Long lasting sealant...?

[blackpearl]

Hi guys...I don't post much, but lurk quite a bit.  I am curious if Adams has considered a high end sealant similar to a product with the initials OC and OG.  They claim years of protection if taken care of.  Has Adam's considered a product like this?  I think it would be awesome for those times we spend 20+ hours doing a correction, knowing we had a sealant that was "apply and forget" for a year or so.  Especially for vehicles that are drivers.

 

Love every Adam's product I've used...I am about to switch to Adam's polishes, as I'm tired of struggling to get one-oh-five off the paint!

[SYMAWD]

Adam has stated before they have no plans for one, but he also said the same thing about Rinseless wash, so who knows?  I do have a a coating on my car (claimed 2 years durability), but you also have to think, will your car remain swirl free for 2 years+?  Most likely not and you will have to polish off the coating to correct the paint again.  However, coatings are superior in self-cleaning and protection IMO, so I use it whether it will last 2 years or not.

[Ricky Bobby]

Ugh 105, I used it when it first came out, never again.  Dusts so much and is such a pain to remove.

 

If you polish your car yearly to rid of the swirls and light scratches you may as well just use Liquid Paint Sealant for bi-yearly application and durability.  No, its not Opti Coat, but its pretty damn good considering you can get 6 months out of an application.

 

Adam's line is for the weekend warriors who like detailing and telling their customer base that they have a coating similar to Opti Coat that would last 2 years with no polishing, waxing, and only washes, the customers would not be the biggest fans of it.  The professionals here would love a coating but I just don't see it.

 

Now a product like Rinseless which is so versatile, multi-use and used often is a huge hit for them I imagine.  It's all about the reorder as well, and a product like a coating which you buy every few years is probably not going to net the best sales ratio as opposed to Detail Spray, VRT, Rinseless etc which are constantly being used and refilled.

 

My .02

Edited December 8, 2014 by Ricky Bobby

[Rich]

Ugh 105, I used it when it first came out, never again.  Dusts so much and is such a pain to remove.

 

If you polish your car yearly to rid of the swirls and light scratches you may as well just use Liquid Paint Sealant for bi-yearly application and durability.  No, its not Opti Coat, but its pretty damn good considering you can get 6 months out of an application.

 

Adam's line is for the weekend warriors who like detailing and telling their customer base that they have a coating similar to Opti Coat that would last 2 years with no polishing, waxing, and only washes, the customers would not be the biggest fans of it.  The professionals here would love a coating but I just don't see it.

 

Now a product like Rinseless which is so versatile, multi-use and used often is a huge hit for them I imagine.  It's all about the reorder as well, and a product like a coating which you buy every few years is probably not going to net the best sales ratio as opposed to Detail Spray, VRT, Rinseless etc which are constantly being used and refilled.

 

My .02

Well said.  And I agree with him.  

[ForceofWill]

We've had this discussion before here and I agree with Matt.  I still have some 22PLE pro left.  Do I like it? Yes it's good but it's expensive and a giant pain in the *** to apply.  My cars are dailies and I'll never see the life out of a coating because I will want to polish it again well before it's time is up.

 

I honestly prefer Adam's new sealant now, you can easily get 6 months out of it and it has great characteristics for me.  Applying it with a polisher is so fast and easy it makes putting a coating on seem like a trek through the desert.  

 

If you think you're going to seriously get the full life out of a coating without wanting or needing to polish out even minor stuff then go for it but I have yet to.

[Team Adam's]

Hmmm... If only someone was testing coatings. That would be interesting.

[07RS4]

Also, coatings scratch, just like a clear coat.  I've been there, got the t-shirt...stripped it off, and returned to my favorite part of detailing...applying a fine, buttery soft carnuba to freshly polished paint.  You can wax a car in 30-45 minutes, so what if you have to do it every few weeks?  Wax's look better, are fun to apply...and aren't a PIA to remove once you realize your coating is all scratched up. 

[SYMAWD]

Either way, the coating market is large and while Adam might not sell much of it to current customers, he could certainly attract a crowd that has not considered Adam's before.  

[ForceofWill]

I think there's definitely a place for them.  The detail business guys mainly. People that pay to have their car detailed every so often would probably want the coating. 

[07RS4]

Yeah, there's a place for them Tom.  I just will never get the hype. 

 

LSP's are sacrificial layers right?

 

So in essence, with a coating you are adding more to the clear coat.  Clear coat protects paint.  Unless you leave a DD outside, 24/7 in the salty streets of Buffalo during the dead of winter for 10 years...clear coat is going to be just fine 99% of the time.  Coatings will not prevent scratching, rock chips, certain types of bird crap and acidic bugs from etching paint, UV fading/cracking of paint, 2 year olds from rubbing their bike handle on your car, etc.  Bottom line...there is no added benefit, from my point of view, in having a coating on your car.  What is your clear coat being "protected" from?  Your going to end up where you were in the first place....I would rather have a sacrificial layer on my car that I can strip and re-apply in an hour or so..not trying to strip a scratched up coating off of my car.  Your going to have to touch your vehicle up once or twice a year (depending on storage/driving habits) no matter what if you want it to stay "perfect." 

