Can a Newbie Use Clay?

[imported_RootsRadical]

I have never dropped the clay! *looks around for a piece of wood to knock on...* :p

-J

[Old Pirate]

Welcome DougNew to TID, I myself had drop clay (3 times on same car) and it wasn`t fun at all.:banghead:

[DougNew]

These are great tips - thanks!

• Do I need to remove the clay lube afterward? Another quick wash?
• How much use should I expect from a silver-dollar sized lump of clay? Will I save a folded piece (assuming I don`t drop it) for multiple uses, or does each piece last through only time?
• Aside from using too little lube, are there any mistakes people make with clay that I should avoid? Anything that mars the paint?

[TOGWT]

Welcome DougNew to TID, I myself had drop clay (3 times on same car) and it wasn`t fun at all.:banghead:

To avoid wasting detailer`s clay because you probably will drop it, place a towel on the ground under the area you`re applying the clay so that the clay will fall onto the towel without picking up gravel etc.

[TOGWT]

1.Does my paint surface require the application of detailer?s clay?

Is the paint surface showing one or more of the following; coloured or yellow stains, water marks (spots) black metallic coloured flecks, a rough texture, etch marks (concave depression) oxidation, bug or bird excrement.

?Bag Test? put some saran wrap or a zip lock bag over your hand and rub it across the finish lightly. Every snag you feel is a surface contaminant that the clay bar can remove but you may not be able to see, especially on white or light coloured vehicle surfaces.

2. How often should I use detailer?s clay?
Usually twice yearly is average, but that would depend upon your environment and how you maintain your car see ?bag test? above, If you find the need to use detailer?s clay on a regular basis use a mild clay- Sonus SFX Ultra Fine or Pinnacle Fine Clay

3. If I?m going to polish the car with an abrasive, do I still need to use detailer?s clay?

Polishing and detailer`s clay are very different processes. One good reason to clay before you polish; polishing can result in smoothing and rounding the surface contamination it making it significantly harder to remove later.

Although a polish / compound will remove the contamination there is a risk is that the abrasive particles will become embedded in the foam pad, which will cause surface scratches / marring by making the foam /polish more abrasive than necessary and may cause deep scratches

4. How often can detailer?s clay be reused?

Inspect the clay surface often and fold (knead) clay to present a clean surface to the paint to avoid scratching; when the clay surface becomes really soiled (it becomes more difficult to find a clean surface by kneading, relegate to wheel or glass surfaces and use fresh clay.

5. Do not over use a clay bar; your clay is done when the lubricant starts breaking down the clay and it begins to break up.

Take a 100 gm bar and divide it into 6-8 pieces (this allows you to drop a piece and not have to throw away the whole bar) A mid size car usually takes around 20-30 grams, once the clay becomes too soiled for paintwork, relegate to glass surfaces, and from there to wheel surfaces and finally discard. (See also Cleaning a Detailer?s Clay)

6. Will detailer?s clay remove the applied paint film surface protection?

Its abrasives (dependent up its grade) will remove an organic wax product; any oxidized polymer will be removed; but not a polymer that has formed a molecular bond with the paint surface

7. How long does the process take?

This would be dependent upon many factors, such as how well the car is maintained between detailing clay bar sessions, what type of environment is the vehicle exposed to, how contaminated the vehicle is and of course the size of the vehicle.

An SUV is going to take approximately twice as long as a Mini.

A mid-sized vehicle usually around an hour to an hour and a half; I would suggest 1-2 hours is an average time for this process. Ambient temperature will affect its pliability and may affect how long the clay process takes, if it?s cold place clay in warm / hot water before use

[DougNew]

Great post and very helpful responses here, thanks. I now feel confident enough to give it a try.

I`m still curious about clean-up. Do I need to wash off the areas where I applied clay-lube?

[bmw5541]

Great post and very helpful responses here, thanks. I now feel confident enough to give it a try.

I`m still curious about clean-up. Do I need to wash off the areas where I applied clay-lube?

Just wipe after you finish each section. The lube is just a QD, so you can just wipe as you go along. If you are doing a major correction and you want to go that extra mile, you can do another complete wash after finishing with the clay, just to make sure all the particles are off the paint before you start polishing.

[Puckman]

Another use I`ve found for ONR is to give the area I just clayed a quick wipe with my grout sponge and my ONR mixture, then wipe dry with WW MF. If I`m claying I`m going to buff and polish too but I like to remove any loose contaminants and lube from the clay process with ONR. Plus it`s very quick.

For what it`s worth to anyone, I use just about 0 pressure with clay. I do not exert any pressure and keep going over sections with very light pressure until they clay smooth.

[bmw5541]

Another use I`ve found for ONR is to give the area I just clayed a quick wipe with my grout sponge and my ONR mixture, then wipe dry with WW MF. If I`m claying I`m going to buff and polish too but I like to remove any loose contaminants and lube from the clay process with ONR. Plus it`s very quick.

Very good idea Puckman! I never thought of that.:thumbup:

This is why this place is so great. You always learn something new.:partaaay:

[Puckman]

I also like it after some polishes dust up. It seems I always keep a bucket of ONR mixed up with a grit guard and a cover with sponge inside. But now I`m off topic re: clay (sorry).

[DougNew]

Another use I`ve found for ONR is to give the area I just clayed a quick wipe with my grout sponge and my ONR mixture, then wipe dry with WW MF.

Good tip - thanks. I didn`t know anything about no-rinse mixtures, and now I`ll add ONR to my toolkit.


With a microfiber towel, is the waffle-weave better suited to certain tasks than a smooth one?

[Puckman]

I use the waffle weaves for drying. The other MF towels I use for product removal, alcohol wipedowns, QD app etc. I think the WW`s are best for drying.

[ZL1Mark]

I would definitely wash the car after claying. Although, you don`t HAVE to, it`s a good idea.

Buy a leaf blower and dry most of your car that way after washing. There will still be a small amount of water left over. Go over the car with a quick detailer and buff with a MF towel. You`ll be clean, shiny, and good to go. :biggrin: