Finish Kare Products - I tried a few.....

mgm2003

mgm2003

New member
Finish Kare Products

I've been using Finish Kare Pink Wax a lot lately, and other than the solvent smell, I like it a lot! That said, I decided to give the folks at Finish Kare a call to ask about a few other products (namely -their sealer and decon system). I ended up buying a 15oz bottle of their #2180 sealer, and they sent me samples of their car wash/wax, #425 Poly Wipe Spray, FX-100 spray sealer, and 185-FX-Quick-Gloss glaze. Our Tahoe was just 'done up' a few weeks ago, so why not strip it down and do it again!

Process used:

Wash - Finish Kare wash & wax. Nice product, good suds & lube. Not as slick as SS&S, but on par with Optimum. I use a lot less, compared to SS&S and Optimum. I used the Finish Kare wool sponge block, which I like too since I usually don't put my hand in a wash mitt.

Polish - FPII via cyclo to clean up a few minor scratches/marks & prep the surface.
Glaze - 185-FX-Quick-Gloss via cyclo. Works into the finish quick, and leaves a very nice looking gloss.
Seal. FX-100 spray sealer. Misted a polishing pad and applied via PC at 4.5. You have to wipe it up when it starts to haze. If you let it dry it is a pain to remove (similar to SG). Next I applied a coat of #2180 sealer, using a finishing pad @ 4. Compared to UPP, WG, FMJ, etc.... it didn't feel very slick after I removed the product. In fact, I wasn't impressed at all, compared to all of the other sealers on the market.

I called Finish Kare back, and said 'nice products' but I'll probably stick with Pink Wax for the time being. They asked me to hold off for 2-3 days and re-evaluate.

Fast forward a few days....... here's what I noticed.

-Improved depth. There was a noticeable difference in the appearance after 3 days.

-My wife (I'll blame her...) attracted 2-3 bird bombs on the hood that sat in the sun for a few hours. Not good on black! When I washed the truck they came off with little/no effort and didn't leave any marks (probably luck!).

-Washing. I could not believe the slickness! It was as good or better in the 'slickness' department as anything I've ever used. In fact, I don't recall using another sealer that improves it's slickness over time.

After the wash step, I applied a coat of pink wax & wiped the finish down with #425 poly wipe (which is supposed to keep the slickness going).

In summary...... At first I wasn't too impressed with the Finish Kare glaze & sealer products because they didn't really do anything to 'stand out' in my collection of sealers (UPP, WG, EX, EX-P, FMJ, etc...). I'm starting to re-think this. I visited their site, and I'll have to say they have a lot of product info posted. What products, pads, buffer speed to use, comparison charts to other products/brands, etc... Just a lot of useful info.

Here are a few shots of the truck after the #2180 was applied (this is before it sat for 3 days and got a coat of pink wax).
 
Here are a few shots of my CTS with 2 coats of Pink Wax.


.... and a view of some of the products on my shelf being used recently.
 
Nice job!! Anymore it's getting very difficult to determine difference between various products. The real test is "the test of time". Let us know how it holds up to the elements.
 
I've used Pink Wax long enough to say that it's durable, but as anything else, I'm sure it depends on your location, climate, and how much your car is exposed to the weather. I like it because it holds it's slickness and your wash mit glides over the paint and feels very smooth.

FK puts some heafty claims on their sealers (218 and 2180). I'm planning to apply a coat of it to a neighbors black car that's outside 24 x 7. The main reason I purchased the FK sealer is because they said it could be applied to fresh paint. I had the rocker panels replaced on the CTS (fit and finish issue) and they had to paint them before attaching them to the car.
 
GSRstilez said:
Awesome :cool


Pink Wax is amazing IMO. I am floored by the results I achieved.
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ditto that. Try applying it to a panel or two at a time, and remove it with a finish pad & bonnet (before it completely hazes over) on your Acura. Your eyes will bleed!
 
Pretty much did that yesterday :D.

I did 2 panels, then spit shined it with Gliptone Carnauba Body Gloss Spray and a Meguiar's Supreme Shine MF. If the pictures came out better, they'd already be posted. It took depth, clarity, and overall richness of the paint to a new level IMO.
 
Thanks tdekany -Your posts last year actually inspired me to try Pink Wax and some of the products in the Finish Kare line. Good find!
 
mgm2003 said:
Thanks tdekany -Your posts last year actually inspired me to try Pink Wax and some of the products in the Finish Kare line. Good find!
Click to expand...


You are welcome, but I have to credit TripNtaz for mentioning it before I knew about it.
 
I thank you both! I'm still not sold on the #2180 sealer, but I'm going to try it on a few other cars before making up my mind.

The pro's are:
-The look/slickness improve after a few days. You really notice a difference in slickness when you wash the car.

Con's:
-Application isn't as easy as other sealers like WG & UPP.
-Initial slickness is very low.
-From what I've read, you're going to get the best durability out of it if you use FK products as a base. I probably won't do that.

I have a bottle of #218 on the way too. If I don't like it, I'll give it to my parents to put on their boat
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Pink wax is another story.... I like it a lot!!


Here are a few hood shots after the second coat of pink wax last night.

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