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Professional ceramic coating with best shine?

B-real

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I've heard those are real good to have but I'm afraid of the cost. Not sure but heard they could run $4-500 for a portable one
I paid $250 for one of the smaller tanks. Price put me off for quite some time
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Dunthupl

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I paid $250 for one of the smaller tanks. Price put me off for quite some time
I have a two-stage sediment and carbon house filter, I do want to add a DI stage for rinsing. Interested to hear what kind of life you get - media, refillable? Auto Fanatic just posted last week the system he built for around $200. Think there are some good takeaways from the video.
 

Bobbert

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Another vote for Turtle Wax Hybrid Ceramic. Great shine, half hour and you’re done, and lasts a long time. Try it on your glass too…..better than RainX.
 

B-real

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I have a two-stage sediment and carbon house filter, I do want to add a DI stage for rinsing. Interested to hear what kind of life you get - media, refillable? Auto Fanatic just posted last week the system he built for around $200. Think there are some good takeaways from the video.
Yeah. Too early for me to tell life of the current media. It is supposed to do 1,000 gal before I need to remove the old media and refill. I figure that might get me through a few years.
 

gb7FRz26

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I spent an obnoxious $2812 on Feynlabs 10 year (it supposedly gets reapplied every year by the same shop, but I don't know if they're really doing that when I take it in). The owner told me he stopped selling it, but I still have 8 more years to go, I'm taking it in next month. Price includes the ARE cap.
To your question: when I picked it up from him after the first application, he asked "isn't it great, don't you love the shine?" And I said "No offense, but I can't tell the difference from when I dropped it off. It's definitely clean."
I don't have any swirls in the paint, the truck spends its entire life outside in the hot Texas sun, and I really just wanted a sacrificial layer to keep the truck looking new for as long as I can. But it definitely doesn't seem to "shine" any more than it did coming off the Kansas line.
 

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Jimi

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I spent an obnoxious $2812 on Feynlabs 10 year (it supposedly gets reapplied every year by the same shop, but I don't know if they're really doing that when I take it in). The owner told me he stopped selling it, but I still have 8 more years to go, I'm taking it in next month. Price includes the ARE cap.
To your question: when I picked it up from him after the first application, he asked "isn't it great, don't you love the shine?" And I said "No offense, but I can't tell the difference from when I dropped it off. It's definitely clean."
I don't have any swirls in the paint, the truck spends its entire life outside in the hot Texas sun, and I really just wanted a sacrificial layer to keep the truck looking new for as long as I can. But it definitely doesn't seem to "shine" any more than it did coming off the Kansas line.
Thanks for your honesty. I still like polishing my own truck anyway. Thanks again gb7FRz26.
 

aaexpert

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We do ceramic installs and detailing w/ Meguiars and Gtechniq. Gtechniq Lite is about $100 and lasts years with the best hydrophobic results and you can add the new Exov5 on top of the Lite for the best shine and 7+years of coverage.
 
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Jimi

Jimi

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We do ceramic installs and detailing w/ Meguiars and Gtechniq. Gtechniq Lite is about $100 and lasts years with the best hydrophobic results and you can add the new Exov5 on top of the Lite for the best shine and 7+years of coverage.
Hi thanks for responding. Do you have any recent pictures of your work?
 

Roush Auto Detailing

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I'm not familiar with System X, which is not surprising given that any tire shop can contact one of the big 3 blenders and have their name slapped on a bottle of the next miracle product...that aside, you're getting hosed with that price. Even CarPro Reload is $20 cheaper and they have the name reputation to back it. Probably get the similar lifespan which typical for a spray product. You could try layering it or fork up the $1-3k for a correction/coating. And CarPro would be my recommendation, search their website for a certified installer in your area. You'll probably find more installers locally using Gtechniq or something you've never heard of.
As a System X accredited professional installer I can honestly say that System X is a top shelf ceramic coating company. Renew is a 'detail spray/coating topper'. NOT a legit ceramic coating. They SiO2 levels in it is higher than most coatings you can buy from box stores or parts houses. They say you can get up to 12 months and I believe with proper prep, installation and care that you can reach 9 months, easily. I have it on my truck right now since I can't get the time needed to polish and coat it with their MAX coating. Renew is not a professional product, but a consumer product.

System X is tried and true. They had all their professional coatings tested through Boeings tests. Visit their website if you would like to see it for yourself. systemx.com. What attracted me to System X was each coating is only one layer each coating. Many other professional coatings are the same coating but with more layers of it as the warrantied lifespan goes up. System X is also known for having a better customer experience with that one layer and fast turnarounds for the client. You can be driving the car 2 hours and can't get it wet for at least 6 hours after the coating was finished being applied. All other coatings are 24 hours.

Hi thanks for responding. Do you have any recent pictures of your work?
@Jimi - If you feel confident that you can get good polishing results and a high spot free finish on your own with something like Gtechniq ExoV5, by all means do so. Many of these professional detailers have spent many many hours and a few thousand dollars on the professional training with the coating company to know all the quirks that each coating has with flash times, prep necessary to achieve optimal results and life spans of the coating. I can't speak for any other companies other than System X so take this with a grain of salt, please. System X has warranties on 3 of the 4 professional coatings. This warranty covers the installation of another coating if they coating were to fail within warrantied 'lifespan'. If I were to install it and a 6 year coating were to fail in 4.5 years, with proper maintenance, they would pay me my cost to install it.

IMHO it is insane what most detailers are charging for installing ceramic coatings. My most expensive package is $1,600 for the best of the best coating... I'm sorry you all are being quoted that much for coatings.
 

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Jimi

Jimi

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Doing a new 23 KingRanch tonight, will take some pics.
Great, can't wait to see the end result. I really appreciate all the information you shared. Thanks again aaexpert.
 

aaexpert

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Great, can't wait to see the end result. I really appreciate all the information you shared. Thanks again aaexpert.
tried a few angles with an inspection light in a few shots. A full video around the truck including scratch removal is on our facebook page. Fyi this is an 11 hour job getting almost a dozen steps performed from the first prep stages to the finish.
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