đź’¦ Detailing First time ceramic coating

FirstWorldProblems

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What's up all! I decided i'm going to ceramic coat the truck. Any tips/tricks or things I should be aware of?

The truck is grey FYI. I think it should be relatively simple, it's a new vehicle with only 2k miles so the paint doesn't have any major flaws.

The plan:

Wash (durr)
Clay bar with meguiars clay using meguiars quick detail as lube
Polish using blackfire SRC Finishing polish with a finishing (soft) pad, and porter cable buffer
Spray it down with Gyeon paint prep
Start the ceramic coating using the Blackfire ceramic coating kit

Questions:
1. the truck is parked outside, so i'm probably going to postpone doing this if there's rain in the forecast on Sunday or Monday. I'll be doing the application in the garage, but after that it'll be staying outside and I don't want it to get rained on while the coating is curing. If absolutely necessary I could make it fit in the garage and park it there for a few days after, but I'd rather not. I have another car to drive so I won't need to use the truck right after coating.
2. I can't tell from youtube videos, but it looks like the actual application of the ceramic coat is super easy, it's really just the prep that takes a long time. Any odd things I should expect as far as coating thickness, application consistency, friction etc? I'm assuming I rub it in with the applicator pad and that's it. I watched one video where the guy said you have to check for "rainbows" that appear if the coating thickness isn't consistent, all he did to fix them was lightly rub the surface with a microfiber though.
3. Anything else i'm not thinking of?
 

FirstWorldProblems

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Or how bout we pay one of the pros to come out and make a deal on both our vehicles and get em done professionally

I'd consider this, but we (especially you) live far AF from everyone on here. They couldn't do both of our vehicles in 1 day so I don't think there's much of a deal to be made, they'd have to drive out twice.

I'm not paying some local schmo to do this, it's too permanent, but if one of the guys on this forum wants to quote me for driving to Crown Point and coating the F150, shoot me a PM! I've seen the work done by guys on here and would definitely trust it, but i think the distance and cost will have me just doing it myself.
 

95SC

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I had mine done 2 years ago .guy lives is SB IN so its not that far from you . He does alot of nice cars in the area
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I'd consider this, but we (especially you) live far AF from everyone on here. They couldn't do both of our vehicles in 1 day so I don't think there's much of a deal to be made, they'd have to drive out twice.

I'm not paying some local schmo to do this, it's too permanent, but if one of the guys on this forum wants to quote me for driving to Crown Point and coating the F150, shoot me a PM! I've seen the work done by guys on here and would definitely trust it, but i think the distance and cost will have me just doing it myself.

You won't be able to do it in one day. Not even if I did it. It's at least a 2 day job if you're removing defects, prepping, coating, and letting it cure.

The average coating needs to be kept in doors for at least 12 hours after application.

I can definitely take care of it for you but you'd have to give me some time with it.
 

FirstWorldProblems

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You backwoods hilrods need to get with the times and move to the city.

Not a chance

You won't be able to do it in one day. Not even if I did it. It's at least a 2 day job if you're removing defects, prepping, coating, and letting it cure.

The average coating needs to be kept in doors for at least 12 hours after application.

I can definitely take care of it for you but you'd have to give me some time with it.
Damn....even on brand new paint? Thank you very much for the advice. I might separate in to different days then, maybe i'll do the front half one day and the back half another. I appreciate the offer and if you were closer i'd probably take you up on it, but having to drive to one another (either you here, or me going there) for multiple days is probably more hassle than either of us want to deal with. Plus I like doing things myself

Do you have any concerns about the process/products I'm using?
 

Gav'sPurpleZ

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Wash
clay
polish
Paint prep / panel wipe
Coating

From what I have seen, The blackfire coating should be applied similarly to CQuartz.
You will want to have good lighting for the coating step as you will want to be sure to catch any high spots.
Apply to a 2x2 area, wait 30-60 seconds, you will see the coating "dry" or disappear for lack of better terms ( "flash" ). IF there is still a high spot or a spot that is visibly "wet" then use the applicator to re distribute the product ( leveling the high spots ).
another 30 seconds should be enough to buff with a soft a MF towel ( lint free ).

the application of the coating will take time because you have to baby sit the area in which you are working. It's not like wax or sealant where you can apply it to the entire vehicle and wait 45 mins to remove
 

Gav'sPurpleZ

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also, be sure to rotate your "removal or buffing" towel when using for the coating.
These towels will need to be thrown away or demoted to being used for wheels or wheel wells.
the silica dioxide in the coating will harden. even after a wash, the towels may scratch paintwork due to the hardening of the fibers
 

