Protecting a matte surface
Written by: Vinnie van Rooij
When you have a matte wrap on your car, or just matte paintwork, you need to take care what protective product you are using. Protecting a matte finish is just as important as on a normal surface, but you need to be careful what you use.
Contents
What is a matte finish
There are 2 typical finishes on a surface, glossy or matte. When a surface is glossy, the surface will be reflective, shiny and has a very smooth surface. Matte is pretty much the opposite of that.
Difficult to protect or polish
The problem with a matte finish is that you don’t want to add gloss. When you look at a glossy surface with an imperfection (scratch, swirl etc.), you’ll notice how the surface appears to be imperfect. Because the surface imperfection isn’t glossy, it stands out. We can fix this by polishing. The polish will remove a part of the paint, and will leave a microscopical smooth surface.
Matte is the opposite of this, it isn’t glossy and the surface isn’t a perfectly microscopic smooth surface. If you would polish a matte finish, you would rub away the uneven surface, and turn it into a smooth surface with gloss.
Wax (and certain other products) are designed to add as much gloss as possible. Which would mean that you add gloss to your matte surface. This is not really what you would want. To polish or protect a matte finish, you would need a product that covers the surface evenly, without filling in any gaps.
What protection to use
A very liquid sealant will cover the surface evenly without filling any gaps. Basically any product that doesn’t fill, and isn’t in paste form, would work. Although some are easier then others. A liquid sealant that is very easy to wipe off, will be easier to work with.
things to keep in mind
- You shouldn’t wax a matte surface, after a few coats it will become glossy and shiny
- A matte surface shows patches easier, so pick a product that is easy to wipe off
- You shouldn’t polish a matte surface
- When washing, drying and protecting you need to take extra care that you don’t scratch your matte surface
If in doubt, contact your supplier or the manufacturer. There are several products that are not suitable for a matte finish.
When detailing cars (semi)professionally, it helps to know what you can ask for a certain job. Although you still need experience to fill in certain formulas, this will give a rough idea of how to get a fair price and to calculate your expenses....-
Valma is brand that originates from around the 1930's and is still available in several shops. The can be recognized by their logo that hasn't changed much in the last 80+ years....
-
Ardex Laboratories is an Philadelphia, America based manufacturer of several different detailing and carwash products. The company was founded in 1950 bij Arron Goldman en Dexter. The current range offers a wide variety of products for several different stages in the detailing process....
-
Vonixx is a Brazil based manufacturer of several carnauba based detailing products. The company has been active since 2005 and was formerly known as Quimiflex. Vonixx is one of the only car care manufacturers in Brazil....
-
It is often asked on detailing fora and social media: "what is the best dressing". Off course there is a difference between certain products and brands, but it is important to know what you are asking. In this guide I will try to explain what the problem is with this question unless it is asked more in-depth....
-
Reed-Union Corporation is a car care product manufacturer from Illinois, America who started out as Reed-Union Corporation in 1929. The brand has grown into a wide variety of products aimed at several different steps in the detailing process....
Links to this article
There are no external links to this article. Yet.