Benefits of a sealant vs. carnauba for enthusiast?

[TGates]

I have kind of moved away from working on other peoples cars and focused most of my attention on my car, my new home and my new job. Having done so, I have much more time to focus only on my cars and their paint condition.



Now, my silver Z06 will always either have Z2Pro or UPP (which it has now) on it because they have been the best, by far, on silver in my eyes. I just can`t get a carnauba to do what I want on that particular shade of silver.



On my GTO, though, I find I much prefer the look of a glaze/carnauba combination than the shiny appearance of most sealants. I`m currently trying to go through all my sealant peripherals (detail sprays, mostly, as I`ll never be able to use up all my sealants) so I can get back to using a carnauba on it. This got me wondering if I was doing my car a disfavor. It`s not a daily driver. It doesn`t sit out in the sun all day. In fact, it really only comes out for maybe a few hours a week, if that. I can and will keep a fresh layer of wax on it (say, once every two or three weeks) and it will be babied with carnauba fortified QD`s between washes.



Am I over looking something here that would steer me back towards a sealant? Besides the extra protection from those inevitable bird bombs (which will burn right through even the toughest LSPs if not taken care of right away) I sure can`t think of much else that might come in contact with the paint that a fresh layer of carnauba can`t handle.



Plus, I enjoy working with carnauba much more than sealants generally speaking, although sealants such as WG, UPP, and Z2Pro are super easy to use. For the occasional road trip, a quick touch up with OCW should help with bug jerky on the front end, too.



Carnauba definitely isn`t a dinosaur in my arsenal... not until I can find a sealant that produces the warmth, easy of use, slickness, and beading of a carnauba. Durability has become much less of a factor for me, thank God.

[Smoked Tails]

I hope I`m not stating the obvious, but I think you should use what works best for you. It seems like you know the look that you want and what will accomplish that for you on both of your vehicles. If you have too much of products that you don`t use, offer them up for grabs here, on ebay, or your local classifieds to try to recoup some of what you paid for them.



BTW, nice selection of rides you got there.

[Accumulator]

Nothing wrong with carnaubas IMO and I use them on everything from daily drivers (my wife`s A8, silver BTW and looking great with a `nauba!) to garagequeens (the XJS) to outside 24/7 beaters (the Volvo we used to have).



I`ve always used carnaubas on the XJS and it`s doing fine after 21 years. Note that it wasn`t always a garagequeen, it was my only car back before I even had a garage to keep it in. Heh heh, the combination of the V12`s engine heat and being outside 24/7 was a decent test of carnauba`s protective abilities IMO, and that car`s paint is fragile to begin with.



The way we`re taking care of our vehicles it doesn`t matter all that much which LSP we use ;)



Actually, the only vehicles I use sealants on are the S8 (UPP for slickness) and the MPV (KSG for durability).

[imported_memnuts]

I would use whatever appeals to your eyes.



IMHO with proper depth and wetness producing prep, in my case rotary, one can not distinquish between the 2 types of LSP types. This of course is very dependent also on the quality of the paint

one is dealing with. Carnuaba will definitely aid in some stock paints because of their thinness, lack of clear and basecoat color hue quality.



Because of redundant stock, I started narrowing my selection of products and stopped new line purchases about 3 years ago and sold off stuff I didn`t used or just duplicated my front line products and focused on prep.



You should have no problem selling your redundant stock or the art of prep.



In your case it just depends on the favor or the day that you desire. Either choice will still be treating each vehicle well. It is the attention to the details more so than the detailing product class.

[SilverLexus]

Carnauba definitely isn`t a dinosaur in my arsenal... not until I can find a sealant that produces the warmth, easy of use, slickness, and beading of a carnauba. Durability has become much less of a factor for me, thank God.



I used to think I had found a magic combination in AIO and Souveran but I can almost replicate it with Zaino Z-2 Pro with exception of the wetness after first app that usually doesn`ts tick around anyway. With the added durability and refreshing aspects of Z-8 I have been favoring Zaino recently. It really seems to bring the flake out more and have a shade more clarity. It probably has 95% of the wetness as well with good prep.



Still I like the look of Souveran and Nattys Blue on dark colors a lot and will keep experimenting and looking for the next big thing. :)

[TGates]

I used to think I had found a magic combination in AIO and Souveran but I can almost replicate it with Zaino Z-2 Pro with exception of the wetness after first app that usually doesn`ts tick around anyway. With the added durability and refreshing aspects of Z-8 I have been favoring Zaino recently. It really seems to bring the flake out more and have a shade more clarity. It probably has 95% of the wetness as well with good prep.



