Bought this clay bar kit...

[Ajay325]

I'm looking to clay bar my car soon, can anybody recommend a reasonably priced good clay bar, its never been clayed before and i'd like to get rid of the swirl marks.

Thanks in advance
Ajay

[Pro-detailing]

Hi Ajay.

Clay bars are for removing bonded contaminants which washing alone doesn't shift.

Clay bars WILL NOT remove swirl marks at all. In fact the more aggresive varieties will actually introduce marring in the paint if done poorly.

To avoid marring use the softest clay bar you can, Both the Zaino Z18 and SwissVax paint rubbers are very soft and minimise the risk of damage whilst remaining very effective. Claying a clay leaves the paint unprotected, especially if you carry-out a strip-washing process before to remove all previous coatings (recommended to maximise the effect of the clay) You'll need to apply some protective products after claying which may or may not contain some fillers which will temporarily mask the swirls to an extent.

The only way to remove swirls from paintwork is to polish them out with abbrasives - That's a whole different story though!

You will see a massive difference in gloss and clarity in the paint after claying alone though - I was astonished with what I acheived the first time I clayed a car. It's by far the biggest improvement you get for your money and you won't believe how much crud was on the paint which wasn't removed by washing.

Get in touch if you need any more help or pointers!

Cheers - Nick

[Ajay325]

Hi Nick, top tips there mate! My car is Lazur blue and i think claying it will really help to bring out the colour. I've searched on Ebay for these 2 clays you've recomended, couldn't find the Zaino Z18 clay, but from what I know that is quite exclusive. Swissvax, however, is £30....

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/SWISSVAX-Paint-Ru ... dZViewItem

What do you think, worthwhile? It's not a bar so what would be the best way to apply this?

I was thinking about Meguair's clay bar's before, is this safe for the paint, considering it will be my first time using clay...

Thanks
Ajay

[Pad]

Meguairs quik clay is a good starter clay and you get the lube with it in the kit, okay if you are only expecting to do it very infrequently.

As Nick says though, claying wont do anything but clean your paint in preparation for the following polish and seal proceses - which if you dont do very soon after claying, it will have been a waste of time.

What are you expecting to do afterwards?

Cheers

[Ajay325]

Well to be honest, I dont have a garage and I don't think i can trust this British "summer" so I'll have to pick a good evening to start work. I do not have a porter cable or anything similar so I will be working completely by hand, I'm thinkin a quick wash with fairy liquid (mild - to remove the layer of wax), then a thorough going over with the clay bar, and then seal with Zymol wax (its just a £20 carnauba one I picked up from a friend). I don't think I'll have the time (or the energy) to polish aswel!

What do you think?

Ajay

[grantfk10]

It's worth doing a proper job on.
I'm sure there's a few posts on here to give you an idea of how to go about it.
Even doing it all by hand, it could be up to a reasonable standard after a few hours graft.

[Ajay325]

OK now guys, I've just bought this clay kit from ebay for £25, comes with 2 clay bars a microfibre towel (which i have never used before), lubricating spray and a small tub of wax... not bad i think?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... :IT&ih=016

I'll be looking to clay the car this weekend... could anybody recommend a good polish for removing the swirl marks? i will probably use it straight after claying depending on my energy levels... lol. I will then seal with Zymol wax.

Please share your thoughts.

Ajay

[Pad]

Autoglym super resin polish is as good a place as any to start by hand. does contain fillers so will hide your swirls and then you can lock in with your wax...

[tomtomiS]

i clayed my lazur blue car the other day and was really pleased with the results, quite easy too

[minimatan]

Not good to use fairy liquid though!

[Kos]

its ok to clean and remove any old crap from your paints surface