I have been a loyal Zaino user since I bought the Z. When it came time to order more I decided to try some of the products from my350z.com sponsor Detailed Image. After quite a few dumb questions (Greg was incredibly patient) I placed my order.

Menzerna Final Polish II
Menzerna FMJ
P21S carnuba wax

Since I do everything by hand, application and removal was a concern. I found the Final Polish needed the most elbow grease, which makes sense due to the nature of polish. The FMJ and the P21S both were surprisingly easy to apply and remove.

By the way Greg if you read this, the buffing towel supplied with the FMJ is amazing. Is it sold separately?

After two coats of wax in the garage:









Out in the open:







Including wash the whole process took me about 4.5 hours, about the same time my initial Zaino treatment took.

 

Thank you for all the great feedback! The paint looks outstanding. Silver can be tough to make look really glossy but you did a great job. The paint looks really clean and crisp too! The background for the photos makes the car look even better, thanks for sharing! That towel is not offered on an individual basis, but we do have some other outstanding microfiber towels here. Let me know if I can help you any further and congrats again!

Greg @ Detailed Image

 

To the OP. What are your impressions of Zaino vs your new products?

 

I think Zaino puts out great products. Once you understand exactly what the products do (it took me a bit of research to determine what to buy inititally) then the process is a no brainer. Hand application and removal is a breeze, the mixing of the ZFX and the Z-2 or Z-5 is a bit of a pain to me, but not that big of a deal. Plus all of the Zaino products I've used smell great, especially the tire treatment, and tough to argue with the results.

As I stated, the Menzerna products were just as easy, if not a bit easier to apply and remove (I would say the elbow grease needed for the Final Polish II is about the same as the Z-2 or Z-5). I really like the FMJ sealer, to me that is really what gives the polish pop. Adding the two coats of P21S wax gave the shine a lot of depth, and that is what I was looking for with my chrome silver car that I wasn't seeing with the Zaino. Then again, it could simply be the fact that I spent a half day working my butt off and I am seeing what I want to see.

 

Are you implying that zaino is a polish?

 

Not "implying" anything, just going by the name of the two products I use:

Z-2 PRO Show Car Polish for Clear Coated Car Finishes

Z-5 PRO Show Car Polish for Swirl Marks and Fine Scratches

 

Correct, but there sealants and not really polishs. The z-5 has very very minor filling.

 

Car looks great, but I reccomend using a random orbital or a rotary buffer for use with a polish the results are even more rewarding.

 

I used Zaino on my black 240sx in the past. Yes, their products do give great results, but I have often said and continue to personally believe that you can get equally impressive results with other products. P21S goes on like butter and buffs out with minimal effort. Congrats on a good selection of products and results. The second coat of FMJ really does add a lot to the end results.

 

I think a lot of products will give you the good looks that Zaino achieves. But where Zaino excels is in lasting for such a long time.

 

I love the menzerna products but fmj does not last long at all.It is the easiest product i have ever used easy to apply and easier to come off but the durability sucks.Also fmj is not a true menzerna product.

 

Is it manufactured by another company under the Menzerna brand to their specifications or is it simply another company's product Menzerna is licensed to brand?

 

The way I've read it described from Menzerna USA is that as long as the product has a Menzerna label on it, then it's a Menzerna product.

Unfortunately, that doesn't quite answer the bottom-line question...

:shrug:


Anyways, great work on the Z. And polished all by hand?! How's your shoulders/arms?

 

By hand! I tried the 106 polish by hand and gave up.

 

So can the Menzerna Polish II be applied by hand and do a decient job if you put the effort in?

I have very minimal swirls on my car. Would the Polish II applied by hand cover with Menzerna glaze and sealant be enough to make them less noticable, or even get rid of them? or would I just be wasting my time and money with the polish if I donthave a buffer, and just stick to the Clay, Glaze, seal, wax routine?

I guess the best person to ask would be the OP. Did you find the polish by hand did its job?

Thanks

 

Well per this link: http://www.zainostore.com/Merchant2/...FX&Screen=PROD

ZAINO is not a sealant. It is a polish. Orbitals are nice, but use a lot of your wax/polish to work effectively. Zaino does recommend doing it by hand himself over using one of these.

I have used ZAINO for 10 years. Love it. I am currently and also use Poor Boys products, P21s, and a few other things and they all work good with the buffer. But for a long lasting shine, for a year Zaino still wins. I also detail cars on the side. Autopia.org is a great place to learn more about products.

 

Probably the best person to ask would be Greg @ Detailed Image. In my PM conversations with him, he never tried to sell me anything, he simply answered my questions. That said, I have never noticed any swirls in my car, but my car is chrome silver. Your car (I checked your profile) is magnetic black which obviously is going to exhibit paint deficiencies much more than mine. Short answer to your question is yes, hand polishing did what I anticipated for my color of car.

 

Polishing by hand is tough to gauge. In theory you could do a very good job polishing, however in reality the amount of effort that would be need during the application process is pretty unrealistic. It's really hard to quantify how much each type of job can do, but I'll try and associate some numbers with different application methods and assuming you do at least 2+ steps. Here are some ball park figures on how much of the imperfections you can remove, hand application 25% - 40%, PC 7424 %50 - 70%, Flex XC 3401 VRG 90%-95%, Rotary Buffers 100%.

Using just the Final Polish II with good arm pressure should definitely remove some of the imperfections and a good amount of oxidation, etc. The glaze will further hide imperfections. The sealant will help lock it in and add more shine/protection. The wax adds even more depth and gloss with some additional protection.

Let me know if I can provide more information.

Greg @ Detailed Image

 

Ok thanks, The silver car looks great btw. I just picked up some Menzerna glaze from you Greg, so I'll give that a shot and see if its enough to hid the minor swirls, if not I'm going to grab a PC package, and some of that new Menzerna ceramic polish.

Thanks for the help guys,

-Nick

 

Nick,

Sounds good I think you'll really enjoy the PC 7424 and those polishes. It will really help improve the shine and the glaze will hide any remaining imperfections and add gloss.

Greg @ Detailed Image