.
While the plastic isn't particularly "faded", it has been outside for 12 years. "Dressing" it with a trim dressing makes it look great. However, I hate dressing this area, as it s difficult to dress it without getting any product on the wipers and the glass. I wanted something I could use once, and it lasts many washes.
The kit comes with a 6oz bottle of product, directions, and rubber gloves.
Oddly enough, the directions mention an "included applicator". Even though I received it in a sealed bag, I received no applicator. The kit costs $20 for 6oz. Considering I spent $30 for 1 oz of another "trim black product" - this is a phenomenal price.
Like the Tuff Shine tire coating, your trim must be 100% clean and free of silicone (from old dressings) to get a good result with TBR. In order to do this I ended up cleaning the wiper cowl trim with a total of four products! First I use Sonax All-In-1 APC 10:1. I used this product during a wash with a Raceglaze paint brush to get off the old dressing.
After that, I went over it again with Grime Reaper. Then, as the directions recommended, I used the Tuff Shine tire cleaner. This stuff removes "silicones" left from old dressings better than anything I've tried on the market. Finally, after all that, and rinsing in between, I cleaned it with 70% IPA.
Even after the first 2 APCs, I was still able to get this off the plastic with the Tuff Shine Tire Cleaner, then IPA:
Now that the surface was prepped, its time to crack open the product. What's in the bottle? Black water!
Knowing how sensitive Tuff Shine is to silicones, I decided to use a new applicator. Once I saw the consistency of the product was water, I thought "painting it on" would give me the most control and allow me to use the product sparingly. Also, I was concerned about picking up dirt from the surrounding engine bay, as I did the area of the trim under the hood as well for an even look.
I picked up this foam paint brush with a replaceable head. I use it with a variety of products, and change the "head" for applying different dressings in tight areas.
Here are some before pics of the plastic. As you can see its not too bad, but it could look better, mainly I wanted to add a darker more even black look:
I decided glass and TBR probably wouldn't mix, so I taped around the windshield. Also, as you can see, I cut out a square of tape to cover a "control"/test area - so I can monitor the products durability:
Basically, I poured a small amount of the black liquid into a cup and painted it on. Here are some "during" pics while the product is still wet. You can see the uncoated areas as a comparison:
Here is immediately after. I removed the tape square as soon as it was dry to the touch:
As you can see, the difference is drastic. The black restore looks very "bright". Being familiar with Tuff Shine's Tire Coating, and thinking this uses the same technology - I expected the coating to "even out" and "calm down" the next day. As often I notice the tire coating "evens out" after it cures for a day.
I was right. This is what it looked like 14 hours later:
Look closely, you can see the where the tape square was in this pic:
Next day close up of where tape square was:
So, I'm pretty impressed with this product. Oddly enough, I'm really not to worried about the durability. Knowing the durability of the tire coating (and that this uses similar technology) I know it will last a long time. The coating in person looks very black.
This coating has a huge potential to make a mess during application. I recommend applying it with some sort of paint brush, as once its on your hands or gloves - it's everywhere. The product is literally a staining black liquid, and drips like water. Taping around whatever trim you will be applying it to is a good idea. I did get a drop or two on the paint, as long as it's wet - it wipes right off.
After 14 hours it looks much more "natural", like a new piece of plastic. I would say I used less than an 1/8 ounce of product to coat this piece. As an aside, I also polished the wiper arms with Optimum GPS by hand and waxed them with NaviWax Dark. They came out great as well:
The TBR seems to be an excellent product for a great price. The product does "self level", which means it doesn't dry with streaks where it was applied. I was concerned about this. It dries very evenly.
Considering what other companies are charging for an ounce or two for "trim coatings" this stuff is awesome. It not only protects the trim, but it darkens it black and evens it out. Unlike other trim "coatings", it has a black dye in it, so it has the ability to restore trim that has faded significantly.
I will keep the durability updated via the little tape square. So far, this is the best "trim restore" product I've used.
rops:
