This rider continues to find the matte to be more fragile than the gloss finish on his previous bike. Of course, it doesn’t help that scratches show white underneath. Not a dealbreaker, but not the same either. The matte blue looks really good, dirty or clean.
I’ll eventually try the Dr. Beasley’s ceramic for matte, as recommended by Dan H.
My 2018 recently got a bath after who knows how long, and I had some observations. As noted elsewhere, the Chemical Guy’s Jet Seal Matte is a horror on plastic. Same bike, same color, the jet seal works superbly on the (metal) tank, but leaves heinous chalky streaks on plastic. These are terribly difficult to remove, even with soap and water. The streaks are long lasting. This happens regardless of the temperature or humidity at the time of application.
I recently stumbled across a new post in a detailing forum (many, many mentions of the problems jet seal matte causes on plastic paint or wraps) noting that, if the jet seal matte is removed quickly (ignoring chemical guys instructions), it reduces or eliminates streaking.
Tried it. Found that if you remove the jet seal matte from the plastic within 60-90 seconds (max) of application, it does not streak. It remains to be seen how much of it actually stays behind, being removed so quickly with no set time. Next time I wash the bike I’ll see how it looks.
I really like the chemical guys “spray sealant matte detailer”. Does what it’s supposed to when it’s dry and dusty and you’re trying cut the film, and a small bottle works for screens and shields too while I’m on the road. A rep for Meguiar’s has mentioned in a couple of places that their ultimate quick wax works fine on matte finishes as long as you spray it on a cloth and not directly on the finish. This is not the case. The product leaves the finish looking greasy. No great loss.