Wax Or Polish?

[fastblatt]

Hi. Lets imagine I know nothing about detailing a car. I have read a lot of posts on here but cant suss out what the difference is between wax and polish. I have a bottle of Auto Glym Super Resin Polish which I have used on my previous car but what is best, a wax or a polish?
Mark

 

[P40ULW]

super resin polish from what i understand is a super fine T-cut but i could be wrong as whats best i'd say wax

 

[antowens]

Each to there other mate some like wax some like polish its just what you prefer as someone said a while back there is no right a wrong stuff to use its just what you find best everyone is different so what i like to use you may not

Try some wax see how it goes if not for you try polish

 

[Bristle Hound]

Don't forget there is a range of sealants too

AG SRP & T-cut are both filler heavy. They are both what I would describe as a short term appearance enhancer, bit like the Colour Magic range. Neither really gets rid of the prob ie marring and swirls it's just masks them

There is so many Detailing products out there and so many differing opinions on different products the best advice I can give any one is have a look here -

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/index.php

 

[Pulp84]

Hi. Lets imagine I know nothing about detailing a car. I have read a lot of posts on here but cant suss out what the difference is between wax and polish. I have a bottle of Auto Glym Super Resin Polish which I have used on my previous car but what is best, a wax or a polish?
Mark

Polish = brings out the shine of you paint but has no protection to the elements.

Wax = protects the shine you have built up with the polish.

You can also add a sealant to the above (between the polish and wax stage) to "lock in" the shine and protect it from the elements further (UV light, hard water, bug splatter etc).

If you are not really in to detailing and just want to keep you car looking good with some protection to the paint then I'd suggest waxing rather than polishing.

Ditch the Autoglym resin polish.......it's crap. Try Collinite 476s wax. Goes a long way and excellent shine!

 

[fastblatt]

"Ditch the Autoglym resin polish.......it's crap"

Damn. it's a big bottle...........

 

[Pulp84]

Sell it to a mate for £5 and put that toward some Collinite! You will thank me for it.....

 

[Bristle Hound]

Suppose at the end of the day, it's how deep your pockets are for Detailing gear

 

[fastblatt]

Oh yes I'm not going to go too mad but if there is a product that will keep the car cleaner for longer then it has to be worth a go (must get rid of that sponge).... I'll Try the wax recommended.

 

[antowens]

Oh yes I'm not going to go too mad but if there is a product that will keep the car cleaner for longer then it has to be worth a go (must get rid of that sponge).... I'll Try the wax recommended.

SPONGE!!!!! Nice soft wash mit mate two bucket wash method

 

[fastblatt]

SPONGE!!!!! Nice soft wash mit mate two bucket wash method

Hehe. Knew that would get you going…

 

[Bristle Hound]

Here you, one of these -

Wookies fist

 

[FranA3]

there are many great products out on the market these days, some have fillers some dont, polish then wax though not the other way around as wax is to protect the freshly polished surface

 

[veeeight]

As pulp84 said above, they are 2 different products for 2 different purposes.

Pre-wash
Wash
Clay
Polish - which has very fine abrasive to polish out micro-scratches and swirls from the top clear coat (lacquer) to make it scratch/swirl free, and shiny
Wax - A protective layer that goes on after polishing, to protect the paintwork

Autoglym SRP is an "All in One" polish/protectant (very fine abrasives, so won't polish out any larger scratches) and contains resin "fillers" (that fill in the shallower scratches) - combined with some wax.

Car dealers love SRP because it contains the fillers - one application and all the scratches are filled/hidden from view - but after 2 washes, they will appear again ! Lol

 

[Mesa]

SRP has it's place and is perfectly fine as a hand applied filler "polish". It has no cut so it's really a polish.

Wax is last stage designed to keep contaminates from your paint. The final stage. Same as a sealant just different properties.

Polish = remove defects.
Wax/Sealant = seal against environment.

 

[veeeight]

SRP has it's place and is perfectly fine as a hand applied filler "polish". It has no cut so it's really a polish.

It's not entirely accurate to say AG SRP has no cut, it's an AIO Finishing Polish, so has a very fine cut of 0.5 to 1.

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=100889

 

[Bristle Hound]

It's not entirely accurate to say AG SRP has no cut, it's an AIO Finishing Polish, so has a very fine cut of 0.5 to 1.

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=100889

Don't forget the 'new and improved' of version of AG SRP is out now too

Not one of my fave products TBH. There are a lot of much better products out there but, like most things in life (& especially Detailing ) each to there own ...

 

[Louay]

As pulp84 said above, they are 2 different products for 2 different purposes.

Pre-wash
Wash
Clay
Polish - which has very fine abrasive to polish out micro-scratches and swirls from the top clear coat (lacquer) to make it scratch/swirl free, and shiny
Wax - A protective layer that goes on after polishing, to protect the paintwork

Autoglym SRP is an "All in One" polish/protectant (very fine abrasives, so won't polish out any larger scratches) and contains resin "fillers" (that fill in the shallower scratches) - combined with some wax.

Car dealers love SRP because it contains the fillers - one application and all the scratches are filled/hidden from view - but after 2 washes, they will appear again ! Lol

Sounds about right. Take your wedge. Hide any snags. Say goodbye.

 

[OCDetails]

All these people that say AG SRP is rubbish clearly haven't been shown how to use AG products correctly.

As for what each one does :

Polish as abrasive
Wax is a protector and sealer

Most products out there of not all contain fillers. SRP is one... PB black holes another very common one.

