Clay bar detailing

[Bob24]

I had never heard of using a clay bar to detail until about a month ago. I watched a couple of Youtube videos on the topic and it looked like it made a nice difference.

I just had it done this week prior to a hand wax and I can attest that it leaves the finish silky smooth and creates a nice base for the wax. My M45 is shining like never before.

I would have no problem in recommending it to anyone.

[EniGmA1987]

how much did it cost for you to get done and how long did it take?

[Bob24]

It ended up costing me 6 bucks! It took about 15-20 minutes tops. The full service wash and detail place I go to charges $14 and up for washes. A hand wax is $37 and clay bar detailing adds $20 to that cost.

However, if you buy two after wash services, which in my case was the hand wax and the clay bar, the $14 wash is free. So, in my case having the clay bar done just tacked on 6 bucks more than had I done just the wash and the hand wax.

[DRIPS]

I am a long time car detailer and for a full detailing (wash, dry, clay bar, wax, buff) it take approximately 4 hours. Seems like a while, but the results...well they always speak for themselves. My car gets clayed twice a year. Waxxed four times a year.

TIps for CLaying-if you drop the clay on the ground dont continue to userotate the clay constantlyuse new clay bar at least every two times to prevent causing damage

[szh]

TIps for CLaying-if you drop the clay on the ground dont continue to userotate the clay constantlyuse new clay bar at least every two times to prevent causing damage

Another tip for clay bar: cut the bar in half and use it for one half of the car and the then use the other half for the rest of the car.

So, if you do drop it on the ground, discard that piece and you still have another one to finish the car with.

Z

[SammyTheBull]

I also clay bar'd my car this weekend......I got the kit from Auto Zone, it was the Maguires kit which included.......2 80 gram clay bars, quick detailer mist, a microfiber towel and a sample of maguires cleaner wax...all for 20 bucks. The process was much easier than i thought, after i was done with the clay bar, i followed up with maguires tech wax 2.0. The shine is unbelievable!! It looks brand new again. I have a black M35, and it looks amazing again. Everyone should do this at least once a year.

[06RT]

Did it get rid of any swirls? My black M45 is full of swirls that wont come off and never really looks black to me.

[hoaapple]

Did it get rid of any swirls? My black M45 is full of swirls that wont come off and never really looks black to me.

Claying will not get rid of swirls. It will just clean all the contaminants off your paint and give it a silky smooth finish. If you have swirls, you have to get something specially made for swirls and follow up with a coat of wax. Meguiar's Swirlx is one that comes to mind.

[06RT]

Will look into that, thanks.

[M35 Sport]

Will look into that, thanks.

To get rid of swirls you need to do one of two things.

1. Cover them up or fill them in. This is done by using a good paint sealant. Some waxes also have swirl filling capability like Meguiars NXT 2.0 wax. Applying a sealant is a temporary solution.

2. Buff/polish them out. This is usually done by a professional detailer with a rotary buffer. THis is actually polishing down the level of clear coat on you car to make it even again. Kinda like sanding a scratch out of a piece of wood. You then practice a routine that does not promote swirl marks like going through automatic washes with spinning brushes.

http://www.autopia.org/forum/p....html

[ArbitrageMan]

Swirls in the paint...heres what I went through:

zerothread?id=389610

[ArbitrageMan]

To get rid of swirls you need to do one of two things.

1. Cover them up or fill them in. This is done by using a good paint sealant. Some waxes also have swirl filling capability like Meguiars NXT 2.0 wax. Applying a sealant is a temporary solution.

2. Buff/polish them out. This is usually done by a professional detailer with a rotary buffer. THis is actually polishing down the level of clear coat on you car to make it even again. Kinda like sanding a scratch out of a piece of wood. You then practice a routine that does not promote swirl marks like going through automatic washes with spinning brushes.

http://www.autopia.org/forum/p....html

The only true way to get rid of them is #2. Its not cheap, and Ill tell you that no matter what you do, no matter how careful you are in washing your car, they come back.

[SteveTheTech]

Swirls in the paint...heres what I went through:

zerothread?id=389610

That is an amazing transformation.

I have spend 13 hours going over the exterior of my Acura one time as a gift to my wife. I was honestly surprised that it took that long and I sincerely wish I had thought of cutting the clay bar in half as that would have save an hour or so of time spent hunting for a new clay in an empty body shop. I used to get nutty about it moving the light to do an inspection of every area of the paint, and fanatic details. The work done by the guy you took it too (from pics alone) looks like some of the best work I have see and the price is worth it. A detail that takes 30 hours of labor is something completely different.

[M35 Sport]

Swirls in the paint...heres what I went through:

zerothread?id=389610

Wow I've read that write up before. I didn't know that was you. Was that your car on autopia?

