Stripped opti-coat from bumper to do some polish testing

[Methodical4u]

Due to the water here being so bad, it's not a simple procedure to get spots out of cars. I have recently gotten my hose water softener back and it really has made a world of difference.

Today I decided I was going to strip down the bumper and see what sort of finish I could produce before re-applying opti-coat. So I got all of the supplies I needed and started on it. Unfortunately I don't have before pics and this color seems hard to really capture the look of this paint... or perhaps i'm just not that good with the camera.

I used my optimum no rinse to spray the bumper down and and had a bucket of water and a sponge to wash it off. It didn't look bad, but the color looked to be a bit dull and the mineral deposits from the town water have really made their mark (pun intended).

I did a 2 step correction... looking over the bumper while doing this, I was pleased to see only 4-5 roch chips that were very small, and no sandblasting... so the coating is doing it's job. I can't give away all of my secrets, but here is after the first polish...



And after... not a huge difference, but the clarity is apparent. I tried to get the pictures as close to the same as I could, but without a tri-pod, it's not easy..



Next the front



Again, note that there isn't a huge difference, but in person it really is nice... the finish is just that LITTLE bit more reflective..



The front was re-coated and now I am giving it a day or so to cure before I take finished pics.

I will DEFINITELY being dong this to the rest of the car ... probably one panel at a time since my back is giving me some issues lately.

Also I will recommend this to anyone get their car done by me to have that little extra gloss.

[mcdbrendan]

Any sun shots/light pics? Still not convinced opti will prevent rock chips, but its good to hear there wasn't any apparent pitting from day to day driving. I'm going to have to give it a try now...

That blue definitely pops, do you apply an LSP before opti (layer), or leave it without?

[Methodical4u]

Any sun shots/light pics? Still not convinced opti will prevent rock chips, but its good to hear there wasn't any apparent pitting from day to day driving. I'm going to have to give it a try now...

That blue definitely pops, do you apply an LSP before opti (layer), or leave it without?

No LSP, you have to do an IPA wipedown before putting on the coating, it won't flash properly unless the paint is squeaky clean. I have about 6k miles on the car now with the few rock chips I described and I haven't seen any behind the tires at all. I was going to buy mudflaps. Glad I didn't now. I do highly recommend you do give it a shot man... I think you'll be quite shocked at the amount of punishment it will take. No standard wax or sealant comes close when it comes to durability. I'll get some sun shots tomorrow. I wanted to leave it in the garage to cure tonight, though it's dry to the touch in about 30 minutes ot less.

[Methodical4u]

Hey Mcdbrendan... sorry it took me a bit of time to get this outside pics posted up. This was right after a second layer of opti-coat was applied. I took a lot of pics because the sun wasn't very bright, but then popped out and wanted to see if I could get some better ones. I know they are repetitive, but a little bit different light to try to really capture the whole look of it.























The car now has over 6k miles with no sandblasting at all. Just the few chips I mentioned... which obviously can't even be seen.