Best car polish?
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RE: Best car polish?
Polish & wax are two different things, and usually used together. Polish first to "clean" and remove swirls, and bring out the paints luster. Then wax to protect the polished finish. Polish will last longer, but it needs good regular coats of wax on top of it to be effective.
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From: Westville, IL
RE: Best car polish?
ORIGINAL: sowaxeman
Polish & wax are two different things, and usually used together. Polish first to "clean" and remove swirls, and bring out the paints luster. Then wax to protect the polished finish. Polish will last longer, but it needs good regular coats of wax on top of it to be effective.
Polish & wax are two different things, and usually used together. Polish first to "clean" and remove swirls, and bring out the paints luster. Then wax to protect the polished finish. Polish will last longer, but it needs good regular coats of wax on top of it to be effective.
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RE: Best car polish?
GTlust,
When choosing a polish -- or asking for opinions -- it's often helpful to know the condition and color of the paint. Guessing that your paint needs some TLC...
At least once or twice a year on daily drivers it's recommended to use a clay bar to remove surface contaminants. This will help the polish do a better job because it can polish the paint instead of the contaminants. So claying is a great start before waxing.
Now, industry terms are commonly mis-used so it can get confusing... some products that are called polishes aren't really polishes, and all they do is add a little shine.
True polishes are available separately or combined in wax products such as in a cleaner wax. The Mothers Clay Bar Kit (a product I really like, for example) includes an excellent Carnauba Cleaner Wax (polishes, with a carnauba wax for protection). You'll always want to polish following a clay application, and you'll also want to protect that polish job with a wax.
Their Carnauba Cleaner Wax (the two combined) is an excellent one-step choice, and is available separately from the clay. For a combination product, it's probably got one of the better polishes among the brands.
And of course, there are many cleaner wax brands (often called also called "car wax") that feature either synthetic waxes or carnauba wax. If the product contains carnauba, it will have "carnauba" somewhere on the label.
If you're wanting a little more control over your polish and wax regimen -- and if you want a glaze -- something like Mothers Ultimate Wax System might be in order. The Pre-Wax Cleaner (Step 1) is your polish, which removes old wax and cleans the surface. The Sealer & Glaze (Step 2) helps to give depth and fill minor defects in the paint -- usually those annoying spiderwebbing marks can be filled by this product. The Pure Carnauba Wax (Step 3), is just that -- pure carnauba for protection and shine. You only need to do all 3 steps maybe twice a year. Steps 2 and 3 can be done periodically. It's easy to do by hand, and some more helpful info is in their Detail Guide.
While I really like the new synthetics from Mothers, but on a car that needs some polish -- some TLC -- the 3-step Ultimate Wax System is a great way to go.
When choosing a polish -- or asking for opinions -- it's often helpful to know the condition and color of the paint. Guessing that your paint needs some TLC...
At least once or twice a year on daily drivers it's recommended to use a clay bar to remove surface contaminants. This will help the polish do a better job because it can polish the paint instead of the contaminants. So claying is a great start before waxing.
Now, industry terms are commonly mis-used so it can get confusing... some products that are called polishes aren't really polishes, and all they do is add a little shine.
True polishes are available separately or combined in wax products such as in a cleaner wax. The Mothers Clay Bar Kit (a product I really like, for example) includes an excellent Carnauba Cleaner Wax (polishes, with a carnauba wax for protection). You'll always want to polish following a clay application, and you'll also want to protect that polish job with a wax.
Their Carnauba Cleaner Wax (the two combined) is an excellent one-step choice, and is available separately from the clay. For a combination product, it's probably got one of the better polishes among the brands.
And of course, there are many cleaner wax brands (often called also called "car wax") that feature either synthetic waxes or carnauba wax. If the product contains carnauba, it will have "carnauba" somewhere on the label.
If you're wanting a little more control over your polish and wax regimen -- and if you want a glaze -- something like Mothers Ultimate Wax System might be in order. The Pre-Wax Cleaner (Step 1) is your polish, which removes old wax and cleans the surface. The Sealer & Glaze (Step 2) helps to give depth and fill minor defects in the paint -- usually those annoying spiderwebbing marks can be filled by this product. The Pure Carnauba Wax (Step 3), is just that -- pure carnauba for protection and shine. You only need to do all 3 steps maybe twice a year. Steps 2 and 3 can be done periodically. It's easy to do by hand, and some more helpful info is in their Detail Guide.
While I really like the new synthetics from Mothers, but on a car that needs some polish -- some TLC -- the 3-step Ultimate Wax System is a great way to go.