clay bar

cena

is a clay a good way too get rid of tar from a car. how long does last.

zilog_jones

I've used clay bars before, they'll pick up the smaller bits of tar but not always the big stuff. I've found WD40 great for removing tar but I'm not sure if does any good to the paintwork...

rebel.ranter

Just buy some Holts or Autoglym Tar Remover. Follow up with a thorough cleaning & a decent wax.

I have used both companies' offerins & both were fine. A clay bar is really for removing mirco pieces of dirt, not really for bits of tar.

cena

do you get spary with the bar when you buy it.

whats a good wax. and how do you apply it. its for a black car

FearDark

White Spirit.

Yer only man there.

fonecrusher1

thebanana wrote: »

White Spirit.

Yer only man there.

Yup spot on. Petrol will do the same job.

Grimreaper666

Has anyone heard of petrol? Tar is petroleum based is it not...........:rolleyes:

vectra

cena wrote: »

do you get spary with the bar when you buy it.

With the Meguirs kit you do get a spray.

cena wrote: »

whats a good wax

Harly Wax.. Hard to beat it
I get it from this guy

Excellent dealer.

cena wrote: »

how do you apply it. its for a black car

If your car hasnt been kept up to spec then I would give it a good de-tarring with one of the methods above.. Then a good wash/dry
2 Polishes with Autoglym SRP


Follow this with a light coat of Harly wax..
You will fall in love with your black car again

rebel.ranter

Hi Vectra, you do realize that the Autoglym product is a syntetic wax & Harly is a natural wax, not an ideal combination.
From what some if the detailers that post on here say you should stick with one product type or the other.
Synthetic will last longer, natural will give a better shine.

vectra

rebel.ranter wrote: »

Hi Vectra, you do realize that the Autoglym product is a syntetic wax & Harly is a natural wax, .

Nope.
The Autoglym SRP is "super resin POLISH"
NOT a wax.

my method is to CLEAN the paintwork with the Polish and then seal it in with the Wax.
I have been using this on my own black car with over 2 years now and it still looks as good as day one

Mc Love

I have used Poorboys Spray and wipe when claying!

VolvoMan

Claybar seems overrated to me. It's not easy for the average person to use and can get messy real easily.

Carstuck

I use Holts tar remover and it works great on removing tar.

mickdw

You really do need a clay bar to get that smooth surface back before trying to get a wax finish

vectra

mickdw wrote: »

You really do need a clay bar to get that smooth surface back before trying to get a wax finish

Not forgetting to give it a polish before waxing.

zilog_jones

VolvoMan wrote: »

Claybar seems overrated to me. It's not easy for the average person to use and can get messy real easily.

I found it very easy to use - easier than the polishing or waxing part IMO. Only problem I had was when I dropped one on the ground

kev91

https://shop.cleancar.ie/Perfect-Paint-Kit.html

this bit of kit seems to be great ive heard deadly comments about it and is at a good price to

instead of a clay bar they use clay block ill try find the write up on it

from cleancar.ie


i think it's fair to say most of us, at one time or another have let a claybar hit the ground, making it fit for nothing but the bin. Fairly frustrating if it is your last piece and more frustrating if you have to go and buy another full kit from your local 'big name retailer' just to finish your car.

So what is claying? It's been used for many years in the professional detailing world to remove contaminants and overspray from just washed paint. This extra cleaning is not only visible in your finish but also your paint should 'feel' noticeably different. If done correctly the paint will be as smooth as glass. It is this preparation that is key to getting the best finish on your car, you could spend €100 on a pot of wax but if the surface is poor then it won't bond and you are wasting your time.

The downsides to your traditional claybar are many :-

- Clay needs to be warm and pliable before and during use. Not an easy task in Ireland!
- Clay needs to be continuously folded to keep contaminants away from the car.
- Claying is very time consuming if done properly.
- Clay is very hard to hold onto, especially when covered in quick detailer.
- Clay does not have a long life span, one very dirty car could very well exhaust an average size bar.

