3D one 3D ceramic Plan!

[Boyerstyle]

At Mike's recommendation I am planning to go after my daily driver this weekend with some 3D one and then top it with 3D ceramic (never used either before, i previously used Menzerna polishes and the DP paint sealant). I had to park my car outside for a bit and it's been a month since she's had a bath. During that time a friends sprinklers left hard water spots all over her that I could not remove with any hand methods found on other forums. Needless to say she's embarrassingly neglected and needing some love!

I am curious how many of you wash between the correction and the coating? On my personal vehicles in the past I felt the need to wash to remove certain polishes etc before I felt comfortable topping with a sealant or similar.

1.) Fully wash/strip car with a foam lance and use some dawn to help cut some of the nasty off
2.) Blow dry with the master blaster
3.) Clay all surfaces with Griots clay/speed shine
4.) 3D One all surfaces (windows too?) (will do test area to determine which pad is needed on the CBeast with the bigger backing plate)
5.) I usually wash and blow dry again, what does everyone else do???
6.) 2 coats of 3D ceramic coating on ALL SURFACES?, haven't used a ceramic coating before, so a little anxious
7.) Dress tires and coat wheels in McKee wheel coating

I would love any feedback/tips/advice!

 

[The Guz]

No need to wash with Dawn. A regular car soap will work just fine. If anything you can add a little APC to the soap to increase the cleaning power. No need to get caught up in the stripping anything off. The polishing process will do that for you.

I would consider an iron remover in your prep process as well.

3D one can be used on glass as well. Also no need to wash in between the coating application. For started you risk the chance of inducing marring and also water which you don't want the coating to come into contact with. Get yourself a panel wipe. There are plenty on the market. 3D offers one.

The 3D coating goes on fairly easy. Follow the instructions and you will be fine. Enjoy the coating. It is one of my least favorite coatings but it all comes down to personal preference. Expect it to sheet more than bead.

 

[Mike Phillips]

At Mike's recommendation I am planning to go after my daily driver this weekend with some 3D one and then top it with 3D ceramic (never used either before, i previously used Menzerna polishes and the DP paint sealant). I had to park my car outside for a bit and it's been a month since she's had a bath. During that time a friends sprinklers left hard water spots all over her that I could not remove with any hand methods found on other forums. Needless to say she's embarrassingly neglected and needing some love!

She's lucky to have you as a neighbor
!

I am curious how many of you wash between the correction and the coating? On my personal vehicles in the past I felt the need to wash to remove certain polishes etc before I felt comfortable topping with a sealant or similar.

If it were me, I would use the 3D WIPE and wipe down each panel after the last polishing step and NOT wash the car, but that's just me.

1.) Fully wash/strip car with a foam lance and use some dawn to help cut some of the nasty off
2.) Blow dry with the master blaster
3.) Clay all surfaces with Griots clay/speed shine
4.) 3D One all surfaces (windows too?) (will do test area to determine which pad is needed on the CBeast with the bigger backing plate)
5.) I usually wash and blow dry again, what does everyone else do???
6.) 2 coats of 3D ceramic coating on ALL SURFACES?, haven't used a ceramic coating before, so a little anxious
7.) Dress tires and coat wheels in McKee wheel coating

I would love any feedback/tips/advice!

Yes, machine polish all the glass with the 3D One.

I'd skip step 5 and use a panel wipe - but you could do a detergent wash - make sure all your wash media are clean and uncontaminated.

For max performance, do apply 2 coats of the 3D Ceramic Coating. If I remember correctly, you can do them back to back. After wiping down the car from the first application, start where you originally started and then follow your path of travel when apply the second application.

3D Ceramic Coating is designed to bond instantly, you only need to wait 30 to 45 seconds after application to wipe this treated area to LEVEL the coating and remove any excess.

This is one of my favorite coatings. My first write-up for a true coating dates back to 2011 and since then I've used a LOT of coatings.

 

[Mike Phillips]

It is one of my least favorite coatings but it all comes down to personal preference. Expect it to sheet more than bead.

I have not noticed a lack of beading but I'll be sure to pay more attention in the future.

 

[Boyerstyle]

Awesome, appreciate the feedback so far! I’m going after it this weekend and can’t get the 3D wipe in time, but I have a griots close by and will stop by and grab some paint prep or whatever their latest panel cleaner is.

