# Wax swirls/holograms



## ScoobyTT (Aug 24, 2009)

The finish on my TT gets my goat more than any other car I've had. It just seems to be a pain in the neck to keep looking good. I've tried sealant, 3 different waxes, 3 different detailing sprays (including just water), and always am left with the same problem: the wax looks fantastic when it's first applied, smooth and perfectly glossy. Every wash after that the car looks like it's scratched to hell but it's actually just swirls in the wax.

I've applied wax thinly, thickly, used a little detailing spray, lots of detailing spray, buffing hard, buffing soft, barely touching it... NOTHING makes a blind bit of difference. If the sun's on the car, some part of it shows up these swirls.

Question 1: I'm using the same cloths (cleaned of course) and spray as used when applying the wax, which gave a perfect finish. Why the difference?

Question 2: How THE CHUFF do you get that perfect finish back? :? And no, I'm not rewaxing the car every damn week :lol:

Ta


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## pars_andy (Dec 10, 2009)

Have you tried aqua wax as a top up after washing? It doesn't take long to apply.


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## ScoobyTT (Aug 24, 2009)

I haven't... To be honest I'm getting a bit tired of trying things that don't work and you hear such mixed things about Autoglym products. I've been looking on DetailingWorld and have found that it seems quite well regarded so will perhaps give it a go. I also found that bead water spots from rain etc. are something of a general problem with waxes although that surprises me as I never really noticed them using Zymol Carbon, and they were much less prevalent with Autoglym's HD Wax. The application of that doesn't suit me though.


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## Tazy (Jun 7, 2010)

v


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## ScoobyTT (Aug 24, 2009)

Hi Tazy, nope it's not been treated as far as I know.


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## pars_andy (Dec 10, 2009)

Don't use aqua wax on it's own of course. Just use it when washing in between waxes. Oh....and ignore the instructions on the bottle. Just put a couple of squirts on one panel then completely wipe dry before moving onto the next. If you apply to the whole car before buffing it's an absolute nightmare.


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## freeman (Jul 25, 2010)

I'm actually running into the same problem, I have a black TT as well.

I would wax the car, it would look perfect, then wash it in a week, and I would see really fine scratches and swirls on the car which I can only deduce to be on the wax coat and not the paint since when I touch the car, I can still feel the slick wax coat on it. It almost seems like the wax that I use isn't as hard or scratch resistant as it should be, or the microfiber cloths that I use for drying is badly made.

Regardless, I'm going to invest in some better larger microfiber towels for drying.

I've also heard many have successes by applying a layer of Meguiar's NXT 2.0 (synthetic) and toping it off with a layer of Gold Class (carnauba) to make the wax last longer and the color deeper and better. Will be trying this next weekend and see how it goes. (I'd invest in a can of Zymol, but $60 for a can of Wax that I'm going to have to reapply anyways is a little steep, its not like I'm driving a Ferrari)


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## ScoobyTT (Aug 24, 2009)

freeman said:


> I would wax the car, it would look perfect, then wash it in a week, and I would see really fine scratches and swirls on the car which I can only deduce to be on the wax coat


Yeah, you can always tell when they're in the wax... simply wipe the cloth over again and the pattern changes. The best I've found is to try and get long sweeps over an entire panel, but along the sides it only takes a bit of sunlight to show the whole lot up. ....which kind of defeats one of the purposes of wax giving a great gloss.



freeman said:


> I've also heard many have successes by applying a layer of Meguiar's NXT 2.0 (synthetic) and toping it off with a layer of Gold Class (carnauba) to make the wax last longer and the color deeper and better. Will be trying this next weekend and see how it goes. (I'd invest in a can of Zymol, but $60 for a can of Wax that I'm going to have to reapply anyways is a little steep, its not like I'm driving a Ferrari)


I've used CarLack as a sealant under the wax. I noticed no difference in longevity of the wax - it's what happens on top of it that will affect that, not really what's underneath it. I thought I was investing in a more expensive Zymol wax, but I have to say I'm unimpressed with it although it was much easier to apply. Shame it only looks amazing for a week :?


