Wheel Wax

R

RogueM3

New member
I have in the past just sprayed AW on my wheels, not really considering the heat generated by the brakes and its effect on the AW applied to the wheels. My reason for posting this thread is that I plan to do my "all-out-before-winter" detailing in the coming weeks and am looking for a product to apply directly to my brake calipers that might allow them to repel the brake-dust. (I have red Brembo calipers and like it when they stay red.. :chuckle: )



Is Wheel Wax going to be able to even come close to withstanding the 400+ degree temperatures generated by the brakes if applied directly to the caliper surface?



Further, I am wondering if its actually a good investment to buy Wheel Wax (or a similar wheel sealant/wax) just for the purpose of applying to my wheels? IE. Will a wax or sealant designed especially for my wheels be more effective that AW applied to the wheels?



Finally, should I be looking at another product besides 'Wheel Wax", is the PB sealant better, or maybe the Detailers Pride Wheel Sealant?



Thanks so much in advance, and im sorry for the long winded post... :o
 
Well, we've gone round and round on this one before, are the specialized wheel waxes/sealant any different/better than any other sealants/waxes? I guess it depends on whether you want to believe the marketing hype. IMO, no, they are not any better. I have asked the question in the past, if these wheel products are so much better, why don't we use them on paint? The answer has been nebulous, something about streaking, etc. Well, I won a jar of Pb's Wheel Sealant, and I have used it, and I noted no streaking or any other problems (plus it smells really good!). Again, I think it's just marketing to get you to buy two kinds of sealant instead of one.



As far as the calipers, it's worth a shot, but I would expect anything you use to be shorter-lived than when applied elsewhere.



PS: I don't think the wheel sealant/wax argument about being specially formulated to resist heat holds any water at all, IMO a dark car in the summer sun gets a lot hotter than your wheel unless you are running at the track.
 
Thanks for the response. I kind of thought it seemed like a marketing ploy, as what can make one "wax" so much more heat/crud resistant than another "wax"?...but thought I would ask anyway.



If anyone else has personal experience with any/all of the different wheel sealants and waxes, please post your thoughts. Anyone and everyone, please chime in with your thoughts on this issue, as I hate buying products to only relegate them to the back of my storage bins.



Thanks.
 
Just to be clear, I have only used the Pb's Wheel Sealant on wheels, and it certainly seems to do its job. Maybe one of these days I will try it on my paint. So, it certainly isn't a bad product, I'm just not convinced that there is anything "better" about it other than marketing.
 
I've been bad lately and just been using P21S wheel cleaner or Michellin wheel and tire cleaner. No QD, sealant, wax, ect. Just dry them with a towel and drive off. After a weeks worth of dust on the wheels, I find the wheel no more dirty than it would be with the wheel sealant. Once a week with a light duty cleaner should not harm my wheels.



I've been on a mission lately to get rid of all the hype and boutique mumbo jumbo I've absorbed the past 2 1/2 years and use what works. I find soo many thing that I thought were a must to be way more overkill than anything else. I have a new respect for some of the stuff I pushed to the back of the cabinet and a good selection of junk that I don't need or will probably never use.



I think that when people first "discover" detailing, they get soo into all the different types of products, combos, and ways of using things that they assume its all god written stuff.



Of course I'm not saying don't seal or wax your wheels, Just saying open your eyes to obvious marketing hype.



Joy
 
I like all the hype about being able to withstand the heat. Tell me how your wax/sealant does on the hood of a black car mid summer. If it does ok on that, it should do great on wheels which don't get so hot that you can't touch them.
 
yakky said:
I like all the hype about being able to withstand the heat. Tell me how your wax/sealant does on the hood of a black car mid summer. If it does ok on that, it should do great on wheels which don't get so hot that you can't touch them.
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I didn't say it wouldn't withstand, I'm saying don't buy into the hype of Sealant "a" made for wheels will perform "oh soo much better" than Sealant "B" which is a heavy duty sealant normally applied to paint.
 
I'm going to try FK 1000P high temp wax for the wheels. Should be on its way over I asked for a sample when I reordered my 146.
 
Setec Astronomy said:
Just to be clear, I have only used the Pb's Wheel Sealant on wheels, and it certainly seems to do its job. Maybe one of these days I will try it on my paint. So, it certainly isn't a bad product, I'm just not convinced that there is anything "better" about it other than marketing.
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Yeah, but it sure smells good Mike! I also suspect that a good sealer like AIO/SG, Zaino, or a heavy wax like 845 or 476 would protect just as well, but on the street rod the PB's sure makes the American mags look good. It could have been my imagination, but I *thought* I could see a slight difference.



