# ArtDeShine Graphene Crystal Wax



## Wilco (Apr 22, 2010)

Rather than add to the lsp thread I thought I'd share my thoughts here. As its new there seems to be a fair amount of interest in this product and at the time of my first use I wasn't convinced i'd nailed it.

My prep on initial use wasn't thorough, a good decon and wipe down with panel wipe I thought would be sufficient. In hindsight this was a mistake and the reason I wouldn't give a full evaluation of its performance. The beading was disappointing if i'm honest, it sheeted well but I did have concerns regarding its longevity.

Basically this wax was so easy to use it did make me question if it would last at all. Removal was basically levelling high spots with a microfibre and then keep dry for a few hours.

Anyway today was a pleasant day and I wanted to try again but actually give the wax a better chance of performing to its level. I'd polished the car again last week so a very thorough going over with pre wax cleanser and two trips round the car with panel wipe again I'm confident I now have a clean base on which to apply.

So this time I applied graphene a little thicker, it still spreads for miles but in hindsight I'd maybe applied it too thinly last time and not given it a proper coat. I wasn't making that mistake again and was meticulous this time. I've still barely used any but I was definitely more confident this time around.

I left the wax to cure for 20 minutes this time which was a little longer than my previous use and it had cured properly. Removal was still a breeze but you actually felt as though you were removing a wax this time and that protection was being left behind.

The finish again is fantastic, its one of the best looking waxes I've used and I'm really hoping that this time I've nailed it. I don't want another super shiny summer wax, I want the next gen tech to work for me and look spectacular long term. Even my neighbours commented earlier that it looks like a mirror.

I just thought I'd share my thoughts anyway, hope this is deemed of use to those who decide to give it a whirl.

Previous beading shots of the first use....




























Second use today and this is the finish....





































I know the pics aren't the best and I need a new camera but you get the idea. Thanks for looking. :thumb:


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## Andyblue (Jun 20, 2017)

Belting finish mate :thumb:


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## MBRuss (Apr 29, 2011)

Nice one. Any chance you could update the thread when it next rains with some new beading pics?

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## Wilco (Apr 22, 2010)

Yep that shouldn't be a problem.


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## AndyN01 (Feb 16, 2016)

That looks wonderful. :thumb: 

Respect.

Thanks for the detailed (excuse the pun!) write up.

Cheers.

Andy.


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## matty.13 (May 3, 2011)

Thanks for the write up. Car looks great by the way. Looks an interesting product 


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## In2detailing (Feb 23, 2016)

Thank you for taking the time to do a write up.

The wax is more hydrophilic than phobic so I personally have not got super tall round beads, although with your thicker application you may get different results. If you like the tall round beads, then topping with H2o-s for example will give you the beading and from my eyes, does not take away from the finish.

The gloss from the wax is excellent and it seems to be a really strong point of graphene. Weather this is the tech or not, I dont know but the graphene coating is just ridiculously glossy, I have used coatings from companies around the globe and never seen a wetter looking coating in my life.


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## Justbaldchris (Jul 6, 2014)

In2detailing said:


> Thank you for taking the time to do a write up.
> 
> The wax is more hydrophilic than phobic so I personally have not got super tall round beads, although with your thicker application you may get different results. If you like the tall round beads, then topping with H2o-s for example will give you the beading and from my eyes, does not take away from the finish.
> 
> The gloss from the wax is excellent and it seems to be a really strong point of graphene. Weather this is the tech or not, I dont know but the graphene coating is just ridiculously glossy, I have used coatings from companies around the globe and never seen a wetter looking coating in my life.


Do you guys sell a graphene wax/product?


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## In2detailing (Feb 23, 2016)

Justbaldchris said:


> Do you guys sell a graphene wax/product?


This is the product (as used by the author of this post)

https://www.in2detailing.co.uk/artdeshine-graphene-crystal-wax-50ml.html

Imran


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## Wilco (Apr 22, 2010)

Justbaldchris said:


> Do you guys sell a graphene wax/product?


In2detailing is where I purchased the wax from. Artdeshine have various products containing graphene from what I've read.


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## GleemSpray (Jan 26, 2014)

Does it really contain Graphene? Or is that just a marketing term?

I stand to be corrected, but my understanding of current progress in bringing actual Graphene into manufacturing is that it is both rare and incredibly expensive.

I am also of the understanding that Graphene,by its nature, is / will be effective used as A micro-thin film, but is not liquid or even crystalline in nature. There is talk of using it as a top layer in vehicle finishes, but applied as part of the paint process. 

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## sm81 (May 14, 2011)

Good question...


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## Sam6er (Apr 3, 2016)

Whats the durability of this wax? Looks really interesting.