FirstWorldProblems

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Wash
clay
polish
Paint prep / panel wipe
Coating

From what I have seen, The blackfire coating should be applied similarly to CQuartz.
You will want to have good lighting for the coating step as you will want to be sure to catch any high spots.
Apply to a 2x2 area, wait 30-60 seconds, you will see the coating "dry" or disappear for lack of better terms ( "flash" ). IF there is still a high spot or a spot that is visibly "wet" then use the applicator to re distribute the product ( leveling the high spots ).
another 30 seconds should be enough to buff with a soft a MF towel ( lint free ).

the application of the coating will take time because you have to baby sit the area in which you are working. It's not like wax or sealant where you can apply it to the entire vehicle and wait 45 mins to remove

Awesome, thank you very much. That's crazy to me that you get "high spots" on something that's applied so thin..i never would have thought of that. So if you're doing a 2x2 section at a time, not a body panel at a time, do you need to do anything special to avoid going over the same area more than once? I'd think along the borders of each section you're going to have overlap.

One of the videos i'd been watching is this one...the guy coats the hood and levels any high spots in no time, that's why I thought I could get the whole thing done in a day easily. I get it though, i need to pay more attention than I had originally thought.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I04pBXhEv2U&t=346s
 

FirstWorldProblems

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also, be sure to rotate your "removal or buffing" towel when using for the coating.
These towels will need to be thrown away or demoted to being used for wheels or wheel wells.
the silica dioxide in the coating will harden. even after a wash, the towels may scratch paintwork due to the hardening of the fibers

I ordered 6 microfiber towels from autogeek specifically for this process, lol. I'll make sure to toss whatever I use after
 

Gav'sPurpleZ

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I used the Optimum gloss coat on [MENTION=60]greasy[/MENTION] 's cobra and it flashed alot faster than the woflgang uber ceramic coating did.

I recently used CQuartz UK for the first time, it flashed relatively quick as well.
Some directions mention to allow 2 mins for the product to flash, the CQUK flashed in under 60 seconds.

As for the high spots, I would assume if too much product is put on the applicator, your starting spot would be the area that may not flash as quickly.

Some spots just dissipate faster than others, the "leveling" step is to ensure the product is not smeared or wiped onto another area and allowed to dry. If the visible high spot dries then compounding may be necessary to remove it.
 

FirstWorldProblems

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So I did this today. Went well, looks great, but it feels like it needs a second coat. Not sure if that’s normal or if I just put it on too thin

Do I need to do anything special before the second coat, or am I good to wipe it down with a microfiber and do that tomorrow? Do I need to put paint prep on it again? I’m Assuming not, but it’s worth asking
 
So I did this today. Went well, looks great, but it feels like it needs a second coat. Not sure if that’s normal or if I just put it on too thin

Do I need to do anything special before the second coat, or am I good to wipe it down with a microfiber and do that tomorrow? Do I need to put paint prep on it again? I’m Assuming not, but it’s worth asking

It’s like the clear absorbed most of the ceramic coating, it doesn’t feel as smooth to the touch as I expected

Some ceramic coatings are not very slick. Many coating companies have innovated their products to produce extreme slickness in order to reduce hard water spot etching, while others have not. I must admit I am not experienced with the Blackfire kit that you used. If the truck stayed indoors after application and you haven't driven it at all then I would say it's good to do another coat right over the surface.

If you feel it's gotten dirty or it has sat outside, You've compromised the surface and won't be able to prep wipe it or wash it again for at least 5 days. I'm not sure how well the second coat will take after that and I don't think it would be worth it at that point.

If you feel it isn't slick enough I would recommend applying GTECHNIQ Liquid Crystal over Black Fire. It's a crazy slick sealant.
 

FirstWorldProblems

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Some ceramic coatings are not very slick. Many coating companies have innovated their products to produce extreme slickness in order to reduce hard water spot etching, while others have not. I must admit I am not experienced with the Blackfire kit that you used. If the truck stayed indoors after application and you haven't driven it at all then I would say it's good to do another coat right over the surface.

If you feel it's gotten dirty or it has sat outside, You've compromised the surface and won't be able to prep wipe it or wash it again for at least 5 days. I'm not sure how well the second coat will take after that and I don't think it would be worth it at that point.

If you feel it isn't slick enough I would recommend applying GTECHNIQ Liquid Crystal over Black Fire. It's a crazy slick sealant.


You're my hero. It's been in the garage with the door closed so there's little/no dust. I'll do a quick dry wipe down (using almost no pressure) with a fresh microfiber then do another coat tonight.

Ordering the GTECHNIQ stuff off amazon right now :)

Thank you!
 
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