Location: Prepare yourself, for a pride obliterating bich smack. Fairfax, VA
applied the Zaino this weekend
not quite as easy-on / easy-off as everyone esle implies. after a wash in blue dawn, once over with the clay bar, another wash, a quick once over with some scratch-X on the orbital, detailer, Z5, detailer, Z5, interior leather cleaning and conditioning, windows, rejex on the tires, and a quick scrub of the engine bay...well, i felt like i got run over by a damned truck. i can hardly friggin move today.
honestly...the Zaino finish is great...but is it THAT much better than the mother's i have been using? jury's still out on that because i havent gotten a chance to put any Z2 on yet. a few more coats will likely do wonders for the appearance...but its gonna have to wait a few weeks while i recover in traction. so will the two coats of Z5 hold up and protect in the meantime?
Did you do a Dawn wash to remove the oils left by ScratchX before you applied Zaino. If not the oils left by ScratchX could possible interfere with how it wipes off and will definitely affect your durability. I have seen where it left streaks and was hard to remove if oils from polishing are not removed from the finish.
I also mist my applicator with Z6, this allows it to go on much easier and spread much thinner allowing it to dry quicker and wipe off easier. How much Z did you use to do your car? I can get atleast 2 coats out of 1/3 of the little 2oz ZFX bottle. Did you use ZFX? This will also aid in the drying time especially if you are applying it to thick.
I also find ScratchX to be too mild to do much of anything as far as swirl removal. I prefer to use Zaino Fusion (ZPC) or one of the Menzerna polishes for this. If using ZPC it will also eliminate the step where you need to do a dawn wash or 50/50 wipe down before Zainoing.
But regardless of what products you are using a full wash, clay, polishing, interior and engine bay detail is a lot of work so I can see why you would be sore. Once you have it nice it should not take much effort at all to maintain it with Zaino. I can Zaino my vette in 20 minutes after it has been washed. The more coats you apply the better it will look. Post some pics of that shine when you are done.
Yes, I hope you washed the car with Dawn after using the Scratch X product, it is loaded with oils that will interfere with the Zaino Z-5 or any other Zaino product for that matter. And, also Z-2 is a little easier to remover than the Z-5 is, but if you apply either thin enough like you are supposed to they will come off with very little effort.
yes, those were my thoughts after the first layer of Z5 that I applied. I t was nice, but not a lot better than NXT. BUT...... It gets MUCH better later.
Now you've done ALL The prep work. NOW it just gets easier and easier each time, and yes -- the gloss and depth will just continue to grow each time you put another layer on.
after two coats of Z5, move to Z2Pro for much better shine and depth. And once you get a chance - spray z8 over the Z2. Come out the next morning and make sure you've got your eyeballs firmly secured in their sockets with duct tape -- or else they'll just pop right out of your head.
Trust me on this -- you've done all the work, you'll never have to do all that again. The easy part and the fun lay ahead of you. It just keeps getting better. After 1 year of Zaino, I finally just threw out everything else I had - really cleared up a lot of free space in my garage.
not quite as easy-on / easy-off as everyone esle implies.
You may have applied it too thick, which everyone does at first. Moisten the applicator a little, it helps to spread it thin and even. You should be able to do an application with about 1/4 oz.
When you get to the Z-2 Pro and then the Z-8 Grand Finale I think you will be extremely pleased with your shine. Apply the Z-2 in a very thin coat and it comes off easier than anything I have ever used. Just make sure you let it sit for about 1/2 hour or so, depending on humidity, before buffing it off. Finish with a light spritz of Z-8 and it will pop!!
Corvette Store
applied the Zaino this weekend
