LSP, to M16 or not

[imported_tim]

mornin` folks,



I have an `07 black GTI and nothing but time on my hands.

It currently has three coats of BFWD, with DWG between coats.

Then, on top of that I`ve (so far) got one coat of FK1000P, with

another one due to go on in a few days.



The car looks really, really nice at this point, but, all of this waxing

and stuff is a disease around here. ( you knew that.):)



todays question, should you decide to participate is this...



Do I top all of this with M16 ?



or



Do I buy some Natty`s Blue Liquid and play that game ?



I have Natty`s red and don`t care for the way it acts on the black,

mostly cuz it seems to gather too much dust.



What do ya think for a car that is a DD in n.e.ohio ?

[JCturboT]

I`d say you are all set as is.



You have your beauty (BFWD) and your long term sealant with FK1000P. Seems like the best of both worlds to me.



Jeff

[Dan]

Spend the time doing some real detailing like under the hood, wheel, wheel wells, etc. Putting M16 on top of what you have isn`t going to do anything for you, and IMO, M16 does not look that great on black, M26 is much better on darks.

[Accumulator]

Spend the time doing some real detailing like under the hood, wheel, wheel wells, etc.



Yeah, that`s what I was thinking. And then know when to say "when" and do something other than detail that car.

[imported_Bert]

While you have put all this work in to building up your layers of LSP, how much work have you put into polishing the car? When I saw your post count my original assumption was that your are new to detailing (if that is incorrect, I apologize) and most newbies I read about on here spend way too much time on the LSP thinking that is what gives paint its depth, wetness and overall shine when really thorough claying and polishing is 95% of the look.



I was the same way when I first came on board three and a half years ago and a vetran member commented to me that I could pick the most elaborate set of sealants and waxes and apply that to one half of my car and if he was to clay and polish the other half of my car and apply Turtle Wax on it, his side would look vastly better than mine. After I bought my DA and polished my car for the first time, I figured out, he was right.

[imported_tim]

Well, I thought it was a simple question, I appear to be wrong.



Some background then.



I`m unable at this time to do any heavy lifting. That pretty much precludes

any taking off and putting back on wheels. No matter, the wheels get swapped out with

my winter setup every Fall/ Spring. So I have the off season of whatever isn`t on the

car to play with wheels. They`re good.



The car was clayed, polished with SIP, then 106ff prior to any of the LSP`s. This is a car

that I`ve owned since new and the paint has always been kept as pristine as I`m able for a dd.



I`ve got a Cyclo that I`ve been using longer than most people on the forum have been alive.

That said, I`m no expert. All I was doing here was asking a question I thought that most of you could relate to.

[Dan]

I think you are taking it the wrong way. Most of the regulars on this forum believe that >90% of the look is in the polishing, and then you use your wax or sealant of choice to lock that look in. No one has been able to prove that any product actually layers, so making these sandwiches of 2, 3, 4 or 5 layers isn`t really doing anything for you, unless you just like to do it. But as you stated, your paint is perfectly polished and you`ve topped it with some great products, so I think the collective wisdom is you won`t do anything to improve that. That said, unless everything else on the car is perfect, you should probably look at other areas to focus your attention.

[Accumulator]

spookertunes- Glad to hear the car`s in good shape :xyxthumbs



I was just being my heretical self :o and thinking that you`ve probably spent enough time/effort on it. I say "heretical" because unlike many people here, I don`t think this stuff oughta consume too much of one`s life and I`d probably think your car looks fine without anything else being done to it.



Hope you have a speedy and complete recovery from whatever`s precluding the heavy lifting!

[gigondaz]

spookertunes- Glad to hear the car`s in good shape :xyxthumbs



I was just being my heretical self :o and thinking that you`ve probably spent enough time/effort on it. I say "heretical" because unlike many people here, I don`t think this stuff oughta consume too much of one`s life and I`d probably think your car looks fine without anything else being done to it.

Hope you have a speedy and complete recovery from whatever`s precluding the heavy lifting!



Very wise words, Accumulator, and I appreciate them deeply.

During my college days, I`ll wash my car DAILY! I was obsessed. My neighbours thought I was a nutcase. During thunderstorms, I`m still washing the car. After the rain stops, I`ll wash again. It was fanatical. Doing 3 layers of Zaino starting from 9pm at night all the way to wee hours of the morning! Driving over 400km to buy the latest brands of detailing products (I remember it was Eagle One) during those days.

NUTS!! Now, I`m rehabilitated, more sensible and wanna enjoy QUALITY time with my family, instead of being a slave to my car!



Back to the topic...forget about the M16. On most blacks, M16 doesn`t make a significantly noticeable difference....especially on top of 3 x BFWD and FK1000!

[imported_tim]

Thanks guys, I appreciate the input.



What`s currently going on is I`m on medical leave from work, expecting to go back soon.

Have been off all summer, just the last month or so getting most of my strength back.

Polishing and waxing the family cars is my way of relaxing. For me, it beats time on a shrink`s

couch......so, I do it cuz I`ve little else that I can do while the wife is off to work and the

kid`s in school. ( Well, I s`pose I could do some laundry and housework. )



I`m just looking for max protection at this time of the year.

[Accumulator]

spookertunes- OK, roger that on your finding it relaxing.



While I`ve never been all that crazy about how #16 looks on black, if you have it and want to do some LSPing, then I *will* say that #16 is a product I simply enjoy using. Maybe it`s just me (and/or he scent of crayons), but sure...go for it.



Just put it on really thin or you`ll have a PIA on your hands and it might not be so fun after all.



Heh heh...believe it or not, housework is something else I can kinda enjoy, if only because I can then enjoy the fruits of that labor (namely, a clean, tidy house). Laundry..well...I do more of that than Accumultorette does, but I wouldn`t call it fun :grinno:

[imported_01GreyStangGT]

is #16 better for colors like silver or white then, if not good for black?

[Accumulator]

is #16 better for colors like silver or white then, if not good for black?



Noting that splitting hairs like this is all eye-of-the-beholder stuff and often just pointless bsing...



Yeah, IMO #16 is more for "bright" colors where you want things to look reflective, whereas I see black as a "deep" color where I prefer a different look.



But there are plenty of people here who simply love #16 on black and dark colors and it`s not like they`re wrong or anything.