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Refinish Restorer Before/After pics

arizona-dave said:
Im going to take a closer look at the "re-faded" areas on mine, and see if indeed its like this, or just discolored...yours indeed appears to be de-laminating.

Thank you for the time and effort...LOVE these forums!

Me too! You've been terrifically helpful in a number of threads.

I think I didn't let the first coat cure enough. Also I forgot that I did one coat, left it a few weeks, then did two more. Maybe I didn't clean well enough for round 2.
 
Well, Ive taken some pics..pretty close ones too.

Mine is definitely not flaking/peeling. Its literally Re-Fading. The fading appears to be mostly in the depressions between the raised texture. I went back and looked at my pics from March this year...the side by side showed the RR to look GREAT.

The Fading I now have is about 50% of where it was before applying the RR...its getting quite noticeable.

Here are some pics: The following 3 pics are from March: The bottom one shows one storage access panel prior to any RR.

Its quite clear the RR pretty much got rid of 99% of fading at that time...next post will show new pics from today.

JohnnieMo said:
Me too! You've been terrifically helpful in a number of threads.

I think I didn't let the first coat cure enough. Also I forgot that I did one coat, left it a few weeks, then did two more. Maybe I didn't clean well enough for round 2.
 

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Here are new pics showing the Re-Fading. Its quite significant...This did NOT happen on my 05 until about 18-20 months after first using it. Both vehicles sit under covered parking every weekday. Both vehicles had the same mileage on them when RR was first applied. Both vehicles are Arizona-Only trucks.
 

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And some close-ups...

Im gunna re-clean it all again REALLY good, and reapply RR once more time. 1 Coat only. See the results.
 

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So...comparing your flaking/peeling side by side to my pics, I notice a few things:

You cladding is not re-fading at all between the raised textures...it literally appears to be flaking/peeling like you said.

Mine is definitely fading...

Now...the big question is why? An why didnt this happen on my 05 ?

The big difference between what I did was I used Goof-Off on my 2005 a day before applying RR...thats the only difference.

Goof off is pretty powerful and actually can melt/disolve the cladding, so I was careful, but it removed any and all wax and other residues...

Perhaps I will use Good off when I go to re-apply RR to my truck.

JohnnieMo said:
Me too! You've been terrifically helpful in a number of threads.

I think I didn't let the first coat cure enough. Also I forgot that I did one coat, left it a few weeks, then did two more. Maybe I didn't clean well enough for round 2.
 
Great pictures.  It is clear that we have different issues.  My truck has also been subjected to 'frost' lately as well, but I think this started before the frost. 

I applied my RR in a rather slap happy way.  I think that is most likely getting me poor results.  Next time I will be more careful.  Using goo-off may also be in the cards.
 
Flaking will most likely occur for one of two reasons; you didn't wipe it down after it started to dry (I think it says 15 min or so depending on temp/humidity) or you applied RR on too much remaining RR and it didn't have something to fully latch onto. I gave up using RR because it kept flaking on me and looked 1000x worse than if I wasn't using it. The prep work to get it right was just too much of hassle. I ended up using a heated pressure wash to strip it all off and now use a pro detailer product that lasts a pretty good length of time and I can just plop it on when I feel like it. Don't get me wrong, RR is an awesome product and works wonders but it just wasn't worth it for me.

@arizona-dave - your pics indeed show the beginning stages of flaking. Adding more RR on top will only hide it but once its started you can't stop it unless you pressure wash it off.
 
I really dont think mine is starting to flake, its completely different than what his looks like...My 05 started to fade this same way, but after almost 20 months...

Im going to do a few tests...gunna use good off on one of the box lids, then apply RR to half of it...wait and see what happens.

I will say that when I re-applied RR to the '05 2 years after the first application, it did not restore it as well as it did the first time. No flaking at all, just not quite as dark.

My can of RR is old also...im not a huge believer in shelf lives and dont want to start a debate, but im open to the possibility of my can being 3+ yrs old not quite being up to par.

 
Note: Checked the first pages of the thread to remember what exactly I had done... I've edited my message based on that

I experienced the same issue JohnnieMo had in most of the same areas and exactly what you've got. If you take a heavy upholstery brush you can "grind" out the pieces that are between the grooves. Right now its stuck much like a wax. Over time they'll come off easier and even flake off during a simple wash. I applied 2 coats 1 coat when I first bought my can. I started having this issue within 6 months the following spring and thought it was just fading and it needed another touch up, so I applied 2 further coats only to create more headaches for myself and more peeling. RR is supposed to have ~3 year shelf life assuming it's kept in a dry, low humidity environment. So that can potentially add to the problem. In my case, it was still a very new can.
 
