I'd recently bought the new 50/50 version after considering the last version for a while and then being convinced by the comments made by a few of the members on here.
A week later I then won a Britemax competition on FB so was lucky enough to get my hands on their new Vantage wax.
There was surely therefore only one thing to do... a comparison test of the 2 on my car.
Here's my thoughts and views on how the 2 waxes compare :thumb:
Price and packaging:
Price wise these 2 come in at £40 or as near as makes no difference (pence in it) so they are match there.
Packaging wise, well it depends what you are looking for. 50/50 is a simple shiny tin with a chrome label / security tab across the lid and side with a hand written "signature" on the lid also. It kind of mixes simplicity with style in a way but doesnt shout out at you or really draw your attention.
Vantage comes in a pastic pot with printed labels all over it giving the name, description and application instructions. Definitely more detailed than 50/50 but it isnt over the top if you like that sort of thing on your products.
As i said, depends what you are looking for or how you like your products to look.
DSCF1469 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Contents:
I actually forgot to take a pic of the wax itself. Both are natural in colour and looks. 50/50 has a slightly more chemical fragrance to it where Vantage has a scent of coconut to it. Neither smell especially glorious to be honest (if you are used to stronger, fruity smelling waxes) but they arent off putting by any stretch.
Both are relatively soft in texture, in the tin 50/50 feeling slightly more so when swiped with a finger.
Preparation of the car:
Essentially the car was wash and dried. It is currently wearing 6 layers of ZFX'd Z2 and has only been wiped down with Z6 between washes since. I didnt have time nor really wanted to strip back that protection and although this wont be a "clean" surface for the waxes to sit on i did feel that it was slick enough to see how they performed from an LSP perspective.
The car hasnt been machine polished for around 12 months (maybe longer) so in places there are a few small defects from general daily use but again these were not significant enough to detract from the test.
Few pics of the car cleaned and ready
DSCF1470 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
DSCF1471 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Application:
I decided to cover the drivers side with 50/50 and the passengers with Vantage. I left the roof out but later gave that a wipedown with Zaino Z8 for the crack :thumb:
Using 2 brand new identical foam applicators i did a panel at a time switching between the waxes so i could get a good feel for how each one went onto the car over the different sections. 50/50 was slightly dryer in application over Vantage which was buttery soft and was very easy to spread. In saying that it was easier to get a super thin layer from 50/50 with less spreading of the product to achieve the same application.
Of the 2 i preferred the way Vantage went onto the car, is was a lot less effort and actually nice to be able to re work the wax over the panel rather than it feeling slightly more "tacky" as 50/50 did.
Bonnet with 50/50 and Vantage applied
DSCF1474 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Curing:
Although it was sunny the temps had barely risen beyond 5 degrees so although both waxes suggest a 15 - 20 minute cure time i did leave them a little longer and tested with a finger swipe before buffing.
I'd actually applied them to the whole car (except the roof as mentioned) by the time they were ready to be taken off, having time to apply Z8 on the roof and trim the tyres.
Buffing:
As with application i ensured the buffing cloths were new and the same. Eurow shag weave MF towels (
http://www.shinearama.co.uk/product.php?id=EUR-MTS12) were brought out for the job.
What was immediately apparent when buffing was that 50/50 buffed almost like there was nothing on the panel. I have never buffed a product that required so little effort and lightness of touch.
Vantage was easy but when compared to 50/50 felt slightly more tacky in removal even though fully cured.
Had the test been against something like Colli 476s or Megs #16 then Vantage would have felt like a breeze to remove but in this test if fell short of 50/50 for sheer ease of removal.
Results:
Well this is actually much harder to call. Side by side on my paint i cannot really tell any difference. Arguably the sun was on one side of the car and the other slightly more shaded in the pics but during the day i had chance to look round the car a few times and i still couldnt tell them apart.
Maybe, and thats a very big maybe, there is a slightly increase in the flake pop from 50/50 but there is maybe a slightly wetter look from Vantage on the wings and rear end curves, again, so minimal that its hard to tell.
Visually then there matched. The real deciding factor will come from durability and water behaviour of which i have no results as yet since we've had a 2nd day of fine weather.
To the pics then...
Bonnet after (Vantage side closest)
DSCF1476 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Roof in Z8, just for the hell of it
DSCF1477 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Passenger (Vantage) side
DSCF1478 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Rear corner (Vantage)
DSCF1479 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Rear corner (50/50)
DSCF1480 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Drivers side (50/50)
DSCF1481 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Flake in the sun (50/50)
DSCF1482 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Drivers front wing (50/50)
DSCF1484 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Passenger wing (Vantage)
DSCF1485 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Front view
DSCF1486 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Rear view
DSCF1487 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Bonnet this morning at work (50/50 side closest)
DSCF1492 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
Rear corner view
DSCF1495 by
n_d_fox, on Flickr
So there we are... overall i couldnt chose between these 2 from the testing so far. On price and looks after use they are tied. Vantage applies easier imo but 50/50 buffs easier imo so results so far are they are neck and neck. I'll update the thread as and when we get rain and the car is washed etc. Also keeping an eye on gloss, protection and durability as we go along.
Thanks for looking through, C&C welcome :thumb:
Nige
