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Posts Tagged ‘Clay’

You will read a lot of comments on the use of clay.

Some actually tell you to use abrasive clay on a brand new factory paint job. Not only is that excessive it’s senseless and damaging to the original factory finish. Clay should never be used on a new car.

Some say clay is a necessary detail product and is needed from once a year to once a month. They will tell you how smooth the paint feels once you clay it. They will say, “Put a plastic sandwich bag over your hand and rub it along the car and feel the debris stuck in the paint” They will tell you that, you have to use clay or your paint will never be smooth to the touch.

The truth is that clay is for fanatics, it is a “Silly putty”, an example of excessive detailing. Sure you can use clay, but why?

All paint jobs start out smooth, Its what happens to the paint later that creates the problem. There are three basic elements involved here.

Clay, Wax, Paint.

Listed in the order or softness, Paint is much harder than either clay or wax. Being hard by design paint will not hold anything. The painted surface once cured is not sticky nor is it malleable. Paint will chip or scratch but it won’t hold any particles that clay is needed to remove.

Wax has varying degrees of hardness. When dry wax will always be harder than clay. Many car waxes rely on carnauba for a hard lasting shine. In its pure state carnauba can be as hard as rock. It is blended with other ingredients to make it usable as a car wax. However that does not make the carnauba in the mixture any softer. Carnauba is broken down into a powder when it is formulated in to car wax. The powder retains its abrasive hardness. The rest of the wax mixture provides an adhesive base which will help the wax adhere to any surface. This adhesive quality is what traps grit and debris on your car. The wax is the problem, not the paint.

That fact becomes pretty obvious when you realize that everyone who swears how good clay is uses wax. They all use it when they are stripping old wax off their car. You will never hear of someone using clay to strip old paint off their car.

Common sense tells you that: If something is able to wedge itself in a surface as hard and thin as acrylic paint nothing as soft as putty is going to be able to grip it hard enough to pull it out. Yes the very use of wax creates an opportunity for clay to enter the automotive paint detail products arena.

What is clay? “An abrasive putty”. Used to remove old wax from paint

What about wax? It’s a plant by product……. Tree sap is also plant by product. Guess what! Carnauba comes from trees. Paint is a synthetic. Acrylic paint is unusual in that can be mixed with water but once dried, it basically becomes a water insoluble plastic. In its manufactured form plastic has a life span beyond any known organic composition. That fact makes putting an organic based wax on synthetic backwards. From start to finish wax causes problems. Clay is an abrasive treatment developed and manufactured to aid in cleaning old wax off paint. Rubbing “plant matter and putty” on your car is not beneficial to the paint.

The perfect product for acrylic paint cannot be organic as it must have as long or longer a life span than the paint it is protecting.

That is why paint is used to protect metal. Exposed to the elements,  paint has a longer life span than the metal it’s protecting. Paint never has to be removed because it’s non organic, a synthetic. Paint wears down over time, but it does not decay. Wax is organic and has a point of decay. That is why it fails and has to be removed.

The perfect product for acrylic paint should not decay or have to be removed. The perfect product for acrylic paint should enhance and preserve the original beauty of the paint. The perfect product for acrylic paint does not require the use of clay. The perfect product for acrylic paint should not require buffing, or any repetitive action that involves friction.

If you don’t pile wax upon your car you won’t have an excuse to use clay. And if you do pile wax up thick on your car, you should be aware that rolling a ball of abrasive putty on your vehicle is damaging to the paint. In most cases after a car is clayed it needs to be polished before it is waxed, This causes even more damage to the paints original shine.

The best thing to cut old wax off paint is hot water and dishwashing liquid.

Sure there are people who say “don’t use dishwashing liquid”.

You have to consider the source.

These are the same people who will tell you to use clay on a new factory paint job. Dishwashing liquid works on metal, plastic and glass It’s safe non abrasive and works equally well on all brands of wax.

What is automotive detail clay really good for?

Automotive detail fanatics like it. It provides them with another way to make money at your pocket and paint jobs expense.

However in the concept of acrylic paint preservation, automotive detail clay is a paint damaging, absolutely useless product.

