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Finally put ceramic on the car. Some lessons learned.

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What product did you use? What ended up going wrong?
Cquartz UK 3.0, I should have used a more aggressive polish, the rest was just limitations of working at home. It would also be best if I polish at night in the garage with my fluorescent lights on, as you can't see really fine swirls in daylight. (I'm a perfectionist, it came out good but a slightly more aggressive polish would have come out better, as well as polishing under artificial lights). I have used this stuff in the past with excellent results, but it has polymers in it, so it's not recommended for polish before ceramic: https://www.amazon.com/Meguiars-G19...guires+polish&qid=1560270191&s=gateway&sr=8-2

I wish they would rate it's abrasiveness like they do their professional line so I could have grabbed something similar.

I am thinking I will use this one next time(Store was out when I bought the swirl remover (rated a 3)).
https://www.amazon.com/Meguiars-Mir...guires+polish&qid=1560270290&s=gateway&sr=8-1

Polishing at night in the garage would be a nice to do type thing, but realistically, it's harder to fit that in the schedule. It could also be done in the daylight I suppose but it's nice to work with the door open due to space constraints.
 
Cquartz UK 3.0, I should have used a more aggressive polish, the rest was just limitations of working at home. It would also be best if I polish at night in the garage with my fluorescent lights on, as you can't see really fine swirls in daylight. (I'm a perfectionist, it came out good but a slightly more aggressive polish would have come out better, as well as polishing under artificial lights). I have used this stuff in the past with excellent results, but it has polymers in it, so it's not recommended for polish before ceramic: https://www.amazon.com/Meguiars-G19...guires+polish&qid=1560270191&s=gateway&sr=8-2

I wish they would rate it's abrasiveness like they do their professional line so I could have grabbed something similar.

I am thinking I will use this one next time(Store was out when I bought the swirl remover (rated a 3)).
https://www.amazon.com/Meguiars-Mir...guires+polish&qid=1560270290&s=gateway&sr=8-1

Polishing at night in the garage would be a nice to do type thing, but realistically, it's harder to fit that in the schedule. It could also be done in the daylight I suppose but it's nice to work with the door open due to space constraints.

I'm going to do my M3 within the next couple of weeks. How long did you leave the CQuartz on for? What did you use on the glass?
 
I'm going to do my M3 within the next couple of weeks. How long did you leave the CQuartz on for? What did you use on the glass?
You must be VERY carful and NOT treat it like wax. It flashes very quickly, usually in less than a couple of minutes. You must check it carefully and know how to recognize the rainbow look. If it turns opaque/hazy you have messed up . Once you leave it on too long you will have a MAJOR job removing the haze it will leave. Also you MUST have your paint completely prepped and corrected before applying. You need to watch a few Youtube videos before you do it and be prepared foe a couple of days of work.

Also you can Cquartz (ceramic coat) your glass, wheels and plastic light covers (I did).
 
You must be VERY carful and NOT treat it like wax. It flashes very quickly, usually in less than a couple of minutes. You must check it carefully and know how to recognize the rainbow look. If it turns opaque/hazy you have messed up . Once you leave it on too long you will have a MAJOR job removing the haze it will leave. Also you MUST have you paint completely prepped and corrected before applying. You need to watch a few Youtube videos before you do it

Hmm maybe I didn't do it right then? I would try to wipe it before it turned hazy, but I had trouble seeing it "set" which is what I think your referring to by the rainbow look. I think the white paint may have been part of the issue. I would basically do 1/2 a panel then just buff it off.

I used the crosshatch technique, but I had a really hard time telling if it had sat on the paint long enough before wiping it off.

I'm going to do my M3 within the next couple of weeks. How long did you leave the CQuartz on for? What did you use on the glass?

I used some reload on the glass but not cquartz (other than some that got on the window near the edges, beadmaker is nice on glass too. CQuartz says no longer than 2 minutes when applying. I never did see a rainbow effect, just kind guessed. I'd rather wipe most of the product off than let it haze. Usually I could kind of feel it get a little tacky as I was wiping it off.
 
