Swirl removal by hand is an art. I have seen Mike Phillips get incredible results with scratch-X by hand. That being said, the amount of time you will spend doing that makes buying a new dual action polisher a much better use of your resources. Afterall, your time is worth something. Once you get good with the dual action, you will find that you can't live without a rotary and then the sickness will really begin! (note: no, I have not used the rotary on my 3 month old G)

-GT

 

True polish is different than a wax in that a polish does not protect and wax does. Normally, you want to polish first and wax last. Different polishes do different things. There are chemical polishes which do nothing to remove scratches or swirls and there are abrasive polishes, which remove all. As stated there are sealants and waxes. NXT is a more of a sealant than a wax. That is why many people top NXT with a carnauba wax - not for protection, but because they like the look of it. BTW, because NXT has cleaners, you should not NXT over wax. It will just remove some of the wax and the NXT will not adhere as well to wax.

I second the post suggesting Autopia. You can also go to Meguairs.com for good information.

 

This might be a lazy question but how hard is it to put carnauba wax on? I know Nufinish is easy, I've read NXT is super easy. I don't know anything about carnauba though. I don't have a buffer so thats why I'm asking. And from what you guys are saying, hypothetically if I use the NXT I should let it sit for 24hrs to let it fully seal and then put the carnauba over it correct?

 

Most carnaubas are very easy to apply GRANTED you don't apply it too thick. There are so many options of carnauba waxes available. I've used and like Collinite Insulator Wax 845, Meguiar's #16 and #26, and Poorboys World Natty's Blue. They are all easy to apply and easy to take off. The trick is to apply so thin that you barely know it is on the surface.

Yes it would be best to wait at least 24 hours before topping NXT with anything else. Now don't be confused, you do apply AND remove the NXT, then you wait. I say this because a few people thought they needed to leave the product on the surface for 24hrs. That is not the case.

Good questions!

 

Using a carnuaba over NXT is probably not the best idea just in terms of durability. NXT's durabilty is 4-6 weeks tops, you would almost be better off just using a carnuaba and skipping the NXT all together, or just stick with the NXY and re-apply it every month.

 

So is NXT overrated then or what? I guess from what I've been reading its 50/50 with opinions. I want to try it after seeing another DG, Glen25's. His shine is sick. And he says all he uses after washing is the NXT. I was only thinking of the carnauba for the extra shine as recommended by other people on this thread. BTW thank you everyone for your help cause I need it.

 

What picus112 stated regarding topping the NXT does hold truth.

The reason being is because NXT's properties are not like typical sealants such as Klasse SG. SG can be topped with a carnauba because of it's durability and true synthetic sealant properties.

I wouldn't say NXT is overrated although keep in mind that some people do streeeetch the truth. It won't perform any miracles for you but it can make your ride look nice.

I will suggest again to research more on what makes paint look good. The NXT alone will not make or break the look. 99% of what makes a paint job stand out is the preparations taken before the final wax step. Therefore research this to find the best options for your ride and follow the proper steps to have a nice finish.

 

I actually like NXT a lot, just not for it's durability. Remember, an lsp is about more than just durabilty. NXT looks good and has a small amount of cleaning properties which is nice if that's all you use (it'll clean off previous layers itself), it also has a lot of fillers which some people like because they dislike polishing often, and the fillers help hide small scratches and swirls.

Is it the best looking LSP? Probably not. Is it the most durable? No. Is it good for the price and availabilty (and the added bonus of having fillers for those that like them...)? Yep.

And like twitch mentioned, the detailers mantra is that prep is 99% of the job. Sealants and waxes exsist to protect and beautify paint that is already in good shape, they will not fix bad paint.

 

While it's expensive for the entire kit, I'd still say use Zaino polish. Best stuff I've ever used, but some like others more. Just get the basics (Zaino carwash, Z2 w/ accelerator and Z6 OR Z8).

 

I agree wth NOT topping the NXT. If you think of NXT as a glaze with some light cleaners in it you will be about right. I don't think you would gain anything from topping NXT.

Is NXT over-hyped? Nah. For the OTC market it is a great product. With minimal effort and tooling you can create a nice shine and run a very low chance of doing any damage. The same holds true for similar products from the other lines. This type of product is right for 99.9% of the population (I did extensive research to arrive at that exact percentage...).