Was that on your '07 ???

ca2kjet said:
Note: Checked the first pages of the thread to remember what exactly I had done... I've edited my message based on that

I experienced the same issue JohnnieMo had in most of the same areas and exactly what you've got. If you take a heavy upholstery brush you can "grind" out the pieces that are between the grooves. Right now its stuck much like a wax. Over time they'll come off easier and even flake off during a simple wash. I applied 2 coats 1 coat when I first bought my can. I started having this issue within 6 months the following spring and thought it was just fading and it needed another touch up, so I applied 2 further coats only to create more headaches for myself and more peeling. RR is supposed to have ~3 year shelf life assuming it's kept in a dry, low humidity environment. So that can potentially add to the problem. In my case, it was still a very new can.
 
arizona-dave said:
Was that on your '07 ???

Yep. Just out of curiosity I poked around the internet and it seems like some others have run into the peeling problem. I wonder if the type of plastic and how much the plastic will absorb affects the potential to peel. Possibly why there's a difference in application life on the 1st gen vs 2nd gen.

I didn't have really bad peeling until my additional coats. My first coat looked like yours at first but it never went away. After a couple of years of waiting I started trying many different products because it looked horrid as everything just peeled more and more. I could brush it off but that was just physically too much work to grind out. I tried cleaners and degreasers and paint removers up to the point of using an acid type of product (did on a small spot, yea, it sort of removed it, but damaged the plastic, oops!) and then I finally thought to give the high pressure high heat (past boiling) water a try and it stripped it like butter (which I think I did either this spring or last). I'd say 90% of the surface looked like your cladding and that peeled right off for me with that technique. I bet if the surface is fully stripped of previous applications the RR could be used again and would come out looking great, just as good as the first time.

I'm just trying to be upfront about what you're going to have to deal with from this point. It's not going to get better even after additional applications. It gets mostly hidden but that look will remain until it's been totally cleaned off. I wish I had taken pictures but never realized others would run into this problem. I could have put mine next to yours and you'd never know which one was which as my cladding was exactly what yours looks like. My worst peeling (like JohnnieMo's pics) was the inside/outside of the pillars and the underside of the brake light bar. The top bar surprisingly didn't have much left as that peeled extremely fast. The rest looked liked what your pics showed.
 
I am thinking its 1st gen vs 2nd gen plastic.

Ive done a little test-run. Took goof-off to the middle 1/3rd of the storage box lid. Let dry overnight, then put a thin re-coat of RR over half of the area I used Goof-off on, plus the right 1/3rd of the lid with the fading.

Left the left 1/3rd faded for comparison.

Here are the results:
 

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My opinion on the results: Goof-Off seemed to take off some of the old RR, but made the new application of RR splotchy...

I then re-applied a VERY thin coat of RR to the area I used goof off on and its not very consistent and dark...darker than the area I simply reapplied RR to.

SO...What Imma gunna do, is one last go at this...use goof off on everything, re-apply RR in VERY thin coats, and see if it holds up better...if I get the flaking starting, I will power wash it off and try something else.

I knew fairly quickly after the RR in March that it wasnt as good as when I used it on my 05, made some posts about it then...
 
Since I'm headed into winter and the truck will be covered in snow and ice, I'll leave this until spring.

Thanks again Dave for going above and beyond for everybody.  I'm happy to let you be the guinea pig on this.  I think mine was excessive application as was noted above.  I thought more would be better - kinda like applying paint or varnish.  I guess I was wrong.
 
arizona-dave said:
...
SO...What Imma gunna do, is one last go at this...use goof off on everything...
...

I have zero experience with RR, but...

It would seem to me that, based on your pics and the description of your observations, Goof Off is not your friend.  Looks like it makes it worse, not better. 

I have no idea what's in Goof Off, but it always felt more oily than soapy to me.  If you're set on Goof Off, I'd suggest using a Dawn chaser (using a scrub brush to really get between the rough)?

Just a suggestion.
 
