I can't wait to get this stuff in. I havn't waxed my car yet, and I'm dying to see how shiny this Carribean blue will look when its finished.

I've waxed cars before, never used this brand, so I'll have to read their directions & steps to use the products. I can't ******* wait to see the shine.


mods--please move to the detailing forum

 

You will love the look...I got all of my friends hooked on it. We can't stop washing and waxing our cars...Best investment ever!

 

You'll love it. Great stuff! My only advice would be to just follow the directions on the Zaino Bros web site. After you do it a few times, it'll be very easy. The trick is to put the polish on very thin. Squirt a little bit of Z6 detailing spray on your applicator and that'll help.

 

I love posting this picture. This is what Zaino can do, enjoy.

 

I agree, you'll love it! It's ease of use is the real draw, for me, as well as the results.

The best advice, by far, is to follow the Tips on towel selection. I didn't use either brand mentioned at www.zainostore.com, but I did adhere to the 100% USA Cotton AND Made In The USA towel selection (Wamsutta brand from Bed, Bath & Beyond). Stay away from Egyptian cotton or towels made outside of the USA! You'll feel the difference between them.

I've used the Z7 carwash (excellent!) and the Z6 Gloss Enhancer Spray (after each wash) several times already, but I only did one coat of Z2 Polish that initial time. It lstill ooks freshly detailed after every Z7 wash and Z6 Spray!

 

Zaino is fantastic! I use Z1 and Z2 (haven't tried ZFX yet.) I do it every 6 months. Here are the simple instructions I send my friends when they ask me how to do it:

• Wash the car with blue liquid Dawn dish soap to strip off all the wax and oils
• Lightly dry (no need to get every drop of water off)
• Use the claybar over the car with a quick detail spray (I use Maguiars Quick Detailer) or car soap and water (to act as a lubricant) to lift off the bonded contaminants
• Wash the car again with any good car shampoo to get the clay residue off
• Dry entire car thoroughly
• Apply the Z-1 Polish lock (does not need to dry)
• Apply the Z-2 Polish right over top of that and allow to dry
• Wipe off after dry (30-60 minutes)
• Drool

Do not be afraid of the clay! Here's a good article on claying:

http://www.autopia-carcare.com/inf-clay.html

Also, do not apply any wax or polish over water spots! Trapping mineral spots under a coat of polish just makes shiny mineral spots

If you have water spots, read this:

http://store.yahoo.com/autopia/horeswmawasp.html

Here's a few tips:

• Use different clay for wheels since they get get grimy with brake dust
• Clay works really well on windows - gets the bug guts and mineral deposits off!
• Use 100% cotton towels - no polyester - and cut the tags off!
• I use foam pads with a terry cloth wrap to apply the Z1 and Z2
• I tend to use more than "the dime-sized amount" to do the hood, but probably because the pad is absorbing too much
• When applying the Z1 and Z2, do not go in circles! Apply the products in the direction the car travels for horizontal surfaces and up and down for vertical surfaces. It is subtle but makes a difference in the finished polish
• If you see streaks, the polish is not dry yet - come back in an hour
• Wait 24 hours before applying a second coat of Z2

Remember, detailing is all about surface prep! The more time you spend in the beginning, the happier you will be in the end!

Hope this helps!

 

After taking a good look/feel of the finish, I skipped the initial Dawn and Claybar steps.

Try the ZFX. You'll like being able to just mix a bottle and apply one coat instead of two. And the drying time... ...Granted, I'm in West Texas and it's really dry here, and my garage has been between 85-100... ...but it's been no more than 10-15 minutes max for the Z2 to dry. I'm done in no time.

 

I'll try it when my Z2 runs out

As for the initial steps - I never skip them - even on a new car. First, the dealer waxes it so you want to get that off before you go with a synthetic sealant like Zaino. Second, all cars are transported by rail and rail dust gets imbedded in the finish, so getting that off is critical in the first month of ownership!

 

good luck. my arms were jelly after my first zainos application. i put about 7 coats on the car that weekend and added another 2 coats about every month for the first year.

 

Overkill? Zaino goes on and comes off like cake and you really only need 2 coats max and that lasts for about 3-6 months.

Also, you are supposed to let Z2 cure for 24 hours before another coat - you did 7 in a weekend?

 

Definately looked/felt for all of that before making the choice to skip some steps. Can't tell. Looks great. Also, the dealer skipped the wax/prep (with my permission) because it was going to be hauled to me anyway.

The only down side to using the ZFX with the Z2, IMO, is that you need to mix only what is needed and that you're supposed to wash the bottle within 10 hours or it's no good anymore. I've had the residue remain inside the bottle after just about 5 hours (hot garage?), which is supposed to mean that the bottle is no good any longer.

That's really ok with me, as I found a site that sells what appears to be the same bottles. I'll probably ****** up a dozen or so to avoid clean-up. They're cheap, but anything less than a $50 order is hit with a $10 or $15 charge. So, for a dozen bottles, it's something like $25. Not too bad for the convenience over the next year or so.

 

I've been using zaino for 3 years on various cars. My advice is 4-5 coats of z-2 pro. In between each coat use the (fairly) new z-8. Personally, I do this once every 6 months. I usually wash the car once every 2 weeks and finish with z-8. Between washes i use z-6 to clean and shine it up a little.

I also use z1 instead of zfx. You only have to put z1 on once every 10 coats (of say z2-pro) so to me thats more useful than zfx (why do i want to throw away stuff if i can't use it all in x hours???).

 

Not if you mix in the ZFX. The ZFX is a hardener and lets you apply another coat immediately. If I remember correctly, you're only supposed to apply a maximum of 3 coats per day though.

 

Those bottles are nothing more then paint mixing bottle for air brush that you can find in any art stores. I get them like 50 cent each. Cheap

 

bottles

Yeh, these aren't but $.12/bottle and about $.20/dispenser lid, so it's the $10 minimum purchase charge ($10 added on orders under $50) and shipping that jack up the cost.

After looking again, the $25 figure I gave is high. A dozen would run you just under $4 + $10min. + Shipping ($5?) for under $20. Relative chump-change, but it would be nice to find locally and avoid the min. & shipping charges.