Of all the information out there and of all the products being sold to the public to preserve and protect your vehicle’s finish, little or nothing is said about a simple product used in the Automotive Detailing and Paint Repair industry.

Some detailers don’t really understand the benefits of using this product in the way I am going to talk about, and how it is beneficial to their customers and why it should be done on a somewhat regular basis!

Well what is this product?

It is called a Clay Bar.

This is not a new product or a secret product. However, it is not a well know product. Its use even by manufacturers is not well explained or understood.

We have some insight that is unique and not well understood by detailers or body shops because of the range of automotive appearance restoration we specialize in. Since many of the vehicles we work on have already been detailed we have to leave the vehicles “front line ready” when we are finished.

Unlike a body shop whose job does not include any kind of ‘detailing” we have to leave the vehicles we work on “front line ready”. Also, unlike a detail shop we have paint restoration experience.

Why does this matter to you, and how can our experience and knowledge benefit you?

First of all let me explain a basic rule to paint preparation when preparing for refinishing. The surface being worked on has to be completely “sterile” and properly scuffed in order for new paint to adhere well to the area being refinished.

Let me illustrate it this way. If I paint something that has a decal on it and I paint over that decal what happens if that decal’s glue looses its adhesive quality? That area will certainly peel off sooner or later. You would not paint over a pin stripe or decal but on a larger scale if you have removed all surface contaminates you will have great adhesion and a long lasting paint job!

One of the biggest things that makes a paint job a quality paint job is how well the surface has been “prepped’! I cannot stress this point enough!

Have you ever priced a paint job? Have you wondered why some body shops can do a paint job for $400 and others will tell you $3000?!

Did you know the factory paint job on your vehicle can be valued somewhere between $3000 to $6000 depending of the make and model? Any paint work that is not done to the factory standard can devalue your vehicle the amount of your factory paint job.

The prep work done for a paint job when done properly can be the difference between a factory quality paint job and disaster!

So you have this $3000-$6000 paint job on your car, how do you protect it?

First of all do not neglect it by not removing damaging surface contaminates such as tar, sap, bugs, industrial fallout etc. Sap can actually boil in the sun and burn off the finish under the sap, ruining the panel where the sap is.

Second, make sure your waxes or sealants used to protect your paint job are of good quality and prepare the finish for proper adhesion of your wax or sealant.

Should you “prep” the finish for wax or sealants? Absolutely! However, most people think they are prepping for wax but they are not. So how do you “prep” the finish for wax?

The best way to “prep” your vehicles finish for wax or paint sealants is the use of a clay bar! Before you wax and after you have washed your vehicle use a clay bar at least once a year or every six months for the best protection of that expensive paint job.

A clay bar will remove any surface contaminates that washing did not. It can even remove hard water stains on the paint if they are not too bad. This is also the only way to remove paint over spray. A Clay Bar can also be used on the glass and on the headlights which should be part of your wax or sealer routine espeacially if you have restored your headlight lenses.

How do you use a clay bar?

A clay bar has to be used with a lubricant. It is a simple process really. In fact you can even use water as a lubricant. However, it is better to use a spray way that will both lubricate the panels you are clay barring and can be used to clean up clay residue as you go.

Simply spray the area you are clay barring…a 12″ X 12″ area is best and rub the surface with the clay bar back and forth in a side to side motion. You will hear the clay bar picking up light contaminates and as the surface is cleaned you will stop hearing the movement of the clay bar.

You can also feel the surface. If it feels rough like tiny pieces of sand after you have washed it, it needs to be clay barred. Use the same method above and listen and feel the area you are working on after you dry it off.

So work your small area wipe it dry when you think it is finished and check the surface with the inside of your hand rubbing lightly feeling and listening for rough areas. Once you have completed a section you can move on the next.

A word of caution, it has been said, although I gave never experienced this, that a clay bar can rub the paint off eventually if not kept lubricated while using. Use common sense and you should be fine.

Well there it is, this is the best way to prep for waxing your vehicle and a great way to be sure you are getting the best results from your wax.

Enjoy and I hope this article helps!

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