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Tips

'Clay' paint cleaner?

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19Sprite65

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A while back (time has gotten away from me) there was a posting of I believe a 'clay bar' paint cleaner. I need to rejuvinate the finish on my latest purchase, an older Camry for my daughter. Even after repeated washings it doesn't want to come clean. Does anyone know of the product name and a source? I didn't see it in the Eastwood catalog.
 
I have used one made by Mothers. I think I bought it from Advance Auto... makes the paint REAL smooth...
 
This one is bookmarked for me to reference when I get ready to try this....
 
Eastwood does have a stock no. listed for detailing clay (#11782) but it also says “We regret that this item is not available at this time.”

Any detailing supplier should have clay, BCF supporting vendor https://www.americanshine.com for example.

As mentioned in the other post, clay is for removing contaminants that are bonded to the surface of the finish. Sounds like your Camry will certainly benefit from that.

But an older car is also very likely to have defects below the surface, swirls, scratches, acid rain etching, water spot etching, bird bomb etching, etc. Clay won’t remove those.

If your finish has below surface defects it will benefit from using an abrasive cleaning product. That could be anything from a light cleaner/polish to a heavy cutting compound depending on the paint’s condition.


PC.
 
There are some great write ups about this in the Car Care section that I have referenced many times. This makes me think I need to try this again this summer on my truck.
 
Autozone carries Clay Magic. It's a blue clay bar with a bottle of lubricant to help the clay slide over the paint. It takes off everything from old bugs to paint overspray. When it gets dirty, just knead the clay into a ball and reform something the size of your palm and keep going. I try to do it once a year to my other cars before applying a nice wax. I recall the Clay Magic website having some creepy instructional videos with a talking clay bar. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smile.gif

Mark

Edit: I should note that all my cars are clearcoated except the Midget (which is 98% metal at the moment). As PC mentioned, it won't help damaged paint/clearcoat. The first time you use the clay you'll be amazed how much junk you pick up off a "clean" car. I store my clay in a ziplock bag with a few squirts of the lubricant. Over time it will lose a little moisture through the bag.
 
Any decent car accessories store should have a clay in stock. Don't worry if it doesn't come with a bottle of lubricant: a spray bottle with water in it works just fine. Once you've clayed the car (probably takes about 3 hours on a Camry) you should T-Cut it (I think it's called rubbing compound in the States), this will take off the thin layer of oxidised paint and should take another couple of hours. Finish with a good polish to protect the paint. Hand finish is probably best, there's a bit of an art to getting a good finish with an electric buffer! Try to clay it before each polish, although it should not need t-cutting for a long time if it's kept clean and polished once a month or so.
 
I have used clay both from Eastwood and JC Whitney. I'll remember in the future that AutoZone also has it.

I have a few suggestions for you based on my own experiences. First, wash the car completely like you normally would. Get all the big bits of dirt, bugs, tar, etc. off the car. Wash under the wheel wells so that no dirt is dripping off the car from anywhere. Start with a clean car and work in a clean place.

Once you've washed the car, move it to a place where you can work for a couple of hours, preferably in the shade. Before you park the car there, place a very large clean tarp or plastic sheet on the ground, then park on the clean sheet and remove your shoes while working on the car. (More on this later). For reference run the BACK of your hand all over the car. Remember how it feels, remember the slightly rough texture you'll find in various spots.

Fold the clay multiple times to soften and warm it. Finally flatten the clay out into a disk that you can hold against your flattened palm. Use a lube or water with a little bit of dish detergent in it to wet a small area perhaps 2 or 3 square feet. Use the clay in small circles just like you were hand polishing the car. Just like washing, work from the top down in small areas until you've done the whole car. Break the task into sections so you don't forget any area and to keep the magnitude of the task under control. Keep the area damp with water or the lube. It's very easy to get the warm clay stuck to the paint. Before moving to the next area, use the back of your hand to re-inspect the surface. The area you've cleaned should be significantly smoother to the touch. When completely done, re-wash the car to remove any lube or soap.

IF you did not put the plastic down be EXTREMELY careful to NOT drop the clay. If you drop it on the driveway or other source of dirt the clay will pick up ANYTHING it lands on. It will turn the clay into sandpaper. Yes, you can fold the clay over to put the dirt in the middle but eventually after multiple foldings the dirt/grit will resurface.

Clay is a great way to remove contaminants that would otherwise require lots of rubbing compound or chemicals. However, use it to remove the small stuff not easily seen. Clean the car thoroughly before using the clay. As mentioned above, other products can be used to restore the gloss and protect the cleaned surface. The final results after washing, clay, light compounding (or glazing), and waxing will be a significant improvement.
 
Doug, that's a good clay overview. I'm usually trying to do things quick so here's my tips ..

My drill is to wash the car thoroughly, refill the wash bucket with water/car wash soap and use that for the claying. I use a car wash brush or sponge that to rewet the surface of the car liberally as I go. Then I rinse off the car .. using more car wash if necessary, wipe dry and then wax.

I know not to drop the clay bar but too lazy to put out a plastic tarp and dry it afterwards. I usually clay before every wax but I don't always clay the whole car. It's mainly the top surfaces and front of car that pick up the contaminants (fall out and road grime) so if the sides don't feel rough I don't bother and the claying goes pretty quick.

Cheers,
John
 
Just to confirm, this takes of a bit of overspray?
 
Taking off overspray was the original purpose of the clays. I remember talking to an auto body paint supply owner in the early to mid 80's and he shows me this clay stuff that he recently started to carry. He said a customer come in with old overspray on his trunk and they tried the clay and was amazed at how well it worked. At that point no one was talking about using it as a surface prep for wax.
 
This guy was parked next to a propane tank yard while they were spraying the tanks with a fresh coat of white. The spot is the initial test with Meguiar’s white (very mild) clay.
2OSRTestSpot.jpg


Here’s the car after claying half the hood.
2OB_A1.jpg



PC.
 
When you pull the clay out of the package it’s always a good idea to break into smaller pieces. That way, if you drop a piece you can toss it ad still have some to work with. I find the ideal working size to be about a third to a fifth of the typical commercially packaged bar anyway.

A lot of guys store their clay clumps in Zip-Loc bags to keep them separated and avoid getting junk on them. I like to use screw-top jars and Tupperware-like storage containers. Some suppliers give you little plastic boxes, sort of like soap containers, but I prefer something that seals air-tight. I always shoot a couple squirts of a quick detailer into the container before sealing it up to keep the clay from sticking to the bottom or drying out.


PC.
 
Good answers.

Now what is quick detailer?
 
“Quick Detailer” is a generic term in detailing circles (often abbreviated to QD) for “mist & wipe” cleaning products that are made for auto paint. You use them much like you’d use Windex on glass or 409 on a counter top.

A QD is used to clean light dust, smudges and finger prints from a finish. Don’t try to remove heavy, gritty dirt with a QD, there’s too a high risk of scratching. Heavy dirt should be removed by a normal wash.

QDs are also used as a clay lubricant. Some suppliers sell kits that include both the clay and the QD.

Pretty much every company has a mist & wipe product theses days. Just as “Kleenex” has become generic for facial tissue, the name “Quick Detailer” comes from Meguiar’s Quik Detailer, which is the most common mist & wipe around.


PC.
 
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