Do not expect to get perfect paint just using a polish and a wax if it's swirled and hazed. For this you need a paint enhancement/correction.

Polish doesn't make the car shine as such it removes very slight scratches and I'm talking stupidly small scratches.

Wax brings out the deep shine of paint aswell as sealing it from contamination.

People have the big misconception that polish is all they need to protect a car.

Most just do not know how to use each product to gain best results either.

Personally AG is all I use and I run a detailing business. After attending there course to learn the correct methods on there products I can achieve a better result than most people that spend £100s on polish and waxes.

Before and after one layer of polish and one layer of wax both AG

 

[shariain]

This might help out for newer members looking for the same info.

 

[veeeight]

And here's a great thread showing the process in photos. @N8 is a forum sponsor on here.

http://www.audi-sport.net/xf/threads/kowalski-details-v-ibis-white-rs3.183774/

 

[steeve]

Any polish is abrasive, if your paint is in need of polish, for instance you have swirls or the surface is dull then it does need polishing. Stuff like AutoGlym does contain some sealants either a little wax or some silicon. But they wont produce the surface you need, for that you need some one with the kit and material to produce the paint surface you can then use a wax or a sealant on. The white residue left when polish dries is clay, the size of the grains of clay determine the level of abrasiveness.
So if your paint is good, don't ruin it with any kind of polish use a wax or glaze.

 

[Demetrios]

Wax is a LSP (Last Stage Protection)

It's all in the prep

 

[Schuey]

I have no issues using SRP and the new formula seems that bit better.

Agree its cut is very low but then for some paintwork that maybe adequate?

The reason SRP is so effective at giving the impression of a good shine & hiding swirls is that the fillers affect the way that light reflects off the paintwork. Yes it's a temporary fix so to speak, but with a couple of coats of wax on top to seal it in for a few weeks or months its perfectly fine for most people.

Medium to heavily swirled paint would need correction or enhancement & these polishes would have no fillers but have different levels of cut.

For me SRP has its place but should not really be the end product so I would recommend a wax as LSP. A sealant over the top of SRP would be disappointing, however you could use AG EGP.

But like anything else it depends how much time & money you are prepared to invest, for some a £20 AG kit from Halfords is enough.

With regards a wax, I really like Raceglaze 55, it gives a deep colour on grey colours but only lasts 6-8 weeks which isn't good enough for winter. Winter protection products I have used include collinite 915 marque d'elegance.

Oh yeah & ditch the sponge & get a wash mitt.

 

[jaykay8L]

I wouldn't use autoglym SRP on any dark coloured car. If you do, it'll fill any scratches & stone chips with bright white, and I find also lightens the colour of the whole car slightly. If you have a light colour, then great, but i'm after an inky black finish to my cars which are both very dark coloured.

I tried a small amount of the Autoglym Wax when at a friends on Saturday. Didn't use much, as it seemed to "powder" really quickly.

My method of cleaning.

1. Take car to local trusted "hand car wash". They will spray it with a traffic film remover, and get the worst of the rubbish off.

2. Once home, clay the car using Meguiars or whoever's kit. The kits usually have clay, "detail spray" as a lubricant for the clay, and a micro fibre. Take your time and you'll see and feel the improvement in the paint. Don't drop the clay on the floor and re-use. That'd be very bad.

3. Unless paint is very swirled, I then apply a layer of wax. I'm a Zymol fan. Not cheap, but its easy to use & quick.

4. From there on, wash the car yourself, using two buckets & grit guards if possible. Further applications of wax can be applied as & when.

5. NEVER return to the hand car wash. They will scratch your paint.

I did the above on Saturday, having just bought the S3, which lived in the middle of deepest rural farmland. It now looks very presentable, and the water beads really well.

 

[Schuey]

I wouldn't use autoglym SRP on any dark coloured car. If you do, it'll fill any scratches & stone chips with bright white, and I find also lightens the colour of the whole car slightly. If you have a light colour, then great, but i'm after an inky black finish to my cars which are both very dark coloured.

I tried a small amount of the Autoglym Wax when at a friends on Saturday. Didn't use much, as it seemed to "powder" really quickly.

My method of cleaning.

1. Take car to local trusted "hand car wash". They will spray it with a traffic film remover, and get the worst of the rubbish off.

2. Once home, clay the car using Meguiars or whoever's kit. The kits usually have clay, "detail spray" as a lubricant for the clay, and a micro fibre. Take your time and you'll see and feel the improvement in the paint. Don't drop the clay on the floor and re-use. That'd be very bad.

3. Unless paint is very swirled, I then apply a layer of wax. I'm a Zymol fan. Not cheap, but its easy to use & quick.

4. From there on, wash the car yourself, using two buckets & grit guards if possible. Further applications of wax can be applied as & when.

5. NEVER return to the hand car wash. They will scratch your paint.

I did the above on Saturday, having just bought the S3, which lived in the middle of deepest rural farmland. It now looks very presentable, and the water beads really well.

Hi mate, from the sounds of it you are applying too much polish & wax if you are getting a lot of dust?

I'm you use a local hand car wash as preparation? They can cause a lot of paint damage and all you do by waxing it after is sealing in the damage, so double check on this method. The megs clay kit is pretty good, I first used it about 5 years ago & was really impressed with the results.

Zymol I agree is really nice to use, smells good & when I have used carbon on my dark VAG cars they always look the part. I have since changed to Raceglaze 55, you can buy sample pots as well for £5.99.

 

[jaykay8L]

Schuey, i'll have a go with raceglaze and see how it compares

I know what you mean about hand car washes, hence point 5