 

I'm sure that makes no sense, haha. 

[SYMAWD]

Yeah, there's a place for them Tom. I just will never get the hype.

 

LSP's are sacrificial layers right?

 

So in essence, with a coating you are adding more to the clear coat. Clear coat protects paint. Unless you leave a DD outside, 24/7 in the salty streets of Buffalo during the dead of winter for 10 years...clear coat is going to be just fine 99% of the time. Coatings will not prevent scratching, rock chips, certain types of bird crap and acidic bugs from etching paint, UV fading/cracking of paint, 2 year olds from rubbing their bike handle on your car, etc. Bottom line...there is no added benefit, from my point of view, in having a coating on your car. What is your clear coat being "protected" from? Your going to end up where you were in the first place....I would rather have a sacrificial layer on my car that I can strip and re-apply in an hour or so..not trying to strip a scratched up coating off of my car. Your going to have to touch your vehicle up once or twice a year (depending on storage/driving habits) no matter what if you want it to stay "perfect."

 

I'm sure that makes no sense, haha.

 

Coatings are easier to clean and are more chemical resistant than sealants and waxes. With a coating, bugs and even tar just rinse off of my car. A touchless wash also gets the car 90%+ clean and the chemicals do not affect the coating and all of my trim and paint is coated, so I don't need to worry about the chemicals harming exposed trim. Yes, I'll probably need to polish my car before the coating gives up, but the benefits are worth it to me even if I will never experience its full durability. Edited December 9, 2014 by SYMAWD

[blackpearl]

Hmmm... If only someone was testing coatings. That would be interesting.

 

Was hoping you'd chime in with a yay or nay. Thanks Dylan!

 

I understand the "weekend warriors" that's what I am...But at the same time, I don't get the time to do polishes all the time.  So a coating that I could throw on and know it'll protect the paint for at least a year would be awesome.  A yearly coating would even be excellent to me.

 

I can also understand the business side of not wanting to do that...but really, if you offer a product that can compete with others out there...Competition is a good thing for the consumer :thu:

Edited December 9, 2014 by blackpearl

[Team Adam's]

Coatings are easier to clean and are more chemical resistant than sealants and waxes. With a coating, bugs and even tar just rinse off of my car. A touchless wash also gets the car 90%+ clean and the chemicals do not affect the coating and all of my trim and paint is coated, so I don't need to worry about the chemicals harming exposed trim. Yes, I'll probably need to polish my car before the coating gives up, but the benefits are worth it to me even if I will never experience its full durability.

 

SInce I started testing coatings, both unique formulations and stuff sold by other companies, this isnt' true for all of them. The big guys the Opt and CP are living up to the claims for sure. The smaller outfits though - theres a lot of hype that isn't delivered on. One very popular option (that I won't name) was applied and I was able to completely diminish the beading properties of it in 3 washes by using nothing more than APC concentrate mixed in soap. The label of course claimed YEARS of durability. Others that claim self cleaning proved to do no better at repelling grime than a basic poly sealant.

 

My point is this - the coatings market has some legit players, then theres a lot of guys relying on smoke, mirrors, and consumer ignorance to capture market share. Heres the funny part - in the world of coatings there primary raw material (polysilazane) only comes from a limited source. The newer versions that promise more gloss cut that with resins. In a dumbed down way more resin = more gloss, but less durability. What you should be looking for in a coating (IMHO) is out and out durability since it can be topped with more traditional LSP's for the asthetic aspects.

 

What is truly exciting is whats on the horizon, legitimate self healing coatings that can be wire brushed and level themselves out in just moments. The catch - they require a full clean downdraft paint booth, professional paint spraying equipment, and cost thousands of dollars to have applied. Not exactly technology that people will be using at home.

 

The current generation of stuff is becoming more and more user friendly, what needs to happen is more consumer education as to what a coating can actually do. There are far too many claims that are just baseless out there and too much hype by guys who don't know any better. If/when we finalize a coating product the goal will be to set REALISTIC expectations for what the product does - not a bunch of outlandish promises.

 

Is a coating really a product everyone needs? IMO no. I wouldn't ever apply one to my C/10... doesn't make sense. Would I use one on my daily driver thats parked outside 24/7? Absolutely. Theres viability for use on wheels for most people, but not entire cars for everyone. We'll delve more into it as we work towards a solution of our own.

Edited December 9, 2014 by The Shine Doc

[SYMAWD]

SInce I started testing coatings, both unique formulations and stuff sold by other companies, this isnt' true for all of them. The big guys the Opt and CP are living up to the claims for sure. The smaller outfits though - theres a lot of hype that isn't delivered on. One very popular option (that I won't name) was applied and I was able to completely diminish the beading properties of it in 3 washes by using nothing more than APC concentrate mixed in soap. The label of course claimed YEARS of durability. Others that claim self cleaning proved to do no better at repelling grime than a basic poly sealant.