Hmm maybe I didn't do it right then? I would try to wipe it before it turned hazy, but I had trouble seeing it "set" which is what I think your referring to by the rainbow look. I think the white paint may have been part of the issue. I would basically do 1/2 a panel then just buff it off.



I used some reload on the glass but not cquartz (other than some that got on the window near the edges, beadmaker is nice on glass too. CQuartz says no longer than 2 minutes when applying. I never did see a rainbow effect, just kind guessed. I'd rather wipe most of the product off than let it haze. Usually I could kind of feel it get a little tacky as I was wiping it off.
You are in Calf and used UK (United Kingdom)???? It is formulated for the cool damp English weather. Also you DON'T let haze. That is too long. Just a SLIGHT haze and rainbow effect under light. Using UK in Calf it probably didn't set long enough. this is safer but you will get MUCH less depth and long term protection.


EDIT: Went back and read and you didn't say UK.. My bad. You are probably good to go. Also to see the rainbow you must put your head down towards the paint and look as perpendicular as you can.
 
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You are in Calf and used UK (United Kingdom)???? It is formulated for the cool damp English weather. Also you DON'T let haze. That is too long. Just a SLIGHT haze and rainbow effect under light. Using UK in Calf it probably didn't set long enough. this is safer but you will get MUCH less depth and long term protection.
Pretty sure the UK version is fine, the 3.0 version has a broader range of temperatures. Says it's actually easier to use in warmer climates.


According to this video you don't have to wait for it to flash.
 
Pretty sure the UK version is fine, the 3.0 version has a broader range of temperatures. Says it's actually easier to use in warmer climates.

According to this video you don't have to wait for it to flash.
I didn't say you had to wait until it flashes. I said "...It flashes very quickly, usually in less than a couple of minutes...." as in be ready to remove. ;)
 
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I didn't say you had to wait until it flashes. I said "...It flashes very quickly, usually in less than a couple of minutes...." as in be ready to remove. ;)
But your right there is more of a timing thing with some versions. When I originally searched I wanted the easiest to apply since I don't know what I'm doing hah. Sounds like with 3.0 you can almost wipe it off right away as it's not intended to be as thick as the others anyways. I could tell the most by how tacky the product was, it starts to get tacks as it sets up, so I would hurry if it started to feel tacky.
 
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Just to add 2 years ago when I did my ELR I let 2 drops fall on the passenger door unnoticed. Found them as I was using Reload. Went on the Car-Pro forum and luckily you have about 24 hours that you can use isopropyl (and a lot of elbow grease) to remove. I was able to remove and then re-coat.

IMG_3795.jpg
 
Pretty sure the UK version is fine, the 3.0 version has a broader range of temperatures. Says it's actually easier to use in warmer climates.


According to this video you don't have to wait for it to flash.

You are in Calf and used UK (United Kingdom)???? It is formulated for the cool damp English weather. Also you DON'T let haze. That is too long. Just a SLIGHT haze and rainbow effect under light. Using UK in Calf it probably didn't set long enough. this is safer but you will get MUCH less depth and long term protection.


EDIT: Went back and read and you didn't say UK.. My bad. You are probably good to go. Also to see the rainbow you must put your head down towards the paint and look as perpendicular as you can.
Pretty sure the UK 3.0 has anything to do with the United Kingdom. It's just a naming thing
 
You must be VERY carful and NOT treat it like wax. It flashes very quickly, usually in less than a couple of minutes. You must check it carefully and know how to recognize the rainbow look. If it turns opaque/hazy you have messed up . Once you leave it on too long you will have a MAJOR job removing the haze it will leave. Also you MUST have your paint completely prepped and corrected before applying. You need to watch a few Youtube videos before you do it and be prepared foe a couple of days of work.

Also you can Cquartz (ceramic coat) your glass, wheels and plastic light covers (I did).
My plan is to not let it sit at all. Wipe it off as soon as i'm done applying it (CQuartz UK 3.0). I bought FlyBy 30 for the glass