Not getting good beading out of AJT

[imported_DieselMDX]

Yup that is AJT beading alright, did a maxima for a co-worker and his car looked the same.

[Milestones]

With AJT I`m not particularly worried about the outer limits of durability other than out of intellectual curiosity.



It`s so easy to put on another layer of AJT that I know I won`t be able to go more than 3-4 weeks max. without applying another coat of AJT anyway.



With easy spray WOWO sealants like AJT - I` m simply not worried about having a reliable indicater of when the sealant might fail (4-6 months?) because I`m not going to go more than 3-4 weeks anyway without appling more AJT or some other spray wax (like DG AW).



While it`s reassuring to know that AJT has a reputation for excellent durability (because then I have the confidence of knowing that my paint is well protected at all times) - other than that, I don`t care about having a reliable and verifiable visual indicator of AJT failure for the reasons set out above.

[wannafbody]

It always puzzles me why the #1 association for durability is Beading. Beading results from surface tension, if you observe a brand new car that is fresh from the factory even that unprotected clearcoat will bead. Consider real world environment, certain Detailed vehicles get driven through all sorts of Pollutants/Elements in the atmosphere. For example, if a vehicle is taken daily to the Airport, pollutants in the air build-up a high amount which could weaken a Protected surface, as well as destroy the beading effect.



Durability really should be marked on a range of attributes: appearance (reflection, gloss, shine, slickness), beading size/frequency from the start of the protection cycle, and ability to repell dirt build-up.



Unprotected/no durability would be a surface with pools of water, almost as if the surface is dead.



I don`t consider slickness to be a sign of wether a product is still on the surface. I look for some type of water repellancy, gloss and the ability to wash clean easily. The best products don`t absorb dirt.

[SuperBuick]

BMW335, you need collinite 476 :-) My truck is FILTHY (I live in MA, so it is to be expected) and still beading very nicely (from an application in OCTOBER)



T

[Zet]

Beading looks fine to me, especially on a dirty car. But maybe you`d be happier topping with a carnauba if you like beading. For a spray wax OCW also beads nicely.



Regarding indicators for protection: I like to watch how well the water sheets when rinsing the car after a wash. When the sheeting starts to go slowly, it`s time for a refreshing of the LSP. Also as wannafbody said, how easy the car is to wash clean is a good indicator. As well as the slickness when using a QD.

[Macruz19]

If I had ice like that on my car then I`d be pissed! LOL! I don`t see that everday here in the sunshine state.

[imported_hooked]

The beading on your car looks fine to me especially since it`s not washed. They`re not the tightest, but I think most comments about AJT is that it doesn`t bead with super small drops.



It happened to be raining after work today so I took a couple shots to show what the difference is between beading on a clean surface versus a dirty surface...



The first shot is the hood of my van that was done with AJT at Thanksgiving last year. It has been washed a few times with ONR, but no retreatment of any LSP, and it is outdoors all the time. The AJT is still beading and the last wash was probably a couple of weeks ago.



http://www.autopia.org/gallery/data/500/img037.jpg



And here`s a shot of the roof that was also done in November with AJT. I`ve been lazy and haven`t washed it since, so it has 4 months of grime. You can see that there areas with no beading at all.



http://www.autopia.org/gallery/data/500/img038.jpg



So Class, what conclusions can we draw from these pics? Besides that I need to clean my van more often!!! ;)



BTW, the quality of the pics are not the best. Took them with my camera phone.