Not to Clay if not polishing?

[Eric]

I was wondering, since I'm not yet comfortable polishing, should I skip the clay bar? Someone told me not to if I'm not going to polish. Any insight from you guys(and gals) is appreciated!

[ocdrifter]

Eric, what kind of polisher do you own? I'm going to say do a plastic sandwich bag test on the car. Once you wash your car, rub a sandwich bag on your paint, if it feels gritty or sticks as you rub lightly you will need to clay.

 

I'm going to say clay the car, it's better to keep the contaminants off the paint then to leave them and follow with Adams H2O Guard and gloss for protection.

 

Eric remember today's orbitals are very user friendly, and are easy to use, there is nothing to be scared of. I know it seems like a lot to learn but honestly if you take your time and do one panel at a time you can master a orbital within a hour. A few key things when using a orbital always keep the machine moving, stay away from the edges, start and stop the machine on the paint, last but not least watch the adams videos and you'll be having a therapy session in your garage in no time at all.

[mc2hill]

If the paint mars easily, then you would need to polish to get it looks its best.  I have a client with a black Infiniti that mars with a strong look, so I only clay that one if I am following up with a polish.  Other cars I have clayed and moved on to PS,

[aaronc1]

I usually wash the truck and afterwards clay bar it and then add buttery wax and looks awesome. Im waiting on my polisher and pads so I can tackle the polishing part and see how it comes out. 

[Nathan]

The reason you clay is to remove bonded contamination. So if you feel anything still on the paint (like it feels bumpy) or it makes a noise when you run your hand across finish you should clay. It is not required but I would clay if you have spots that need it or the whole vehicle.

[aaronc1]

x2, I like to "feel" or "touch" my truck and ensure its smooth. If its smooth without any bumps or for it to get stuck then its good. but after a while I notice it and thats when I know its time to clay. My truck is dd so I clay bar it at least 2 times a month more or less...depending on weather it might be once a month.

[falcaineer]

Eric, what kind of polisher do you own? I'm going to say do a plastic sandwich bag test on the car. Once you wash your car, rub a sandwich bag on your paint, if it feels gritty or sticks as you rub lightly you will need to clay.

 

I'm going to say clay the car, it's better to keep the contaminants off the paint then to leave them and follow with Adams H2O Guard and gloss for protection.

 

Eric remember today's orbitals are very user friendly, and are easy to use, there is nothing to be scared of. I know it seems like a lot to learn but honestly if you take your time and do one panel at a time you can master a orbital within a hour. A few key things when using a orbital always keep the machine moving, stay away from the edges, start and stop the machine on the paint, last but not least watch the adams videos and you'll be having a therapy session in your garage in no time at all.

 

Only caveat I'd offer to the plastic baggie test is to lightly rub the bag over the paint. No need to accidentally introduce micro (or worse!) scratches! Here's a good article with a little more background:

 

http://www.adamsforums.com/topic/1200-the-plastic-bag-clay-bar-test-youll-say-wow

Edited March 5, 2017 by falcaineer

[Eric]

Eric, what kind of polisher do you own? I'm going to say do a plastic sandwich bag test on the car. Once you wash your car, rub a sandwich bag on your paint, if it feels gritty or sticks as you rub lightly you will need to clay.

 

I'm going to say clay the car, it's better to keep the contaminants off the paint then to leave them and follow with Adams H2O Guard and gloss for protection.

 

Eric remember today's orbitals are very user friendly, and are easy to use, there is nothing to be scared of. I know it seems like a lot to learn but honestly if you take your time and do one panel at a time you can master a orbital within a hour. A few key things when using a orbital always keep the machine moving, stay away from the edges, start and stop the machine on the paint, last but not least watch the adams videos and you'll be having a therapy session in your garage in no time at all.

So it's not absolutely necessary to polish if I'm going to Clay? As long as some sort of protection is going down? The person I spoke to reason was the clay can easily Mar the paint and introduce more scratches.

[Mariner]

So it's not absolutely necessary to polish if I'm going to Clay? As long as some sort of protection is going down? The person I spoke to reason was the clay can easily Mar the paint and introduce more scratches.

I can absolutely attest to the fact that clay can and may mar the paint. It did to mine. But no, you do not NEED to polish after claying. It's simply suggested that this the stage you would do it if that's the plan.

 

Myself, I've clayed several times without polishing afterwards. However, eventually, you should polish.

 

Also, after your clay, you should think about either performing another wash, using RHP, or even Coating Prep to clean the paint prior to applying a sealant or wax.

[ocdrifter]

So it's not absolutely necessary to polish if I'm going to Clay? As long as some sort of protection is going down? The person I spoke to reason was the clay can easily Mar the paint and introduce more scratches.

