Posted by CobraManic! @ corral.net on 4/9/00
http://www.corral.net/Forums/Forum13/HTML/000017.html


There's a LOT more to a polish than a shine and how long it lasts. This 
is the point most people seem to miss about car car products. 
As a painter and detailer (and a Zaino Master!) here's what I like about Zainos... 

(1) Zaino is the easiest product to apply and wipe down (assuming you have 
not over-applied it, and have waited long enough for it to dry). I get 16 
applications per bottle and use it on my familys' and friends' cars which 
is why I do so many applications. 

(2) Zaino lasts me *at least* 4 months, normally 6. It's hard to tell when 
it finally fades off becuase the Z6 gloss enhancer and Z7 wash keep up the 
surface integrity and shine. With just Z6 and Z7, you might think you never 
need anything else. 

(3) It shines from the paint surface itself, not from the oily surface as 
all waxes do. This allows paint to show off its original color and allows 
metallics and "mystic" paint to look more effective. 

(4) Zaino has incredible clarity and "refractive" properties which further 
enhance the colors--again, especially on metallics. It literally re-aligns 
light rays coming off the surface producing a cleaner look. It's almost like 
a crystal where the "crystalline" structure itself has a significant effect 
on light. Look it up in your encyclopedia if you must. 

(5) Zaino contains no wax (unlike Meguiars 3-step and all other non-synthetic 
products). Wax has little durability. Carnauba is a hard, yellow, brittle 
wax no matter what they try to tell you. It must be softened with solvents. 
It its FAR from optically pure. It melts at low temps easily obtained on 
darker cars. Why do you think you can't apply it in the sun? Such waxes are 
always mixed with other cheap waxes like paraffin (candle wax). Paraffin melts 
around 135F. The product is no stronger than its weakest link. Zaino can 
withstand temps well over 300F. WELLLL over. 

(6) Zaino contains no oils. Oils are a "fake shine" in my book. They temporarily 
hide scratches. A rain or two and the oils are gone. A while in the sun and 
it's vaporized. Why do you think there are speical car washes made for waxes? 
Because they must be so mild so as to not strip too much of the wax and oils 
because waxes and oils have no durabilty. Too bad the carwashes still don't 
help the situtation much. 

(7) Zaino contains no abrasives. Most wax products contains abrasives even when 
they say it doesn't on the bottle. If you have a single stage paint and you see 
the color of your car on your applicator, you can bet there are abrasives in 
your product. I would rather leave abrasive products to the professional glazing 
industry like 3M or Presta. You can't get consistent abrasives in a departments 
store shelf products. They will invariablly leave scratches. EVER WONDER WEHRE 
THOSE SWIRLS CAME FROM??? You wash your car and go through a couple of rains or 
lots of sun and ask youself, "where did those from? I was so careful when I 
washed..." It's often from the cheap abrasivs (like SAND) in the wax itself and 
since the oils have rinsed off, you can now see them. 

(8) Zaino contains no silicone oil. Silocone oil is NASTY and causes extreme 
grief for painters (fisheyes). It literally impregnates your paint and sometimes 
can't be dealt with except to strip to bare metal when you need paintwork. It can 
also change the color of your paint (darkens it). 

(9) Zaino contains no solvents. Why do you think so many products smell so nasty? 
What do you think you are smelling? Kerosene, naptha, things you can't even 
pronounce. Just take a look at an MSDS of some of the products you may be using. 
These solvents are harsh on your paint and your hands. Zainos smells so good and 
*can* smell so good becauseit contains no solvents. Just smell Z2, Z5, Z6, or Z7. 

(10) Zaino has REAL UV protection. Most products that say they have UV protection
 have no more than that naturally found in oils which is next to nothing. UV 
inhibitors are very expensive. The car-care industry is all about money for most 
companies. They want to make a bottle for 25 cents and sell it to you for 8 bucks. 
UV Shooombee. Paint oxidations caused MOSTLY by the sun. It's funny how some people 
say they use the whatever cleaner/glaze to treat UV on a regular basis. Well, if 
the wax product they use has UV protection or can really last long and seal the 
surface, why are you having to treat it so regularly? This brings me to the next item... 

(11) Zaino prevents oxidation. I don't have any dead paint to remove anymore 
because I don't have oxidized paint anymore. Take it from me as a painter. I don't 
even need the claybar anymore because nothing builds up on the surface, nor does 
the paint surface brake down. 

(12) Zaino requires minimal maintenance. Just the Z7 wash makes my car look like it 
got a 4-hour detail becuase it builds on the Zaino system. Z6 just make it that much 
better and ready for a car show (which I regularly attend). I get complements for 
having the best paint finish on a regular basis. 

(13) Zaino gives me more for my money and costs less per application than most 
other products. 

(14) Zaino can layer because it has no abrasives nor sovents to break down the 
previous layer. Other products may put up a better shine on a second application 
becuse you have doubled your efforts to remove oxidation and cut out larger swirlmarks. 
With enough layers of zaino, you can actually measure the difference with a paint 
thickness guage. It takes a lot of layers, but it does prove that it can build. 

(15) Nothing sticks to Zaino. Water flies right off so easily (like a rain-xed window) 
that you don't need to wipe it dry after washing. Just take it for a ride on the highway. 
You can't even rest a towel on a freshly zainoed hood--especially after Z6. 

(16) If you ever get waterspots, they are purely superficial. Z6 will wipe them 
right off. With other products, waterspots are almost impossible to remove and 
require abrasive action. 

