question about paint cleaner and clay

Z

zaink

New member
whats the difference? i clayed my car probably about 7 months ago and my paint is in pretty good condition... the only problem is that i have some light swirls and few scratches around the car, should i use a paint cleaner then go to polish or clay then polish :think:
 
Clay is basically an abrasive substance suspended in the clay. The clay mostly removes surface contaminants on your paint. It almost acts like a razor shaving your face does. Except instead of stuble it's removing bug splatter, tar, brake dust, etc. Paint cleaners are somewhat more abrasive and will actually level the surface of your paint by removing paint from the surface. Some cleaners also conatain oils for added shine and protectants. When the appropriate level of abrasive and the proper technique is used a paint cleaner will "remove" scratches & swirls. However, you should be cautious if you are inexperienced because you could remove too much paint. Also for some reason, I don't know why, it seems the surface contaminants removed by clay are not removed all that well by paint cleaners. I find I get a much better result when I clay before using a paint cleaner as compared to when I go straight to a paint cleaner.
 
Paint cleaners are often NON-abrasive! They are gentle products, that are mildly abrasive (if at all), and are designed to remove oxidation and stains in the paint. They are not designed to remove swirls, because they aren't aggressive enough to remove paint like an abrasive polish can.

They often have fillers as well, which are handy sometimes if a customer just asks to minimize the swirls for a few extra bucks.



Clay is a solid bar (although it does come in liquid form from one manufacturer) that is designed to glide along the surface of your paint and remove surface contaminants like ferrous particles of brake dust and airborne pollutants/contaminants.
 
White95Max said:
Paint cleaners are often NON-abrasive! They are gentle products, that are mildly abrasive (if at all), and are designed to remove oxidation and stains in the paint. They are not designed to remove swirls, because they aren't aggressive enough to remove paint like an abrasive polish can.

They often have fillers as well, which are handy sometimes if a customer just asks to minimize the swirls for a few extra bucks.



Clay is a solid bar (although it does come in liquid form from one manufacturer) that is designed to glide along the surface of your paint and remove surface contaminants like ferrous particles of brake dust and airborne pollutants/contaminants.
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Agree. Several Paint cleaners (p21s, AIO, PB...etc.) are very very mild. Often can't remove swirls.
 
Sorry, I agree some paint cleaners are non-abrasive. The problem with detailing products is that the terms glaze, paint cleaner, and polish are non-standardized terms. Not all companies IMO use these terms in the same way. Some will contain an abrasive some will not.
 
Yes car care product manufacturers frequently mislabel products. But I don't know of any paint cleaners that are aggressive as far as any polishing ability. If it's an abrasive product, I consider it a polish, not a paint cleaner. AIO is an aggressive paint cleaner, but it's non-abrasive.
 
like now for example, if i wanted to remove the swirls from my car wiht a pc.. would u recomment just using a paint cleaner then polish or to



clay, paint cleaner, then polish
 
clay, paint cleaner, then polish - that is what I do. Paint cleaner help remove clay left overs - if any are present, good preperation for polish. :)
 
If you use an abrasive polish like PB SSR1 to remove swirls, a paint cleanser would be redundant, IMO, because SSR1 leaves an LSP ready finish if used properly.



I would wash, clay, wash, dry, SSR1, then after that it's up to you. If your swirls are bad, you might need SSR2.5, then SSR1.



If you're not concerned with removing/minimizing swirls, then replace the SSR1 with a cleanser like AIO, PB Pro Polish, P21S paintwork cleanser, etc.
 
Mikeyc said:
... Not all companies IMO use these terms in the same way. ...
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You're absolutely right there.



White95Max said:
Yes car care product manufacturers frequently mislabel products...
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You and I certainly feel that way but from a technical/legal perspective there are no official industry standards or government regulations for detailing terminology nor is there a unifying organization that can assign standardized definitions for terms. It's a free-for-all. It's really tough for the consumer and makes it that much more important to understand the individual products we buy.



White95Max said:
... But I don't know of any paint cleaners that are aggressive as far as any polishing ability. If it's an abrasive product, I consider it a polish, not a paint cleaner....
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Meguiar's #84 Compound Power Cleaner and #4 Heavy-Cut Cleaner are very aggressive. As strong as they are they can leave a high gloss, even though you're supposed to follow either of them with a finer polish.





PC.
 
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