Eric it all depends on the clays being used, I you have a heavy duty clay it might mar the paint, test a small area first, if you're using Adams clay, in my opinion with the right technique it will not. Thoroughly wash the car using the two bucket method or waterless wash methods and also make sure you clay in one direction and use plenty of clay lube and your good to go. When I'm in a hurry to go out but I want my b.ack truck clean this is how I do it!

[FrozenWS6]

I clayed my TBSS and followed it with liquid paint sealant and it looked great. The clay is cleaning the surface of the paint so you will want to put some protection back on it when your done.

 

Just depends on the paint if you need to polish it after claying. If it's a black car you may need to polish.

Yes you can potentially add scratches if you let the clay get dirty by not flipping it or using enough detail spray for lube.

[Eric]

Thanks for all the responses and input. I understand it much better now! 

[falcaineer]

Happy to help in a small way, Eric.

 

For others reading this, I can also attest that you do not need to polish if you clay, and can skip right to PS or other comparable step (e.g. wax). I did so before winter, not wanting or really needing to correct the paint before it gets trashed by salt, mag chloride, rocks, etc. Adam outlines the same idea in the winter prep video. Come spring, though, bring on the polish!

[bjoeaull]

A couple more things.  Try to keep the clay fresh by remolding it randomly, especially if you hit some areas that seemed to be rough.  My vehicles the back area and the bottom sides and front always seem the worst so I try to save them for last.  It may be overkill but seems to pick up bigger chunks off those rockers.  Clay doesn't generally need a lot of pressure so monitor that closely so your making progress while not rubbing contaminants back into paint.  Good luck!  A freshly clayed vehicle feels really satisfying.  

[mc2hill]

As a follow-up, I detailed a Fiat Abarth yesterday, and it needed some decontamination, mostly to remove some leftover shipping film residue.  The claying did leave some marring, but as the car is a medium blue it was not very noticeable.  The paint ended up super smooth, and ready for PS.  We will do a full correction in about a year...after the owner has a little fun with it!

[Eric]

I never responded to this topic, whoops!

 

As my first wash using Adam's products I did a Strip Wash and after washing and drying I clayed the whole car and i'm glad I did. I could feel a ton of contaminants on the paint. After that I applied paint sealant. I was very happy with the result

 

I've washed my car 2 or 3 times since then with the standard Shampoo and then followed up with H20 G&G and Americana Paste Wax. 

 

I'm thinking after my most recent wash (this Monday) the next one I may need to clay again. Unless there are better ways to remove water spots that are very difficult to remove.

[falcaineer]

I never responded to this topic, whoops!

 

As my first wash using Adam's products I did a Strip Wash and after washing and drying I clayed the whole car and i'm glad I did. I could feel a ton of contaminants on the paint. After that I applied paint sealant. I was very happy with the result

 

I've washed my car 2 or 3 times since then with the standard Shampoo and then followed up with H20 G&G and Americana Paste Wax.

 

I'm thinking after my most recent wash (this Monday) the next one I may need to clay again. Unless there are better ways to remove water spots that are very difficult to remove.

Happy to hear your processes are starting to take shape, and more so that the results are awesome (not surprised!).

 

Couple suggestions:

 

While it certainly doesn't hurt, if you need to save a little time in the future, for a daily driver, there's no real need to dry the car after you SW. Clay can be used on a wet vehicle along with the DS (see Adam's Daily Driver Detail video, around the 11:15 mark - but watch the whole thing). If yours is a garage queen, drying it makes sense.

 

HGG should only be needed about every 3-6 washes, or so. I know it smells awesome, but save a little product. It'll last, and you can get your fix by simply opening the bottle! Can't speak to how often to apply Americana, but I'm sure it looks great on your car.

 

For water spot removal, what have you tried? DS and/or WW could be a solution. For more info, see here: http://adamspolishes.com/how-to-remove-water-spots

 

To cut down on the possibility of water spots in the future, here are some basic tips:

1) Don't apply water to the entire car until it's absolutely necessary. While you may have to blast off some caked on stuff, the rest of the car can wait. In other words, after the wheels and exhaust tips are done, then foam down the car with a FG or FC (if available...and if not, get one!), wash it with a wash sponge/pad/mitt, and then...finally...rinse the entire car off. The "rinse cycle" should be the first water applied to the entire car. After the rinse, the clock starts to dry it.

2) Wash the side in the sun first. Doing so will allow the pH neutral soap to dry on the car first vs. the water.

3) Apply DS as a drying aid, right after you rinse.

4) Get a Sidekick and a new ultra plush drying towel. Both will aid significantly in your fight against water spots!

 

Now, let's see some pics of the sealed up blue beauty!

Edited May 27, 2017 by falcaineer