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## DLGWRX02 (Apr 6, 2010)

Sam6er said:


> Whats the durability of this wax? Looks really interesting.


Alfred said "it's good for 100 washes using ordinary shampoo's."

Mine arrived today









Would you believe it, I just prepped the wife's car then put on a coat of Autoglym Ultra HDwax, then this arrives in the post. If only the postie would have turned up an hour earlier.


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## sm81 (May 14, 2011)

100 washes. If so then it should last at least 12 months?


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## Derekh929 (Aug 28, 2011)

sm81 said:


> 100 washes. If so then it should last at least 12 months?


You wash your car on average twice a week? Yikes I may not be a suitable member for a detailing site:thumb:


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## Wilco (Apr 22, 2010)

I wash mine every other day so 6 months protection would be outstanding.


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## Andyblue (Jun 20, 2017)

What did you use to apply the wax with ?


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## camerashy (Feb 9, 2014)

Andyblue said:


> What did you use to apply the wax with ?


Seeing the size of the neck opening these would be OK the larger ones would be too big
https://www.odkwaxes.co.uk/product/odk-mini-wax-applicator


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## sm81 (May 14, 2011)

Derekh929 said:


> You wash your car on average twice a week? Yikes I may not be a suitable member for a detailing site:thumb:


Once a week. If manufacturer said that it can last 100 washes then I usually think that about half of that would be good:thumb:


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## Andyblue (Jun 20, 2017)

camerashy said:


> Seeing the size of the neck opening these would be OK the larger ones would be too big
> 
> https://www.odkwaxes.co.uk/product/odk-mini-wax-applicator


Cheers mate.

Have you used them - are they quite firm to hold and apply the wax or very soft ?

Have to have a look at them :thumb:


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## Wilco (Apr 22, 2010)

Andyblue said:


> What did you use to apply the wax with ?


Original waxmate before they got made larger. It's perfect for the jar size.


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## camerashy (Feb 9, 2014)

Andyblue said:


> Cheers mate.
> 
> Have you used them - are they quite firm to hold and apply the wax or very soft ?
> 
> Have to have a look at them :thumb:


They are quite soft compared to the more solid larger one but ideal for sample pot size, takes a bit longer but apply but it's not a problem


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## Fairtony (Mar 12, 2018)

I just got mine today too (will post photos and thanks later in relevant thread). Its been called a 'coating' everywhere. And it smells very spirit heavy, but is incredibly soft and jelly like.

Application makes me think you apply it like a wax. Are there any tips you can give for application?
I am a little conserned about your first application, with you saying you applied it to sparingly. I have to admit, I systematically OVER apply every wax I have ever used, so im wondering, how to apply it sparingly, but not to sparingly, on such a soft 'coating'?


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## Wilco (Apr 22, 2010)

Dab your applicator on the top of the jar you'll soon realise this is sufficient to do a couple of panels but be thorough. Criss cross on each panel to make sure you have a decent coat on it. It's nothing to be scared of it just takes a while to get it right. It is slightly different to a normal wax coat as you'll discover.

Make sure it's on bare paint too for best results.


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## MBRuss (Apr 29, 2011)

Wilco said:


> I wash mine every other day so 6 months protection would be outstanding.


Every other day?! Jeez, where do you find the time?!

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## Wilco (Apr 22, 2010)

I'm unemployed, I do it to keep active and busy.


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## noddy r32 (Nov 13, 2010)

Wilco said:


> I'm unemployed, I do it to keep active and busy.


I'm sorry to hear that mate , I hope you find work soon :thumb:


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## Wilco (Apr 22, 2010)

noddy r32 said:


> I'm sorry to hear that mate , I hope you find work soon :thumb:


I need my health back first mate but thanks.


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## MBRuss (Apr 29, 2011)

Wilco said:


> I'm unemployed, I do it to keep active and busy.


Fair enough. I wish I had the time, though I'm sure you feel the opposite!

Do you have any beading shots of the new application yet?

Also, do you concur with Imran's thoughts that this is the wettest looking coating/wax you've ever used?

They've definitely got the look of the jar sorted, that's for sure. I just wish it was a bigger jar.





































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## Sam6er (Apr 3, 2016)

I see this is currently out of stock at in2detailing. Any idea when this will be back in stock?


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## Fairtony (Mar 12, 2018)

Ill be applying it tomorrow. Hopefully will stay dry enough. Not used a wax/sealant before that has clear instructiosn for "do not get wet for 5hrs".

I was gonna decon the whole car and apply it over a base of CarPro Essence. Do you guys think this might affect the bonding? Ive had good experience with Essence under basically everything I've used. But obviously this is the first "Graphine" based product I will be using.


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## camerashy (Feb 9, 2014)

Where did you get the 5 hrs from please.


