Just got some clay magic....
#1
07-26-2006, 08:01 AM
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#3
07-26-2006, 10:22 AM
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I really like Clay Magic and have had great success
with it for several years. Im thinking that you are going to clay it, then put some kind of wax or polish on it after to protect your clean paint, right ?
Make sure you use lots of lube, they give you a bottle with it, and dont rub so hard that it mars the surface. Just do like you are sanding it lightly, you can actually hear it pulling stuff out of your paint. I always use rubber gloves so that the clay doesnt stick to my hand and then check my work by taking a clean towel to the clayed spot, then lightly rubbing my clean, dry hand over the spot. It should end up real smooth. If you feel any little things still in the paint, look at them and determine if its something that can be removed safely or not with the clay. Look at your claybar and if the paint has never been done, you will see all kinds of stuff in it. Knead the bar to give you a clean surface to clay with each time.. If you drop the bar, they tell you to throw it away, but I have good luck, taking the bar and cleaning off the dirty stuff in very hot water (another reason to wear the rubber gloves), and its works good as new. Guess you could even cut off a thin piece of clay that was very dirty and throw it away, to achieve the same effect. Know that even with the best protection on after this work, if you park outside, crap will still fall from the sky and stick to your paint so claying will be something to do almost every time you detail your vehicle out. Just wash it, dry it, and with a clean dry hand, lightly rub the surface and you will know if you need to clay it again. Clay will not harm or remove paint, unless the paint is on the verge of coming off anyway cause its dead. Good luck, you will be amazed at how good Clay Magic works! DanF
Make sure you use lots of lube, they give you a bottle with it, and dont rub so hard that it mars the surface. Just do like you are sanding it lightly, you can actually hear it pulling stuff out of your paint. I always use rubber gloves so that the clay doesnt stick to my hand and then check my work by taking a clean towel to the clayed spot, then lightly rubbing my clean, dry hand over the spot. It should end up real smooth. If you feel any little things still in the paint, look at them and determine if its something that can be removed safely or not with the clay. Look at your claybar and if the paint has never been done, you will see all kinds of stuff in it. Knead the bar to give you a clean surface to clay with each time.. If you drop the bar, they tell you to throw it away, but I have good luck, taking the bar and cleaning off the dirty stuff in very hot water (another reason to wear the rubber gloves), and its works good as new. Guess you could even cut off a thin piece of clay that was very dirty and throw it away, to achieve the same effect. Know that even with the best protection on after this work, if you park outside, crap will still fall from the sky and stick to your paint so claying will be something to do almost every time you detail your vehicle out. Just wash it, dry it, and with a clean dry hand, lightly rub the surface and you will know if you need to clay it again. Clay will not harm or remove paint, unless the paint is on the verge of coming off anyway cause its dead. Good luck, you will be amazed at how good Clay Magic works! DanF
#4
07-26-2006, 04:30 PM
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#6
07-26-2006, 07:08 PM
Originally Posted by xplorgee
How many times can you use the clay bar? It says to use it after every wash. thats a little 2 much isnt it?
The number of times that you can use it will vary with how much contamination is present on the paint. Rule of thumb, if the clay bar has a dingy look to it or if it's taking on a different tone, trash it and start over.
Typically, you should get 'several' uses out of one -- 2 to 5 maybe? Store it in a Ziploc or a rubbermaid container with about a half 'squirt' of lubricant in the container with it.
As for when you should clay -- do it as needed. To assess if it's needed, simply rub your hand over your paint while you're washing and have a bit of water/shampoo to provide a little lubrication. Is it rough? Does it feel textured? Feel little '****' of gunk that didn't wash off? Once this is beyond your tolerance point, then clay it. My tolerance point is low on this, believe it or not... I probably clay 4-6 times per year and I'm a bit on the 'picky' side.
RP
#7
07-27-2006, 02:43 AM
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I just went down to the garage and my 2 month old truck already has the rough feel? Maybe it came that way and I just now noticed. Will the clay mess of the black plastic or rubber on my truck? It takes me about 1.5 hours to wash and dry it. I read that it would take aprox. 1-2 hours to clay the truck. How long will it take to polish and wax it after the clay? Note: I'm 28 years old and have never polished or waxed anything.
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#8
07-27-2006, 09:46 AM
Originally Posted by MPSchenck
I just went down to the garage and my 2 month old truck already has the rough feel? Maybe it came that way and I just now noticed. Will the clay mess of the black plastic or rubber on my truck? It takes me about 1.5 hours to wash and dry it. I read that it would take aprox. 1-2 hours to clay the truck. How long will it take to polish and wax it after the clay? Note: I'm 28 years old and have never polished or waxed anything.
Clay, as you've probably read, is simply a material that is designed to remove bonded contamination from the surface of the paint. The stuff that you've felt on your paint is a result of oodles of environmental conditions (industry, transportation, fall out, etc..etc...) and is, obviously, nothing that you've done intentionally. This gunk lands on your paint as a result of everyday activity and 'bonds' or actually 'melts' into your clear coat. To remove it, we rely on clay as a mechanical abrasive to 'cleave' off the portion of the contaminant that is on the surface of the paint (and hopefully, what's 'melted' in as well).
Let's talk about one type of contaminant in particular -- rail dust.
Simply put, as a trains' metal wheels run down the metal track there is obviously a great deal of friction. Anyone that's worked with metal knows that metal friction generates heat. Heat aids in making the metal slightly weaker and thus, the friction is able to yield tiny 'dust-like' projectiles into the air immediately around track locations and such. These particles are, naturally, susceptible to gravity and thus, get pulled back to the earth. Lots of time, your vehicle will be the separator between the particle making it to the ground and the air that it's flying through. So, guess what? It's now stuck on or in your paint.
This is obviously only one example of what may be stuck to your paint. Paint over spray, particulate matter from industry, and a host of other items may be there as well and may not be removed by simple washing.
Clay, at this point, would be used to, like I said, cleave off or out the fleck of 'rail dust' that is now on your paint. Odds are, though, that this isn't the only bit of dust... or other contaminants for that case.
It's a very simple product to use in that you'll utilize a lubricating spray (this will be included with your clay bar kit) like a Quik Detailer product (there are oodles of these that work well) to lubricate the surface of the clay against your painted surface. This lubrication provides just enough 'glide' that the clay doesn't drag and snag on the paint but rather floats right above the painted surface. The movement of the clay, side to side, will, in most cases, snare and remove the aforementioned fleck that is on your paint so that it's smooth to the feel and, even better, making the optics and clarity of the paint better.
The frequency that one should clay varies wildly. For one person living/working in a heavily industrialized area (let's say, a steel producing/rolling area), the frequency would probably need to be more often than, say, someone that works on a farm out away from the city. Odds are though, in my opinion, both will probably need it a couple times per year from nothing else than simply sitting outside - the industry worker will probably need it more.
Now, some one is reading this thinking "there's no way in heck that I'm going to need to do this at all...". To respond to that, you're probably right. The only real threat of leaving this type of contamination on your paint is that it oxidizes and potentially stains your paint (ever seen a newer white vehicle with rust specs all over it?). For them, that's fine. Don't worry about it. But, for those of us who demand as close to perfection as one can come short of having a master body shop painter respray your vehicle, this is one of those necessary evils.
Time needed to do a truck will vary as well. Once done in a frequency where needed, you'll find that your times will lessen. For example, I may clay my entire vehicle once or twice per year because it needs it all round but, other times, I may just do the roof, hood and tonneau top because the sides are still in great shape. Obviously, these 'up wards facing' panels are more susceptible to collect gunk.
If I had to guess, I'd say an hour or so to clay the average F-150. Polishing and, finally, waxing will vary as well but, a good rule of thumb is to allot a day (early til late) to accomplish a full detail. Maybe it takes you less, maybe a little more. The bottom line is making sure that you don't move forward to the next step of your detail until the step before it is complete and to your liking. All of the steps have a specific purpose -- make the most out of all of them...
RP