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## dbairduk (Aug 3, 2010)

try a sealent instead Scooby


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## ScoobyTT (Aug 24, 2009)

Just go totally with the CarLack NSC then Long Life Sealant? The marketing blurb makes it sound like it acts like a wax with good beading that lasts months but I've not tried it on its own. I found the LLS a pain to remove even using the suggestion of applying it straight to the NSC without buffing that off. It left a somewhat uneven coat when buffed off and from some angles you could see raised areas of acrylic even though I applied it very sparingly. I may well give it another punt on a panel and see what it's like on its own. If it's no good I can always just wax the panel up again.


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## freeman (Jul 25, 2010)

ScoobyTT said:


> freeman said:
> 
> 
> > I would wax the car, it would look perfect, then wash it in a week, and I would see really fine scratches and swirls on the car which I can only deduce to be on the wax coat
> ...


I guess it will just be a peace of mind knowing the scratches will have to eat through 2 layers of wax to get to the actual paint.


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## bobski (Oct 21, 2007)

Have you thought about using a Glaze.? 
This seems to add depth to the paint and will also mask some paint issues. e.g. Meguires 7 show glaze 
Then you will need to seal this in with a good synthetic sealant and/or Collitne 476S Wax. This should last for a while. Then if you want add a carnuba based wax over the top.

Heres mine with Glaze, Sealant & Synthetic Wax


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## Shyde (Oct 7, 2008)

I Had this exact problem, The car would be fine as soon as i have waxed it, but then after the first wash there seemed to be slight holograms and swirls in the wax :evil: :evil: 
i have since used Gtechniq C2 on the car and all i can say is     i am never going to use a Wax again. It comes in a 100ml bottle so 50ml concentrated on the car and the other 50ml diluted to use as a QD for top ups of protection, all of the problems i had before with holograms have now gone.

FYI i found Dodo soft wax one of the worst for the holograms :x


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## ScoobyTT (Aug 24, 2009)

Interesting stuff, Shyde! That sounds just the ticket! It sounds like it's in the same ballpark as things like LifeShine, Diamond-whatever-it-was, which are generally regarded as shite. It sounds like it works well though and doesn't have that scratching/swirling problem. How long have you been using it matey? The claims that a spray-on product can last 6-8 months sounds wayyyyyy too good to be true, speaking from a position of being tired of trying products that don't work as advertised! :mrgreen:


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## Shyde (Oct 7, 2008)

Hi Mate, Its been on my car for about 2 months now and its still beading like the day i first put it on, and i wash the car twice a week maybe more   
I havnt put the QD over the top yet as i wanted to see how long the concentrated application would last but im over the moon with it, i was in the same boat as you i tried almost every wax on the market and didnt really want to spend out more on something that did not perform as it says on the tin, but after viewing alot of pos feedback on detailing world i thought its gotta be worth a try.
it creates a really glossy shine as fk1000p when on the paint. Application is really easy aswell.

There windscreen sealant Gtechniq G1 is fab too


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## ScoobyTT (Aug 24, 2009)

Shyde said:


> Hi Mate, Its been on my car for about 2 months now and its still beading like the day i first put it on, and i wash the car twice a week maybe more
> I havnt put the QD over the top yet as i wanted to see how long the concentrated application would last but im over the moon with it, i was in the same boat as you i tried almost every wax on the market and didnt really want to spend out more on something that did not perform as it says on the tin, but after viewing alot of pos feedback on detailing world i thought its gotta be worth a try.
> it creates a really glossy shine as fk1000p when on the paint. Application is really easy aswell.
> 
> There windscreen sealant Gtechniq G1 is fab too


Excellent. I'm looking at their kits. I guess you could also put the G3 stuff on top of the diluted C2 for extra gloss. They sound remarkably good value compared to the £70 I've spent on a pot of wax.

With no top-ups of the diluted spray, you must surely be seeing some wash swirls? Even so, I reckon that'd be far less noticeable than wax swirls which are as fine as fibres on the buffing cloth and innumerable.

Oh, and how is it with bird cack? :lol:


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## Shyde (Oct 7, 2008)

Yes i guess you could put the c3 over the top of the c2.
When i got the bottle its tiny, 100ml  but i applied around 25ml concentrated using a microfibre pad straight to the paint after a wipe over with IPA, Then i put 50ml into a bolttle and diluted it 1:10 this is going to be my QD for top ups if needed. This then gives me enough to go over the car again with a concentrated application later on in the year.

