Nanolex Urban First Test...

Bigpikle · 04-07-2009, 02:50 PM

Thanks firstly to Florian for a chance to test a beta sample of the new Urban windscreen sealant

I'll start by saying I am a BIG fan of Carlack, so I'm coming to this with a different favourite product in mind from the start. It is going to have to be good to convince me... I have used a different long life glass sealant which really didnt impress me at all after a couple of weeks, and recently I tried the original Premium Glass sealant from Nanolex with mixed experiences. It just didnt seem to be performing properly. I have since fully cleaned it so will be seeing how it performs once we get some rain again....

I decided to do a 50/50 application of Urban vs Premium Glass sealant, as that was applied to my screen only a few weeks ago.

Some pics of the process...

Screen washed with shampoo and a very harsh sponge from a AG fabric roof kit

Cleaned with AG glass polish for an abrasive clean

Cleaned TWICE with Carlack glass cleaner for a deep chemical clean, and each time cleaned with IPA inbetween to remove any residues.

Then applied the Urban with a cotton terry cloth, in overlapping circles and left to haze over for 5-6 minutes.

It buffed off very easily with a clean MF, so I sprayed on some water to test beading. It also felt to have a VERY slick smooth surface and thats not something I have noticed from a glass sealant before?

Not the best pics but you'll se both sides look to have very tight upright beads...

Urban

Original Premium Glass sealant

Then I decided to video the sheeting action of both sides, as it was still sunny and no signs of raining any more

YouTube - Nanolex Urban Day 1

Frankly I saw no real difference on performance in this test, but I also dont believe this kind of static test is very representative of glass sealant performance. Both sealants cleared the water VERY well and beads can clearly be seen rolling down the screen. this is exactly what i would be hoping for so all looks well so far. I will be out with a video camera next time it rains significantly, as long as I can convince my assistant to play

Will keep some updates coming over the next weeks and months.

So far I can summarise that application was VERY easy for this type of product. It leaves a VERY slick finish to the glass and initial tests look very promising

Bigpikle · 04-07-2009, 02:50 PM

Update 1

It finally rained while I was out today, so no video yet but some anecdotal observations:

1. It clearly performs 'better' than the Premium Glass Sealant (PGS)

2. Roll-off started at about 25mph, when noticeable 'blobs' of water began to move across the screen. At the same stage there was no roll-off noticeable on the PGS

3. By 30mph there was significant roll-off happening. I maintained that speed for a while and with the medium rain that was falling, the screen was probably not free of rain enough for safe driving.

4. At 35mph the screen was really clearing quite well. Roll-off was also noticeable on the PGS side as well by now. I would say this was the speed at which zero wiper use would probably have been OK. I was driving in open countryside where there was some wind blowing and medium rainfall eg enough that you would have got quite wet if you stood outside for a couple of minutes.

5. By 40-45mph the water was 'flying off' the screen very fast and both sides were working very well. The Urban product had less residual water (splatter from water drops hitting the screen etc) than the PGS side.

6. Even when parked during rain, the Urban product makes water roll off faster than the Premium. The Urban side of the screen had perhaps 50% as much water sitting on it as the Premium side.

Conclusions so far:

The Urban really does work 'better' in lower speed conditions that the PGS. Both were performing very well at speeds where Carlack and other quality glass sealants also perform. My feeling is that the Urban product was moving a considerable amount of water at speeds LOWER than the Carlack product would have been working anywhere near as well - but thats just based on 10-15 miles driving so far, so more testing needed.

I have 1 or 2 other observations I want to follow up on and try and repeat before commenting, but so far this stuff really seems to be delivering what it promises.

Bigpikle · 04-07-2009, 02:51 PM

Today saw the first results on a screen split 50/50 with the Carlack kit.

We had some light rain, significantly less than in the above tests, but enough to see the effects. The Urban really only started to have roll-off at 40mph this time (due to the lighter rain) but the Carlack wasnt rolling off at all at that speed. It wasnt until about 50mph in these conditions that the Carlack started to have significant roll-off and it was clear that the Urban was clearing MUCH more water from the screen at the same speed.

I didnt get a video as it was just me in the car, but the effect was quite clear. The bottom 30% of the Carlack side wasnt clearing as there obviously wasnt enough water and speed. The same section of the Urban side had about half as much water left on it and was safe for driving with IMHO. The difference was much more noticeable than I expected, and I say that as a very experienced fan of the Carlack stuff.

We are expecting heavier rain later so I'll test again and hopefully get a passenger to video it as well. No promises though....

So far, 2/2 test wins for the urban in my opinion

Bulla2000 · 04-07-2009, 02:54 PM

Nice test. Hope to see more. Your video does not work.

badly_dubbed · 04-07-2009, 02:56 PM

nice reveiw, video is private so cannot view though

Bigpikle · 04-07-2009, 03:16 PM

fixed the video now - iMovie made it private for some reason

Neil_S · 04-07-2009, 04:40 PM

Nice one Damon, look forward to the updates!

