Just brought all of the panels inside and washed them with same car wash, following the same basic steps for each one. They'll be inside overnight and then I'll take and post the next round of measurements tomorrow evening.
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The results of the 2nd test, this of gloss durability are in. Each panel was set outside on my deck for 16 days and subject to the worst weather conditions the Northeast in winter could subject them to: snow, freezing rain, downpours, fog, and even sunny days
Temperatures ranged from about 15 degrees to around 50. I then brought them inside and washed them with the same mild car wash, dried them with a soft cotton towel, and let them thoroughly dry inside my house overnight. I took the measurements an hour ago.
All the panels, save the one coated with 22ple, lost gloss, with the losses ranging from just over 7% (Blackfire) to under 4% (Klasse). The 22ple gain a nominal .006 %, likely because it has a very long cure time.
Glare Professional Polish remains the king of the hill, with a top gloss score of 99.56. Klasse and Opti-Coat 2.0 were tied for 2nd, both with scores of 99.2. Klasse, it's interesting to note, had the lowest loss of gloss, and this caused it to gain on the field. Blackfire Wet Diamond pulled up the rear with a score of 97.68 (based on the tests so far this appears to be the most over-hyped product of the lot).
If the patterns I'm seeing continue, I'll be narrowing the field for what I use on my Model S to Glare, Klasse, or Opti-Coat. But I won't decide until I have 4-6 weeks of additional test results.
For all the data, see this spreadsheet
My next test is in two weeks.
Temperatures ranged from about 15 degrees to around 50. I then brought them inside and washed them with the same mild car wash, dried them with a soft cotton towel, and let them thoroughly dry inside my house overnight. I took the measurements an hour ago.All the panels, save the one coated with 22ple, lost gloss, with the losses ranging from just over 7% (Blackfire) to under 4% (Klasse). The 22ple gain a nominal .006 %, likely because it has a very long cure time.
Glare Professional Polish remains the king of the hill, with a top gloss score of 99.56. Klasse and Opti-Coat 2.0 were tied for 2nd, both with scores of 99.2. Klasse, it's interesting to note, had the lowest loss of gloss, and this caused it to gain on the field. Blackfire Wet Diamond pulled up the rear with a score of 97.68 (based on the tests so far this appears to be the most over-hyped product of the lot).
If the patterns I'm seeing continue, I'll be narrowing the field for what I use on my Model S to Glare, Klasse, or Opti-Coat. But I won't decide until I have 4-6 weeks of additional test results.
For all the data, see this spreadsheet
My next test is in two weeks.
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smorgasbord
Active Member
Thanks for the continuing work.
Did you try one panel with paint armor first? With so many of us having much of our car paint armored, it might be interesting to see how the different finishes work on that surface, rather than the raw paint.
Did you try one panel with paint armor first? With so many of us having much of our car paint armored, it might be interesting to see how the different finishes work on that surface, rather than the raw paint.
I haven't done any testing with paint armor. That would a whole other separate test. And I have none.
smorgasbord
Active Member
Hmm, looks to me like it's starting to not matter what product is used.
At initial application, the gloss range was from 97.8 to 105.54 - almost 8. Yes, I know the panels started out at different gloss levels, but do we know for sure that change in gloss is a uniform delta, and whether finishes that were applied to panels that were glossier to begin with have an advantage (or disadvantage)? For instance, is it coincidence that the apparently worst performing finish is the one that was applied to the panel with the lowest original gloss?
At any rate, after 2 weeks, the gloss range is now compressed to be only from 97.68 to 99.66. So, less than 2. Was 8. How much visual difference is a gloss reading of 2, when overall values range to about 100?
I ran another calculation: (Gloss after 2 weeks)-(Gloss before application). This is akin to the first calculation as to how much gloss the finish provides, except measured after 2 weeks of exposure. By this measure Glare Pro is at the top with an increase of 1.4, followed by Opti-Coat at 0.9, then 22ple at 0.7, then Klasse at 0.52. Interestingly, Meguiars NXT came in with a -0.14, which means after 2 weeks the panel was less glossy than before any finish was applied. You considered Black Diamond the worst of the lot after 2 weeks, but by my calculation Meguiars NXT was the worst. I still need to really think about the data, and what calculations mean the most. Or, perhaps, just go with my first impression, which is that after a couple weeks at least, it doesn't seem to matter what finish you used.
In retrospect, it would have been good to have had a control panel with no finish exposed to the same conditions to see how its gloss would have fared.
This is a very interesting experiment. Thanks again.
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Actually, I've run an analysis that takes into account the small differences in the gloss of each panel before the finishes were applied and the adjusted the scores accordingly. With these adjustments, the results at the top are the same (Glare, Klasse, and Opti-Coat) but the order below that changes. I didn't have time before I posted the latest results yesterday, but I'm going to adjust all of the findings for the differences in the base gloss of each panel and post them in a week or so. While the differences are quite minor they do effect the rankings.
As for the differences in gloss across the products tested I would agree that it's minor and by the eye almost imperceptible. But as this test was mostly an attempt to have an empirical basis for evaluating all the hype each manufacturer uses to describe its products, the small differences do in themselves reveal an important truth: that the hype is just that --b.s. Reading all of this promotional hype you'd be led to believe that some of this stuff would produce a gloss so superior to other products that it would be very obvious to the eye. In some cases, based on all the hype, you'd think the gloss of some of these products would blind you. At this stage, that appears not to be total nonsense. In fact, I'm thinking that longer-term durability it the real test, but here the hype is equally extreme.
Of course, the test has only run for slightly more than two weeks. As time goes by we may see the differences widen.
