Car Wax

[Skip Snowden]

I am looking for something "special" for the cobra. I have used Zaino Brothers wax in the past and like it, but at a car show this weekend, a fellow mentioned Astroshield. I had never heard of it before but when I checked out their website, I found it has been around for at least 30 years. Anybody here use this product? It doesn't have any wax in it but is supposed to seal the paint and have a very deep shine. What is your special wax? Thanks. Skip

[rednour1]

I still like the "Liquid Glass". I use it on my '95 mustang, and keeps it looking new.

[Porxter]

I know this doesn't fall in the "special" category, but I just started using the new Turtle Wax product "Ice" synthetic polish.

I've been using the Ice detailing spray on the Cobra every time I bring it back from a drive for almost a year now to remove bugs and dust, and really like it.

But a couple of weeks ago I used their polish for the first time on my F150, and I was astonished. I have never used anything this easy to apply and remove. The thing I really like about it is it can also be used on all black plastic or rubber trim, door handles and even your tires! Everything but the glass.

Both products are crystal clear, and leave no white or chalky residue. No more visible wax residue.

I then used it on my Explorer last week and the Cobra is getting it next.

Ice Polish

By the way, my Costco is carrying an Ice package right now that has a bottle of the spray detailer, a bottle of polish, a foam applicator and a micro-fibre detailer's cloth for about $20.

Steve

[Steve Bisson]

I'll second the Turtle Wax ICE. Good product.

[faterikcartman]

Never heard of it in their whole thirty years. That might mean something or might not.

I would stick with the Zaino, that stuff rules.

http://www.zainostore.com/

[David G]

I recently got some of that ICE stuff as a gift. Awesome. I had to hurry out to a car show and didn't have time to clean things up. I used the spray detailer to take the dust off, then put the ICE wax on in the hot sun at the show, and it was no problem! Pretty amazing stuff.

[Skip Snowden]

Thanks guys! I have never heard of ICE before now. It is great to get all these opinions. I may have to do a side by side comparison. Thanks again. Skip

[D Weber]

Turtle Wax ICE is a fairly new product. That's why it's not well known...

[carpe kid]

I also use ICE. Good stuff, easy to use.

[Mark9]

No wax here. 3M Imperial Hand Glaze. Detailing mist to get rid of finger prints and such when necessary.

Mark

[StormyCobra]

I use Liquid Glass & Meguiars NXT. Both are great products that are easy to use. Zaino is over priced and overrated.

[MuscleCar 67]

Ice is a great wax paste! I have always used turtle wax on my Mustang ($20 prem wax paste) ,but this stuff blows it away. The best part tho for me is it can be applied to black plastic which my car has a lot of. Before I would have to use Armorall for the plastic trim & rubber, and risk getting it on the paint or glass, I saved a good 20 min in labor not having to worry about it! It can also be applied in the sun so no more searching for shade! I have a tree on the side of my drive way that provides a good shady area, but as the sun would move I would have to move the car, Not anymore Here is the result of a long afternoon (6hrs)

[countrysquire]

If there's a Carquest near you, see if they have any Duragloss Aquawax. I will put it up against ANY "over the counter" wax and many of the specialty waxes. It's more about the process than the product anyway...

[jmwright52]

S100 From the Harley Shop. Best wax ever used.

[MuscleCar 67]

True the process is important ,but the product is half the battle. I should mention I washed the car 1st with a light power wash to remove debris then washed it by hand with McGuires soap... looked the car over for any sap,rust,stains,chips ect. Then I used ice clay bar system over the entire car (best ive used),then I washed it again and dried it. After that I applied the wax ,and then polished it with a random orbital buffer to a shine. The process is important ,but the product is just as important. The pictures are proof.

[Charlie C]

Mother's for a base, then Lemon Pledge.

c

[Mastiff107]

113 blows Zainos and anything else on the market away. Been using in bike shows for years.

[countrysquire]

What is 113? Who makes it?

Edit: Is it Formula 113?

[ June 11, 2007, 10:47 PM: Message edited by: Bobby Crumpley ]

[2fastCobra]

Zaino Brothers wax takes a little more work but it is a great product!! My 98 Cobra has won over 40 first place car show awards. With some of these wins I won a big bucket of $150-$200 dollars worth of Mothers best car care products, I would just give them away. I would only drive my Cobra on nice days so I did not have to wax it but once a year.

[WV Firefighter]

I tried the liquid ICE on the wife's Denali and it is very easy to use but the beading was gone in 2 weeks. I really like Zainos when I have the time.