[gabezilla275]

No detail should take 30 hours I'm a professional detailer and I can do an exterior in less than 4 hours. Thats wash, clay, cut and polish high speed buff leaving the exterior good as possible. The only thing better would be a new paint job. Of course prices depend on the size of the car for an M45 I would charge $125 for just the exterior on something smaller like a 350z I would only charge 100 For a QX56 Id charge 250 cause that beast is a pain in the @$$

[06RT]

To get rid of swirls you need to do one of two things.

1. Cover them up or fill them in. This is done by using a good paint sealant. Some waxes also have swirl filling capability like Meguiars NXT 2.0 wax. Applying a sealant is a temporary solution.

2. Buff/polish them out. This is usually done by a professional detailer with a rotary buffer. THis is actually polishing down the level of clear coat on you car to make it even again. Kinda like sanding a scratch out of a piece of wood. You then practice a routine that does not promote swirl marks like going through automatic washes with spinning brushes.

http://www.autopia.org/forum/p....html

I've had the car buffed with the rotary buffer to no avail...local detailer said that was the best he could do. It helped, but in the sun the car looks like mr. miyagi did a little "wax on, wax off"..with sandpaper.

Will look into the Meguiars stuff though.

[06RT]

Swirls in the paint...heres what I went through:

zerothread?id=389610

That looks phenomenal. Now that is what black is supposed to look like. My car isnt as bad as your "before" pics...but close enough. Not sure if I can justify $1500 for a paint treatment in this economy though. Too bad I didnt notice at the dealer's lot...may have picked up a different color.

Gabezilla...how close can you get to those results with your $125 service? Too bad I live on the other coast. I'd pay $125 in a min for something like that.

[paperfootball]

That looks phenomenal. Now that is what black is supposed to look like. My car isnt as bad as your "before" pics...but close enough. Not sure if I can justify $1500 for a paint treatment in this economy though. Too bad I didnt notice at the dealer's lot...may have picked up a different color.

Gabezilla...how close can you get to those results with your $125 service? Too bad I live on the other coast. I'd pay $125 in a min for something like that.

Not even close.

I run a detail shop for living, not a cut and buff hack shop, a real shop. 30 hours is not unheard of, we do details that require twice that. For $125 expect a glorified wash and wax. If you only want the car to look good in the shade, then this might fit your needs/goals.

Anyone wanting to learn a little more about real detailing should check http://www.autopia.org READ, READ, and then READ a little more.

[SteveTheTech]

I've got a agree. That is a surprising amount of work it takes.

Just following the Zaino directions it's 5-8 hours of work depending on the status of the finish. If the clear on a dark car is compromised or damaged by swirls or lines the time required increased significantly.

There is just no way the same type of service can be performed for <$300 and have it only take a few hours. The type of work that ArmitageMan had done was basically a restoration.

Autopia is a great site for knowlege of all things detailing. I read that site for a while until I realized that there is no real way to fix the paint issues on my car. Well that and the fact that I don't want to spend my one day off sweating over it. It's too much like actual work, and without fail it will rain within 36 hours.

I find the process of this in depth type of resto work intriguing and would love to learn how to do this, but my lack of patience usually wins.

[szh]

I've got a agree. That is a surprising amount of work it takes.

Just following the Zaino directions it's 5-8 hours of work depending on the status of the finish. If the clear on a dark car is compromised or damaged by swirls or lines the time required increased significantly.

Agreed! When I did my Q45 some years back, and my wife's Acura too, it was basically a weekend job per car for me (since I stopped occasionally to rest and let the Zaino dry too). I'd guess it took about 6 to 7 hours per car - for two applications of Zaino per car.

Z

[ArbitrageMan]

Wow I've read that write up before. I didn't know that was you. Was that your car on autopia?

Yup. My car was on autopia.

[szh]

Here is another example of an awesome job ... I don't know how long it took or what he charged.

zer...s-r-x



Z

[ArbitrageMan]

Awesome. Its a change that you would not believe unless you could see it with your own eyes.

Question for you guys. How many times do you think you can do this to a car? Once, twice? How much paint..or clear coat, is actually removed during this process?

[SammyTheBull]

that is one SICK detailing job!!

[New2Import]

Here is another example of an awesome job ... I don't know how long it took or what he charged.

zer...s-r-x



Z

You can do that with Zaino without the buffer. The trick is let it set over night in the garge in fall or spring for best results or around 65-70* weather. Also do a polish after ever detail job or monthly to keep it looking as good on a daily driver. BTW HOW and the HECK would someone let a GTR get in that bad of shape. Thats makes me sick. I see it all the time in my area. Corvettes ZO6s M6s to name a few high in cars driven in the rain!!!!!. I just want to pull them out of the car and ask them why!!!!