vraa

Clay will remove anything BUT your paint.
I love it.
It's so tasty as well?

E55AMG99

Dude, don't eat it!

vraa

You know it's non-toxic though right?

E55AMG99

It is? I never had the opportunity to find out

vraa

Well I know the Zaino clay is non toxic!

XxGoppyxX

ok so what kind of clay bar should i get.. im guessing zaino..

E55AMG99

Zaino is good. I think the lubricant is more important than the brand of clay. I like Griot's (I know, it's expensive) but Meguire's is good too. Use an ample amount and do not let the clay stick to the paint. If it does, wet it and go back again.

vraa

I use water as my lube.

XxGoppyxX

hmmmm

XxGoppyxX

so i was at this acid rain website and my paint pretty much looks a lot like this...

Dvinn

Windex with Vinegar is designed for water spots and is a safe, fast way to get rid of it. Claying might not help with water spots, but certainly is a lot slower.

CE750

dumb question here, but if you have multiple layers of quality wax like Zeino or something, does clay remove it all down to the clear coat? or does it just remove surface contamination on the wax?

thx

vraa

Clay removes everything.
I clay when I want to start wax all over.

Windex is abrasive and will possibly eat through your clearcoat.
Clay will get water spots.

fadedinc

that mr clean auto dry is bs. i bought it and tried it once. been sitting in my garage ever since.

E55AMG99

While Windex with vinegar is almost 95% water, it's the other 5% that worries me (2-BUTOXYETHANOL, BUTYL CELLOSOLVE, BUTYL GLYCOL, GLYCOL ETHER EB). Use at your own risk.

You are dead wrong about clay. It can remove just about anything from the paint. After all, clay is a mild abrasive! What, you guys didn't know that? It contains the finest abrasive particles available and if it can't lift the dirt off, it practically sands down the contaminents in the paint. What it can't remove is water spots that have eaten through the clear coat. Polishing will hide them but nothing will remove them. One more thing, all clay bars are not the same even though one company holds the patent and makes most of it. There are "hot" bars out there that can remove paint! Don't worry, you can't buy hot bars at retail auto stores like Kragen and PepBoys.

Greg

P.S. Water is fine but add a few drops of soap. The slipperier the better!

E55AMG99

That's a good question that maybe someone familiar with zaino can answer. I don't use multi step products like zaino becasue of the time it takes to get the job done right. Instead, I prefer to clay and wax 2-3x per year. It only takes 4-6 hours for me to detail the outside of a car. I understand zaino can be as much as double that. Too long for an ADD guy like me!

lkirchner

Clay will remove any sealant or wax that you have on the car even if you have multiple layers. It does not differentiate between contamination or anything else that is on the paint.

ghaffar23

The best thing is to have three things:

1. Random Orbital Buffer (Porter Cable 7424 or similar)
2. Orange Cutting Pad (light to medium cut)
3. Fine to Medium-cut polish (Sonus or Einzett)

Depending upon the amount of water spotting, just work in on the water-spot with the buffer. No need for pressing down; let the pad and polish do its job. I have a black car as well, and this is the best way to at least reduce, if not, completely eliminate it. After this, I followed through with Klasse AIO and a layer of your favorite wax (NXT, #26, Souveran, Sonus).

I got this info from http://www.autopia-carcare.com/

They have a downloadable Car Care kit that will every question related to car care. I follow their advice pretty close...and you can even buy the 'good stuff' from them. Anything and everything that you need to keep your black beauty looking its best. I'm sure several of you on this board know about this. Good luck on the removal!

E55AMG99

Great advice but only to be used after using the clay! Polishing before cleaning is a big no-no! Be careful not to sit in one spot for long. On dark cars, doing the entire panel or section of the panel will hide the effects of the polishing

Michael T

The windex idea is a non-starter, no not even consider it.

I would recommend getting the Mcguires three step system. Since 1989 it has served me well. The first step is a cleaner. It is not as abrasive as a clay bar. The key is to slowly take off the offending spots. It is always better to slowly reduce the problem, because at the end of the day, you are in effect sanding the clear coat, ever so slightly. After multiple applications of the cleaner, use the glaze. All it is a lighter abrasive to blend the swirl marks. Last step will be a pure non-abrasive carnuba wax. The first steps are abrasive, you now need to put down a protective wax. Make sure you change waxing pads at each step and make sure they are damp before use.

I keep my CLK 500 and my wife's E320 wagon perfect. Give it a try and see what happens. Supplies should be under $30. Good luck.