(17) Zaino is nearly a miracle product. I understand that the chemist(s) who 
designed the products with cost being no consideration. With very small overhead, 
they can give you a good price despite the cost of the ingredients. If a big company 
like 3M were to make a product like Zaino, they'd probably have to sell it for 50 
buck a bottle. 

(18) Zaino chemists have designed paints! Therefore, they know more about what is 
good for paints than just about anyone I would imagine. This whole idea about 
"feeder oils" is such nonsense it makes me laugh. Modern paints do not contain oils 
and therefore do not need to be fed with oils. Urethane paints are catylized and 
once they're done (i.e, after like 36 hours), they're done. Oxidation, rust from the 
metal underneath, chemicals, and wear are the only things that break them down or apart. 

(19) Zaino works like a release valve according to Sal Zaino (a show-car painter 
for 30+ years). It allows paint to breath (thus releasing any trapped solvents that 
may be left from painting) but does not allow moisture to be let in. Sal, (as I do), 
applies Zaino right out of the spray booth without any problems. 

(20) Zaino has excellent tech support. Sal Zaino will be there to stand by his product 
line and speak to you one-on-one to make sure you are getting the best out of your finish. 

21) I knew I forgot something. Zaino does not leave "ick"--the white disease--ll over 
the plastic trim and in seams. 

(22) Zaino can withstand many harsh chemicals and solvents. Yes, you can use WD40 to 
remove bugs from a Zaino finish, although I have never had to, because WD40 will not 
strip the Zaino finish according to Sal. Neither will Liquid Dawn, although, due to 
the surfactants in Dawn (what reduces water spotting on your glasses), it may lose 
its beading ability until they are washed off with a regular car wash.

(23) There's another thing I like about Zaino. It doesn't act like fly-paper when it 
comes to dust. Z6 has some great antistatic properties that also keep the dust at bay, 
or at least, don't statically attract dust like an oil does.

Now, next time you buy a wax product, you'll be thinking about a lot more than how well 
does it shine, and how long does it last!!! LOL! 
I don't sell the stuff so don't ask me if you can buy it from me. I'm just sick of the 
lies that other companies try to push. By the way, I know a lot of this from doing my 
own tests, research, review of MSDSs, and speaking with Sal and many other chemists and experts. 
If there's at least one thing I am convinced of, it's that the 2nd best thing to Zaino 
is to put nothing on your finish. Today's urethane paints have excellent UV protection 
built in, and will last longer than the car if you just keep it clean. 

Zaino protects far better than any wax or other car care product that I know of. The 
main reason being that these products don't stay on your finish very long. Their 
primary ingredients are waxes, oils, solvents, and abrasives. Obviously, the latter 
two don't have anything to do with longevity. Oils rinse away easily, especially 
with soap. Now what's left... wax. Wax will melt and dry up and isn't very hard. It's 
only the oil that keeps the wax moist. Once the oil is gone, there is often a sticky 
or blotchy residue left on the finish. How can it protect if it can't stay on the finish? 
No, I'm not saying use Dawn to keep it clean. A neutral pH car wash would be better 
for the long run. I just recommended the alkaline wash to strip oils and dead wax 
away before applying Zaino. It's stronger than car wash and does this job well. I 
always use it after compounding and polishing to remove the oils left behind and to 
recheck the finish. 

Keeping industrial fallout and other pollutants and particles off your finish is key 
to a super long lasting finish. I recommend a good clay job once or twice a year in 
addition to washing. The combination of clay and washing is all you really need but 
Zaino will just keep the oxidation and other problems (spotting, bird crap) to a 
minimum. It also helps keep the finish cleaner much longer. It helps the cleaning 
process itself much easier too. 

Note that there are some real cheap white clays out there that are nothing but window 
caulking. Get the good stuff. Z18 is excellent. There are other good clay bars out 
there. They shouldn't be too hard and make sure you slice off any edges of the clay 
that have accumulated crap. Use a good lubricant too like Z7 w/water. 
Even without clay, you might not have serious problems. My father's 86 Audi has no 
major paint problems and he never waxed it. Ony washed it on a rare occasion. Surely 
it could have looked better than it does not, but it's not rusting or chipping off. 
It's just oxidized a little. 

Yes, Zaino does protect. It provides a maintainable barrier between the paint and the 
elements. Bird crap doesn't even seem to etch through it. It holds up to the severe 
temps and can be applied hot or cold. 

I have used a strong abrasive compound (Presta Ultra Cutting Creme) on a half-Zaino 
finish and you could see a hard line between the halves where the abrasive would stick 
but slide off the Zaino half. It wouldn't break through until a many hard wipes with 
an applicator. Even with a 7" polisher, you have to wait a second or so. It's strong 
and slick stuff and doesn't dry out or rinse off. 
It only wears off after some time. 

Seriously. Think about how long the wet look lasts on most products. Only some synthetic 
products last a while but all that I have done research on have solvents and abrasives, 
plus they use the cheapest polymer technology known to man. The solvents like kerosene 
help get some tar and bugs off, plus kerosene puts up an real slick shine. The abrasives 
help cut through the harder stuff or the stuff that the solvents had softened. So, on a 
really bad finish, they have a great first impression. 

My point is that I use Zaino after I have prepared the finish and removed oxidation with 
professional-level polishing. Once I start the Zaino system, I never have to go back to 
that step. My motto is "you can't have a perfect finish without a perfect start."


CobraManic!
Nick Hamawi
ZainoMaster