Best wax for single stage paint?

[lloyd3]

I did a little looking around on the web and there is no-shortage of opinions. This is probably 2 year-old acrylic enamal, shot by an old guy who was a stickler for originality. It not a great job, but it's adequate for a driver. Any suggestions or warnings?

[Ghoste]

As long as it has carnauba.

[myk]

Single stage: does that mean only one coat of paint and no clear?  Well you've got to wax the car by hand, and be careful you don't burn through that single layer of paint.  I figure that any wax would do, although those in the know will chime in and amend that statement if necessary...

[lloyd3]

myk:  Correct, no clear coat. What Ma Mopar shot on'em originally.  There is a bewildering amount of information on the subject out there, and most are info-mercials, shilling for some BS product. I'm a less-is-more kind of guy, but I'm willing to listen.

[twodko]

X2 what Ghoste said.

[NHCharger]

My 72 is a single stage paint job. Use the same as my other cars. Mother' s Carnuba wax.

[bill440rt]

myk, single stage means it does not require a clear to obtain gloss. It is usually applied in multiple coats (could be 2-4+ depending on paint coverage). It can be cleared, although not required. Some single stage paints can be "cocktailed" with clear for added depth & shine.

lloyd3, I am a fan of 3M's Show Car Paste Wax. It is a carnauba wax with ZERO abrasives. It will not remove light scratches, paint must be nice before applying. You could use a light polish (3M) or hand glaze before applying as well.
I'm also a fan of Griot's Garage products, they offer a Best in Show wax & a Carnauba Wax, both very good products. I occasionally use their orbital polisher with a foam pad to remove swirls, it is very gentle and will not burn paint. Does a great job preparing paint for wax.

[charge69]

My Charger is a single-stage acrylic enamel paint job.  How do you drive your Charger, lloyd3?  My car never sees rain so I cannot address that issue but, I found and use Turtle Wax "Ice" and it is amazingly easy to apply, does not scratch the paint and seems to last months before needing another application! A friend introduced me to it and uses it on his Challenger and Roadrunner and gets a beautiful shine with it!

It is not a wax as you know it. More of a coating (clear) and is really easy to apply.  My grandson, about 2 years ago, (22 yrs. old then) asked me about a wax to apply to his 2 to 3 year old black Honda Accord. I told him to give the Turtle Wax Ice a try. It is a little more expensive than wax but I felt he would be happy with the results. A few days later, he called all excited and said he put some "Ice" on his Accord and it looked amazing! Better than new and absolutely no swirling!

That reminds me, it is about time for another coat of Ice on my Charger!  They also make a spray bottle product that is used for touchup work or just general cleaning at shows etc. and is amazingly simple to use and "what a shine"!

[lloyd3]

Bill: Yes, this car has several coats of acrylic enamel paint (3-5), over a multi-year period, but no clear coat. My restorer normally painted his cars elsewhere, but got crossed-up with his paint-booth guy and then tried to do it at his shop. His work would normally be quite acceptable, but he was dealing with some significant heath issues (along with some equipment challanges) and the end result had some problems with air-quality and contaminants (mostly dust & dirt).  He buffed on it several times (over the many years he had it) and tried to blend in several areas with lesser and greater degrees of success.  It isn't what I'd hoped for, but considering what could have happened (!), I was darn happy to finally get it back in one piece. Mechanically it's great, so I cleaned it up, waxed it and drove it.  This is the first real clean-up from last year (and this Spring) and it's due for a good workover. I hit it with some Turtle wax Zip wash last month that left some fairly bad water spots and then it got rained on, so it's the Full Monty this time.  My brother was bragging on some high-tech Meguier's products he uses, so I went out and bought them, only to read the fine print after the fact. Now I'm having second thoughts about them.  I'm a low-tech guy after all.

[lloyd3]

Charg69: I drive this car with some frequency, but selectively. I don't normally get caught by the weather, but....oh well.  I've used a similar product to the Ice you're describing and it seems to work as you say. I'm just bewildered by all the options available anymore. We used to just wash and wax'em, period. Now it can be a 16-step process if you get suckered into it.

[charge69]

Lloyd3,  use something else other than the "Ice" on it now as Ice is not for removal of water spots etc. , just giving the car a high polish if the paint is alright but a little dull.  My Charger has never had anything else but Ice applied and it is garage kept and never driven in the rain.

You are right about the bewildering amount of car polishes available now and most claim the best protection and shine. I would just get a high quality product from a reputable dealer that claims to remove water spots as well as shine the car and go slowly and carefully.  You might be rewarded with an outstanding shine.

[RJS]

It sounds like your a candidate for using Clay Bar. Doesn't really matter whose Clay Bar they are all the same per see.
Some use a cap of soap and water solution sprayed onto the car and then you rub the paint lightly to remove the contaminants.Some manufactures have you use their spray wax as the lubricant.  Then I would recommend Turtle Wax Ice in liquid form for ease and results.

If you wanted the best of the best that would be Zaino's or possibly Adams.

From the way you sound in this post please go with my first suggestion because it's all "store bought" easy to obtain stuff and you won't be sorry with the outcome.
Ron

[Aero426]

It all depends on what the condition of the paint is to start with.    You need to get contaminants and oxidation off first before you polish.   It doesn't matter a lot whether it is a single stage, or a clear.    If the paint was properly applied, you have adequate film thickness with both.  