How about a favorite pad cleaning method?

 

[Mike Phillips]

How about a favorite pad cleaning method?

I wash in the washing machine at the end of the day.

 

[Boyerstyle]

Sounds so easy! Wish I could but I’d have all my belongings set out for me on the porch if I tried to do that.

 

[Boyerstyle]

Hmmmm griots told me to use speed shine as a panel wipe before ceramic coating. Seems like it has a lot of lubricants and stuff it leaves behind, was that a good recommendation on their part?

 

[Boyerstyle]

Should I just mix IPA and water?

 

[The Guz]

I'd invest in the brands panel wipe rather the IPA. Mike has an article about IPA and its effects on paint.

 

[opie]

I agree with the guz and mikes recommendations. I personally have a gallon of megs m122 surface prep. And i like it, no issues or streaking.

Make sure you post some b4 and after pics.

I wash in the washing machine at the end of the day.

You machine wash your foam pads?? Lol

 

[Boyerstyle]

Got her mostly polished. I have some micro scratches left that I thought might have been pad inflicted but I’m thinking not as I just went back over with a yellow rupes instead of the orange cutting and they still there. Trying to decide if I can somehow live with it and put the ceramic on..
that’s not my style but what I have here is:
3D one which I’ve been using
Orange cut pad
Yellow fine pad
White ultra fine pad

also sounding like I’m going to go for it with the griots speed shine as my panel wipe before ceramic coating. order a specific one sounds great for another time.

 

[opie]

Imo you might as well use motor oil to wipe down the paint lol. I qould never use something with lubricants that leave propertys behind on the surface. That defeats the entire purpose of prepping the surface for a coating. The coating will not have proper adhesion

If you in a pinch...go to your local big box store or auto parts store and snag a cheap bottle of wax and grease remover. Would do better than speed shine

 

[Mike Phillips]

Sorry, been out of town and a tick busy…

Go to Lowe’s and get a quart on Mineral Spirits - wipe softly.

 

[Mike Phillips]

Got her mostly polished. I have some micro scratches left that I thought might have been pad inflicted but I’m thinking not as I just went back over with a yellow rupes instead of the orange cutting and they still there.

Try a test spot where scratches are - use orange pad - press harder - move polisher slower.

Tell us what you see.

 

[Boyerstyle]

I finally caved and called it haha. Not my style but I needed to drive her. I don't believe 3D one is aggressive enough with a cut pad for my alpine white bmw. We used to have to use menzerna with an orange pad and a dewalt rotary to have a big impact on this clear coat.

I did 2 passes with orange pad and even tried a pass with a yellow pad. I had to just let it go for now which i deeply regret, it's all i can think about. I cleaned the panels with the mineral spirits and coated with the 3D, which i felt hazed quite a bit. I went through a ton of rags buffing it clean 30-45 seconds after applying it. I might have been using too much, buuuuuut I could not find any good info anywhere on the net about just how much of the 3D ceramic to apply aside from keep it "wet". Maybe i was over applying? How far should a bottle go?

Long story short I am sure it's mostly or all user error But I had a challenging time with getting as much as I was hoping for from the 3D one and sadly, really not in love with the 3D ceramic. Again probably user error but it has some haze in areas that are driving me nuts.

If i was going for a quick fix for a family member or friend whose car I'd never see again 3d one and 3d ceramic woulda been money. But now I am just dying for the day I no longer have this 3d coating on and can polish with a more aggressive polish and either pay someone to coat it or use something different. I've got imperfect paint layered under a hard semi-hazed coating

 

[kdo0444]

I am in the crowd that likes 3D One and have had good luck with its versatility. I find that using a Rupes yellow wool pad and 3D One helps bump up the cut to work on more difficult defects. I often work on police cars with fairly hard white paint. (Chevy, Dodge, and Ford) These cars clean up nice with the yellow wool, and One. I am then able to switch to a light polish foam pad to clean up the vinyl graphics, also using One as my polish.

 

[Boyerstyle]

Ah that’s great advice! I just needed to give myself more time and have more options available with pads etc. live and learn

 

[The Guz]

I finally caved and called it haha. Not my style but I needed to drive her. I don't believe 3D one is aggressive enough with a cut pad for my alpine white bmw. We used to have to use menzerna with an orange pad and a dewalt rotary to have a big impact on this clear coat.

