Brush and tree scratch Protection - CMX

[roaniecowpony]

Forgive this post in the General section, but I think a lot of people would be interested in this and it will be seen by more members.

I was prepping for the first hunting trip in my JLUR a month ago and was contemplating what to do about paint protection from brush. I gave some thought to a full color camo wrap. Didn't get to it. So, I'm in O'Reilly auto parts and I see a couple DIY easy ceramic sprays. So I read up on them online and see some videos. I decided on Mother's CMX over the Meguires stuff.

Needless to say, I procrastinated until the last day or two to think about paint protection and I recalled I had bought this CMX stuff. It was late evening and I had been finishing up the install of some mod that took me all day. I was tired and I grabbed the CMX and some isopropol alcohol. I wiped down the sides with alcohol quickly and used a clean microfiber towel to apply the CMX quickly. I waited a few minutes and quickly wiped it off. I did both sides within 15-20 minutes and decided I should do the hood as well. I knew it had some imbedded contaminants in the paint and quickly clayed it. No polishing. Then wiped it down with alcohol and applied the CMX same as the sides.

Heres some pix of one layer of protection after some brush abuse. It looks like it really protected the paint.

Sponsored

 

[roaniecowpony]

More pix.
Again, just a quick and dirty single application. I'm just pleased my paint doesn't appear trashed. I'll know later after washing if there is some damage.

 

[entropy]

I've never thought about this. I do use super hard shell turtle wax and it does an excellent job at protecting the paint, I can see the wax shows up if I go through brush. It is a pain to wax your Jeep with turtle wax, but it does an excellent job at protecting from light brushing.

 

[fat_head]

My whole Jeep looks like that and I haven't applied anything. I think it's (mostly) scratches in the clear coat.

 

[entropy]

My whole Jeep looks like that and I haven't applied anything. I think it's (mostly) scratches in the clear coat.

What he is showing are the scratches on the protective ceramic layer, not the paint job. Those lines appear as well when you have a thick layer of wax on your paint job as well, and it is the wax that gets scratched and hopefully not the clear coat.

 

[Nikko2020]

My whole Jeep looks like that and I haven't applied anything. I think it's (mostly) scratches in the clear coat.

I think you are missing the point? He's wiping the scratches off with his finger.

 

[roaniecowpony]

My whole Jeep looks like that and I haven't applied anything. I think it's (mostly) scratches in the clear coat.

What I was trying to show in the pictures was that the clearcoat isn't scratched like other vehicles I hadn't protected. Guess its hard to see. Anyway, I'm very very pleased with the performance of CMX. I couldn't have spent much more than 45 mins on the whole effort.

 

[fat_head]

What he is showing are the scratches on the protective ceramic layer, not the paint job.

I know, and I'm saying it's likely still scratches in his clear coat. Also some trees/brush will smudge themselves on your paint and not scratch anything. I've seen the same thing on my Jeep.

 

[entropy]

I know, and I'm saying it's likely still scratches in his clear coat. Also some trees/brush will smudge themselves on your paint and not scratch anything. I've seen the same thing on my Jeep.

It isn't, it is scratches on the protective ceramic layer. Scratches on the clear coat are not a good thing, while it doesn't ruin the paint and can be "buffed out" it is still removing a layer of protection that comes only from manufacturing, you won't get that back. A good layer of wax or ceramic coating (even better) will protect the clear coat layer, so your original paint job protective layer lasts longer.

The trick to protect your cars paint is to keep the original layers to last as long as possible, including the clear coat. Waxing your car every month or so is the classical way of doing this. Ceramic coating is even better. Once your clear coat is gone, your paint job starts degrading.

A true ceramic coating can be expensive and take a few days to settle in. The OP used one of these DIY "easy" and it is showing how it works.

 

[roaniecowpony]

I think you are missing the point? He's wiping the scratches off with his finger.

They look like scratches, but are just dust.

 

[Bearded_Dragon]

Ceramic won't really protect your paint from actual damage from bushes, trees, parking cones, etc. Only protective films can do that.

Go to a Jeep club ride and you'll see plenty of trail rash like that. Ask the owner what they use to protect the paint and they'll likely tell you they don't use anything.

 

[roaniecowpony]

Ceramic won't really protect your paint from actual damage from bushes, trees, parking cones, etc. Only protective films can do that.

Go to a Jeep club ride and you'll see plenty of trail rash like that. Ask the owner what they use to protect the paint and they'll likely tell you they don't use anything.

Your experience may vary. If ceramics don't work for you, that's too bad.

But I have direct experience with both films and ceramic coatings. A few months ago, my SS Camaro was hit in the parking lot of my work. It was right on the V body line and very deep into the body. There was a lot of paint transfer from the other vehicle. I didn't know if there was penetration thru my paint/clear. I took it to paintless dent removal shop. The guy said: " if it hadn't been ceramic coated, it would have not been possible to do the repair without repainting." The car had been ceramic coated almost 3 years earlier and had sat out every day and night for 2 years of that. Ceramics have been berry, berry goood to me.

The last pic is of the car just before I sold it. It was not detectable in the paint.

 

[roaniecowpony]

Maybe this video of me wiping off the dust streaks shows it better. There doesn't appear to be any scratches in the clear or on the ceramic coat. Sorry if it's bit wobbly. I'm not much of a tuber.

 

[entropy]

Maybe this video of me wiping off the dust streaks shows it better. There doesn't appear to be any scratches in the clear or on the ceramic coat. Sorry if it's bit wobbly. I'm not much of a tuber.

Dont do that. You are scratching your Jeep. Always remove dirt with a hose first!

 

[roaniecowpony]

Dont do that. You are scratching your Jeep. Always remove dirt with a hose first!

Agreed, but if this little bit of wiping worried me, I'd never use it offroad.

Sponsored