clay bar and car detailing

[badmd]

hi there all,am a newbie in car detailing here, just want learn from the rest here how to go about using the claybar for car detailing ? where do i start ? all advise are much appreciated , tq.:stupid:

 

[Eggie86]

Hey bro,

Welcome to the wonderful world of detailing. Judging from what you're seeking, you're probably eager to try out detailing on your own huh? Trust me, it's well worth the hours and sweat and toil you put in. Seriously, nothing beats the satisfaction of washing, rinsing and detailing your own ride, and reaping the fruits of your labour at the end of the session, and driving around with a slightly smug grin.

Anyhow, using a clay is pretty straightforward. There's a wealth of "how-to" websites and forums on the internet which can help you. I believe some of the older threads here by members would also come in handy, especially those by KC, Seech, John Smith and etc.

Most importantly, the surface of the car must be clean and dust free before you run the clay bar over. And get a simply spray bottle filled with water or even lubricants like Quik Detailer or ONR diluted with water. Surface must be wet when you run the claybar, whichever direction you prefer. If you find it hard to glide it over a certain area, try making it more moist, and repeat the gliding. For me, if you really want to know whether the surface is practically smooth like a mirror, try gliding the claybar across an area, and see whether it slides around without snagging or stopping abruptly anywhere.

And also, keep folding the claybar after some time, and start on a fresh clean surface. Or else the dirt which had already been picked up will be in contact with the surface again, and potentially marring it further without you realizing it.

Do the same if you accidentally drop the claybar on the floor, since it tends to attract loose dirt easily.

Hope that helps. I've just given a rather simple instruction bro. Haha. Try reading up on the web, Meg's website is a good place to start research too. :top:

Oh yea, before I forget, once you're done claying, make sure to finish off with a nice layer of wax or polish, and the shine and smoothness will be AWE-Inspiring-SOME. Hahaha.

 

[GearOSv2]

Start searching for kc's post to start with. He done alot of write up for detailing. You can learn from his post.

 

[jarance]

where to buy the clay in Klang area? What are the recommended clay and price indication.

I am also looking for polish to remove some scratch on my car. What to use?

Just got an B&D orbiter for RM199. Heard Tesco is selling it for RM179.

 

[B33mEr]

Can get perma glass clay bar roughly about RM25-RM30 at ace hardware or eneos ... Good value for money :top:

 

[jarance]

Can get perma glass clay bar roughly about RM25-RM30 at ace hardware or eneos ... Good value for money :top:

wonder eneos Bukit Tinggi, Klang have this clay.

 

[ICEMAN 68]

Can get perma glass clay bar roughly about RM25-RM30 at ace hardware or eneos ... Good value for money :top:

bought mine at ACE jaya33 at rm29.90 ... clay no 2

 

[astroboy]

Jarance, the scratch can be removed using Meguiar ScratchX. I have one at home for such emergencies, especially when using dark color car.

I hardly clay my car because the problem with claying is it removes all dirt, grime and what not on the surface of our paint. Leaving nothing behind. I using PG Polymer wash and wax and through time, the polymer coated builds up to protect the paint. The moment I clay it, all bad stuffs and good stuffs over the paint gone. Must seal the car back with wax immediately after claying, so I hate going that path, tiring.. I think my clay become rock liao..

 

[jarance]

Can get perma glass clay bar roughly about RM25-RM30 at ace hardware or eneos ... Good value for money :top:

Jarance, the scratch can be removed using Meguiar ScratchX. I have one at home for such emergencies, especially when using dark color car.

I hardly clay my car because the problem with claying is it removes all dirt, grime and what not on the surface of our paint. Leaving nothing behind. I using PG Polymer wash and wax and through time, the polymer coated builds up to protect the paint. The moment I clay it, all bad stuffs and good stuffs over the paint gone. Must seal the car back with wax immediately after claying, so I hate going that path, tiring.. I think my clay become rock liao..

The problem is that my car paint surface feel very rough. Thought of removing all the grim, scratch and what not before following a fine coat of wax.

