9/11

I once posted that I had tried and liked the Viking foam applicators on my Jeep Cherokee. In short order, I received an email from Sal Zaino himself, cautioning me that they would scratch and to use a 100% cotton applicator for applying Zaino or other products. I know that Sal sells applicators, but he wasn`t pushing his applicators in general, just cautioning about foam. I liked the foam applicator for it`s ease of use, even application and seemingly more economical use of Zaino. The real bottom line though, is that Sal Zaino has never steered me wrong and I have never used any products that measured up to his, and believe me, I`ve got a garage full of other products that became orphans after the first time I used the Z. I didn`t become a Zaino distributor to make my fortune, I don`t even charge shipping when I UPS it out to someone and I`ve got two guys that I sell most of my product to at my cost here in Omaha because they also became hooked and resell Zaino to their car clubs and friends.

[imported_nihoole]

The first time I used Z on my dark colored truck I used a foam (Pinnacle) pad and it worked great.The second time was on my wife`s white Xterra and I used one of Sal`s cotton applicators and it seemed to do fine but IMO I used more product with the thick cotton than with the foam.I like the way the foam stays in my hand better and thats all I ever use now the only way I could see it scatching is if it was dirty from previous use or an unclean surface.I love most of Sal`s stuff he is a very smart man when it comes to paint and protection.Did he give reasons or explanations on why he feels this way?Take care

[imported_memnuts]

I am not disagreeing with your preferred usage of terrycloth applicators but I personally find the foam pads are more user friendly for Zaino. I consider applicators as Limited-Time-Use tools. If the foam pads are cleaned properly after each use and thrown out after any degradation of the application surface the chances of creating paint imperfections is minimized. The foam pads are normally available locally which makes constant renewal very easy. At $2 a pop this is a minor expense. Like I stated at the beginning Sal advice is always the best but he is probably also concerned that most people are not as anal about their detailing equipment as we are and is erroring on the safe side with the terrycloth applicators recommendation.

How many of us have used in the past , before we saw the light, the same applicator pad that came with the paste wax for 30 - 40 applications? JMO

[ISLANDSBEST]

I think blkZ28Conv may have come up with an explanation -- a very intelligent explanation -- that reconciles Sal`s advice with our experience. Sal is certainly knowledge and as dlw says, he has never steered me wrong. At the same time, many on this forum -- and you guys are one perceptive lot -- have observed no ill effects from using foam.

Though Sal strives for ideals -- to make his product better and better -- I have also found him to have his feet on the ground. So, it would not surprize me if blkZ28Conv`s explanatiion is correct and Sal is giving what he considers to be <em class=`bbc`>practical[/i] advice for the average person . . . not us maniacs, who would detail and store our cars in clean rooms (the 100% clean facilities used in high tech manufacturing) if we could afford them.

[YoSteve]

I got a terry pad in my Souveran kit and between the apparent roughness of the cotton and the exposed edges, there is no way I`m going to use that. Now I haven`t tried a terry from Sal but if I were to use something I would much rather use a microfiber pad, so nice and so soft.

[BradE]

Steve,



The applicators from Sal are much much better than the ones from the Pinnacle kits. I still prefer foam though. :up

[imported_Intermezzo]

<blockquote class=`ipsBlockquote` >

<em class=`bbc`>Originally posted by ShowroomLincoln [/i]
<strong class=`bbc`>Steve,

The applicators from Sal are much much better than the ones from the Pinnacle kits. I still prefer foam though. :up [/b]</blockquote>
I actually had the opposite experience. I must have gotten a rare bad one from Sal because when I got my ZFX, I got an applicator with such flimsy cotton on it that I could clearly see through it and the foam inside was very visible. I don`t get this with the Pinnacle apps. This is really confusing & surprising because I know Sal is extremely anal about swirl marks and he`s got about 1000 times more experience than I do in detailing.

[BradE]

Intermezzo330I



That is odd, you must have gotton a bad one. I had the same thing happen with the ones in the Pinnacle kits. The one I got with my Pinnacle kit was very very rough, I would never use it on paint for anything.

[Redcar GUY]

I was reading this thread and thought about using some of the of the foam to see how I liked it, I had to go to AutoZone to ge an oil filter for the SS and thought I would grab a few while I was there............... Once again they didnt have then first the Mitts now this....... My AutoZone sucks!

There seemed to be some misunderstanding about my original post so I thought I might clear up a couple of things.



Someone replied asking if I knew why Sal didn`t recommend using foam pads, my original post said:

"I received an email from Sal Zaino himself, cautioning me that they would scratch and to use a 100% cotton applicator for applying Zaino or other products. I know that Sal sells applicators, but he wasn`t pushing his applicators in general, just cautioning about foam."



Another person seemed to have gotten the impression that I preferred the cotton applicator over the foam pad. My original post said:

"I liked the foam applicator for it`s ease of use, even application and seemingly more economical use of Zaino"



I hope that answers a couple of the questions people asked, As far as the cotton applicators from Zaino, I have received a few that weren`t perfect, such as a seam not sewn completely, but I`ve never gotten one that seemed to be made with an abnormally thin cloth or anything. I suspect that as with most products you might receive one now and again that isn`t perfect.



The whole point of my post was that, even though I liked the Viking foam applicators very much, I have come to trust Sal enough to take his advise and go back to cotton applicators. Once again, I didn`t feel that Sal was as much pushing his product as much as he was cautioning against the possibility of foam scratching the surface, either by inself or by picking up a piece of foreign matter on the pad. Part of the reason for using 100% cotton towels is that foreign objects on your paint are likely to be be caught up in the fibers of the towel instead of being pushed around directly on the paint surface.

[Redcar GUY]

you know....... now that I think about it.........


I never have paid for any of my Zaino applicators

I must buy so much they are just giving them to me?


HMmmmmmmmmmmmmm

<span style=`font-size: 14px;`>Cool

[imported_memnuts]

Just an addendum my to previous statement. Most of autopians use PC`s and the polishing pad of choice is foam. If foam is detrimental to our paint surfaces maybe we should re-think this procedure.?

Thanks Darbh.

[Lemonxxs]

Some added thought to this....



What are FOAM apps made from and what are the differences amoungst manufacturers?????

[Todd@RUPES]

9 years ago the world changed for a lot of us. In perhaps our most tragic hour we saw ordinary people transform into the hero`s. The inspirational sacrifices of those firefighters, policemen, and EMS personally literally lifted a nation and gave us a sense of hope in the face of so many innocent lives taken.

It`s true that 9 years has allowed us to heal most of the wounds; today was a very `normal` day in my life and most of our lives, a day that many of us (like many other normal days) take for granted. It is important to remember the lives lost by everybody, the feelings from that day, and inspiration that many gave their lives to give us (that ultimately allowed us to heal from that day).

Always remember and Never forget!

Todd

[imported_Flash Gordon]

IMO we should have nuked them on Sept 12th :soldier: