Blackfire SiO2 Wheel Seal

Jaddie

Jaddie

New member
The new Blackfire SiO2 Wheel Seal looks like a good product, but why would I use it over spray-on, walk-away Sonax Rim Shield?

I`ve used and like Rim Shield. I used it every two to three weeks and didn`t have to use anything but regular car wash soap to clean my wheels.

I hate not to try the new Blackfire product, but I remember using Detailer`s Pro Series Wheel Cleaner paste to clean my wheels and it took over an hour to apply the thin coat, let haze, and then wipe clean. This process requires good light, too, unlike the simple spray-on product.
 
Jaddie- Sounds to me like you might oughta just stick with the Sonax.

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To put it nicely, the ads you linked don`t make a positive impression on me at all, certainly not the BF one.
 
I thought the same thing about BF Wheel Seal. Why take all the time to apply BF paste when a quick spray will give you 3 months protection? I always hated Poor Boys Wheel Sealant, it took so long to apply and two coats were required. If you put it on too heavy it was hell getting off and applying it to some thin spoked wheels was infuriating. I won’t be buying BF Wheel Seal for sure.
 
I`d use whatever you currently have for wheels. If you have a coating use that. I don`t buy into the dedicated wheel product hype.
 
Hydro Blue (or similar), Rim Shield or Wheel coating. This product seems obsolete in 2019, but maybe it has extreme protection capabilities for those few months it’s on... not that I’ll ever find out.
 
Hydr02 or Gyeon wetcoat is so damn easy I don’t think I’m up for anything new for a long time for wheels. In addition, the spray-on, hose off procedure puts the seal way down in the lugs, somewhere that I don’t want to spend a lot of time with aq-tip, etc....
 
glen e said:
.., the spray-on, hose off procedure puts the seal way down in the lugs, somewhere that I don’t want to spend a lot of time with aq-tip, etc....
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That`s one of the things I was wondering about, and an area that wasn`t addressed in the product-hype videos. I`ll add that even with coatings I have to use swabs/etc. to clean the deeper recesses anyhow.

How do you keep spray-on products off of other areas? I always get overspray when I use stuff like that.
 
wannafbody said:
I`d use whatever you currently have for wheels. If you have a coating use that. I don`t buy into the dedicated wheel product hype.
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I had some really high hopes on that product. It really didn`t do anything for me. I`ve tried spraying a little, to a little bit more. And I could never get my wheels to shine. Very disappointed for the amount of money that you pay for that can.
 
The new Blackfire product is very similar to Poor Boys wheel sealant, even in color. I`ve had good success with the Poor Boys, but the wheels on my Tundra are not very complex. I still like the MCKees Wheel coating (spray) better. I get good durability, and it`s super easy to use.
 
Accumulator said:
How do you keep spray-on products off of other areas? I always get overspray when I use stuff like that.
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When sprayed on wheels I’ve never had it splatter. But I won’t use it on paint because of that… It’s just easier if you direct the water spray from a downward angle, any splatter goes on the ground .......I did a whole write up with pics on the corvette forum:

https://www.stingrayforums.com/forum/detailing/9460-easy-effective-way-clean-seal-wheels.html
 
glen e- I guess we just go about this differently...not flaming or anything, and I did check out your link, just don`t think that approach would work for me. I`d still have to get behind the spokes and do all the other such areas the old way anyhow.

Once you get the sealant on, you no longer need Wheel Cleaners/etc. right? Do you still need (regular) shampoo? Even with OptiCoat I still had to clean them manually, couldn`t just do some kind of touchless.
 
Accumulator said:
That`s one of the things I was wondering about, and an area that wasn`t addressed in the product-hype videos. I`ll add that even with coatings I have to use swabs/etc. to clean the deeper recesses anyhow.

How do you keep spray-on products off of other areas? I always get overspray when I use stuff like that.
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It`s not easy to avoid overspray. But most you can spray in a damp mf applicator sponge and wipe in the product around areas you don`t want it on. Then you spray it off with the PW so you have the water flow going away from the area you don`t want it on. Then if this is not possible to do and you have many areas where you don`t want it on. Then it`s just not a product for you. But these products has an incredible lubrication so no problems with wipe it on the paint. On the first application of a bare paint I would even recommend to wipe it in and PW it off. To get the most even application of it. Or if you want a more stout application of it I wipe it in then too. Have used it on most surfaces and it works great. Try to avoid the windshield though. But to avoid parts in wheel wells when you apply it on the wheels is hard if not impossible to do.
 
SWETM- Thanks for your take on this. Again, I`m *NOT* hating on the stuff, just wondering whether I`m missing something.

Eh, guess I`m just belaboring this topic as I spend so much time doing the nooks and crannies of my wheels, whether they`re coated/LSPed/left bare. The only real difference seems to be that with bare wheels I need to use a Wheel Cleaner, and (Opti)coated wheels don`t need redone as much as LSPed ones.

I`ve left the Tahoe`s winter wheels bare, and I don`t spend any more time/effort cleaning those than I do the coated ones. And I don`t spend any more/less time cleaning the coated ones compared to the ones wearing conventional LSPs. Guess I`m trying to figure out what`s up with that. There is a minor boost in appearance with coatings/LSPs compared to just having clean (bare) wheels, but IMO only an Autopian would notice.
 
Accumulator said:
SWETM- Thanks for your take on this. Again, I`m *NOT* hating on the stuff, just wondering whether I`m missing something.

Eh, guess I`m just belaboring this topic as I spend so much time doing the nooks and crannies of my wheels, whether they`re coated/LSPed/left bare. The only real difference seems to be that with bare wheels I need to use a Wheel Cleaner, and (Opti)coated wheels don`t need redone as much as LSPed ones.

I`ve left the Tahoe`s winter wheels bare, and I don`t spend any more time/effort cleaning those than I do the coated ones. And I don`t spend any more/less time cleaning the coated ones compared to the ones wearing conventional LSPs. Guess I`m trying to figure out what`s up with that. There is a minor boost in appearance with coatings/LSPs compared to just having clean (bare) wheels, but IMO only an Autopian would notice.
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Could you clean the bare wheels with only rinseless wash after a month of no cleaning?
 
acuRAS82 said:
Could you clean the bare wheels with only rinseless wash after a month of no cleaning?
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I doubt it, but I`d never try doing that anyhow. I only wash (anything) with a RW if it`s just barely dirty and I`ve never let wheels go that long....ever. Not even when traveling, not even with rental cars.

If that`s your test case, then I`d be 100% supportive of using a coating, hands-down, no question at all!

Heh heh, I`m not slamming anybody`s approach or defending my approaches (I currently have wheels that are coated, LSPed, and bare), I really *am* wondering if I`m missing something. It sounds like the one coating I have tried was unusually durable, moreso than what`s available (to a non-pro) today. Guess I`ll find out if/when I get that 22ple out of its bottle and onto some wheels. With all the hassles involved in using a coating (hassles I suspect others don`t have...count your blessings and knock on wood ;) ) I want a bigtime payoff if I bother going that route.

EDIT: Come to think about it, I don`t think I`ve ever cleaned wheels with just a RW, at least not after driving for a mile or more (I do use that approach when I drive around the block to knock the surface rust off the rotors). Even my quickie in-between-washes wheel/tire cleanups involve multiple buckets, BHBs, mitts, swabs...and at least a half hour (usually more). Yikes, my Inner Autopian is showing :eek:
 
Accumulator said:
EDIT: Come to think about it, I don`t think I`ve ever cleaned wheels with just a RW, at least not after driving for a mile or more (I do use that approach when I drive around the block to knock the surface rust off the rotors). Even my quickie in-between-washes wheel/tire cleanups involve multiple buckets, BHBs, mitts, swabs...and at least a half hour (usually more). Yikes, my Inner Autopian is showing :eek:
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Wow, well you are hardcore with the wheels. Me, I’m happy with the faces and barrels (and only the parts of the barrel that are easily seen) being 90% clean. Therefore, a coating and a quick RW or even WW if not too dirty (I don’t care about swirling my silver wheels) gets me to the (easily viewable parts) being 90% or more clean. I do this 2-3 times per week, 4 wheels takes about 10-15 mins... maybe 15 mins during a normal car wash including spraying Hydro Blue. My preference is for wheels to look good most days with minimal effort, but not perfect everywhere. 1-2 coatings a year and Hydro Blue once a month in the summer leaves the cleaning job quick and painless... much more so than when I used normal sealants or wheel waxes.
 
Accumulator said:
SWETM- Thanks for your take on this. Again, I`m *NOT* hating on the stuff, just wondering whether I`m missing something.

Eh, guess I`m just belaboring this topic as I spend so much time doing the nooks and crannies of my wheels, whether they`re coated/LSPed/left bare. The only real difference seems to be that with bare wheels I need to use a Wheel Cleaner, and (Opti)coated wheels don`t need redone as much as LSPed ones.

I`ve left the Tahoe`s winter wheels bare, and I don`t spend any more time/effort cleaning those than I do the coated ones. And I don`t spend any more/less time cleaning the coated ones compared to the ones wearing conventional LSPs. Guess I`m trying to figure out what`s up with that. There is a minor boost in appearance with coatings/LSPs compared to just having clean (bare) wheels, but IMO only an Autopian would notice.
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For me it`s just that it`s so easy to apply it. When you do have the wheels clean it`s just some sprays and then hit with the PW. My wheels are a disaster with the condition of them. So just want something that makes them easy to wash. Maybe there are some parts as the inside of the spokes that don`t get fully protected. But it`s way it works these spray on rinse off products is they spreads where the water goes basicly. And also if you more regualary like once a month it`s able to build up the protection. If you do it often it seems to be saturated with protection and getting easy to streak. For me it`s seems like it holds up as on the paint 2-3 months. And you get many applications from a 1L Gyeon Wet Coat for an example. The thing to have in mind is the shelf life from these is around a year. Then you have to much of the SiO2 hardened in the bottle. So it`s not the cheapest but not to bad either. I like how it looks on trims and rubber too. So useally spraying some on the wheel wells too. If you want to have an easy applyied wheel protection these spray on rinse off products is awesome. And also for maintance if your base protection don`t last the time through before you switch for the season or rotate them and can do a wheels off. They bond great over other protection. If you have the ability to apply a coating or sealant on the wheels when you have them off. And your protection lasts until it`s time to do another wheels off protection. These spray on rinse off products may be not necessary to use. It`s simualar to a coating to maintain but they don`t lasts as long and needs to be apply every 2 months for me. Then I have a easy to clean the wheels. The prewash foam and PW clean rinsing it off and followed with a wheel cleaner and only PW to clean with. I useally use the brushes and clean them every 3-4 wash with the wheel cleaner.

So as always it`s personal preference which suits you. And there are a lot of different kind of products that you can get there. So no right or wrong as long as the products does what they are suposed to be doing. But it`s fun and interesting at least for me when testing out a new to me product that does it better for me than what I have been doing before. Then you try out something that works less than what you are already useing. But it`s what you get when trying out different things and methods.

Interesting that about the bare wheels you have experienced. I often wondering about what the difference is between the clearcoat on a wheel vs the clearcoat on the paint. And the surroundings is also a little simualar with plastic trim and rubber. Still it`s different products used on wheels and paint. But say it`s about if it`s safe on only the clearcoat on the wheels and not on the clearcoat on the paint. Or if it`s just the difference between the other materials around the clearcoats. I think it`s the later one.
 
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