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Car-Brite seminar
Posted by turbomangt
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Car-Brite seminar November 19, 2003 02:32PM |
Registered: 17 years ago Posts: 333 |
<HTML>Just returned form a two day seminar hosted by Car-Brite, it was nice meeting up with jim, and I appreciate the fact he informed me about it. I cannot over state how informative it was. The class is designed mainly for their reps, but they don't limit it to them only. They have a limited amount of seating, and Jim and I were the only detailers there. The two days included actually detailing two cars in their shop. The morning was class instruction, afternoon was hands on. They were a great host, no cost to us/ took us out to lunch both days, and provided us with any samples we want. The plus> great education, product information. They went over most of their line in each catagory, how they work, and what they are used for. Then we used the products in a real situation. I have enough literature to read for 2 months, all valuable tools to use day to day. The only thing that kind of floored me was the amount of products they carry (over 650!) They carry over 60 dressings alone. To me , its overkill. But many of the variations from what they told us was in the color, fragrance and such. Even still, too many choices. They have all the quality control in place, and ship world wide. They focus on education, and this was a true reflection of that. Jim will add some comments soon as well, from my standpoint, I wish I saw more of this type of thing. Gary</HTML>
"Clean cars drive better" www.perfectautofinish.com
"Clean cars drive better" www.perfectautofinish.com
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Re: Car-Brite seminar November 20, 2003 03:33AM |
Registered: 17 years ago Posts: 751 |
<HTML>It was a great two days. First off I have to say that Gary is one of the nicest people I have ever met , a real gent !
The training was excellent, very professional and very thorough. I think the one thing I really came to realize was "how much I didnt know" once again.
Several things really stood out. The Car Brite trainer was excellent, and at no time were they critical of any other chemical company or product. No bad mouthing the competition or their products. There was no sales pitch , of course we only used CB products but they didnt try to sell a thing , they simply taught us how to use chemicals properly.
I was writing notes as fast as I could, which means that now I am home I can hardly read them , but I will share some of the things I learnt and was told.
Right at the start, the trainer informed us ( as has been stated here many times) that essentially all detailing compounds/waxes/cleaners are the same , they are made from the same base chemicals , silicones, solvents, surfactants, resins . There may be a difference in the way they are mixed etc, but they do the same thing. The real difference is in the way they are used or applied by the end-user ..this is what makes certain products stand out, and why CB rely on training their end users rather than using mass marketing and heavy promotion.
Gary made the point that the whole range of products runs to a total of about 650 , closer to 700 now we were told, it's a staggering number . What they do is make some of their products in different ways when requested by the distrubitor, so one wax that you buy in Arizona may be formulated in different way to the one you buy in Alaska ( just an example there) .
An intresting point that was made was that waxes do not really vastly improve the gloss or shine of a painted surface. The trainer told us that when they used the gloss meter to measure the increases after waxing , they were not that great. In order to get a true lasting gloss, you have to level the painted surface and correct it , the better the painted finish is, the better the gloss or shine will be, the waxes themselves only enhance it or protect it. The leveling and cleaning of the surface does much more for the gloss of the finish than the wax applied.
Another thing that fell in to the "I dont know why I didnt know that ' category was that around 90% of the wax that you apply to the painted surface is wiped straight back off again. Thats right 90 % . There is no secret formula that makes the all the wax bond to the paint. Only the wax that is directly applied to the paint will bond, so the other mm or so that dries on top is just wiped back off again. We put the product on and then take 90% of it off again ! The way to do it is simply apply the product very thinly, ideally with machine as these ensure a thinner and more consistent thickness of wax. Those people we know that apply six or seven coats of wax to a vehicle will probably be sick when they read this, but wax simply does not bond very well to wax, it is formulated to bond to the painted surface, not to itself.
Car Brite do use Teflon in some of its sealant and waxes, and openly admitted that it does nothing for the durability of the product or increase its protection. It is simply put in the product to make it easier to apply . They dont put the Teflon name on the label as apparently DuPont now charge everyone a fee to use the Teflon name, and CarBrite werent willing to pay the money. So for those people that pay more for a product that has the Teflon name on the label, your just paying the manufacturere to cover his licenceing fee. Nice.
We were told at the start of the session, that Gary and I would be told some information that a lot of manufactureres probably wouldnt normally share with the end users. We were given one book , normally only given to the distrubitors that has one page for every single item they make, it lists the advantages and disadvantages for every one. It was intresting to read to say the least . You might think this is a bad thing but to me its a goldmine, it tells me about all the products I use and the drawbacks, or, if I am having a problem with it, what I might be doing wrong. Again, it's educating the end user how to use the product that makes the difference.