I did buy it and thought i could maybe use a wax over the top but once i see the shine and the beading of it its not needed at all.
It does work out very good value for money, ive been saving a fortune :lol: :lol:


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## Gone (May 5, 2009)

I'm using Dodo Blue Velvet and haven't seen these problems. Goes for miles too.

I will be keeping a closer eye on it now though, you have me worried. :lol:


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## wallstreet (Oct 19, 2009)

bobski said:


> Have you thought about using a Glaze.?
> This seems to add depth to the paint and will also mask some paint issues. e.g. Meguires 7 show glaze
> Then you will need to seal this in with a good synthetic sealant and/or Collitne 476S Wax. This should last for a while. Then if you want add a carnuba based wax over the top.
> 
> Heres mine with Glaze, Sealant & Synthetic Wax


+1 exactly what I use. Should be enough


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## ScoobyTT (Aug 24, 2009)

I tried Collinite 476s over CarLack. The application didn't really suit me and I found it just as bad for those unshiftable water bead marks.



Shyde said:


> When i got the bottle its tiny, 100ml  but i applied around 25ml concentrated using a microfibre pad straight to the paint after a wipe over with IPA, Then i put 50ml into a bottle and diluted it 1:10 this is going to be my QD for top ups if needed. This then gives me enough to go over the car again with a concentrated application later on in the year.


I'm surprised the application works... the amounts are so small I'm amazed it doesn't just soak into the cloth/pad and disappear. With other products I find you have to use a fair bit just to get the cloth/pad to a point where it starts putting it on the car rather than soaking it up. Zymol's HD Cleanse on pads is the worse offender for that of the products I've tried.

Thinking about it, if it's supposed to last 6-8 months, that's say £15 a year roughly, which isn't bad. But a pot of waxing costing three or more times the price will last a hell of a lot longer, so the wax is better value. For the lack of faff and quality of finish, I think a test of the C2 is in order.


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## Shyde (Oct 7, 2008)

Thinking about it, if it's supposed to last 6-8 months, that's say £15 a year roughly, which isn't bad. But a pot of waxing costing three or more times the price will last a hell of a lot longer, so the wax is better value. For the lack of faff and quality of finish, I think a test of the C2 is in order.[/quote]

I got so annoyed with the Wax and the only way i could keep the car looking nice was to give it a coat of wax every time i washed the car, So it was getting two coats per week :lol: :lol: So a wax pot was only lasting me on average six months


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## ScoobyTT (Aug 24, 2009)

Hmmm, I'm definitely not waxing every week :lol: It somewhat defeats the point of applying wax.


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## MrHooky (Oct 27, 2009)

Scooby

I know you've mentioned detailing sprays before and that you're not overly impressed with the finish but I think these can have a big impact on the finish when used with drying. I've only ever used two, one being Britemax spray and shine, the other being Citrus Bling. I'd read somewhere best results are got with the CB when used dry although figured that was a load of rubbish as it's diluted with water to 'flavour' anyway so spraying it onto a car covered in the same stuff it's diluted in shouldn't affect the results. Either way, I've found using both of these helps dry the car with no water marks, admittedly the Bmax being more impressive. I did notice a lot of smearing when using the CB on a dry car though, i.e. complete towel dry car before DS, then use CB to restore some shine, which although looked OK, resulted in a lot of smear marks and less shine than I'd got before. In direct sunlight the smearing was pretty obvious so I was pretty annoyed. Dirty cars look better than a clean car with smears all over&#8230;

I'm no scientist, but a good DS seems to help the towel glide over the paintwork better. Almost helps lube it. with the Bmax, when you wiped over a wet panel with a bit on, the water just seemed to combine into a shiney film then evaporate away as opposed to staying on the paint and creating nightmare water spots.

If you want to spend some more money I would recommend the Bmax. I'd send you as sample if I had any left&#8230;

In the mean time, let us know if you revert the G techniq. Their products look interesting


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## ScoobyTT (Aug 24, 2009)

TBH I'm getting tired of trying products that don't work - and the only reason I've been trying different products (before I got this last lot anyway) was because of recommendations on here that they were the mutt's nuts. Wax just seems to be inherently problematic in that it can give a mirror-smooth finish when applied (for some reason) and then it's almost as if it softens with age such that even the fibres of a cloth can mar its finish.

Do I want to try Britemax and pay for P&P for one bottle of stuff? I'm not sure whether to try that or the G-techniq.


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