Nanolex · 04-07-2009, 06:09 PM

Looks really good! Looking forward to updates on this!

Cheers,

Florian

Bulla2000 · 04-07-2009, 06:16 PM

Nice short video, excellent sheeting. Maybe I´m wrong but it sounds like a thunder in the background....

Bigpikle · 04-07-2009, 06:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bulla2000

Nice short video, excellent sheeting. Maybe I´m wrong but it sounds like a thunder in the background....

wind - mother natures, not mine

rain forecast early tomorrow so I know I'll be getting up early for a blast

04-07-2009, 02:50 PM	#2
Bigpikle Detailing Products Moderator Join Date: May 2007 Location: Riding my bike somewhere... Posts: 14,900 Thanks: 878 Thanked 1,964 Times in 1,420 Posts	Update 1 It finally rained while I was out today, so no video yet but some anecdotal observations: 1. It clearly performs 'better' than the Premium Glass Sealant (PGS) 2. Roll-off started at about 25mph, when noticeable 'blobs' of water began to move across the screen. At the same stage there was no roll-off noticeable on the PGS 3. By 30mph there was significant roll-off happening. I maintained that speed for a while and with the medium rain that was falling, the screen was probably not free of rain enough for safe driving. 4. At 35mph the screen was really clearing quite well. Roll-off was also noticeable on the PGS side as well by now. I would say this was the speed at which zero wiper use would probably have been OK. I was driving in open countryside where there was some wind blowing and medium rainfall eg enough that you would have got quite wet if you stood outside for a couple of minutes. 5. By 40-45mph the water was 'flying off' the screen very fast and both sides were working very well. The Urban product had less residual water (splatter from water drops hitting the screen etc) than the PGS side. 6. Even when parked during rain, the Urban product makes water roll off faster than the Premium. The Urban side of the screen had perhaps 50% as much water sitting on it as the Premium side. Conclusions so far: The Urban really does work 'better' in lower speed conditions that the PGS. Both were performing very well at speeds where Carlack and other quality glass sealants also perform. My feeling is that the Urban product was moving a considerable amount of water at speeds LOWER than the Carlack product would have been working anywhere near as well - but thats just based on 10-15 miles driving so far, so more testing needed. I have 1 or 2 other observations I want to follow up on and try and repeat before commenting, but so far this stuff really seems to be delivering what it promises. Last edited by Bigpikle; 06-07-2009 at 02:48 PM.

04-07-2009, 02:51 PM	#3
Bigpikle Detailing Products Moderator Join Date: May 2007 Location: Riding my bike somewhere... Posts: 14,900 Thanks: 878 Thanked 1,964 Times in 1,420 Posts	Today saw the first results on a screen split 50/50 with the Carlack kit. We had some light rain, significantly less than in the above tests, but enough to see the effects. The Urban really only started to have roll-off at 40mph this time (due to the lighter rain) but the Carlack wasnt rolling off at all at that speed. It wasnt until about 50mph in these conditions that the Carlack started to have significant roll-off and it was clear that the Urban was clearing MUCH more water from the screen at the same speed. I didnt get a video as it was just me in the car, but the effect was quite clear. The bottom 30% of the Carlack side wasnt clearing as there obviously wasnt enough water and speed. The same section of the Urban side had about half as much water left on it and was safe for driving with IMHO. The difference was much more noticeable than I expected, and I say that as a very experienced fan of the Carlack stuff. We are expecting heavier rain later so I'll test again and hopefully get a passenger to video it as well. No promises though.... So far, 2/2 test wins for the urban in my opinion Last edited by Bigpikle; 11-07-2009 at 10:22 AM.

04-07-2009, 04:40 PM	#7
Neil_S Administrator Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Chescestershire Posts: 15,290 Thanks: 97 Thanked 742 Times in 396 Posts	Nice one Damon, look forward to the updates! __________________ Want to understand Zaino? PLEASE VOTE ON THIS: here

04-07-2009, 06:09 PM	#8
Nanolex Nanolex Director Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 953 Thanks: 406 Thanked 221 Times in 187 Posts	Looks really good! Looking forward to updates on this! Cheers, Florian __________________

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04-07-2009, 02:54 PM	#4
Bulla2000 OCD Sufferer (Obsessive Car Detailer) Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Germany Posts: 1,404 Thanks: 140 Thanked 72 Times in 69 Posts	Nice test. Hope to see more. Your video does not work.

04-07-2009, 03:16 PM	#6
Bigpikle Detailing Products Moderator Join Date: May 2007 Location: Riding my bike somewhere... Posts: 14,900 Thanks: 878 Thanked 1,964 Times in 1,420 Posts	fixed the video now - iMovie made it private for some reason

04-07-2009, 06:16 PM	#9
Bulla2000 OCD Sufferer (Obsessive Car Detailer) Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Germany Posts: 1,404 Thanks: 140 Thanked 72 Times in 69 Posts	Nice short video, excellent sheeting. Maybe I´m wrong but it sounds like a thunder in the background....

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