Polish or Clay??

[Fordtaurus]

I recently purchased my 2014 Ford Taurus SHO and have had it for 4 months now. I have been using ardex sealant and wax on it since the beginning, only 1 coat of sealant and two coats of wax.
I have been thinking about claying a few areas but have heard mixed feelings about this route.
My buddy recommended I use the ardex 4302 1500+ finishing material as a polish on the whole car instead and then throw another coat of sealant for protection.
I have used Alpha Grit on two spots to take out minor surface scratches, so I am worried about the abrasiveness of the polish.
Basically I am looking to make the car alittle smoother and make it pop. The car is a metallic silver.
Any comments or ideas on either claying or polishing using the 1500+ please post!!

Thanks
Craig Palmer

[ShaneB]

ALWAYS clay before you polish. Claying removes surface contaminants that would otherwise just get grinded into the paint during polishing

[0inDetail0]

+1 always decon before you start correction of any kind

[RTexasF]

Your buddy may be correct but AFTER you clay the car.

[wdmaccord]

Agree with these guys. You should tear down what you have on there and start all over. On a brand new car I always decon wash, IronX, clay, polish, then seal.

[basswood]

Craig Palmer,

I am merely an enthusiast. Some of the alpha dogs have responded and I am confident the rest will.

Clay, clay and then clay.

Look at it this way. If you are going to build a house and the foundation is weak, the rest of the house will eventually collapse.

Claying is one part of building that foundation.

Best regards,
Tom

[The Driver]

Clay first, then polish. Imo go with menzerna, forget Ardex unless it`s the wheel cleaner... Menzerna 2500 would probably be perfect for a new ford, even if the dealer did get a hold of it.

[Stokdgs]

Welcome to the Forum ! This is a great place to learn and to grow in Detailing knowledge that will assist you in gaining the right experiences the firs time..

Also voting for thorough removal of all embedded junk in the pores of the paintwork first, before any compounding or polishing takes place.. Your paintwork will thank you for this by giving you some incredible clarity, gloss, and smoothness..

We talk about Claybars and they are really good and all, and certainly, I have used them for over a decade..

Then, we were able to find better Claybars and even a product made by Blackfire here, that helps clean out the incredible amount of crap that they will pick up from paintwork, so that the Claybar can be reused and not thrown out so quickly..

Then, we were able to see the development of special rubberized towels, that also are about as good as a Claybar, perhaps even better, and certainly much easier to use, and the cleaning of them is as simple as a rinse from the hose..

The one that I have used for years, since it came out, is here -- Detailer`s Speedy Surface Prep Towel Combo

And I echo what has been said above - this critical step is the absolute foundation for what you will then build upon - the cleanest, clearest, smoothest, shade of silver, that will be smoother than you can ever imagine..
Good luck with this !
Dan F

[Ronkh]

Polish or Clay??

Both
Wash
Clay
wash
polish
protect

[Van185]

I agree that you need to clay the paint beofre polishing to achieve the best results. Your final wax coat will only be as good as your paint before you apply it. If you want to achieve the best and smoothest results always clay beofre you polish. You can use clay with a good cly lube or Nanoskin with a good clsy lube. This will smooth the paint and remove contaminates so you will not be polishing them into the paint, which can cause damage. As far as the wax over top of the sealant your on the right track there. This will add to the protection and shine. You do not need to clay the paint everytime you wax though. Only once or twice a year at most for most cars, even ones kept outside. You can feel the paint after washing and drying the vehcile. If the paint is rough you need to clay, if it is still smooth then polish and wax should be fine. Good luck and let us know how it turns out the SHO is a great car and really fun to drive. In my opinion one of the best driving vehciles of all the Fords.

[Fordtaurus]

Thanks for all the input on this topic. It`s clear Claying is needed before any polish.
My thoughts are to wait till after be harsh New England winter and then do a tear down and build up.
I know the clay and polish both have some abrasive in them and I also understand there is limited amount of clear on any car. I guess I`m asking is it easy to clay and polish down the clear coat to a point where you will see paint deformity??
As you can tell I am new at this so please keep any criticism to my technique good in nature.
Would it be better to clay before and after winter?

Car smooth right now so it will be awhile.

Any thanks for all the advice!!!

[bswombaugh]

Thanks for all the input on this topic. It`s clear Claying is needed before any polish.
My thoughts are to wait till after be harsh New England winter and then do a tear down and build up.
I know the clay and polish both have some abrasive in them and I also understand there is limited amount of clear on any car. I guess I`m asking is it easy to clay and polish down the clear coat to a point where you will see paint deformity??
As you can tell I am new at this so please keep any criticism to my technique good in nature.
Would it be better to clay before and after winter?

Car smooth right now so it will be awhile.

Any thanks for all the advice!!!

Clay is really not considered an abrasive like a compound or a polish. It does not remove paint film thickness. The clay grabs and pulls contaminants up and out of the paint. There is no "set schedule" as when you should or should not clay. You should clay anytime that your paint gets to the point that it has imbedded contaminants in it. For most people, one or two times a year is usually sufficient. This process usually coincides with applying some type of sealant or wax which is usually needed at least every 6 months or so anyway.

Polishing needs to be done periodically also to remove oxidation, swirls, scratches,etc. Polishing does remove a thin layer of clearcoat. However, if you keep your paint in good condition and use proper wash techniques, you can get by with a very fine polish and pad which doesn`t remove much of the clearcoat at all. Using this process, a paint can have many polishing corrections in its lifetime without fear of detriment to the clearcoat

[Van185]

Like stated above you will have to clay alot of times to really effect the clear coat if you ever could. The clay will remove the contaminets from the paint so when you polish you will not rub the particles into the paint, which can damage the paint. The Nanoskin is much quicker than clay too. THe polish just basically shines the paint before you wax it. The clay and polish both should not have much if any effect on the clear coat at all. When you start getting into paint correction and wet sanding then you will start loosing clear coat. I normally polish with a white pad and then follow up with wax or sealant with a red or gold pad. Neither pad should hurt the clear at all. The clay will strip off the wax that is on the car so that is why you need to re-wax after you clay. To see how rough the paint actually is take a plastic ziplock typs baggie and place your hand inside the bag and then slide your hand over the paint. THe baggie will kinda like make your hand supersensitive and you can feel any particles embaded in the paint. Do this test before and after claying the paint and see the difference. I`d bet that the paint is actually rougher than you think it is. I normally wash, clay, polish, and sealant and wax or two coats of wax. Also when you clay or Nanoskin you do not have to usually use alot of pressure. You`ll feel the clay picking up the stuff off the paint and then you will notice that the clay starts to slide smoothly over the paint as the particles are picked up. You will need to look at the clay and remold it from time to time so your not rubbing the particles back into the paint. Make sure that you use plenty of clay lube too. Always wipe the clay onto a lubed aera of paint. Good luck and enjoy this site it`s loaded with great information.