Important notes about CQuartz application and care

so during my learning curve on how to use CQuartz i ran into several issues which were resolved.

1. Car paint has to be polished to perfection first, otherwise you will trap it under the coating

2. car clear coat or paint coat has to be "naked". No wax, sealants, glaze, polishing oils can be present on the surface, using Dawn or high alkaline soap is recommended for this step

2.4 after using Dawn/IPA mix to clean oils off the car rinse the car with water to remove any dawn residue becouse it will interfere with bonding of cquartz

2.5 if you going to paint brake calipers and not gona clear coat them there might be problem with Cquartz bonding with that paint, still testing it

3. Application with cross hatch method is recommended (front to back and then side to side)
do not go over the applied area once coating is hazed, you will apply second coat on partially cured coat and will seal first coat under second.
pick 2'x2' or so area that you can cover in about a minute or two and work product in one direction and then switch into perpendicular direction of application,

4. If you did one pass and coating hazed almost immediately that means you not using enough product (this goes for hotter climates where cure times are faster)

4.5 Cover the bottle while you not using it, either cover it with other finger or put cap on it


5. DO NOT WASH the car with soap for 7 Days. failure to do so will damage the coating before it completely cures, here is expample of failure to follow this instruction

CQuartz was applied on hood of the car, left side of hood in picture was applied 7 days prior to this demonstration, its completely cured. right side was applied 7 hours prior.
ipa +dawn 9:1 solution was sprayed on after 7 hours after coating on both parts of hood and washed




here is result of water beeding after rinsing



here is result of washing with Dawn after about 1-2 days of application
sheeting is fine but water spots on hood, coating needs to be reapplied

video comparison


application can be done with supplied suede towels on application (i cut my applicator in half)


or cotton make up pads can be used as well


i will update this post once i get more info or feedback from others

 

Thanks Misha I didnt know you had to wait 7 day until you can wash the vehicle with car wash soap. Nice video demonstration.

 

^^thats one of important notes

 

Thanks for the info

 

I am introducing this product to my clients who don't really want to pay that much for clear film but want to keep the paint scratch free. Some of them responsed to me that this thing might harm the clear coatings.

But I don't think this kind of 'sealant' would do anything bad to your car finish. The only thing I am concerned is the removal of the product.

It claims to last for at least one year, but how do I strip it off before the period ends?

 

Thks for the write up .. The curing period is a surprise..

 

Mechanical friction (polishing) is the only thing that will remove the coating.

 

This is one of the reasons that I've held back from trying this type of product, how do you remove it if something goes wrong, or if the vehicle gets damaged and needs paintwork? I read on one of the reviews that if you mess up when applying, you can remove the mistake by re-applying the product and then buffing it away, so what is it in the product that does this? I'm guessing that it's the solvent content but I could be completely wrong. If it can be removed by solvents does that mean that most tar removers would destroy the coating?

 

Im curious about this claim. If mechanical friction is the only way to remove this product, how does the product last only a year? That (requiring mech. friction) would make it more durable then paint. If this product can last years, why are the manufacturers not making that claim? A proven multi-year coating thats cheaper then a paintjob, would change the entire industry.

 

so does anyone know if the coating can be removed using a solvent?

 

It cannot. Nor can it be removed by IPA or Dawn. Compound is it. I got a stone chip in the leading edge of the hood of my FX in the fall and I compounded the area, filled the chip and re-sealed it after a day.

 

I snapped a few pictures of the beading today because even though the world felt like it was ending since it was raining in Socal, I do enjoy a good bit of beading and CQuartz is still going strong. I still need to coat the doors, rear bumper, and rear quarter panels but I applied Cquartz on everything above the windows and the hood about 4 months ago and it still performs exactly the same:

 

looks good.

 

Nice beading pics.

 

updated

 

What did you add Misha? Was it step 4.5?

 

yes^^

and just added 2.5

 

added step 2.4

 

Thanks for taking the time to post and update the info

 

How long are you guys waiting for this stuff to cure before exposing to outdoor elements?

I tested some out on my front bumper and let it cure for an hour + before taking it for a drive and I'm assuming it happened during this drive was a bird left a nice yellow dropping on the bumper. I didn't notice until a week later I went to wash it and the the coating is stained yellow where the dropping was. Tried using a little fpII by hand to remove it but no luck.... What do you guys think?