Clay Bar Detailing. Worth a go?

[Delvard]

Tedious in the extreme? Worth the effort? Just wondering. Thought I'd give it a go. I've found a local stockist of this kit;

[img]www.meguiars.co.uk/acatalog/qukclay1116.gif[img]

which promises....


Making paint surfaces as smooth as glass.
Every day, vehicle paint finishes are bombarded with a variety of airborne contaminants. Here are just a few of those that can cause the surface to become dull and rough:
Tree sap mist
Paint overspray
Industrial fallout
Hardwater deposits
Diesel fuel exhausts
Rubber particles from other cars
Bird & Insect droppings
Bug splatter
And so much more!
The Meguiar's Quik Clay Detailing system safely and quickly removes all these contaminants and restores crystal clear reflections and slickness. The system includes a specially formulated non-abrasive clay bar that safely lifts off the contaminants as the surface is lubricated with Quik Detailer. Instantly paint is restored to a shiny, smooth as glass finish and is ready for wax protection to be added. Without this technology, many car owners would have been left with only more expensive alternatives to restore their investment.G-1116 Quik Clay Detailing System


Price: £11.99 Including VAT at 17.5%


....The price is quite reasonable and having given my brother-in-law a full box of 'tried it and it's rubbish was conned again' cleaning products I now have room on my garage shelf for more.

Comments chaps?

[Pies]

Thet particular clay bar IMHO is shite

With claying the paint must be very very clean first.

If done badly it's one of the quickest ways of destroying your paintwork

You can not over lubricate when claying
The clay bar must be turned regularly in use
If you drop the bar bin it

[TT Tim]

Delvard said:

....The price is quite reasonable and having given my brother-in-law a full box of 'tried it and it's rubbish was conned again' cleaning products I now have room on my garage shelf for more.

Hhehehe, you said it.

There is a really 'anal' American detailingt site that swear by this technique, I personally swear by Zymol products, as long as you don't mind smelling liek a hairdresser when you've finished cleaning your car.

I'd be very interested to hear your conclusions.

Tim

[Delvard]

[quote]Thet particular clay bar IMHO is shite [/quote]

Super.
Just got back from the shops. Guess what I bought?
Well, lets see how it goes. I don't want to be giving products to my brother-in-law before I've even tried them do I....
I'll be back with an update, watch this space...

>> Edited by Delvard on Saturday 14th February 13:28

[jigs]

Ah but it's shite from a herd of Himalayan goats that've been fed solely on nice shiny shiny clay!

PS Pies is our resident shining expert so must be respected - Pies what do you shine your knobs with?

>> Edited by jigs on Saturday 14th February 13:46

[douglasr]

Pies said:

Thet particular clay bar IMHO is shite

Not in my experience. Used this product twice and as long as you use plenty of the details spray lubricant that comes with it, it works a treat. I only do those areas that feel rough to the touch, not the whole car.

[simpo two]

I just use spray-on wax. Before, the duster sticks to the surface, afterwards, it glides straight off, ie it's shiny. Works for me anyway

[Delvard]

Brother-in-laws not getting this!
Paint is so smooth now it's scary. It reminds me of one of those deep cleansing face packs (not that I've :cough: ever used one) so soft and silky. Looks deeper in colour as well
Applied Zymol wax afterwards and well, suffice to say, very impressive.
If anyone is thinking about giving it a go, yeah go ahead.

[the dodger]

Are they made of clay then?

This has always fascinated me and am tempted to do something to get rid of those v.fine swirly scratches I can see. Always seemed to me the best way to scratch your car was to run a stick of clay down it!

So, pies - what do you use?

[Pies]

This


It will do nothing for swirl marks

[lady topaz]

Pies has the shiniest TVR I've ever seen and I keep asking him to research (using mine of course) further on how shiney he could make a Tuscan! (Join the Q..).

[paul-wh]

I use Clay Magic. I used it on the Alfa Sportwagon just before I sold it. The car was nearly 3 years old and this stuff bought the surface up as smooth as glass.

I do tend to go over the whole car as deposits deposit themselves all over the car.

www.clay-magic.com

Paul

>> Edited by paul-wh on Monday 16th February 22:47

[the dodger]

Pies said:

This It will do nothing for swirl marks

Thanks Pies. Hmmmm. so it isn't clay then? I don't think I've got much 'rail-track' debris (or industrial fallout) on my bodywork, and it feels real smoooooth. Meguiars do a 'Scratch-X' to remove fine swirls, might give that a go one day.

[evo]

Think I'll stick with the Autoglym.

>> Edited by evo on Tuesday 17th February 08:53

[jam1et]

This is a real quote from Meguiars website:
"Cleaned with Gold Class Shampoo and Conditioner using Woolen mit, which makes the initial cleaning much faster than a standard sponge. Once dried with Meguiar's Microfibre Drying Towel, I used the Quik clay to get it smooth as glass (first time I used this, I was blown away by the difference it made to the touch). I used Swirl Remover 2.0 from the Mirror Glaze range to undo most of the abuse the paintwork had suffered from other lesser polishes, then completed the finish using the Deep Crystal system 1, 2 and 3 (using applicator pads & 100% Cotton terry towels). Each stage brought the car back to showroom standard, if not better. Finally, a quick once over with Final Inspection spray and Ultimate Wipe for the ultimate finish."

What is the point? Drive it 5 minutes down the road and it'll look just as dull as the next car. Get a life! A good sponge wash and a bit of autoglym will have to do for my car.

(it wasnt you was it pies? )


>> Edited by jam1et on Tuesday 17th February 11:13

[Podie]

evo said:

Think I'll stick with the Autoglym. >> Edited by evo on Tuesday 17th February 08:53

me too..

[Reeso]

I find a mixture of the 2 (AutoG & Meg's) works a treat. Horses for courses! I rate both, the car is testament to that.
Before slating a product, try it first &/or ask opinions!

>> Edited by Reeso on Tuesday 17th February 14:00

[seasider]

Reeso said:

I find a mixture of the 2 (AutoG & Mag's) works a treat. Horses for courses! I rate both, the car is testament to that. Before slating a product, try it first &/or ask opinions!

How you getting on with it at the moment

[Podie]

seasider said:

Reeso said: I find a mixture of the 2 (AutoG & Mag's) works a treat. Horses for courses! I rate both, the car is testament to that. Before slating a product, try it first &/or ask opinions! How you getting on with it at the moment

He wraps a polishing cloth around his cast..

[Reeso]

HA HA HA!!! Its hard to get into all the corners!