I did 2 passes with orange pad and even tried a pass with a yellow pad. I had to just let it go for now which i deeply regret, it's all i can think about. I cleaned the panels with the mineral spirits and coated with the 3D, which i felt hazed quite a bit. I went through a ton of rags buffing it clean 30-45 seconds after applying it. I might have been using too much, buuuuuut I could not find any good info anywhere on the net about just how much of the 3D ceramic to apply aside from keep it "wet". Maybe i was over applying? How far should a bottle go?

Long story short I am sure it's mostly or all user error But I had a challenging time with getting as much as I was hoping for from the 3D one and sadly, really not in love with the 3D ceramic. Again probably user error but it has some haze in areas that are driving me nuts.

If i was going for a quick fix for a family member or friend whose car I'd never see again 3d one and 3d ceramic woulda been money. But now I am just dying for the day I no longer have this 3d coating on and can polish with a more aggressive polish and either pay someone to coat it or use something different. I've got imperfect paint layered under a hard semi-hazed coating

Should have tried using 3D One with a microfiber pad rather than foam.

That haze is high spots from not leveling the coating and letting it sit too long. A coatings flash times is dependent on the humidity and temperature. You would need to polish and re-coat. I never used mineral spirits as a panel prep and that could have also contributed to the high spots.

A 30ml bottle can get 2 layers on an average size sedan. Newcomers to coatings generally go heavy with the coating application. Keep practicing until you get familiar with a coating and how it flashes. I found 3D ceramic to be an easy coating to work with.

 

[Mike Phillips]

I finally caved and called it haha. Not my style but I needed to drive her. I don't believe 3D one is aggressive enough with a cut pad for my alpine white bmw. We used to have to use menzerna with an orange pad and a dewalt rotary to have a big impact on this clear coat.

Could be. 3D One is not the most aggressive compound, it's not designed to be either. It's a compound/polish and for its category it works great.

If you're new to paint correction, and I don't want to assume, it's possible the clear on your BMW is really hard and if this is the case, then it could be that you do in in fact need a more aggressive compound, pad and tool to get the paint to where you want it.

I did 2 passes with orange pad and even tried a pass with a yellow pad. I had to just let it go for now which i deeply regret, it's all i can think about.

For daily driver's - I wouldn't obsess over remvoing each and every scratch. Remember not only is the clear layer of paint thin, but you want this layer of paint to hold up as long as you own the car.

I cleaned the panels with the mineral spirits and coated with the 3D, which i felt hazed quite a bit.

How did the paint look AFTER wiping with Mineral Spirits?

I went through a ton of rags buffing it clean 30-45 seconds after applying it. I might have been using too much, buuuuuut I could not find any good info anywhere on the net about just how much of the 3D ceramic to apply aside from keep it "wet". Maybe i was over applying? How far should a bottle go?

Like any coating, you apply a whisper thin amount. Normally all you need is 5-7 drops across the face of thee micro-suede patch and then tackle an area about 2' x 2". Most people use a crosshatch pattern, overlapping their passes a little and go over this section 3-4 times. Wait 30 to 45 seconds and the give this panel a light wipe with a quality microfiber towel and this section is done.

The way you describe your experience is nothing like I've ever experienced with ANY brand of ceramic coating except a really crappy product I used from another company and after one attempt I stopped using the product. I also stopped recommending it. It was like trying to wipe off glue.


Question: Did you do this outside?

Long story short I am sure it's mostly or all user error But I had a challenging time with getting as much as I was hoping for from the 3D one and sadly, really not in love with the 3D ceramic. Again probably user error but it has some haze in areas that are driving me nuts.

If i was going for a quick fix for a family member or friend whose car I'd never see again 3d one and 3d ceramic woulda been money. But now I am just dying for the day I no longer have this 3d coating on and can polish with a more aggressive polish and either pay someone to coat it or use something different. I've got imperfect paint layered under a hard semi-hazed coating

That's a bummer. White paint is a tick harder to work on with any products simple because things like compound, polish, AIO residues, and also panel wipes and coatings are harder to see against the white paint.

Besides the rotary, what other tools do you own?