Hi Frank,
Thank you for joining my personal forum. I'll do my best to answer your questions.
Apologies for the delay - besides being the global trainer for 3D Products I also practice what I preach and detail cars part-time. In the last week I detailed 3 cars.
1958 Ferrari 250 Testa Rosa
1983 Ferrari 512 BBI
1968 Chevrolet Chevelle - black with water spots and holograms - (write-up this week)
I also removed a boat from its trailer to enable us to sand down the bottom and paint it with anti-fouling paint. (write-up to come for this before my boat class at MTE and in February)
On the topic of "graphene". I've spoken with Tunch Gorin, the owner and head chemist for 3DProducts.com, whom I work for - and he's not convinced about the application benefits of graphene in car care formulas - yet. I can's speak any further because I have not had any in-depth conversations with him on this topic so I don't want get ahead of myself in this type of conversation.
I have worked with the chemist at 303 Products, he actually has attended 2 of my car detailing classes. He is a great guy and I get a good vibe from him. He says he an his team have found a way to use graphene in a formula for automotive application. I've used the 303 product enough to know there is something about it that is very different and unique as compared to other LSP options including, waxes, sealants and ceramic coatings.
My fear is - like has happened in the past - once the Genie is out of the bottle - other companies will jump on the Graphene Bandwagon and launch all types of product that list Graphene as an ingredient and also an ingredient that is providing something substantial to the process.
I don't know this is accurate. I don't know that it isn't accurate. I'm not a chemist. What I do know is historically, when a new ingredient becomes a buzz word in the industry - companies will try to ride the wave and cash in on the new market that is created.
And the thing is - the products touted as containing graphene may in fact perform, that is do the thing they label claims the product will do - but how would anyone know if it is the graphene ingredient providing the benefit or just other time-proven chemistry? For example, a graphene wax. If you do the proper prep work to a car or boat and then apply a graphene wax and the results are water beading, easy washing and these features last for months or longer - how would anyone know it is the graphene component providing the benefits or the performance comes from a quality wax?
There's real chemistry and there's marketing and these two things can be opposite.
As for ceramic coatings - these are the real deal but you also need to do your research. There are probably more "brands" of ceramic coatings on the market than their are actual manufacturers of coatings and this means there's always the potential brand X is actually brand Y it just has a different label.
I get asked for product recommendations a LOT. My normal recommendation is to purchase from an established brand. I know it's easy to be cynical, especially in the car wax world, but a reputable company will have hired qualified chemists and the products you purchase will in fact be what they claim to be.
Does that help?