If I had to choose one product for every day use, it would be the Mequiars in the old red bottle.   It is a cleaner wax, so as you apply it to single stage, you will see oxidized paint come off as a color, which is good.     This is an easy product to use.  

There are other multi step systems out there, which would have you clay bar the car first to remove oxidation.   That also works.     Then you apply your wax after that.    

[lloyd3]

Thank you Aero426 and RJS! This paint is fairly new and isn't really all that oxidized. It does have some flaws that I'd like to try to address so I got some of the Meguier's Ultimate compound for the areas that didn't blend as well as they should (there are also areas of orange-peel I'd like to try it on). I've used the red bottle cleaner wax from Meguier's and it wasn't quite enough on some of these spots. I even broke down and got their pre-wax polish and then their Carnuba wax. I have a buffer but I'll proceed by hand first and see how that works.

[Silver R/T]

I prefer Meguiar's products, they work great if you know how to use them.

[lloyd3]

Unless someone here can add some insight, I'm mildly concerned about the Ultimate Compound being too abrasive, but I'll proceed slowly and by hand.

[Aero426]

Lloyd, is the problem lack of gloss, or that the car has some orange peel?     You mentioned there was some dirt in the paint and parts had been resprayed.  

Was the car ever wet sanded with some 2000 grit to level the orange peel?   Or was it just buffed after painting?    

It is true that by hand, you cannot generate the effectiveness of the machine polisher used in a body shop and compound working together.  

Your car might benefit from an experienced detailer getting a crack at it.   Then all you have to do is maintain.  Just doing the top surfaces could make a big difference.

[Aero426]

Unless someone here can add some insight, I'm mildly concerned about the Ultimate Compound being too abrasive, but I'll proceed slowly and by hand.

The only places where compound is dangerous is the edges of panels or your fender peaks.    And that is more when using a machine versus by hand.   A machine buffer can blow through an edge very fast.  Some people will lay down a piece of masking tape on the edges for extra protection when using a machine.   By hand, just don't rub hard on the edges.     

[Lord Warlock]

The ultimate compound isn't excessively abrasive, I use it on a power buffer on mine and it really puts a nice shine on just by itself, still have to be careful around sharp edges.  They do have different levels of abrasive for ultimate compound.  2000 grit sandpaper (wet) is more abrasive.  It actually acts similar to a 3000 grit polish. 

[bill440rt]

Aero426 has given some good advice.
Just to expand a bit, yes you will not remove orange peel or heavy surface imperfections just rubbing by hand. You may remove light scratches, swirls, very light scuffs, etc. A color sanding with 1000 or finer sandpaper will remove orange peel (I often sand up to grits as fine as 3000-4000), however since your car is single stage I DO NOT recommend color sanding especially if the paint is metallic. You will remove material that will alter the metallic layout & may turn the paint blotchy in the metallics.
It sounds like a light polish is what you need, which is why IF you are to use a machine I recommended a random orbital polisher vs a right-angle rotary buffer. A buffer WILL remove material and can be aggressive, so if you are a novice to this machine I would recommend something other than your Charger to practice on. The only time I'll use a right angle buffer is when color sanding. An orbital polisher is much less aggressive, will not burn paint, and when used with a foam pad & a mild polish before wax the results can be quite impressive. Then like Aero426 stated it's just maintaining it.
Always start with the LEAST aggressive method first to see if the results you want are achieved. Then go rougher only as needed, and work back to the finer polishes next finishing up with a good quality wax.

[1970Moparmann]

Bill, where do you buy 3m products?  I've never seen them in stores.

[Silver R/T]

Unless someone here can add some insight, I'm mildly concerned about the Ultimate Compound being too abrasive, but I'll proceed slowly and by hand.

Ultimate compound would be used to remove some scratches, swirls and is generally abrasive material. You wanted a wax, wax will not remove paint imperfections. What are you trying to do with the paint?
If you simply want more gloss you can try some Meguiars Mirror Glaze #7 Show Car Glaze, followed by wax application.

[bill440rt]

Bill, where do you buy 3m products?  I've never seen them in stores.

I've seen a small limited selection of 3M stuff at some chain auto parts stores (Advance, Pep Boys, etc).
3M products are readily available at most auto body supply stores.
Advance is now carrying Griot's Garage products, so what used to be mail order only can now be bought in store. I prefer to mail order anyway, I usually have email coupons & get free shipping on most orders, too.
Adam's products are also very good.

Lloyd, it sounds like you just want to bring up the shine a bit? I would try working just one panel, using a hand polish followed by a wax. Perhaps a small section with a mild compound first before polish if the polish does not bring up the shine. Follow this with a good wax.
If the above steps do not work, then I would break out a random orbital polisher. Unless you are taking sandpaper to the car (which I wouldn't with single stage), that is the only time a rotary buffer would really be needed.
Good luck!

[Patronus]

 Start fine and work your way coarser until you remove the imperfection.
Try it first in an inconspicuous spot.
And buy a buffer. I can't imagine working it by hand.
(+1 for 3M products)

[lloyd3]

Good advice from all! Thank you so much. The paint responded well to the hand-application of the "Ultimate" compound. So much so, that I'm now much-more comfortable using my orbital buffer to do the big areas of the rest of the car (Patronus is so right. In 4-hours yesterday I only completed the passenger door and the RR quarter!).  I also sprung for the Maguire's pre-wax polish, and the combination will work nicely. Even w/o wax it looks pretty good.