VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - GENERAL Body - Sheet Metal, Paint & Wood WAXING

Never heard of the corn starch thing. That's actually kinda neat. I may try it out sometime.

Back in the day when we used to paint, sand and buff multiple coats of nitro lacquer to get a deep shine, corn starch was used in the final buffing finish before waxing. That was before we had 1500 and 2000 grit wet/dry and the large range of buffing compounds and pads available today. The corn starch provided a really high deep gloss when used with a lamb's wool pad. Have not heard of using corn starch when waxing.

The more I've read about this corn starch thing, it seems to still be popular among vintage car enthusiasts in the UK and Australia. Definately sounds like an old school way to micropolisb before today's chemicals came about.

I used DURHAM CORN STARCH back in 1980 to polish my 35 std coupe parts as the final buff before applying wax.

I also did that again when I refinished 3 front fenders in black nitrocellulose lacquer. I used a band new wool buffer pad just for that operation.

I bought a Meguiars wax company, random orbit multi speed 1--6 speeds buffer along with the correct selection of foam buffer pads ( 3 = 7000, 8000, 9000)to polish the paint. You have to be very careful with wooly pads as they tend to wipe out paint on the edges. The foam sponge pads work great.

I think I also used a product called LIQUID EBONY sold by a Brooklyn NY couple, still got some. Its smells like licorice, wipe it on and buff to a high shine . Last I checked 2 years ago they are still in business and shipping products.

mike lynch

The liquid ebony is used as a wax ?

Here is what I do:

a. Wash the car using the recommended amount of car soap. (Don't use laundry or dishwashing soap. Ask Chipper about this)

b. Dry the car off. ( Use a chamise (sp))

The above is all I've needed ever since I had it painted with base coat-clear coat. No wax seems to be needed for it to continue shining like a new dime. Best 800.00 bucks I've ever spent including the missus's engagement ring. Not show but nice.

Charlie

BTW: If your car has a Fulton, there is no point in waxing it. You can't polish a turd.

Sooooooooooooooo Charlie,is there any exterior visor you like???

I think I understand your comments, Charlie.

"The above is all I've needed ever since I had it painted with base coat-clear coat. No wax seems to be needed for it to continue shining like a new dime"
"You can't polish a turd."

I don't, maybe Charlie could clarify????

Yes

Charlie

Ah heck, stinkin Bob is just trying to twist my words. Dang!

Charlie

Bob, Mike,

You guys come by and see me at Charlotte. They moved me to BDD. Space 70 or so will get you close enough. Just follow you nose from there.

Charlie

Charlie, if you're not in space 70, I'll just look for your unwaxed '41, with the Fulton on it.

I would fly down just to see a Fulton on a car owned by Charlie

Worth the price of admission.

You can say that again

I'll just give quotes. " "

Bryan,
You let the wax dry for how long ? Until it just hazes or overnight, as another stated ? [/quote]

I will wax one panel complete, then move on to the next. When I finish waxing the 2nd panel, I use the corn starch to remove the wax on the first panel. Then I wax the 3rd. When finished with the 3rd, I remove on the 2nd, and so on.

Important to NOT wash your car for at least 24 hours to let that wax cure up a bit. I've found that if I wash the corn starch dust off immediately it will also wash most of the wax off too. The longer you wait, actually, the better.

bobg, just my experience: i applied "NuFinish" to our '30 coupe twice in the last 4 years (maybe 5) and it resolutely stays gleaming after the occasional warm soap and water washings. no wax. jim

"the chevy six clatter means nothing's the matter."

You can get about as deep into paint care as you want to.

I just started the process on my '31, it probably had not been washed in 10 years while it was up at my granddads.

Here is my process (same process I use for daily drivers with a few modifications):

Wash: Optimum No Rinse Wash & Shine (Fantastic Product)

Clay: Mothers Clay bar, using Blackfire rinseless wash for lube
Re-wash: Optimum No Rinse (ONR) Just to make sure the clay didn't leave anything behind and to clean up the rinseless wash.

Polish: I have a Griots Garage Random Orbital Multi-speed buffer. I use this with an orange pad (fine cutting ability) to work any deep swirls or light scratches out of the paint using Blackfire SRC Swirl Remover compound. Then I use Blackfire finishing compound to really beef up the gloss of the car.

Glaze: Meguiars #7, if you don't want to get too in depth with it, I highly recommend this product. The show car glaze fills in any swirls or marring your paint may have for maximum gloss.

Wax: Optional when using a glaze like Megs 7 but I like it because it seals in the glaze and adds a little pop. I use Poorboys World Natty Blue Paste Wax.

The main thing to remember if you want a nice shine is that 90% of the gloss, clarity and overall sheen of the paint comes from prepping the paint for a glaze or a wax. Meaning, spend the time to properly clay the car and polish it. Even if there is little to no swirls, etching or marring a finishing polish makes a world of difference to really bring the color of the car out.

If you have never used a clay bar before I highly suggest you give it a try, you won't believe the crud (oxidation, road grime, embedded dirt, etc.) that attaches to the paint that a wash won't get.

Once you do that full process once, keeping the car clean and washing will become a lot easier. Personally I clay all of my cars once a year, polish twice, and wax as needed. I typically use a Quick Detailer after washes between waxing to help preserve the wax.

I'm a bit of a nut when it comes to this stuff but I think it pays off.

Figured I'd post a little write up with my results. That Meguiars #7 is some incredible stuff. Very restorative.
Trunk Transformation

I have been using F-11 made by Top Coat. I think it's awesome. I started using it on my Harley Davidson, but then just carried it over to the 33 Master. It really works well. (I still haven't gotten the hang of posting pictures. I've tried the "The File Manager" and it keeps saying I'm only allowed 0 bytes to upload)
http://www.youtube.com/edit?o=U&video_id=vbkYKDz9Pf4

Here is some help with posting pictures.



Additional info on posting pictures is included in a post on Emergency Brakes

Good luck, Mike

This is the same wax I've been using for many years. The way I apply it is with a wet shop rag. Load the rag up with the wax (there is no such thing as too much here) and apply in circles to one entire panel. Think about Karate Kid here. After that panel is done, move on to the next adjacent panel. When your done applying to that panel, stop. Take a cloth diaper and either load the diaper with corn starch or sprinkle corn starch all over the 1st panel. It will get real messy, and that's ok. When your done removing the wax on the 1st panel, put down the corn starch. Apply wax to panel #3. When finished with that, remove the wax on panel #2. And so on. This is the fastest way to use this wax. Another method is to wax the entire car and let it sit for an hour or so. The idea is to let the wax dry out and cure up a bit prior to removal.

Now for the most important part...your car will be a starchy mess. DO NOT WASH IT YET!!! Put it back in the garage for a day or two, the longer the better. If you wash it within 24 hours of wax application, you will wash most of the wax right off. It needs to fully cure in order to give a longer life. Using this method, I can get at least 6 months out of a daily driver..