We got to tour the plant too , and the lab. Was eye opening to see a 1500 gallon vat of car wax , and we were going to see the glossmeter in action. However, put 12 detailers in a room and try getting through the class on schedule ! We had a competition (sort of ) on the last day, we broke in to two teams and each detailed the vehicles we had been working on, and then qc'd each others work, lot of good natured teasing and threatening etc.
I really could go on for hours about the things we saw and learnt over those two days, not to mention all the freebies we walked away with, a large travel bag, some buffing pads, compounds, waxes and sealants , a nice detailers smock and folders from one to two inches thick just packed with first class information. We were treated very well, free lunch at a nice restaurant . The evening Gary and I left they were all off to a ball game courtesy of Carbrite.
Best two days training I ever had , and would reccomend it to anyone .
Jim.</HTML>
The training was excellent, very professional and very thorough. I think the one thing I really came to realize was "how much I didnt know" once again.
Several things really stood out. The Car Brite trainer was excellent, and at no time were they critical of any other chemical company or product. No bad mouthing the competition or their products. There was no sales pitch , of course we only used CB products but they didnt try to sell a thing , they simply taught us how to use chemicals properly.
I was writing notes as fast as I could, which means that now I am home I can hardly read them , but I will share some of the things I learnt and was told.
Right at the start, the trainer informed us ( as has been stated here many times) that essentially all detailing compounds/waxes/cleaners are the same , they are made from the same base chemicals , silicones, solvents, surfactants, resins . There may be a difference in the way they are mixed etc, but they do the same thing. The real difference is in the way they are used or applied by the end-user ..this is what makes certain products stand out, and why CB rely on training their end users rather than using mass marketing and heavy promotion.
Gary made the point that the whole range of products runs to a total of about 650 , closer to 700 now we were told, it's a staggering number . What they do is make some of their products in different ways when requested by the distrubitor, so one wax that you buy in Arizona may be formulated in different way to the one you buy in Alaska ( just an example there) .
An intresting point that was made was that waxes do not really vastly improve the gloss or shine of a painted surface. The trainer told us that when they used the gloss meter to measure the increases after waxing , they were not that great. In order to get a true lasting gloss, you have to level the painted surface and correct it , the better the painted finish is, the better the gloss or shine will be, the waxes themselves only enhance it or protect it. The leveling and cleaning of the surface does much more for the gloss of the finish than the wax applied.
Another thing that fell in to the "I dont know why I didnt know that ' category was that around 90% of the wax that you apply to the painted surface is wiped straight back off again. Thats right 90 % . There is no secret formula that makes the all the wax bond to the paint. Only the wax that is directly applied to the paint will bond, so the other mm or so that dries on top is just wiped back off again. We put the product on and then take 90% of it off again ! The way to do it is simply apply the product very thinly, ideally with machine as these ensure a thinner and more consistent thickness of wax. Those people we know that apply six or seven coats of wax to a vehicle will probably be sick when they read this, but wax simply does not bond very well to wax, it is formulated to bond to the painted surface, not to itself.
Car Brite do use Teflon in some of its sealant and waxes, and openly admitted that it does nothing for the durability of the product or increase its protection. It is simply put in the product to make it easier to apply . They dont put the Teflon name on the label as apparently DuPont now charge everyone a fee to use the Teflon name, and CarBrite werent willing to pay the money. So for those people that pay more for a product that has the Teflon name on the label, your just paying the manufacturere to cover his licenceing fee. Nice.
We were told at the start of the session, that Gary and I would be told some information that a lot of manufactureres probably wouldnt normally share with the end users. We were given one book , normally only given to the distrubitors that has one page for every single item they make, it lists the advantages and disadvantages for every one. It was intresting to read to say the least . You might think this is a bad thing but to me its a goldmine, it tells me about all the products I use and the drawbacks, or, if I am having a problem with it, what I might be doing wrong. Again, it's educating the end user how to use the product that makes the difference.
We got to tour the plant too , and the lab. Was eye opening to see a 1500 gallon vat of car wax , and we were going to see the glossmeter in action. However, put 12 detailers in a room and try getting through the class on schedule ! We had a competition (sort of ) on the last day, we broke in to two teams and each detailed the vehicles we had been working on, and then qc'd each others work, lot of good natured teasing and threatening etc.
I really could go on for hours about the things we saw and learnt over those two days, not to mention all the freebies we walked away with, a large travel bag, some buffing pads, compounds, waxes and sealants , a nice detailers smock and folders from one to two inches thick just packed with first class information. We were treated very well, free lunch at a nice restaurant . The evening Gary and I left they were all off to a ball game courtesy of Carbrite.
Best two days training I ever had , and would reccomend it to anyone .
Jim.</HTML>
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