The Lowdown: Poli-Seal

Chris@Optimum

Optimum Product Support
During the last couple of days there has been a few discussions of AIO's and there abilities. One of which was whether they contain fillers. I hadn't seen that characteristic because I thouroghly work PS till it's invisible per directions but others had used a IPA wipedown to reveal some swirls that PS had hidden. Unable to explain the conflicting characteristics, I asked Dr G over at Optimum if he could comment:



QUOTE:

"Chris,



As you all know Poli-Seal is an all-in-one product that removes oxidation, light swirls, and seals the paint. The latter (sealing) takes place through cross-linking of polymers that are in Poli-Seal. When applying Poli-Seal via rotary or DA, you have to continue buffing long enough to remove the swirls otherwise the swirls will be filled rather than removed. Of course for deeper swirls it takes too long to remove them with Poli-Seal so the polish or hyper/compound are much better choices.



I believe Bence did an exceptional demo of Poli-Seal correction capability a while back and compared the results with Menzerna. If I remember correctly, after IPA wipe down Poli-Seal showed no sign of swirls marks. Of course if Poli-Seal is applied by hand, it will only fill the scratches since there is no correction mechanism. I hope this explains the differing results some people have experienced.



Let me know if I can be of further assistance. Thanks again.



David"



So, I gather that if properly worked there is no filling effect, but if applied by hand or not given enough passes to breakdown there is a filling effect from the unactivated abrasives and the sealant. This seems to be the reason we can see different results from the same product. I see a difference between a filling effect and when a product contains fillers like for a showcar or a vehicle with soft paint. I just wanted to post this to inform everyone who was in on the discussions that in this case we were BOTH right.



Comments Welcome
 
Thanks for the comments, fellas. I figured it'd be better to go to the source than to run the risk of making enemies by bickering over opinions. He11, I'm no chemist, LOL!
 
The label lists: Mineral Spirits, Silicone Fluids, Carnuba Wax, and Micro Abrasives. I don't know if this is a complete list or just what has to legally be listed for MSDS.
 
I noticed on a white Mercedes I did a while back that what I removed via Poli-Seal and an orange Soft Edge one step pad (typical orange cutting pad) via UDM had not returned the next time I waxed it, which was about 3 months later. I'm not the one who washes it regularly either.



With the rotary, I continue buffing Poli-Seal until I feel a slight drag, usually takes several passes. Poli-Seal isn't going to remove anything more than light defects though.
 
integritydetail and scottwax,

thanks for that info. I'm never used poli-seal but I have a bottle of the stuff and was planning on using it this weekend.



Thanks again.
 
I kind of suspected this was the case. Having it verified is great. Since I will be working on my car if spring ever arrives in the Northeast, I am confident that I can take care of my minor issues with PS. Thank goodness for quality washing techniques.
 
integritydetail said:
The label lists: Mineral Spirits, Silicone Fluids, Carnuba Wax, and Micro Abrasives. I don't know if this is a complete list or just what has to legally be listed for MSDS.



It must then, since the bottle says carnauba and , "The latter (sealing) takes place through cross-linking of polymers that are in Poli-Seal." Hmm....
 
great info, thanks for sharing. i've always been impressed with David's prompt replies to e-mails, and his excellent customer service when it comes to any questions and so forth... :up
 
I use poli-seal via white pad, on my pc... but I always have trouble knowing when its broken down, and i should stop... some say it sticks, or grabs to the surface ??



Also, do you do the entire car first, then buff off with OCW, or do you do panel by panel?



Thanks !
 
Mr. Vic said:
integritydetail and scottwax,

thanks for that info. I'm never used poli-seal but I have a bottle of the stuff and was planning on using it this weekend.



Thanks again.



No Problem and Thanks to Scott for his input as well!



BigAl3 said:
great info, thanks for sharing. i've always been impressed with David's prompt replies to e-mails, and his excellent customer service when it comes to any questions and so forth... :up



Your welcome, glad to help!



autobahnshine said:
I use poli-seal via white pad, on my pc... but I always have trouble knowing when its broken down, and i should stop... some say it sticks, or grabs to the surface ??



Also, do you do the entire car first, then buff off with OCW, or do you do panel by panel?



Thanks !



After your initail slow passes, feel the pad and make sure its still moist and not tacky. Make 1-2 more quicker passes and you should see a slight haze appear flash off almoat immediately just behind the pad. It's only like 1" behind the pad so you have to look for it. Most people think it should leave a solid haze like a wax and therefore apply too much trying to achieve it. I never run it till I get drag like Scott although thats how I apply OS and OCW.



If only doing the AIO, I do the whole car first to let the sealant cure for awile b4 I wipe it off.
 
autobahnshine said:
I'm using about 4 TINY** (pea-sized or smaller) dots of PS on my 5.5" pads... How much do you reccomend?



I make a circle around the outside edge of my LC CCS Concave 7.5 pad, spread it evenly on the whole panel on like PC 2-3, Then crank it to 4.5-5 and move about 4" per second left to right with 20lbs pressure, then up and down same pressure, then speed up to PC 6 and drop pressure to 10lbs covering 10" per second L-R & U-D till it's invisible.



On the first panel you'll probably need to put a second circle on the pad to prime it after you spread the first one but before you speed up and work it.



Let me know how it does for you!
 
wannafbody said:
I wonder how carnauba wax crosslinks:nixweiss



Out of curiosity do you have issue with Optimum? I am fairly new to the site but in my limited time on here you always seem to pop up in Optimum threads with some snide post. To me it would seem to be best served not to post anything at all, no?
 
wannafbody said:
I wonder how carnauba wax crosslinks:nixweiss



Carnuba wax is only part of the AIO formula, there's an Ask Dr. G section on the Optimum forum if you need a chemistry lesson.:grinno:
 
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