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## Fairtony (Mar 12, 2018)

camerashy said:


> Where did you get the 5 hrs from please.


_"Allow the product to cure on the panel for approximately 5 hours before exposing it to the elements."_ - Off the In2Detailing website product description.


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## Andyblue (Jun 20, 2017)

Fairtony said:


> Ill be applying it tomorrow. Hopefully will stay dry enough. Not used a wax/sealant before that has clear instructiosn for "do not get wet for 5hrs".
> 
> I was gonna decon the whole car and apply it over a base of CarPro Essence. Do you guys think this might affect the bonding? Ive had good experience with Essence under basically everything I've used. But obviously this is the first "Graphine" based product I will be using.


Looking forward to your thoughts :thumb:

Presume the 5 hrs to the elements is purely not to get wet, so hopefully okay at this time of year...


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## Fairtony (Mar 12, 2018)

Andyblue said:


> Looking forward to your thoughts :thumb:
> 
> Presume the 5 hrs to the elements is purely not to get wet, so hopefully okay at this time of year...


Well, I fully decon'd the car and applied the wax. Took my time, it was a beautiful day, with absolutely no rain in the forecast...and it rained 2hrs after I was finished.
Ill post up a review in the coming days, but I do fear the rain has effected it as the initial beads were a little lacklustre.


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## Wilco (Apr 22, 2010)

MBRuss said:


> Do you have any beading shots of the new application yet?
> 
> Also, do you concur with Imran's thoughts that this is the wettest looking coating/wax you've ever used?
> 
> Sent from my LYA-L09 using Tapatalk


Not yet but its pretty much the same from my initial use. I had a long trip yesterday and the car was filthy when I got back, tbf it didn't take much to bring it back to its best though.

Looks wise its as good as pretty much anything I've used.



Fairtony said:


> Well, I fully decon'd the car and applied the wax. Took my time, it was a beautiful day, with absolutely no rain in the forecast...and it rained 2hrs after I was finished.
> Ill post up a review in the coming days, but I do fear the rain has effected it as the initial beads were a little lacklustre.


As mentioned above I don't think beading is going to be its strong point. It sheets well though and has coating characteristics in that regard. It does look epic IMO.

It was mums birthday today (Love you Mum) and she dropped her car off this morning and said sort this out please. It had been wearing Surreal for a little while and I'm seriously impressed with that.

Usual process followed by blackmax on a finishing pad then graphene wax applied. My pictures are poor and in no way a reflection of how it actually looks. Getting a wow from my dad being a particular high point earlier.














































I'm not going to fiddle with this car as much as I usually do. It'll live outside, do a few miles but ultimately give me the truest indicator of this products capabilities.


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## galamaa (Aug 3, 2014)

Over blackmax, I think it's not good idea. This product need bare paint.


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## Wilco (Apr 22, 2010)

I did a panelwipe wipedown prior to application but I should have said that.


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## Rebel007 (May 7, 2013)

I have to say that finish looks truly outstanding and personally I have found anything Alfred has said in the past to be an UNDER estimate rather than the opposite. I still have 1.5 tubs of Artdeshine Obsidian wax as well as a number of Auto Finesse wax's and ODK wax's amongst others (Too many to list) but I'm still tempted having seen those pictures!


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## DLGWRX02 (Apr 6, 2010)

Can’t wait to try mine, but as the cars being resprayed next month I’m reluctant to waste any just yet. I’ve also got the Artdeshine Bio nano pro to try over the top. Should bring up the gloss even more.


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## Andyblue (Jun 20, 2017)

Wilco said:


> Not yet but its pretty much the same from my initial use. I had a long trip yesterday and the car was filthy when I got back, tbf it didn't take much to bring it back to its best though.
> 
> Looks wise its as good as pretty much anything I've used.
> 
> ...


Looking good mate - has come up really well :thumb:


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## Fairtony (Mar 12, 2018)

Think it's time for some initial thoughts. Applied the ADS Graphine Wax on Wednesday.

I tar'd, iron'd and clayed the car. Then layed down a coating of CarPro Essence. My car doesn't get machine polished. It's not something I currently plan on getting in to (maybe one day I'd get a small polisher for piano trim). So I wanted to get a nice layer down to mask the swirls in a semi perminant way. This year is the year I stick to a proper bi-yearly decon n protect. Essence is meant to have about 12month durability on its own, and is compatible with pretty much everything on the market. 
The wax applies like nothing I have ever used before. It's completely clear when applying, spreads and spreads and can actually be quite hard to see. It helps if you have a strong light at a low angle. Cos of this, I ended up going back to the pot quite a lot. Probably much more than I needed to. I also went over the same area repeatedly in crosshasing to try and get a good coverage. It's really weird cos it squeaks SO LOUDLY, a little disconcerting really.

