Prep advice needed

[ACE]

On my own car, i`ll always wash, clay, polish and seal, but I also do some outside work and I need a product that will leave the finish as smooth as possible without clay. In other words, I want to wash, use the cleaner/prep product and then seal. I`m not looking for a 1-step product because that isn`t going to do it on a 5 year old finish. What do you recommend? I`m using a PC with a variety of pads, so that`s not a problem.

[dafowl1]

Wow you clay everytime I only clay around every two to three months. Should I clay more?

[TheSopranos16]

Dafowl, to my knowledge, clay every 2-3 months is fine, thats about how often I do it.

Ace, without clay, it is difficult to get rit of the gritty feel that 5 year old paint inevitably has. You can get the surface to be smooth inbetween the "bumps" of paint contamination that the clay would otherwise remove. To do that, I would reccomend Menzerna FP. It is abrasive which will take care of swirls, but it doesn`t require any follow up product, so you can go right to wax or sealent. If I were you though, I would somehow offer your customers the option of clay and charge them an extra 10 -20 bucks for it. If you do it while the car is still wet after washing, it only takes about 20 minutes. You still have to use some type of lube of corse...

[ACE]

You`re probably right. The finish is just never going to be right without clay. I`ve used Megs Crystal Cleaner with a PC and the finish is good enough for most people, but not for me. On a 5-year old car, I find I have to use the cleaner prior to clay or you`re going to blow a $20 clay bar on one vehicle. It`s unbelievable how much dirt paint picks up in a few years when it is never properly cleaned, and i`m talking about cars that are in good shape too.

[edschwab1]

Originally posted by TheSopranos16
If I were you though, I would somehow offer your customers the option of clay and charge them an extra 10 -20 bucks for it. If you do it while the car is still wet after washing, it only takes about 20 minutes. You still have to use some type of lube of corse...

I agree with this. You could as include claying in your process and in the price quote for the job. There is always AI ABC wash system, which can be used as an alternative to claying.

Eric

[Nickc0844]

Definitely clay, that`s really the best way to get that silky finish. As for you clay bars not lasting, I would suggest using an elastic one that is self cleaning like Adam`s Polishes or Wolfgang`s.

[dr_detail]

Without the clay, be prepared to do some serious buffing and/or rubbing... Here is a link (http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=42158) I posted on another board with a tried and true method that will leave a show car finish. You can omit step one.