Other "boutique" products are made for the die hard paint care people. these typically cost more, require more skill to use, and some require tools like a dual action polisher or a rotary buffer. Many of these products also have a bit more bite to them and could do some damage in the wrong hands. For instance, if Joe Anybosy walked into Pep Boys and bought some Menzerna Power Gloss and went at it on his brand new 4Runner (read - new Toyotas have the softest clear I have ever seen) there could be a disaster. For this reason, the OTC products are typically forumated to be a *bit* more fool proof.

If you are incredibly concerned about your finish and, most importantly, are willing to make the time and financial deposit for taking care of your finish than the autopia way and boutique products are for you. In terms of durability and general appearance, these products are typically superior. However, if you are a weekend warrior and just want to pick something up, stuff like NXT will do no harm.

-GT

 

Well said.

 

There are some real good OTC products out now, Mother's Reflections and the Synwax are some good products.

NuFinish is blah.

For ACTUAL swirl removal, using a polish by hand is possible, but ineffective for the amount of energy and time spent doing it.

If you're not willing to invest in a Porter Cable, a simple claying and a wax will suffice.

 

I'm reading this and just have to chime in a bit...

There's a lot of MIS-information being passed around in this thread. First of all, if you really want to become a car detail nut... just go on Autopia and you'll have no time keeping busy on a weekend cleaning your car.

FUNDAMENTALLY...

After wash, yadda yadda.... then comes:

CLAYING:
You're removing the contaminants from the paint. Basically, rocks, brake dust, etc. What you have after you remove them on a microscopic level is divets in your paint.

(MIS-Information passed around here at LOT): Fill it in with "X Product"... or try "Super Duper Swirl Remover X"...

Yes, fillers work, if your paint is not that bad... or you just want to cover it up... but you're STILL NOT FIXING THE PROBLEM!!!!

POLISHING:
Polishing is akin to a very fine sandpaper. You have different grit sandpaper, and in the polishing world... you have different abrasiveness of polishes, pads, etc.

You cannot just talk about car detailing "in general" without knowing and understanding the current condition of your car. What Polishing is doing is actually REMOVING a tiny amount of paint to flatten the surface. By hand, yes, it takes a long time. If you want it done right, get a dual-orbital polisher.

Over time, you car gets swirls either from carelessness (wiping car while it's dirty), using a California duster, brake dust being trapped in the paint, daily grind, etc.

Think of "Polishing" as smoothing out the surface (i.e. YOU'RE TAKING OFF A LITTLE BIT OF PAINT!!!!) and removing the imperfections in the paint.

You DO NOT need wax to get your car shiny... Go into a professional detailer, and you can see what I mean. If you know what you're doing with polishing, you can get a mirrorlike shine just from polishing alone... and the wax is just a cover to protect your paint!!

WAX:
It's a small, thin layer of protectant for your paint. Yes, your car looks great after you wax...but note that all your doing without fixing the problem is just filling in those swirls,etc (You can add fillers, swirl removers, etc here as well that's being tossed around.)

This DOES NOT fundamentally FIX anything...!! You're just filling/covering things up, and over a short period of time... you're back at square one with the same problem of swirls, streaks, etc. Wonder why those swirls never go away?? ==> Cause you haven't fixed it!!

Wax is a protectant!!! That's all!!

If you're NOT a car detail nut, then I'm sure the NXT, Turtle Wax, etc will work for 90% of the people out there. But if you want it done right and fix paint issues, get a polisher and learn about it... and do it right the first time.

Throwing a chunk of wax on it works great... but ONLY for a couple of weeks and you have that dull shine again.

For those who are ready to dive into the Car Detail Nut realm, go here:
http://autopia.org/

Happy Detailing...

 

Just get a PC- you will not regret it!!!!!! A must for black cars and a must for the G's soft clear coat.
NXT is great stuff. I do not know if it is best to layer a carnauba over NXT. I prefer to save the extra effort in applying another coating of NXT or Carnauba (prefer P21S) after 2 weeks from the first application.

 

Not to revive one of my old threads, ahem. I wanted to thank everyone for their help and knowledge. I love a clean and shiny car but I guess I'm not nutty enough yet to spend 15 hours washing my car. I went the easy route after my wash and put on the Meguiars NXT, smells great btw. Its been on about a week and a half or two weeks and still seems ok. The only crappy thing I can complain about is that the DG doesn't seem to have that crazy shine until the sun is down and you look at it in a certain way. But I guess thats the payoff for having a color that can't look too dirty either.