Andy

[Bullethole]

Grew up with the two guys who developed this polish/wax. The Duragloss is an excellent product and easy to use. They stared making this stuff for the local car crowd 30 years ago. I have been using it almost that long. Have not tried the Ice product but saw it on an infommercial about a year ago.
http://www.duragloss.com/

[GB_Racing]

For clear coated cars: Wash the car on a cool night and use a detergent that sprays on so you DO NOT put a wash cloth back in a bucket of DIRTY WATER. Shamy the water off it the car.

3M Ultrafina 6068 with a Makita 9227C variable speed polisher set to speed 2 - blue sponge.(very important that it is a blue sponge and stay away from your edges.) You will not find a single paint swirl when you are done.

Then follow with "Mother's Showtime Detailer"

Thats my magic recipe.

[hind sight]

Once cars finish has been preped for the waxing stage I like the Mcquiers products. I use their gold series polish followed by the MXT paste wax(sealer wax),then a coat of carnuba wax (wax only) over that to bring out the darker colors depth. I use their spray on speed detailer wax in between. Probally very similar to the Turtle wax Ice system.
Use a polish to bring out the shine followed by a wax to protect. It is the process that makes the end results look good.
Zaino is good stuff,just did'nt feel it was worth the added cost since it did'nt work any better then the Mcquier stuff.

[ROB J]

To answer your question, since nobody else has. Yes, I have used Astroshield in the past. I used to use it often about 12 or so years ago. It is still around. It comes in a tin can.

It wasn't bad, but it did require a good amount of buffing. Not an easy to apply and remove product. I would not say however, that it is a phenomenal product.

My 2 cents.

[FordManDan]

I just applied TurtleWax ICE to my truck after Washing it, Using a Clay bar + quick detailer, and washing it again, then drying it. It's been 20 minutes and the ICE hasn't "hazed up" AS THE INSTRUCTIONS say it will do after about 3-5 minutes. I even pulled my truck into the direct sun light (102 degrees) for a few minutes to help speed the process, and the ICE just seems to have beaded up on the paint. Is this normal? I'm about to go wipe it off, but I was hoping it would work as it should according to the instructions.

Thanks, Dan

[Steve Bisson]

Dan,

I never saw any haze either. I just applied it to the entire car then went back and used the blue microfiber cloth to polish it out.

[FordManDan]

Thanks Steve.

Yeah, I went ahead and used the microfiber cloth to polish it too. I think the additional time I waited made it harder to rub off. Oh well the truck looks nice and shiny.

I wouldn't call ICE a polish though, it doesn't really polish anything. It's more of a paint dressing. This is why it reportedly doesn't last as long as other products.

I give it a A+ on ease of application, a D- on the directions because the product doesn't Haze up at all, and I really can't rate the polishing procedure as I think I left the product on too long as I was waiting for it to haze. But overall, not a bad product. Being able to use it on plastic trim is a huge plus. I also like that one bottle will last a long time. I'm a little skeptical about ICE only because it's not a polish as they claim, it's very similar to an oily dressing you'd put on rubber or plastic, but it's engineered for paint. I guess the good news is that it's really easy on paint jobs--no abrasives.

-dan

[AzCobra]

I used ICE too the other day in Phoenix AZ where I was sure it would have time to haze and....no haze. I wonder who wrote the directions for that company? I was worried it was going to destroy a 3k paint job!

[Sarge]

You guys might want to try Deep Finish

www.deepfinish.com

Their wax and aluminum polish are amazing.

The finish spray is also great stuff.

Rich

[David G]

I received the ICE products as a gift last year and tried them out. It does in fact work fine in 90 degree weather under direct sunlight midday. Great when out of time and you need to wax a bit and detail at an event.

Ice Detailer:
The ICE spray detailer goes on awesome with a microfiber cloth. Those yellow Costco ones work great. It looks really good almost instantly. Lots faster than even the Meguiars as it barely leaves any visible streaking to buff out.

The Meguiars, however, does take bugs off much better. I like to carry both. Knock the bugs off the front with the Megs then switch to the ICE to get the rest of the car done faster.

Ice Wax:
As stated above the ICE wax doesn't really haze, but it does work. It seems to be a slightly thicker version of the ICE spray detailer. I'd agree it's only good for a couple weeks tops but it is about as easy to apply as a wax could possibly be. You pretty much just make sure you cover everything then wait 10-20 and buff it as lightly as you can.
It's not a multi-month product. Not something you'd want to mess with on a daily driver but almost perfect for a Cobra where most of us give it a shine up at the start of a weekend.

So all in all, not perfect, but the ease of use is amazing.