Product Review: Bilt Hamber Auto Balm

Product Name: Bilt-Hamber Auto Balm

Price: 14.95GBP from Ben at Rubbish Boy's Carnauba Wax Shop. At this writing, this converts to $21.95USD, not including shipping.

Size: 300 ml

Amount used during application: Not very much.

Dilution ratios: N/A

Container appearance: Clear plastic container with a screw-on, metal lid.

Directions or Application process: JL (JLs Detailing), Ken (911fanatic), and Ben (Rubbish Boy) have all posted how-tos for how to work with this stuff. It's definitely different than most LSPs. I did it using the method Ken posted recently, which worked nicely. Moisten a foam applicator pad with water - I ran mine under the tap, then rung it out. Then, just rest the applicator on the top of the Auto Balm. This is enough to apply to a roughly 2' by 2' section. Once you've spread it, buff it off quickly.

Thin application, and speedy removal, are your allies working with Auto Balm. If you leave it to dry on the car, even a little bit, it becomes *very* difficult to buff off. But if you remove it quickly, it's quite easy.

Ease of use: The process is a little different than many people are used to, but it's really pretty easy. It's not dissimilar to zymol Carbon, which also needs to be put on thin and removed while still wet.

Smell / Scent: Well, how shall I say this. If nice smelling products are your thing, you're not going to like Auto Balm. It smells pretty bad.

Consistency: Soft. About the consistency of room temperature butter.

Cleaning Ability: Not applicable

Lubricity: Not applicable

Suds: Not applicable

PH: Unknown

Appearance: I was working on a tight schedule when I did the black CRV with this stuff, so I didn't have the chance to take pictures of that. Pictures of my own car follow below.

On the CRV, which was black, the customer didn't want to pay for correction, which is fine. The way this stuff fills has to be seen to be believed. Ken's thread (right here) does a great job of showing the filling abilities. It's amazing.

On my car? In my opinion, it looks more warm than the couple sealants I've got (Jetseal, AJT). I don't think it looks as deep as my favorite LSP, RBOE, but the flake looks great, it's super shiny, and man is this stuff slick.

Something else I've noticed. I just got back from a road trip to Atlanta and back. The front of the S2000 was covered in dead bugs and road grime. I did a maintenance wash today, and the dead bugs practically jumped off the car! Easiest wash ever.

Durability: I don't know yet. Ben, JL and Ken say that 5-6 months is about what to expect.

Pros: Affordable. Easy to work with once you figure out how best to work with it. Super slick. I've never seen anything that fills like it - perfect for customers who want a budget detail.

Cons: Not much, really. It smells bad. If you put it on too thick, or leave it on too long, you'll curse at it for hours. No US distributors at this writing, none that I know of, anyway

Overall Comments: For my own car I still think I prefer RBOE. But Auto Balm definitely looks great. Pics below.

Rating (out of five): I give it a five. It looks great. It's a great tool to have in your toolbox for budget details - your customers will be blown away! It's apparently very durable. And for value for money, even counting the shipping from the UK, it's pretty tough to beat.

Pictures!! Lots of pictures of the driver's front fender, because that's what the sun was hitting when I took the pictures.

 

Awesome pics. Flake looks great!

 

Nice write-up and lovely pics :thumb:

Between you, Ken and JL I am convinced I need some of this stuff ASAP

 

Great review Karl!

This has me thinking about what I'm going to do for next winter's prep.

 

Great pics, thanks for the review...i cant wait to try my tub out!

 

Looks great Karl but I think I'll stick to LSP's that are less time-consuming, hehe. I like being able to do an entire vehicle to apply and then just go around again to buff off.

 

Thanks guys! I just wish the pollen would stop ruining the look of my nicely washed car

It's really not that slow. Actually, I suspect that, since you end up doing small sections of the vehicle at a time, and working them to completion, it might be faster. It'll never be faster than something like AJT, but I certainly wouldn't call it slow.

I'm super impressed with this stuff. It's in my top three LSPs - the other two are AJT and RBOE. The value for money this stuff represents is pretty sensational.

 

And I think Ken will be carrying this product so it will be much easier to get a hold of

 

That's what he told me as well.

 

I personally never liked silver color. To me it's even more boring then white. But that is starting to change after seing these pics! Awesome, dude!

 

Great review Karl. I used this stuff again yesterday on my BMW like we talked about and man did it knock my socks off. And Denzil I applied a 2x2 area or maybe a little more with the applicator in my right hand and had a Danase Phat MF in the left hand and as soon as I finished the 2x2 area I immediately wiped off with my left hand and application and removal was faster than doing the whole car and going back and buffing off.

 

Looks like a great product.

Thanks for the review.

Too bad its not available to be shipped to Canada.

 

It's about to be available in Canada. Autowerkes Exclusive, one of our sponsors, is supposed to be stocking it soon.

 

I found two new uses for Auto Balm this afternoon that I thought I'd share.

1. We're all familiar with how well this stuff fills micro-scratches. Well, the gauge cluster on my S2000 has been all scratched up since I got the car, which I bought used. This plastic is very fragile, so I don't want to polish it - it's just a "lens," if you will, for the LCD panel that makes up the gauges. So, I taped off the gauge hood and the trim, and applied Auto Balm to the gauge cluster. The scratches are GONE. It's like magic.

2. S2000s generate a high amount of underhood heat - especially when run hard. I think that as a result, the shock towers on mine were covered with water spots. Not really a place where even the smallest buffing pad will fit, and hand polishing is a problem as well. So, I applied some Auto Balm. The water spots are GONE.

I just told JL that this might be my new favorite LSP. Not only is it great for customer cars where the owner doesn't want to pay for correction, it looks great on perfectly polished paintwork as well. It's very durable. It's easy to apply. It leaves the finish seriously slick. And it's a great value for money.

--Karl <-- huge fan of Auto Balm!

 

Pete from BH is away until the 27th. I'll have him air freight a small order as soon as he's back so you can get some.

 

How does the slickness compair to jetseal??Im looking for a slick LSP for the oncoming allergy seasons were a yellow film will be covering everyones vehicle...

 

Its definitely slick but I've never used Jetseal so I can't give you an honest opinion. If you are asking wether or not pollen will stick to it, I doubt it.

 

iv never used jetseal109 but i always hear how its soo slick pollen doesnt stick to it.So im hoping maybe Bilt hamber Auto Balm would be just as slick because its much more economical then JS109

 

The pollen has set in in full force here in NC! Here are a couple of pics of the BMW wearing Auto Balm and I can tell you that today it has 10 times less pollen on it than any of the other cars at Church today.

 

awesome.so shipped over here it should be 20something?