I agree stack rat the goof off doesn't seem to be doing the trick. Seems like more risk without a reward. I myself have a 2007 with the fading as I added rr the second time after about 10 years after 2 coats it seemed blotchy and now looks very ashy in areas. Maybe due to the hot heat and rainy summer in FL I'm not sure. I've heard dawn and a good scrub brush does the trick. Since it's finally cooling down.. In the 80s lol I'm debating taking dawn n scrubbing the hell out of my cladding n reapplying rr. Personally I want it painted but I've heard the prep work for krylon is hell and there's still chances of it pealing and I don't want to risk the time for it to possibly look worse with pealing. I've tried to talk to painters to do my sail panels a gloss black but no one wants to touch it as they say 400$ will have it
Looking great but it may flake off in the future? Leaves me undecided with a faded plastic :help:
 
I applied a 2nd, VERY thin application of RR over the area that I prepped with goof off the other day, and the 2nd layer is not blotchy at all, and looks great.

I used good off to purposely, as a type of primer and deep cleaner.

I used it 4 years ago on my 2005, and the first app of RR on it lasted almost 2 years...after 12 months the RR still looked like it was just put on, and the re-fading stated at about 16-18 months.

In fact, Ive stated on this thread mutliple times that the big difference between my using RR back then vs recently was I used goof-off on the old one.

Goof-Off is a mix of Tolulene and distillates, which evaporate and leaves virtually no residue...which is why it removed almost anything and will indeed "melt" the plastic if used too roughly...

Goof of is my friend.


Stackrat said:
I have zero experience with RR, but...

It would seem to me that, based on your pics and the description of your observations, Goof Off is not your friend.  Looks like it makes it worse, not better. 

I have no idea what's in Goof Off, but it always felt more oily than soapy to me.  If you're set on Goof Off, I'd suggest using a Dawn chaser (using a scrub brush to really get between the rough)?

Just a suggestion.
 
Little Update on my experimenting:

- The 2nd layer of RR applied to the area I cleaned with Goof-Off took great, no streaking, no blotches.

Now for some interesting tid-bits:

- I decided to examine the re-faded areas closer, especially on the sails, where the greying is the most prominent between the tiny raised textures. What I found was not what I expected.

- Using a sharp blade, I scratched at the surface of the areas where I applied RR mack in march...it literally scrapped right off, into dust. It did not flake however, but it came of with little effort and there was quite a bit of it able to be scrapped of.

Using the same blade I then went around to different areas to attempt to repeat - here is what I found:
- Area of RR with no Greying: couldnt scrape any significant RR off.
- Area of RR with slight Greying: Could scrape small amounts off, but not as fine powder.
- Areas of RR with significant Greying: Easily scrape off - into a fine powder, area scrapped was dark underneath.
- Area I used Goof-Off on last week: Very little scrapped off, almost none.
- Area I cleaned with Goof-Off then Re-applied RR to: No Scraping off.

Either the goof off is oxidizing, or it never properly absorbed/bonded to the cladding from day 1...I also strongly think I over-applied it this go-around to try and get rid of the streaking, I applied the most coats to the sails...which now look the worst.

Im gunna power wash the old RR, then Im gunna use RR on it, and Im going to use a mild abbrasive to prep the cladding, and then Dawn it.

Gunna take one last shot at this...cuz my cladding looks like crap. After this...I will pull it all of and do a plastic-prep primer and paint it all.

Not sure when I will get to this, but hopefully within the month.
 
Refinish Restorer



Making 10 year old, faded out, chalky looking, almost white bed panels look much better, every day.

(y)
 
Thanks!

I bought my truck a year ago last April and bought my first (and only so far) can of RR back then.

The panels were almost white before the first treatment.

I use a plastic bristle scrub brush with a bucket of water with some Dawn for suds and give the panels a good scrubbing while they are off of the truck.

Once dry, I apply my RR with a third cut of a dog-boned car wash sponge.

I just pour a little puddle of RR on the panel, starting with only #1 mounted on the truck and wipe the RR all around the panel until it is evenly covered.

I then mount the next panel on the truck and do the same until all three panels are done.

I also hit all of the other plastic trim like the steps and bumper pads as well as the plastic bed walls and tailgate.

I follow this procedure about once every six months or so.

Other than that, I don't give it much thought.

Love the RR!

(y)
 
Arizona Dave- Thank you so much for all of the trials and research.  I want to send you a fresh can of RR for all of your efforts.  Please PM me with your shipping information.
 
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