For a durability test I will be posting on a different thread, I did divide up the bonnet, and did include a small panel at the top which was not Essenced (to test bonding to bare paint) which was panel wiped prior to application.








(ADS was on the left, not applied yet)

I left the wax for a good 20 mins. It doesn't really haze. And the swipe test doesn't seem to mean much. It almost melts into the paint. The areas where I had applied it much lighter were amazing. It essentially just needed a "levelling" (thanks in2detailing for that one) like I was wiping a missed spot from a QD pass.

It instantly darkened the paint, made my plastic trim look better than factory new, and I've not been so hypnotically taken back by the gloss in my entire time owning the car. It also seemed to get better as tome went by. Incredibly slick too!









There was a (slight) shower 2hrs after rain (thanks met office...) which did worry me about affecting the bond though. It is advised on the product description to allow it to "cure for 5hrs before exposing it to the elements".

3 days later, and the sun is shining. So I decide to wash the car again. It wasn't massively dirty, but it was an excuse to get out in the sun.

Simple wash using some Adams Shampoo, and the panels just don't seem to be beading up. No matter how much I rinse them.







(test spot left). It's not the shampoo having surfactants in it. Because the other sections are working fine. 
Left for a while, too and came back to this








The gloss is starting to come back. But the thing doesn't want to sheet off!

So i start my towel dry, and it's really easy. The panels look a lot wetter then they really are. I do the whole car without having to ring out. It streaks, but the little residue it does leave, is dry enough for a QD and a plush microfibre. So I decide to do an experiment: I'd dry a panel and then mist it down again. 








Low n behold, it's beading again. It's not amazing, but it beads. 








Repeated the experiment on the bonnet. And I think what I've discovered is actually a feature of the ADS Graphene wax. 
There's no denying, it's a hydrophillic wax. But what that means is it self dries to 90% but protects against water spots.
But when it is dry, the water still beads initially until it's wet enough to sheet off again.

And again, OMG is this wax glossy. It's made my piano trim oook completely pitch black and seems to have masked the vast majority of its swirls too!

Thanks for reading, it was a long-en I know.


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## Wilco (Apr 22, 2010)

Great write up Tony. I did say it was unlike and wax you've used before and glad the gloss levels were the same as I found. It's a strange one for sure the way it reacts to water.


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## Fairtony (Mar 12, 2018)

Quick question, I’m using Bouncers Done n dusted. Does it lay down any slickness or hydrophbisity? I’m trying to use a QD that is more of a lubrication only. (Is use ONR typically, but I’m all out)


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## sm81 (May 14, 2011)

Yes it will


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## Andyblue (Jun 20, 2017)

Cracking write up / review Tony. Certainly looks cracking gloss levels - wondering if you apply your QD on top of it to improve the water beading, but the wax will still give you that gloss ?


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## Fairtony (Mar 12, 2018)

sm81 said:


> Yes it will


Can you elaborate any more? I was lead to believe Bouncers Done and Dusted was a pure QD, which didn't leave behind any beading properties etc.



Andyblue said:


> wondering if you apply your QD on top of it to improve the water beading, but the wax will still give you that gloss ?


That will certainly be what I do with the rest of the car, I'm loving Anglewax Enigma QED right now, so was planning on using that. The bonnet will be left unspoilt though.


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## sm81 (May 14, 2011)

Fairtony said:


> Can you elaborate any more? I was lead to believe Bouncers Done and Dusted was a pure QD, which didn't leave behind any beading properties etch.


Please ask for Bouncers section but IMO it leaves little bit protection to


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## The_Bouncer (Nov 24, 2010)

sm81 said:


> Please ask for Bouncers section but IMO it leaves little bit protection to


Correct - Whilst D&D is not built to offer long term protection, it will leave a short layer.

Most Q'D's that are out there will be similar, in order for them to work, they do leave a slight layer behind. - some longer than others.

Thx

J


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## Pinny (Dec 15, 2016)

Any updates on this.
How has the wax been performing? Any good combos found ?
Thanks


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## AndyKay (Mar 4, 2012)

GleemSpray said:


> Does it really contain Graphene? Or is that just a marketing term?
> 
> I stand to be corrected, but my understanding of current progress in bringing actual Graphene into manufacturing is that it is both rare and incredibly expensive.
> 
> ...


^^ did anyone answer this?

Its almost like some Schwarzkopf hair product I saw that advertised 'Carbon Force'

is it just a marketing gimmick?


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## dogma (Feb 12, 2008)

Pinny said:


> Any updates on this.
> How has the wax been performing? Any good combos found ?
> Thanks


Not sure on durability yet. I used IGL F4 and then topped it with ADS Grahene crystal wax and my white BMW looks dripping wet.


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