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Americanshine test

Steve

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Thought that some of you might be interested to learn of a little product test that I did........

Having noticed that a fellow BCF member "Americanshine" had a range of car-care products I contacted him, asking how his products stood up to those from Meguiar's or Griot's which I already have. The response that I got was a couple of samples so that I could see for myself! Most unexpected, but very welcome.

Anyhoo, having milder temperatures the other day, I was able to go out and play with them. Now, keep in mind that "milder" in Wisconsin means anything over the freezing mark, so adjust your parameters accordingly. I hand-washed the wife's red '03 Land Rover, and removed the remaining water marks with the Instant Detailer. So far so good. Next, I used the Liquid Carnuba Wax, and I must say that the finish was very good. The claims for a deeper shine were, I thought, merited, so much so that I felt that the panel I had just worked on looked so much nicer than the one next to it, that I had to move on to the next one to match it up. It also highlighted a few dings and imperfections that I had not noticed before. Not the fault of the polish. The finish was also noticeably smoother too, and keep in mind this had only just left the dealer on the 22nd of December. Yesterday it rained, and I noticed that the water was beading up nicely on the bonnet. I never got to the roof, too darn cold!!!!

As a comparison, I tried Megiar's NXT on another panel, which was not happy in the low temperature. It was remarkably harder to buff off than the Americanshine product, and I cannot honestly say that there was any difference in the finish. Both looked very good, albeit in dodgy light conditions. I then tried it against the NXT, Griot's and Zaino on my MGB's original, good but slightly scratched-up paint. This was in the garage, under artificial lights.

The Zaino went on smoothly and left a nice finish, the Griot's slightly less so, but in fairness this does better when applied by a random-orbital buffer. The Meguiar's NXT again was much harder to apply and remove, requiring more work to buff to a shine. The Americanshine went on smoothly and buffed to a shine easily. No better than the Zaino, but I have to say, no worse either!!

So all in all I have to give the Americanshine a thumbs-up. I honestly have no idea how much it costs as Dave was good enough to give me some freebies, but Griot's is probably more money and I cannot say that it is any better. Plus the guy is a BCF member and owns a few MGBs. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/yesnod.gif
 
NXT Hard to remove? *HUH*? How cold is "cold" and how long did you wait for it to set up after applying it? Just curious because the only thing I've used that was easier to remove was Meguiars #20 (that stuff comes off just dragging a towel over it).
 
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NXT How cold is "cold"

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Well, Steve does live a little north of most of us. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
 
He said he used the stuff in his garage too though, so I'd assume it was warmer than "outside".
 
Not much warmer.....the door was open and it was cold in there to start with. I daresay that in more "normal" temperatures this would not have been an issue. Let's face it, no-one washes or waxes their cars when it gets THIS cold! (Probably mid-thirties when I was doing it).
 
I used to! Ok 30s is where it starts to make a difference anyway, I'm surprised Zano was even easy to use down that low. Thanks for the info!
 
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I used to! Ok 30s is where it starts to make a difference anyway, I'm surprised Zano was even easy to use down that low. Thanks for the info!

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I use Zaino as well and don't care to use it when its cold. Then again, I don't like to leave my house when its cold /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
 
Steve:
Thank you for your comments. Just a note, I live in the Mojave Desert, and use these products on a black car in the HOT sun in the middlle of summer. Say what you will folks, but the proof is in the pudding. Meguiars, Zaino, Wax Shop,etc., does not matter to me, they are the reason we are in business. My sole purpose is to enjoy vehicles and make life a little easier for everybody. Maximum Results for the least amount of effort allows us all to spend more time driving and enjoying the top down! Made with the lazy man in mind! (That and my wifes blender) My thanks for the kind remarks.
 
I usually used Mothers 3 step on most cars, it's a bit of work but it turns out great in the end.....winter or summer Iam out there all year round as long as it's above freezing(or at freezing). One thing I wasn't impressed with was regular rubbing compounds. So I went to a professional paint shop and asked for whatever they use. They suggested 3M's line of rubbing/polishing compunds. This stiff is Amazing! I used it on an 82 Camaro with original paint that had probably never been waxed it's whole life, this stuff brought back a beautiful shine with minimal work. I posted pics below so you can see for yourselves.

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284243_74.jpg
 
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