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Car/truck exterior care question
Posted on 7/25/17 at 12:21 pm
Posted on 7/25/17 at 12:21 pm
OK with all the new products in the past 5 yrs or so for keeping your vehicle looking good, is there a consensus on which is better or preferred:
1 - clay bar
2 - clay towel/mitt
3 - "clay" eraser (for those that don't know it's basically a synthetic clay bar)
What's the Outdoor Board say?
1 - clay bar
2 - clay towel/mitt
3 - "clay" eraser (for those that don't know it's basically a synthetic clay bar)
What's the Outdoor Board say?
Posted on 7/25/17 at 12:31 pm to Wtodd
I used a clay bar on my wife's car many years ago. This was the car that she had when we got married. The paint (or something on the paint) was not smooth at all.
I bought a clay bar and worked on it. It was a pain in the arse and took forever but made a huge difference.
Never used any of the other stuff.
I bought a clay bar and worked on it. It was a pain in the arse and took forever but made a huge difference.
Never used any of the other stuff.
Posted on 7/25/17 at 4:48 pm to Wtodd
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:
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:
Posted on 7/25/17 at 9:28 pm to Wtodd
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.
Clay helps in removing contaminants so you can polish, then protect with wax. It's not the only step in removal though.
Posted on 7/26/17 at 11:38 am to Wtodd
quote:Sometimes I run it thru one of those 10 dollar deals if it wont rain enough.
What's the Outdoor Board say?
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