Car/truck exterior care question

Clay bars are designed to grab the leftover particulates from the painted surface that regular washing does not remove. All that's needed is a slick liquid to make the clay glide otherwise it tends to stick. You just slide the clay across each panel until it starts feeling smooth and then fold it over when moving on to the next panel.

My own "quick-clay" technique is to wash my car, then use a foam sponge and grab suds from the clean water bucket (2-bucket method has a clean bucket and a rinse bucket). Then go panel by panel and squeeze some suds out to make the clay glide then rinse the area. After you've done the whole vehicle, rinse down everything and dry with a microfiber towel.

Claying your car will not remove defects but will make for a much slicker surface for wax to adhere to. If you want to get some of the defects out of your clear coat, you'll need to do some machine polishing work or pay someone like me to do it (if you're near/in BR I can check it out). And also stop going through automated carwashes if you want your paint and clear coat to last and look nice.

Here's an example of a two step polish I did on my dad's old Silverado:



And here's an example of a partially-polished hood of a friend's car whose paint was in awful condition:



And after the whole car was done:

How crazy do you want to get with your detail job?

Clay helps in removing contaminants so you can polish, then protect with wax. It's not the only step in removal though.

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How crazy do you want to get with your detail job?

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Not that crazy......I'm actually damn good at detailing; inside & outside. I just want to preserve the finish.

When I washed & waxed my truck Sunday I noticed a few spots that wouldn't come out so I started researching clay bars which lead me to clay towels, erasers, etc. I want to get the spots (they're not water spots) out. FYI I don't wash my truck every week but I don't want the paint all dicked up either.

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Is it hard to really screw the paint up with a high speed grinder type polisher?

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It's not hard at all. You MAY be better off paying a body shop to do it for you......seriously.

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Also, what's the best way to remove dried wax from black plastic parts, like the tailgate handle? I have a little that dried before I could get it off.

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I would think Windex with an old toothbrush would get if off fairly easy.

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Is it hard to really screw the paint up with a high speed grinder type polisher?

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yes.

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what's the best way to remove dried wax from black plastic parts, like the tailgate handle?

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brush, picks and they make a remover that works great in textured areas

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you really need to smooth out the paint before wax if you want to get rid of all the defects

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Which is why I started the thread

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You might need to do a decontamination

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find a cleaning polish

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Serious question: if I use the clay bar (or clay towel or eraser), wouldn't that eliminate the cleaning polish part?

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What's the Outdoor Board say?

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Sometimes I run it thru one of those 10 dollar deals if it wont rain enough.

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When I washed & waxed my truck Sunday I noticed a few spots that wouldn't come out so I started researching clay bars which lead me to clay towels, erasers, etc. I want to get the spots (they're not water spots) out. FYI I don't wash my truck every week but I don't want the paint all dicked up either.

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Those spots are likely defects in your clear coat, which as I mentioned early, clay bar will not remove. Clay bar will only remove the particulate from the surface, it won't actually correct any paint.

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Is it hard to really screw the paint up with a high speed grinder type polisher?

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If you use a standard rotary polisher (meaning the pad only rotates) then yes it's quite easy to burn through clear coat.

But if using an orbital buffer (spins and oscillates) with a clutch built in (no clutch is called "forced rotation") it's actually very difficult to screw up your paint.

Here are a few I would advise with the top recommendation being the Porter Cable:

I've been using this exact same model Porter Cable for nearly 5 years and my detailing friend who taught me how to detail has one going on 10+. For around $100 it's an excellent value and will give you years of use.

https://www.amazon.com/PORTER-CABLE-7346SP-6-Inch-Random-Polishing/dp/B002EQ96MG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1501092859&sr=8-2&keywords=porter+cable+orbital



If you're feeling crazier you can invest in a Rupes polisher. The upside of the Rupes is that it has a 21mm throw so it covers a lot more area quickly. But you'll likely still need a small pad with the PC polisher to get the pillars and small panels.

https://www.amazon.com/Rupes-LHR21ES-Random-Orbital-Polisher/dp/B00F5MCF3S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501092996&sr=8-1&keywords=rupes+buffer



And if you want forced rotation (no clutch to stop the rotation on corners) get a Flex polisher.

https://www.amazon.com/Flex-XC3401VRG-Positive-Drive-Rotary-Orbital-Polisher/dp/B001DB0NVG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501093053&sr=8-1&keywords=flex+buffer



Also take note of what kind of backplate and polishing pad you use. Autogeek has excellent backplates for Lake Country pads. Get one that threads onto the PC and you won't ever have to buy one again. If you wanted to buy the polishing pads and the buffer together, Autogeek pairs them nicely.

https://www.autogeek.net/lc43125.html

They make different levels of pads in terms of cut so you will need to get the right one for your paint. Some clear coat is super hard and needs a stronger cut and some clear is super soft and scratches easily even with a medium cut compound. Here are some helpful charts:



I find the most common pads I use are orange and blue, using the orange for heavy compounding and the blue for the finish polish if doing a two step polish (85%-95% correction). If only doing a one-step polish (65%-75% correction) I usually use a white pad.



Most common I use for a one-step polish is the IP with a white pad. For a two step, I like the SF with a blue pad for the finishing step.

And the best cutting compound I've found is Meguiar's M101. It has crazy cutting ability without scorching your paint. M101 with an orange pad will get rid of almost anything short of wet sanding.



And to reiterate loudly:

If you want your paint to last and not look like crap, stop going through automated carwashes. The brushes are not helping your paint, they are only putting more scratches on your clear coat.

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Also, what's the best way to remove dried wax from black plastic parts, like the tailgate handle

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Try isopropyl alcohol or nail polish remover. Unfortunately unpainted plastics will age from sunlight and nature no matter what. You could also use Mother's Back to Black to hydrate the plastic and make it look shiny. But it will still not permanently get rid of the fading.

(Sorry for all the text - Bookmarking for later use).

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80 miles on a brand new ferrari. When you put a bright light on it, they all come out.

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People are always shocked when they see how marred the factory finish is on brand new vehicles.

Dealerships, manufacturers, and body shops are notorious for not giving a shite about the clear coat. They want it to look clean but don't care about any cob webbing or swirl marks that become apparent under a light.

If you want real paint correction, don't go to a paint shop. Call a local detailer and see how it's really done.