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Originally Posted by Table 5
Do you do it yourself, or have it done somewhere? Considering it's permanent, I'm a little hesitant to do something like myself as I know it will pretty much lock in everything that's below it.
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It all comes down to how much experience you have detailing cars. If you have worked with polishes and sealants in the past and can do a car without leaving streaks or unfinished areas you can probably do Opti-Coat 2.0 which is the consumer version. IMO the hardest part is the time put in to properly prep the car as you need to ensure the finish is flawless prior to application. The paint has to be completely stripped down and decontaminated to the clear coat so you have to in the proper sequence:
-properly wash (two or 3 bucket if you wish)
-Iron X (removes all rail dust and contaminants that aren't visible to the naked eye)
-clay bar
-polish (remove swirls or other paint imperfections)
-follow with full IPA (isopropyl alcohol to remove any polish residue or other left over waxes)
Once this is all complete you are ready to apply the Opti-Coat. You apply it very thinly with the applicator and after 3-5 minutes with a microfiber towel wipe very gently (you don't want to wipe off the coat) over any high spots (you need to do this in a well lit garage or bay) as if you let the high spots dry they will become permanent and you will have to power polish it out. I can do Opti-Coat 2.0 no problem and could probably even apply the professional version but it's not for everyone and after doing one car I got my wife's new car done professionally as it was too much work for a car that isn't mine lol.
There is a guy in town that works out of Davenport Motorsports that does the Opti-Guard application which is the professional version. He's done my wife's car as well as a few of my brothers and does a lot of the Corvettes and other muscle cars for Davenport. Opti-Guard is more concentrated and dries much faster which is why it's professional use only. If you aren't very experienced or don't feel comfortable attempting Opti-Coat 2.0 application I would go through him as he will do all the proper prep and application but he will need your car for a weekend. PM me if you want his contact information.
I have found by the end of winter the Opti-Coat will lose some of it's hydrophobic properties but that's not because it's wearing off (some people freak out and think this) but because it's been covered by a lot of the road debris from salting and sanding. All it takes is a two bucket wash (I do a full Iron X in the spring to remove rail dust from snow plows) and the car will look like the day it was Opti-Coated and the hydrophobic properties restored. Over a year after having my car done after a good wash and dry it looks like it just fully detailed. It really is great for the person that hates waxing but wants to keep their car looking good or the person that's lazy with washing their car as it makes washing even dirty cars with a pressure wand wash much easier. When it comes to washing remember that touchless car washes don't do a very good job at removing dirt especially near the bottom of the doors and never, ever, ever use the tire brush in wash bays as it will swirl your paint. Nothing makes me more sad to see a person in the next bay using that brush on their new BMW as the guy before probably just used that on his filthy truck and the dirt particles stay in the bristles and scratch the heck out of your clear coat. Just by simply want washing only and two x 2 bucket washes a year my car has zero scratches or swirls as the less you touch your paint the better.