 

 

 

 

Yes, some are nothing more than a hyped up sealant, but true coatings definitely make a difference in my opinion. So far, no chemical has fased what's on my car.

[mc2hill]

Excellent input (as usual!) Doc.  I do not use them on my truck or my wife's car.  But my son is several hours away at school and never cleans his car.  Before he left last year I applied a coating and it still looks fine.  I wash it when he comes home and the shine comes right back.  I will reapply it next summer.

[The Guz]

I do agree that there is a fine line between what is a "coating".  Some are like super sealants.  Good info in this thread. 

[Antv20]

While a coating doesn't really appeal to me since I use detailing as therapy, I would certainly be interested in a coating for wheels.

[BlackedoutLT3]

I am extremely happy about this. I love the Nano coatings. I use them just as I can't get to detailing my cars all the time as I work full time then have my side buisness of detailing and work most weekends. So something like this is great! Really looking forward to what comes of this good work Dylan!

[Team Adam's]

Just a little insight into what I'm working on. For those that don't already go follow me on instagram (@dylanvonkleist) or facebook b/c I post little tidbits there all the time (easier from my phone). So if you want hints as to what I'm doing ahead of everyone else - that would be a good place to go:

 

[Feets31]

Reading around on different forums I am seeing detailers having three different coatings with different price points depending on the budget of their customer.  I have also heard product X is very expensive.  

 

On FB i believe I saw someone chime in with he had found two very good ones and many questionable ones in relation to longitiy. That many promote shine but that can be had after the coating in applied and wax is added. 

 

Some are a pain to put on and a few are relatively easy.  Looking forward to what they cook up here. 

[Team Adam's]

I think we're all (or at least most of us) in the same area in terms of what we'd want from a coating -

 

Personally I think something that lasts 4 or 5 years sounds terrible! Thats a unique hell I don't want to exist in where I have no excuse to rub on my car. Something in the 18-24 month range would suit me just fine.

 

I'm also not all that concerned with gloss levels, ideally I want a coating that leaves the appearance of the vehicle unchanged vs. having nothing on it. I want excuses to use waxes, glazes, detail sprays and other things to bring out the gloss. Putting down a good paste is like therapy so why would I want something that takes away that need?

 

I want it to be stupid easy to apply - some coatings I've worked with are so temperamental that the process was more aggravation than it was worth. I finished frustrated and annoyed - I never want the joy to be sucked out of detailing.

 

Am I on the right track?

[Performance Auto Detailing]

I think we're all (or at least most of us) in the same area in terms of what we'd want from a coating -

 

Personally I think something that lasts 4 or 5 years sounds terrible! Thats a unique hell I don't want to exist in where I have no excuse to rub on my car. Something in the 18-24 month range would suit me just fine.

 

I'm also not all that concerned with gloss levels, ideally I want a coating that leaves the appearance of the vehicle unchanged vs. having nothing on it. I want excuses to use waxes, glazes, detail sprays and other things to bring out the gloss. Putting down a good paste is like therapy so why would I want something that takes away that need?

 

I want it to be stupid easy to apply - some coatings I've worked with are so temperamental that the process was more aggravation than it was worth. I finished frustrated and annoyed - I never want the joy to be sucked out of detailing.

 

Am I on the right track?

I agree 100% with that. I'm considering coating my car this weekend but the thought of not having the therapy of using paste wax is holding me back a little.. maybe I'll just get therapy from doing my families' cars!

[Team Adam's]

You can still wax after coating (with most coatings) so you can still enjoy the best of both worlds... my thought was always why pay extra or sacrifice some other aspect for coating gloss when I can enjoy a coat of wax to do that same job. A foundation of coating for protection alone and then layered wax for gloss when I want/need it sounds like the sweet spot.

Edited December 10, 2014 by The Shine Doc

[Performance Auto Detailing]

You can still wax after coating (with most coatings) so you can still enjoy the best of both worlds... my thought was always why pay extra or sacrifice some other aspect for coating gloss when I can enjoy a coat of wax to do that same job. A foundation of coating for protection alone and then layered wax for gloss when I want/need it sounds like the sweet spot.

 

Yeah I like the sounds of that a lot. The coating for the protection and then layering wax when desired for gloss. Sounds like a winner

[goheels]

I would love the idea of this option in the Adam's line-up.  Particularly for maintaining long-lasting protection for wheels, I would be sold.  Given my busy schedule, it would be great to have an option for my daily driver that extends beyond the 4-6 months of the sealant offered here.

 

If the technology is there for a coating that provides superior long-lasting protection (compared to sealants) that is easy to apply for a novice, Adam's should be offering it.  While it might not be right for those who want to polish their cars on a frequent basis, there are plenty of products that Adam's sells that aren't for everyone (e.g., fender brushes that don't fit in wheel wells of smaller cars, undercarriage spray that badly stains concrete if not too careful, etc.)