Still I like the look of Souveran and Nattys Blue on dark colors a lot and will keep experimenting and looking for the next big thing. :)



Zaino is hard to beat for clarity, that`s for sure. Unfortunately, in my case on my dark blue car, I haven`t exactly polished every little scuff out, and the Zaino (or any other sealant for that matter) seems to highlight these imperfections. Maybe when Z5Pro comes out, things will change.



As for slickness, I find UPP to be superior to almost all I have tried, at least initially. I have limited experience with it, and haven`t even washed the car it`s on yet so I`m not sure how slick it will stay. I just never found Zaino to be slippery. It was slick to the backside of my hand, but UPP, WG, and most carnaubas are flat out slippery. But like you said, this does fade away....however, it can easily be restored which I could not get with Zaino.



Different strokes for different folks... that`s why I love it here so much :woot:

[SilverLexus]

I just never found Zaino to be slippery. It was slick to the backside of my hand, but UPP, WG, and most carnaubas are flat out slippery.



Hmmm, it`s pretty slick on my trunk lid, especially after freshend up with Z-8 plus an hour or so. I have felt the slickness of UPP and have some but I`m not as fond of the look. Maybe I should do a side by side comparison...

[Scottwax]

I go with carnaubas on dark solid colors and sealants on most everything else because that is what looks best to me. On metallics, Acrylic Jett flat blows away any other sealant I have tried in looks and seems to be very durable as well.

[goceltics34]

What is Acrylic Jett and where can I purchase some?

[Accumulator]

As for slickness, I find UPP to be superior to almost all I have tried, at least initially. I have limited experience with it, and haven`t even washed the car it`s on yet so I`m not sure how slick it will stay...



It won`t last too long in my experience, and note that I wash the S8 *VERY* gently. You can refresh the slickness quickly/easily with the UGE spray, but I usually just reapply the UPP, which is pretty quick and easy too.

[DM101]

That you beleive Acrylic Jett will blow away Pinnacle Souveran that has been topped with say UPP? I value your opinion.






I go with carnaubas on dark solid colors and sealants on most everything else because that is what looks best to me. On metallics, Acrylic Jett flat blows away any other sealant I have tried in looks and seems to be very durable as well.

[Scottwax]

That you beleive Acrylic Jett will blow away Pinnacle Souveran that has been topped with say UPP? I value your opinion.



On metallic paints, I don`t even top Acrylic Jett I like the look so much. On solid black, red, and other similarly dark colors, I always end with a carnauba.



AJ isn`t quite as easy to use right off the bat as UPP but once you get the hang of it (after applying, continue to work lightly into the paint until it nearly disappears then remove the excess), it is pretty goof proof.



goceltics34-www.jeffswerkstatt.com

[imported_flatstick]

On metallic paints, I don`t even top Acrylic Jett I like the look so much. On solid black, red, and other similarly dark colors, I always end with a carnauba.



AJ isn`t quite as easy to use right off the bat as UPP but once you get the hang of it (after applying, continue to work lightly into the paint until it nearly disappears then remove the excess), it is pretty goof proof.



goceltics34-www.jeffswerkstatt.com





I agree with you Scott on the AJ. it looks great on metallics. the ease of use makes me want to use it all the time. Tyler or anybody else, if you are unhappy with Prime , AJ or CJ , I will take them off you hands.

[TGates]

I agree with you Scott on the AJ. it looks great on metallics. the ease of use makes me want to use it all the time. Tyler or anybody else, if you are unhappy with Prime , AJ or CJ , I will take them off you hands.



I`ll definitely be keeping the Prime and AJ because I think they have a pretty long shelf life, and I agree with the comments about how great AJ looks on metallics. I had my car out today (its 60 degrees and sunny) and the car has only looked as good once before (clearkote lineup). It has AJ, touched up with Acrylic Glanz, and I just used UGE on it last night. Holy crap, does it ever look great.



I found AJ a little hard to work with though, and when I say a little, I mean a lot. :p



I`ll try Scott`s method of working it in the paint longer next time.

[imported_flatstick]

I`ll definitely be keeping the Prime and AJ because I think they have a pretty long shelf life, and I agree with the comments about how great AJ looks on metallics. I had my car out today (its 60 degrees and sunny) and the car has only looked as good once before (clearkote lineup). It has AJ, touched up with Acrylic Glanz, and I just used UGE on it last night. Holy crap, does it ever look great.



I found AJ a little hard to work with though, and when I say a little, I mean a lot. :p



I`ll try Scott`s method of working it in the paint longer next time.





Well try using a very little bit on a mf applicator and wipe it in the finish until you no longer see it. do a little section at a time. from there wipe it off an you are done. how much easier can it be?