Permanent coatings

[purplenurple]

I`ve been a bit out of the loop with all of the new products that have been coming out, and am looking into trying out some of the "permanent" coatings out there. Is there a consensus best between Opti-Coat, CQarts, and Wolf`s? Can either of these be used on fiberglass and/or BARE polished aluminum? Is the Carpro offering the only thing for tires/rubber trim?



Thanks for any input.

[mustangmike]

I`ve used Opti Coat on my bare polished aluminum rims, been on for about a month now, looks great, great protection. I would do it again.



For the tires check out Tuf Shine, I`m impressed with the durability and looks. Seems to shed dirt and stand up to rain very nicely.

[purplenurple]

Thanks, Mike. Out of curiosity, what kind of wheels are they? Mine are CCWs and they usually do OK with a coat of Duragloss 501 every few months, but I`m looking for something more long lasting to keep the spots and oxidation away.

[mustangmike]

My wheels are oldies, I got them back in the 70s in an oxidized and neglected condition for cheap. The Brand is Appliance, the style is called slot mags, they go nice on my 67 Mustang fastback. I taught myself how to polish aluminum on those wheels, used sandpaper and then buffs on an electric motor and sticks of buffing compound to get back to a mirror finish. Later on I got a set of 73 Mustang factory mags which looked very similar to the Appliance mags and I polished up a pair of those and put them on the front of the car, the offset worked out better.



I have several other pieces of polished aluminum on the car, engine brackets and stuff and am always looking for new aluminum polishes. I`ve tried a number of metal polishes, so far I`m inpressed with the Adams 2 part system, it brings out a nice bright shine. I`ve never tried waxing or sealing my wheels, always just relied on the polish to protect them. My car stays garaged most of the time so the wheels don`t see a lot of weather.

[David Fermani]

I prefer Opti-Coat/Guard myself, but I have not tested the other products. I would suggest doing your homework to see how they stack up prior to making the investment of time and money. From my understanding, OC/G is quite different/unique.