It is my understanding that after a paint job you are suppose to wait at least 30 days to do anything with the paint as in polishing and I believe even washing.

So my question is do you “really” have to wait 30 days and if so what is the reason? What would happen if you did polish before the 30 days?

 

30 days.

If you don't, your pee-pee will fall off and thus, you'll have to surrender ownership of your L.

 

RP=


01 XLT Sport (Sonic Boom)

From what I've read in the past at Detail City and Autopia, there's no good reason to wait to wash/wax/polish/seal modern clearcoat finishes.

Out of curiosity, are you worried about your "L"? It was produced by the factory several months ago, right?

John

 

keyhole

 

Actually it is in the body shop and I get it back tomorrow. It went in on Tuesday to have a small ding on the fender repaired and painted as well as repairing minor scratches on the hood and a run down the middle of the tailgate. It’s all being paid for by warranty…

Luckily I just purchased a beater car, a 1986 Dodge 600SE 4-banger 2.2. Not a bad car runs great, brakes just all redone, rotors etc. It has 43,000 miles on it or so and was owned by an older gentleman and I got it for $550…

I bought it for running around and driving in the snow and salt as well as for my daughter who turns 16 this September.

Just starting to feel the Zaino withdrawals pretty bad at the moment. Its one thing to know your truck is protected with a few coats of good polish and another to know it is naked to the environment…

 

You need some spring-like weather bad. This winter seems like it's never going to end. I guess it's that way in Kentucky, too, though, as we're still patiently waiting for RockPick's NXT review...

I'm glad to hear you found a decent beater (at a very good price) to save some wear and tear on your Lightning. You'll appreciate the L that much more when you do drive it. (Will the Dodge ever get the Zaino treatment?)

John

 

No, maybe that cheap turtle wax from Wal-Mart…

 

I stand by my 30-day number.

I have spoken with guys on both sides of the coin that we're talking about... pro detailers and pro autobody guys. Both of these two individuals recommended 30 days. The reason, because that's what the manufacturers of the products recommend and obviously, they're the ones that have dumped the bucks into R&D.

It's your Boomer. Zaino as you please... You wouldn't be able to touch mine for 30 days + though...

WOOF!

RP

 

I agree with you RockPick…




I left some room there so if you would like to copy that, print it and frame it…


Anyway I agree with you about waiting for 30 days. I was just curious as to the “why”? Does it take the paint that long to properly cure even though it goes into a bake oven? Just looking for some free education.

In any regards I have no plans on touching it with anything until the time they tell me to wait is up. I was able to buy me a beater today, a 1986 Dodge 600SE 4-banger ($550) so I won’t have to worry about driving in the snow and salt, but more important I don’t have to worry about the nasty azz seagulls at work crapping on unprotected paint…

 

Oh, I get my truck back tomorrow from the body shop and the thing that really sucks is my Zaino shipment is due to be here tomorrow as well…

Guess I can open a few caps every few days and take a few deep breaths of the Zaino…

 

Burt, if the withdrawal is really that bad you can fly down to FL and Zaino my L to your hearts content. Heck, I'll even let ya change my plugs and clean the intercooler if you ask real nice.
~Craig

 

Baking paint does nothing except dry paint faster paint shops (and body shops) often use that as an "Exiting Feature" but it really does nothing but let the paint shop paint more cars in a smaller time period. Also, if anything, it makes the paint more brittle, thus shortening the life span by a little bit.

 

I have always been told by the body shop workers to wait 4-6 weeks before you do anything that would seal the paint, Wash it, fine. They stated the reason was to let all the solvents evaporate from the paint. They stated that if the surface gets too hard too quick you will get pitting. did have this in one spot on 04. It was little pin holes where the solvents in trying to get out of the paint actually blew out the top layer of the clear coat.
This is why they said don't do anything to seal the paint.

 

Well like I said RockPick and others were right. I have to wait at least 30 days before any type of paint sealent (Zaino) but I can wash as much as I like…

That’s ok, it will be in my garage for the next month since this is the time of year we usually see more snow and they love to use up the salt they have left, TON’S of it on the road as soon as they have an opportunity to use it.

I’ll be washing it tomorrow inside and out and treating the plastic trim pieces and the soft tonneau cover. The idiots use some type of glaze compound or some crap that leaves crap on plastic. Looks like when some bone head does not know how to wax properly and gets it in the plastic.

You know I pointed this out to them and they told me it was just a glaze and will come right out with soap and water. I told them I hope so or they will be replacing the plastic piece on top of the tailgate and the tailgate handle. So I’ll see if it comes out or not, I am not going to be playing with it with other products to “try” and make it look new. It was new when it went in and it had better look new after I am done with it tomorrow. I know that may be **** of me, but I don’t care it’s my vehicle and if people can’t do their job correctly then too bad they have to pay for it…

They did an excellent job with the paint and buffing the hood it’s too bad they don’t pay attention to ALL the details that make for a great job. They have a nice little paper floor mat that says “We Care” so as to not get the other mat dirty, but then there is a BIG *** hand print with this glaze crap on the freaking inside door handle (hope that comes clean or they will be buying a new one of those as well). Don’t these morons wash their hands before they get in?

Any way I apologize for seeming like an *** but I had to vent and these things tend to **** me off when someone can’t pay attention to details and treat other people’s things like their own, don’t matter if it is $300 or $30,000…

 

It's a good idea to wait at least 30 days to wax a new paint job. This will allow the paint to harden completely. In fact, since it'll be in the garage I'd give it more than 30 days. My cousin is an auto painter and this is what he told me.