Clay or Polishing compound - poor pics attached

[guy1138]

Background: Wife`s white (yay!) 1997 T-bird. This car has been in Hawaii for 2 years now, and I don`t think it`s been waxed in all that time. Hasn`t been washed much either. I got the bug to rehab this car b/c the wife has been out of town for awhile, so I have to look at this dirty car everyday. Anyway, I broke out some Meguiars cleaner wax to rub out some scuffs from a parking lot bump a couple of months ago, and it worked so good, I thought I would try to rehab the whole thing.



I started with Meguiars gold wash and a sponge. It got some of the grime off but the red pineapple dirt was still on there like glue. So tried using a bug sponge the passenger rear quarter panel. I followed it up with a coat of the Meg. cleaner wax. Here`s how it looked.

http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/2626/picture0065kd.th.jpg (http://img299.imageshack.us/my.php?image=picture0065kd.jpg)



Actually, it`s not too shabby, I can live with that, and plan on using the NXT wax when I finish the whole car.



The next night I used some TW polishing compound (green label mild stuff, not the red beastly stuff) on the hazed plastic headlights then coated them with wax too, then I went to Florida for a week.



I came back tonight and resumed my bug sponge routine, but I broke out the polishing compound for some hard to get spots, scratches on the door handle, and the entire lower rocker panel/body cladding. It was just too tough. Now, I know the paint is softer on the plastic cladding, but am I really risking anything serious here? Should I be using a clay bar instead? More pics of the condition of the car below. Sorry they`re crappy, but I really only have time to do this stuff in the evening.



http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/6660/picture0033bo.th.jpg (http://img293.imageshack.us/my.php?image=picture0033bo.jpg)http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/3480/picture0040nf.th.jpg (http://img153.imageshack.us/my.php?image=picture0040nf.jpg)http://img238.imageshack.us/img238/6899/picture0052ir.th.jpg (http://img238.imageshack.us/my.php?image=picture0052ir.jpg)



Any further advice would be greatly appreciated. Can I use this polishing compound on the water etching on the glass? The TW website says I can, but I want your guys` opinion.



I`m thinking of entering this car in the July detail contest, but unfortunately I don`t think it will win due to the fact that my skills are weak, and the before shots of the car taken at night don`t do justice to how bad this car actually is.

[Setec Astronomy]

No, that side shot does justice! I think it just depends on how much time/money you want to spend. If you want to clay first--all that pineapple crap on there will kill your clay bar--so if you`re ok with tossing it after, do that first, then go back over with the polish to finish. If not, just keep going with what you`ve been doing.

[Bill D]

:confused: Invisible photos? :confused:

[guy1138]

Thanks for the vote of confidence Mike. So which is typically more abrasive, the polish or the clay bar? If I finish the whole car using the polish should I follow it with a claybar, or would that be a step backward?



Is anybody else other than Bill having trouble with the photos?

[the other pc]

I see the pix OK.



Most clays won`t abrade paint because the lubricant used creates a "fluid bearing" effect. They just abrade anything sticking up above the fluid film.



Depending on the particular polish you`re using it may be anywhere from barely abrasive to very abrasive.



Clay first to remove crud that`s stuck on the paint. Then polish to smooth out the defects in the paint`s surface.





PC.

[Setec Astronomy]

The conventional wisdom is that the clay will remove stuck-on stuff while removing less paint than if you polished. Meguiar`s likes to use the terms, I think they are "above-surface" and "below-surface" contaminants. So something stuck ON the paint is "above-surface" and something stuck IN the pores is "below-surface". So you use the clay on the above, then a polish for the below. As I said earlier, the only reason some people would use the clay second would be to keep from ruining the clay prematurely...of course others throw the clay away after use anyway.

[oversteer]

I came back tonight and resumed my bug sponge routine, but I broke out the polishing compound for some hard to get spots, scratches on the door handle, and the entire lower rocker panel/body cladding. It was just too tough. Now, I know the paint is softer on the plastic cladding, but am I really risking anything serious here? Should I be using a clay bar instead? More pics of the condition of the car below. Sorry they`re crappy, but I really only have time to do this stuff in the evening.



Just to clarify, a clay bar won`t do anything to fix the scratches. Maybe try the rubbing compound first (to take care of all the itty-gritty work), followed by a clay bar, and finally the cleaner/wax. Clay kits are fairly expensive, but using the compound first might extend the life of the clay.

[guy1138]

Thanks for all the info. The car really isn`t scratched very much, so maybe this polish is over-kill. I am keeping it lubed with soapy water as I polish though, so I hope that will reduce the "scuffing" of the clear

[oversteer]

Thanks for all the info. The car really isn`t scratched very much, so maybe this polish is over-kill. I am keeping it lubed with soapy water as I polish though, so I hope that will reduce the "scuffing" of the clear



You mean "clay," right? Personally, I prefer using a quick detailer as a lubricant. It`s only slightly more expensive, but a lot less messy.

[guy1138]

You mean "clay," right?



No, I mean polish. I`m using TW polishing compound. The directions say to use a well dampened cloth, so I`m keeping the cloth wet with soapy water, while ensuring the area that I`m working on is also wet.

[imported_themightytimmah]

TW polishing compound :nervous2:. That might be ok on white, but honestly, I think that you`d do well switching to something better. Meg`s #80. You`ll put the same effort in, but the results will be nicer.

[guy1138]

I`ll check and see if the local auto places have it. I`m in Hawaii, so I`m not too thrilled about mail order :-(