"Sealant look" vs "Carnauba look" - please explain

2

2drtahoez71

New member
When people talk about whether they prefer the "sealant look" vs a "carnauba look", what exactly are the characteristics of each?
 
I think you will get a lot of different answers for this. I think generally speaking, the "sealant look" is shiny and sterile and the "carnauba look" is deep and wet looking. Obviously, just because something is a wax or sealant, doesn't mean it will look a certain way. A lot of sealants actually are made to "look" like a carnauba wax.
 
I read all the time that a sealant looks sterile so I put Pinnacle Souveran paste wax on the door of my show car and did the rest of it with DG 105 and took it to a show and a lot of people looked at it but could not tell me where the wax was.

The better sealants to me look as good as a wax but last longer and are easier to apply and remove.
They last much longer and usually cost less.

I see wax as like a model T Ford good for it's time but that time is gone.
 
While sealants have definetly taken hold and have caught up so to speak on their final appearance on a vehicle, I still notice at least by my eye a darker slightly deeper look of paint with carnuba waxes...
 
I think it really has to do with the color of your car as far as " looks " go.. Metallic paints look better with sealants but dark or solid colors ( except white) tend to "look" better with wax. :hmmm:
 
Poorboy said:
I think it really has to do with the color of your car as far as " looks " go.. Metallic paints look better with sealants but dark or solid colors ( except white) tend to "look" better with wax. :hmmm:
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Yes I can see a slight difference but it seems most people can't.

I still occasionally use a wax on my DD but my last foray into wax on the vette was a few years back and I swore never again.

I bought a wax called Formula 104 this stuff was hyped as being the end all in wax. I put it on in my garage and it looked pretty good not any better than a lot of others would but it looked OK.

The next morning I went to a show In Indianapolis that is about 75 miles from my home so when I got their I had a good bit of dust on the car.

The sun was shining Brite and the show was at a Chevy dealer no shade trees had to park in the sun.
I sprayed the hood with QD and started wiping it but the hood turned brown and was streaked and smeared.

Problem was the wax had become soft from the heat and instead of removing the dirt I just embedded it in the soft wax and smeared it around.

I did what I could but it looked like crap and I knew that I was not going to win.

I was right I did not get in the top 30 but they did call me for Best Engine award thank god the wax had not screwed that part up.

I guess everyone on here does all their detailing at home in the shade so they do not have to contend with these problems.

Try parking in the sun on a 90F degree day and wax your car sometime :wall.
With a sealant I have none of these problems :)
 
black bart said:
Try parking in the sun on a 90F degree day and wax your car sometime :wall.
With a sealant I have none of these problems :)
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Excellent point about wax, it has a melting point of I believe about 150 - 180 degrees, which on a black car, in the summer, under direct sun it probably gets to that point...

Someone correct the temperature if I am wrong, I am trying to think back...

I am not sure the melting point of a sealant...although I imagine its much higher...
 
black bart said:
I guess everyone on here does all their detailing at home in the shade so they do not have to contend with these problems.

Try parking in the sun on a 90F degree day and wax your car sometime :wall.
With a sealant I have none of these problems :)
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we wax in the sun on those types of days at shows every year and our last two detailing days events were on 90* + days and most people were working in the sun :passout:
 
Poorboy said:
we wax in the sun on those types of days at shows every year and our last two detailing days events were on 90* + days and most people were working in the sun :passout:
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Are you calling your sealant a wax

I want to be clear on this because like Sal calls his sealant polish so we sometimes get confused with the terminology used.

NXT Sealant is called wax

Just what WAX are you using in that temp.
It has always been my understanding that Carnuba will melt at about 180F.
A Black car parked in the sun will exceed that . :confused:
 
black bart said:
Are you calling your sealant a wax

I want to be clear on this because like Sal calls his sealant polish so we sometimes get confused with the terminology used.

NXT Sealant is called wax

Just what WAX are you using in that temp.
It has always been my understanding that Carnuba will melt at about 180F.
A Black car parked in the sun will exceed that . :confused:
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No I don't call sealants wax... we demo all three Natty's (Red, White, & Blue) as well as PwC (white & Blue) on hot surfaces in the sun and when we are at the shows and I have help we often go directly to a participants vehicle with them for a demonstration. :) ...ps some waxes do have higher melting points :notme:
 
Poorboy said:
No I don't call sealants wax... we demo all three Natty's (Red, White, & Blue) as well as PwC (white & Blue) on hot surfaces in the sun and when we are at the shows and I have help we often go directly to a participants vehicle with them for a demonstration. :) ...ps some waxes do have higher melting points :notme:
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I take it that you are not talking about Carnuba but something else.
If it works that is ok by me I'm not hung up on Carnuba
 
black bart said:
Yes I can see a slight difference but it seems most people can't.
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i can tell a difference between a prepped finish and a finish with a LSP, but beyond that I cannot tell much of a difference at all. I cannot distinguish between a sealed finish and a waxed finish, or between certain brands. Ive even done tests using different products side by side on the same or neighboring panels - not the slightest difference whatsoever to my eyes.

Then again, I dont detail for a living, im just an enthusiast so i dont have as much experience as most of you. I guess i just dont have an eye for this type of thing.
 
2drtahoez71 said:
i can tell a difference between a prepped finish and a finish with a LSP, but beyond that I cannot tell much of a difference at all. I cannot distinguish between a sealed finish and a waxed finish, or between certain brands. Ive even done tests using different products side by side on the same or neighboring panels - not the slightest difference whatsoever to my eyes.

Then again, I dont detail for a living, im just an enthusiast so i dont have as much experience as most of you. I guess i just dont have an eye for this type of thing.
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With some of the better sealants on the market today it is hard to see a difference.

Like I said in earlier post most people can not tell the difference.
Put them side by side on a car and no one will mention it they will not notice.

Sealants are easier to apply and remove and far more durable.
For a DD the sealant Is a better choice.

How many people as you drive by will say look at that car he should have used a wax instead of that sealant.

One exception would be Zaino I saw a car come in to a show last year and I walked up to him and ask How do you like using Zaino.
I can spot it from the rest by the plasticized look.:gotcha:
 
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