E55AMG99

Is that the stuff that comes in the tall, flat bottles with different numbers and colors? It works great but I haven't seen it around lately except in the body and detail shops. Seems all the retail guys are focusing on the "one step" stuff. Too bad.

ghaffar23

Well yes...I assumed that they would have already clayed the car prior to polishing

TOGWT

Water Spots:
There are two categories of water spots;
a) Surface water spots-alkaline watermarks (water spots) are calcium and magnesium salts that deposit on the surface after the water has evaporated, the minute crystals bond to the surface and are not re-dissolvable in water. Rainwater also contains alkaline minerals that alight on the paint film surface and as the water evaporates leave white `water spots' on both the paint and glass surfaces.

b) Below surface (etched) water spots- are caused by acid rain or industrial fallout causing a chemical reaction, if left for any length of time they will etch the paint film surface leaving a concave circular mark.
Etched water spots are one of the most difficult paint defects to remove so be patient as it will probably take more then one attempt to remove them. (See also Industrial fall out (IFO) and Acid rain)

1a) Removing surface water spots from paint film surface-
Methodology
·Use detailing clay to remove any `hard' surface granules
·To dissolve the alkaline-based, surface/etched mineral water deposits try one or more of the following;
1) 2:1 solution of distilled water/distilled white vinegar
2) Distilled water/Isopropyl Alcohol (adjust ratio as required)
3) Equal parts distilled water/distilled white vinegar/Isopropyl alcohol.
·Use a clean spray bottle and 100% cotton micro fibre cloth to apply the solution to the paint surface
·Wipe off any residue from the paint surface and dry with a damp waffle weave towel
·If any `water spots' remain apply distilled white vinegar or Isopropyl alcohol un-diluted to a 100% cotton micro fibre towel, using a medium/heavy pressure on glass surface, for stubborn spots use an abrasive polish as in (1b)

1b) Removing etched water (below surface) spots from paint-
Methodology
·These can be removed by using detailer's clay to remove any hardened surface deposits
·Then using a machine polish, Iz einzett TM Metallic Polish or Iz einzett TM Paint Polish and a cutting (LC Orange or Yellow) foam pad (speed # 4) to level the surface
·Work on a very small area at a time (2-foot x 2-foot) until the polish has run out
·Repeat this process two or three times, as necessary
·Reapply surface protection once spots have been removed.

2a) Removing surface water spots from glass-
Rainwater sometimes contains alkaline minerals that alight on the paint film surface and as the water evaporates leave white `water spots' on glass surfaces. Mineral deposits can be caused by water from a light summer shower, or a lawn sprinkler system that that dries on the glass surface leaving a calcium / sodium deposit.

These can usually be removed by using detailer's clay to remove any hardened surface deposits, and then using a solvent type cleaner (Klasse All-In-One) for stubborn spots polish them using method
Methodology
·Use detailing clay to remove any `hard' surface granules
·Dissolve the alkaline-based, surface/etched mineral water deposits try one or more of the following;
a) 2:1 solution of distilled water/distilled white vinegar
b) Distilled water/Isopropyl Alcohol (adjust ratio as required)
c) Equal parts distilled water/distilled white vinegar/Isopropyl alcohol.
·Use a clean spray bottle and 100% cotton micro fibre cloth to apply the solution to the glass surface
·Wipe off any residue from glass and dry with a damp waffle weave towel
·If any `water spots' remain apply distilled white vinegar or Isopropyl alcohol to a100% cotton micro fibre towel, using a medium/heavy pressure on glass surface.
·If this does not remove the `water spots' use Autoglym Car Glass PolishTM and #0000 or #000 steel wool, use straight-line motions only (circular motions cause swirl marks)

2b) Removing etched (below surface) water spots from glass
These can usually be removed using detailer's clay to remove any hardened surface deposits and then using Autoglym Car Glass PolishTM with #0000 synthetic steel wool or a random orbital buffer (speed # 4) and a cutting foam pad (LC orange or yellow) to level the surface.

Caution: do not use an abrasive cleaner; glass polish or any grade synthetic steel wool on after market-tinted glass or you will probably scratch the surface. (See also Section 7 Glass and Plastic Cleaning)
JonM

revstriker

Isn't Claying and waxing a multi step process? Same as claying an applying Zaino.

I Clay and apply 3 coats of Zaino once per year. The whole process takes about 3 hours. Every 5-8 weeks, I will apply another coat of Zaino. This takes about 20 minutes extra.

E55AMG99

I see what you are saying. I consider the clay common to both. The wax is one step but zaino is 3.

BTW, you are damn fast!