As far as calipers go I think a sealant (with that much heat) would hold up better than a wax, with the possible exception of 845 Insulator wax by Collinite. If you don't have any sealants then you might want to pick up a tub of PB's stuff..... it is one product that I will probably purchase again when I run out of it. Just my 2 cents.....
 
How long would it take for wheel cleaner to eat through a sealant?



I assume you should just use car soap and water to clean them if you are using a sealant?
 
87SC said:
How long would it take for wheel cleaner to eat through a sealant?



I assume you should just use car soap and water to clean them if you are using a sealant?
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Once I've cleaned and sealed a set of wheels I haven't had to use anything stronger than the wash mix I use during a car wash. If they get so bad that you have to use a wheel cleaner on them then I would just put some more sealant on them.
 
If you have thoroughly cleaned and sealed your wheels, then ordinary car soap should be enough for most cleaning situations. I have used Collinite 845 and it seems to work fine. There has been no need for a special wheel cleaner.



I do have some Poorboys Wheel Sealant that I have never tried, so maybe it's time.......
 
I seal or wax with every cleaning. I'd say the majority of my quantities of sealants are used on the wheels vs the body paint.
 
Eliot Ness said:
As far as calipers go I think a sealant (with that much heat) would hold up better than a wax, with the possible exception of 845 Insulator wax by Collinite. If you don't have any sealants then you might want to pick up a tub of PB's stuff..... it is one product that I will probably purchase again when I run out of it. Just my 2 cents.....
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I have a bunch of paint sealants: UPP, and EX-P are all that come to me off the top of my head though. I guess I will probably give the calipers a go with UPP. Maybe I will do each front with a different sealant and see if I can tell a difference. :nixweiss



Thanks again for all of the responses guys...I really appreciate it!
 
I am a proponet of Wheel Wax brand wheel wax (duh :)) It gets a pretty bad rap on here for some reason. Most of the time, people who haven't used it chime in and say bad things about it.



I much prefer it to zaino and klasse on wheels. They last about the same amount of time durability wise, but I actually think wheel wax looks better. In my eyes, it is nice to be able to just use wheel wax as opposed to aio/sg or aio/z2pro.
 
hadboosttroy said:
I am a proponet of Wheel Wax brand wheel wax (duh :)) It gets a pretty bad rap on here for some reason. Most of the time, people who haven't used it chime in and say bad things about it.
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I dont think they are saying bad things about it, but instead simply saying that its probably no more effective than any other paint sealants or waxes at standing up to heat and the corrosion of brake dust.

hadboosttroy said:
I much prefer it to zaino and klasse on wheels. They last about the same amount of time durability wise, but I actually think wheel wax looks better.
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Im not going for looks, but its interesting that you can tell a difference when applied. My wheel lips are raw aluminum so they shine REALLY well by themselves after some Mother's Mag and Aluminum Polish.



Im thinking based upon the reviews here that Wheel Wax would be a product that would sit in my cabinets and be used very infrequently if ever. Especially, as AW is SO easy to apply to the tough contours of my wheels.



Thanks again, and any more opinions and advice are always welcome.



-Richard
 
I use AIO & SG on my chrone wheels. Make sure they are clean first. Then use OCW or AW as a touch after washing.
 
I agree with the guy that says when you first start detailing you think you have to try everything. I bought Wheel Wax brand and put it on my wheels - new RAV4 sport. No matter how hard I tried to spread it thin, it always globbed on like pancake batter and set up in 2 seconds like concrete. What was worse was trying to get that crap off my wheels. Next time I'm just going to use some left over NXT. Also, at 15 bucks - Wheel Wax is way over priced - in my opinion.
 
MDRX8 said:
I use AIO & SG on my chrone wheels. Make sure they are clean first. Then use OCW or AW as a touch after washing.
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Thats not a bad idea. I might go with AIO and Collinite #845 or AIO and UPP on the wheels as a base coat (as it should last longer than AW) and then just do a quick "boosting" with AW after washes.
 
I'll chime in as a fan of PB's wheel sealant. I think it does a good job, I will go so far as to say I think it does a better job than paint sealants on wheels. Awhile ago, in May I think, I did a a couple tests with AIO, Zaino, Clearkote carnauba, and pb's wheel sealant and they all did pretty much the same job for the first week or two, but after a month the wheel sealant was the only one still beading/making it easier to clean brake dust. That was enough for me. I use it on all my customer cars. Do I think it's worth it? Eh, if you seal your wheels often with a paint sealant no. If you're lazy like me and just want to seal them a few times a year, sure.



As for application, you don't need to use much at all. I apply it and wipe it right off, seems to work fine.
 
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