dmyrick

used mothers clay bar on my car today and looked just like a wax job to me, i was expecting more. granted we have terrible pollen but I expected more shine.

Boost Gomez

A clay bar is just used to remove dirt imperfections and blemishes.

dmyrick

OK so i shouldn't expect anything dramatic, right.

BerBer63

oh geezus

superlubricity

What Boost said. A clay bar doesn't offer any protection, in fact it removes all traces of protection from the car along with contaminants so you have a clean foundation.

Velociabstract

Oh my! Clay for shine? Earth to dmyrick.

Les

dmyrick

Ok, OK, i got it, i waxed my car right after. looks that same as any other time i waxed it.

mint

Claying is to remove physical grit embedded in the paint.

It's more for feel than looks.

Even Money

wash....clay....polish....jet seal....wax....

MercPlease

Like others have said, clay barring your car is only to remove imperfections in the paint and only needs to be done once every 6-12 months. I highly suggest watching the videos on paint care from Junkman2000 on Youtube.

dmyrick

Thanks Merc i get it.

blackc230benzo

Not sure if you are referring to this. But I waxed my car outside once and it was a little windy so all the dust and pollen set in the wax. My straight black car looked obsidian lol. To get rid of the pollen/dust look I clayed and then used a dual action buffer and some oxidation/swirl remover. Then polish & wax.

sjhugh

After using a clay bar you must polish the car and then seal and/or wax for protection if you wish.

Clay followed by wax alone doesn’t give you a good finish.

.

gsrjc

do you have to do everything all at once or can you clay bar and then polish and then drive the car if you needed too and then wash the car to get the surface clean and then seal and wax?

sjhugh

If you clay bar the car and drive it before the next step, you’ll have to clay bar again.

The clay is only for removing particles and blemishes adhered to the paint, driving it will most likely attract some more.

If you clay bar and polish and then drive the car you may get away with it but you must remember, polish is not a paint protector. A painter sealer like Optimum Opti-Seal is very quick to use. It's just a wipe on, no buffing application and would take about 10 to 15 minutes to do. You can then drive the car and wash and wax it on another day.

It is also ideal to apply a couple of layers of paint sealant for best protection, you need to wait about 25 minutes between applications. I also use this sealer on the rims of all my cars, it makes them easy to clean for months after and the brake dust if you don't allow to much of a build-up will usually just rinse off.

Also, a good paint sealant doesn't necessarily need a wax but it does increase the protection. Go for a good quality wax (high Carnauba content) if you want a lasting result and use microfibre clothes and waffle weave drying towels, throw your chamios away.

A link to Opti-Seal:

http://www.carcareproducts.com.au/pr...imum/opti_seal
.

Moviela

I know how you feel. I was not impressed with sex either. Until I tried it with another person.

The highest gloss is obtained with the smoothest surface. The clay bar when used with a proper lubricant will remove most contamination from the surface of the clear coat and leave a smooth substrate to start the final protection step and improve the gloss for a deep swirl free shine. You can use wax or polish to get to the final finish. It is a matter of preference and work habits. Polishes have the advantage that they can be applied and removed at once. Every wax emulsion requires the carrier solvent to dry and the surface haze over prior to removal and buffing.

A word about "coats." You cannot apply a coat of this and a coat of that and have it "stack" up on your paint. The solvent that makes it possible to apply the product to the paint will remove any previous "coat" you have applied. People swear that a "second or third coat" makes the shine deeper. It does not. The extra polish or wax simply fills in the places you missed on the previous application.

A machine finish is better than a hand finish, but there is a greater satisfaction in a hand rubbed finish. I prefer products in a maroon container from an Irvine outfit, but there is nothing wrong with the other products out there, except use caution when selecting products that are uber expensive or are not sold by retailers, or any the do not publish a MSDS.

dremorg

Funny I just tried the bar yesterday myself. It removes the contaminents from the paint. It's smooth as glass now.

ZephyrAMG

This stuff is the BEST. Be a believer....

..

TimAZ

You didn't notice how smooth the paint was?

lebreeze

This stuff is not even close to the best

TimAZ

http://www.griotsgarage.com

These guys have a lot of good products and I really like their orbital buffer. No chance for burning the paint. Easy to use. They have a bunch of other interesting car guy stuff.

14cue

clay bar is sex for the paint on a car.

Sincity

KCviper

Spent 5 hours washing/claying/polishing/waxing the C63 a couple of weeks ago and the paint is as smooth as a baby's behind Lots of work, but the results speak for themself!

gsrjc

5 hours... that is quick. it usually takes me much longer than that because i put 2 coats of sealant and 2 coats of wax. i also wait 12 hours between sealants so that adds to the time.