Great discussion guys....
I just want to interject a few comments....
First, I don't care how many steps a person wants to do to their car, that's just part of our American culture. As long as you aren't hurting anyone else do as you will.
In my 3-day detailing classes, I have a power point slide that reads,
Some guys like to brag about how many steps they do.... I like to brag about how few I do...
:laughing:
One thing I notice that is common in the online detailing world is for people to take things that are very simple and make them more complicated than they have to be. That is to take washing and waxing a car and turn it into rocket science.
Here's one take at the car waxing process, that is the idea and practice of applying something to the paint on your car to do two things,
1: Protect it.
2: Make the paint and thus make the car look good.
Instead of going to great lengths to get a product to bond to the paint, instead, simply re-apply the product before you "think" it's all worn off.
Kind of the oil change analogy.
We don't wait till the bearings in our car's engine seize up before changing the oil. We change the oil before the bearings seize up. It's called,
Preventative Maintenance
I put a coating on my wife's car. It lasts a long time which is much less important to me than how it makes the paint look and how it makes washing and drying the paint fast and easy.
I use a one-step cleaner/wax on my truck. I don't care how long it lasts and thus I don't care anything about the entire "bonding issue"
BECAUSE I'm going to re-apply the product often.
This is why I like light cutting cleaner/waxes. I don't need a cleaner/wax to remove major defects out the paint on my truck because I never let it get that bad. What I need a light cleaner/wax to do is remove the
LIGHT or
SHALLOW swirls and scratches that are a part of normal wear-n-tear.
One fast pass around my truck and it looks brand new again.
Just my take....
Kind of goes with what always say...
"Find a product you like and use it often"
Now if you're truly the person that for whatever reason cannot perform regular maintenance to your car's paint BUT you want to protect it with something and when you apply the something you want to be sure it's making a proper bond, then I'd suggest getting the McKee's Paint Coating and the McKee's Coating Prep Polish.
- Wash and dry the car
- Do any correction or polishing work you want to do to improve the paint.
- Hand or machine apply the McKee's Coating Prep Polish
- Hand apply the McKee's Paint Coating
Stand back and admire the glassy, slick feeling results. Stick a fork in it and call it done. Move on in life.