Anyway, I'm having fun with this. A year ago the guy who details my Volt insisted in using Klasse even though I pressed him to use Zaino. He had a lot of experience with Klasse and said he thought it produced the deepest longest-lasting finish. As I was rooting for Zaino I was very eager to see these results. Based on the tests so far, it appears he was right.
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Al Sherman
It's about THIS car.
I'm feeling even better about my selected detailer. When I called him 3 months ago he said he ONLY EVER uses Glare Pro.
smorgasbord
Active Member
There's still plenty of time to go on the tests, but it's looking like:
1) If you're showing your car and want the highest gloss for tomorrow, use Glare Pro.
2) If you just want a good looking car all the time, choose the product that's easiest to apply and reapply it frequently.
3) If you want to save money, just choose the cheapest finish. After a couple of weeks, it'll look just about as good as the most expensive.
Can you talk about how easy/hard these finishes were to apply?
Al Sherman
It's about THIS car.
I assume they can be used on the Paint Armor, but remember that they're designed to work directly on clear coat. Paint Armor is a vinyl or other kind of flexible thin-sheet plastic.
Next tests will be posted tomorrow pm.
The latest test results are in. As indicated in the last test report, this time I've adjusted all of the results for the differences in the initial gloss of the test panels before the finishes were applied. These adjustments are reflected in all of the data reported in the summary test spreadsheet.
Not surprisingly all of the panels loss some gloss. Given that they were exposed to consistent snow, freezing rain, and generally poor weather during the two weeks since the last test, this should be expected.
The Glare Professional Polish continues to outshine (pun intended) all of the other products. Its gloss remains the highest of the group and during the latest test period it lost less gloss than all but the HD Nitro Seal and Blackfire Wet Diamond (which being one of the losers of the group, started the test period with one of the lower glosses). With the CQuartz and Opti-Coat2.0 in 2nd and 3rd place respectively, the Klasse AIO has slipped out of the top three.
So the Glare not only demonstrates a superior gloss but seems to have very good comparative durability.
Here's the updated spreadsheet of the test results: Paint finish products test .xls - Google Drive
Not surprisingly all of the panels loss some gloss. Given that they were exposed to consistent snow, freezing rain, and generally poor weather during the two weeks since the last test, this should be expected.
The Glare Professional Polish continues to outshine (pun intended) all of the other products. Its gloss remains the highest of the group and during the latest test period it lost less gloss than all but the HD Nitro Seal and Blackfire Wet Diamond (which being one of the losers of the group, started the test period with one of the lower glosses). With the CQuartz and Opti-Coat2.0 in 2nd and 3rd place respectively, the Klasse AIO has slipped out of the top three.
So the Glare not only demonstrates a superior gloss but seems to have very good comparative durability.
Here's the updated spreadsheet of the test results: Paint finish products test .xls - Google Drive
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smorgasbord
Active Member
Can you describe how you adjusted the results, please?
And, thanks again for doing this - it's great to have this information.
ken830
Model S 85, Model 3 Performance, Model X LongRange
Specifically for Zaino Z-2 Pro + ZFX... How many layers did you do? And if it is multi-layer, I believe you're supposed to use Z-6 after each layer. Also, are all test panels on the same body panel? In general, vertical panels see much less abuse than horizontal panels.
Al Sherman
It's about THIS car.
Yeaaa! Go Glare! I just spent 800 bucks on Glare products in anticipation of "Shane" arriving tomorrow.
Yes, I have an untreated sample which is used to calibrate the gloss meter every time I test.
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In every case I followed the manufacturer's directions precisely. So I did what ever Zaino recommended for the first application. I did use ZFX and Z-6. I've been a long time user of Zaino and its results have disappointed me. But that's why I did the test. I had never even heard of Glare before beginning the test, but so far it appears clearly superior to Zaino. Nothing like a controlled test to upset one's biases.
Each panel is a separate 1x2' aluminum sheet, all painted exactly the same.
When the panels are outside they are stood separately on end. In other words, vertical.
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In every case I followed the manufacturer's directions precisely. So I did what ever Zaino recommended for the first application. I did use ZFX and Z-6. I've been a long time user of Zaino and its results have disappointed me. But that's why I did the test. I had never even heard of Glare before beginning the test, but so far it appears clearly superior to Zaino. Nothing like a controlled test to upset one's biases.
Each panel is a separate 1x2' aluminum sheet, all painted exactly the same.
When the panels are outside they are stood separately on end. In other words, vertical.
ken830
Model S 85, Model 3 Performance, Model X LongRange
Thanks. I'm glad you are testing the claims of so many manufacturers. Could you comment on the number of layers of Zaino? The point of ZFX is to shorten curing time so that you can do up to three layers of Zaino. And gloss and protection is supposedly enhanced with each additional layer.
I did one layer for each product unless the manufacturer's instructions specified more than one. In that case I did what the manufacturer recommended. Can't recall the Zaino recommendations.
Clearly multiple layers would likely help every product. That's why I followed the maker's instructions to the letter.
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Before I began applying the finishes I labeled the back of each panel for the product to be applied and took baseline gloss measurements of the naked panel. The panel with the highest gloss became the basis for a gloss index. Each panel was assigned an gloss index relative to the glossiest panel. The glossiest panel was given a gloss index of 1 (one). All of the others were .98 to .99 (the index was about 7 decimal places, but as I don't have the data with me at the office I can't recall the numbers with precision). When I collected the test data for each of the three tests done so far, the gloss measurements for each product were then recalculated based on its panel's gloss index.
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