Will look for Meguiar ScratchX in the shop.

 

[jarance]

bought mine at ACE jaya33 at rm29.90 ... clay no 2

you mean that there is many grade? what the difference?

 

[Eggie86]

you mean that there is many grade? what the difference?

If not mistaken, I've seen at ACE Sunway Pyramid, selling 3 grades of claybar. Grade 1 for light coloured cars, 2 & 3 for darker and dulled paint respectively.

So far I've used 2 & 3, I think mine's the blue coloured clay, the other is white. The blue one is better for me, since my car is slightly dark green.

Grades 2 & 3 slightly more pricier than Grade 1. Like B33MER mentioned, around RM 29.90.

 

[Eggie86]

The problem is that my car paint surface feel very rough. Thought of removing all the grim, scratch and what not before following a fine coat of wax.

Will look for Meguiar ScratchX in the shop.

Jarance, using a claybar might help alleviate the roughness and restore some semblance of smoothness. Depends on condition of the paint too. Although my car's in bad shape paintwise, but I do clay occasionally, and the car's pretty smooth.

Right now I think they're selling the ScratchX 2.0 version. Pricey, but probably effective since the chemicals is pretty aggressive.

 

[jarance]

So for a newbie like me, what are the arsenal that I may need.

So far, I have
1. B&D Orbiter (newbie toy) - would really want the Makita.
2. Turtle Rubbing compound.
3. Soft 99 - Liquid wax.
4. A bit of this and a bot of that wax.

I need to add:-
1. clay - grade 2
2. MG- ScratchX
3.
4.

woh.. this is an expensive hobby and also blood, sweat and tears.

 

[Eggie86]

So for a newbie like me, what are the arsenal that I may need.

So far, I have
1. B&D Orbiter (newbie toy) - would really want the Makita.
2. Turtle Rubbing compound.
3. Soft 99 - Liquid wax.
4. A bit of this and a bot of that wax.

I need to add:-
1. clay - grade 2
2. MG- ScratchX
3.
4.

woh.. this is an expensive hobby and also blood, sweat and tears.

I've also got the B&D ROB. Not really effective at getting rid of swirls and scratches since it only has one speed. And most of the detailing sifus here currently use Makita rotary etc. Hahaha. But we all have to start off somewhere.

Btw bro, strongly recommend getting your hands on a few good pieces of microfibres. I've also sworn by using ONR for its sheer convenience. Haha. but in your case, you're more concerned about getting the paintwork free from visible scratches and what-nots right?

What will you be using as lubricant for claying Jarance? To be honest, I've never used chemicals. Just bought a cheap spray bottle and filled it with water. Haha. Too sayang to use like RM 40 QuikDetailer as lubricant.

Btw, expensive hobby it is! Trick is, we learn from our silly mistakes, and try not to get too influenced by what the products purport to do. I've fallen for that trick one too many times. Haha. I once bought Turtle Ice Polish when I saw the advert on the telly at ACE Mid Valley. Talk about random splurging!

So now, I've got a basket filled with halfway opened or used paste/liquid waxes/Swirl X/Scratch X whatever X la.... Claybar, I changed 3 times d over the past year and a half.

 

[jarance]

Oh forgot to mention that I also have ONR and micro fibre cloth from KC. Yup, love the ONR.

am planning to use ONR as lubricant as advised by KC.

have to agree with you the B&D orbitor is crap after trying it out for the first time.

I try it with turtle swirl to remove the scratch but it did not work. Try it with hand and it did manage to remove some only.
Need a powerful arsenal.

 

[Eggie86]

Oh forgot to mention that I also have ONR and micro fibre cloth from KC. Yup, love the ONR.

am planning to use ONR as lubricant as advised by KC.

have to agree with you the B&D orbitor is crap after trying it out for the first time.

I try it with turtle swirl to remove the scratch but it did not work. Try it with hand and it did manage to remove some only.
Need a powerful arsenal.

Like KC's fave word - we need GORILLA Arms. Wahaha.

Yes indeed, crap's the word. Haha.

Somehow by hand at least we can be more aggressive than the ROB. But, mind you, when I feel like using the ROB to wax the car, the end result is almost always more smoother than hand.

 

[evilnickwong]

If you don't want to shell out the RM800 odd for a Makita, you can get pretty good results with the cheaper RM200 or so rotary buffers from China. The main downside of these are typically noisier and also no speed control (bogs down when you apply pressure, so cannot maintain desired speed) but with some practice it's still more than sufficient for paint correction.

Btw for wax you might want to try Meguiars #16 wax. It's RM86 a can at Ace Hardware, but it's well worth it. Apply it as thin as you possibly can and it lasts and beads really well.

 

[jarance]

If you don't want to shell out the RM800 odd for a Makita, you can get pretty good results with the cheaper RM200 or so rotary buffers from China. The main downside of these are typically noisier and also no speed control (bogs down when you apply pressure, so cannot maintain desired speed) but with some practice it's still more than sufficient for paint correction.

Btw for wax you might want to try Meguiars #16 wax. It's RM86 a can at Ace Hardware, but it's well worth it. Apply it as thin as you possibly can and it lasts and beads really well.

Thank evilnick, I will consider adding MG #16 to my arsenal. :top:

 

[ICEMAN 68]

Thank evilnick, I will consider adding MG #16 to my arsenal. :top:

not all ACE carries the M16 wax ...PJ tarak ..i got mine from Pyramid ...

M16 and MG TECHwax both are good ... different ppl different taste ...but i've got both ...

unker jarance you can use mine ..then decide which one to go for ..

the only thing i've observed is that the M16 wax works better on ceramic paint @ hard surface paint ....

 

[kc's]

WOW WOW You guys are cool.....& less than 24 hours there are so much of help & guide....shown....Coolest forum earth...

That really show you kind & generous hearted buddies around....

Esp Bro Eggie, B33mer...you guys are sifu....and very sound advise too

Start searching for kc's post to start with. He done alot of write up for detailing. You can learn from his post.

Thanks GearOSv2 for your kind words

The problem is that my car paint surface feel very rough. Thought of removing all the grim, scratch and what not before following a fine coat of wax.

Will look for Meguiar ScratchX in the shop.

Congrats Bro ...finally you are here....yeah taking ownership of your ultimate ride

No need to worries ...... your paint surface have got lots ya contamination....rough surface ot being properly prepared.....

Yes...old need to be removed before new to come

where to buy the clay in Klang area? What are the recommended clay and price indication.

I am also looking for polish to remove some scratch on my car. What to use?

Just got an B&D orbiter for RM199. Heard Tesco is selling it for RM179.

best scratch remover is actually compound....


i recommending you professional range products but not the consumer product...same goes to meguiars...

others

Reason:-
1) paint is expensive - so expensive to get back the original coat of paint – and pretty impossible
2) effective & good finishing
3) High quality - the older rubbing compound is the abrasive diminish - like the turtle, Ferrecla - G3, Diamond ut meg 85-84-83-82
Now the present ones are Megs M 105 (professional range) which are SMAT (small micro abrasive technology) let me know if u need in loose quantity. I brought even to the last detailing TT & show the hand on how it work by hand & machines - safe for all kind of machines (unlike the consumer - marred your finish on yr paint)

the latest breakthrough & happening is the Optimum spray compound - 1st ever in the world...space age..with SMAT &abrasive diminish...so fine that u can finish off effortlessly


as for good & reliable machines. you dont need to own one yourself......share la with 2-3 others friend....why buy a 200 -300 & use for 1-2 years & not having the consistency performance....

As we have been guiding so many others on hand on & detailing clinic....& you definitely need to groom your car for as long as you would be driving for another few decades

if you remember there is a couple of my post...there is no machine required....

i did a burgundy MB 124 in a petronas st - 50 minutes & another Waja for 40 minutes ma ma mia results


let me put a couple more posting soon....need not expensive, energy & $$ consuming

really effortless, paint cleaning, clay, seal & wax all within 90 minutes



cheers . keep up the spirit guys