So CleanCar.ie have come up with an answer, which will have you all binning your claybars! Whether you are a seasoned clayer or have yet to pop your claybar cherry, the Clayblock from Chemical Guys will impress. Not to mention the money, time and effort saved.



The advantages of our Clayblock are :-

- It's easier to hold making it easier to use because you don't have to worry about it hitting the deck.
- Doesn't need to be warm to use it, try claying in the snow
- Doesn't need folding, a simple wipe with a cloth is all that's needed.
- Built in ridges ensure the contaminants are lifted away.
- Has a lifespan of over 10 cars, that's 10 times longer than your average piece of clay! Making it wallet friendly.

Too good to be true? We must admit, when it first arrived for us to sample we were very skeptical however having now tried it we would recommend nothing else. In fact we haven't even stocked normal clay! It doesn't look all that inspiring, it is similar in appearance and size to a sanding block but it's made of sponge with one textured side for claying.

mickdw

vectra wrote: »

Not forgetting to give it a polish before waxing.

My point was that it is hopeless trying to put a fine finish on paintwork if your surface is rough due to contaminants

vectra

mickdw wrote: »

My point was that it is hopeless trying to put a fine finish on paintwork if your surface is rough due to contaminants

Agreed.
But does need to be polished after claying and prior to waxing.

mickdw

vectra wrote: »

Agreed.
But does need to be polished after claying and prior to waxing.

Not disputing that.

vectra

mickdw wrote: »

Not disputing that.

just felt I needed to add it as some might think a claying then waxing would suffice :cool:

vintagevrs

Instead of searching or starting a new thread the people posting in this thread seem knowledgeable and I dont mean to hijack the thread.

i have a black car and have clayed it in the past and it comes up great. Now I just read people talking about polishing and then waxing. I dont know the difference.
I plan to do the car properly this weekend.
My idea is wash, dry, clay, wax/polish. (not sure which it is, some autoglym stuff)
What should I be doing?
Also, my wheels are stained and wonderwheels wheel cleaner does not really help, does this mean they are too far gone and what else could i try on them? What should I use to reseal them also?

Thanks and sorry for all the questions

Matt Simis

zilog_jones wrote: »

I found it very easy to use - easier than the polishing or waxing part IMO. Only problem I had was when I dropped one on the ground

Yup, Clay Bars are quite easy to use. The off the shelf grades you get retail are quite soft too, so you would be doing well to mess anything up with them.

MetzgerMeister

vintagevrs wrote: »

Instead of searching or starting a new thread the people posting in this thread seem knowledgeable and I dont mean to hijack the thread.

i have a black car and have clayed it in the past and it comes up great. Now I just read people talking about polishing and then waxing. I dont know the difference.
I plan to do the car properly this weekend.
My idea is wash, dry, clay, wax/polish. (not sure which it is, some autoglym stuff)
What should I be doing?
Also, my wheels are stained and wonderwheels wheel cleaner does not really help, does this mean they are too far gone and what else could i try on them? What should I use to reseal them also?

Thanks and sorry for all the questions

A lot of people think polishing means one thing - drying the car by hand. The proper meaning of "polishing a car" is to apply a liquid polish to the paintwork. This deepens the gloss on any dark-coloured car (black, red etc.). Polish does NOT protect paintwork no matter what it says on the bottle. You need to wax the car after polishing to seal in the polish and protect the paintwork.

With regard to yuor alloys, please post a pic so we know what you mean by stained.

vintagevrs

Think that's it attached. Went out and gave one wheel a quick wet wipe and dry but even if it is washed well that brown staining is on most of the wheels.

Thanks in advance for any help

MetzgerMeister

vintagevrs wrote: »

Think that's it attached. Went out and gave one wheel a quick wet wipe and dry but even if it is washed well that brown staining is on most of the wheels.

Thanks in advance for any help

That looks like smeared tar to me. It could also be rust from the brake discs. Tar remover should do the trick, you won't believe how shiny and new looking they'll be after you do it.

Use a cream product (meguiars) and spray it onto a sponge then dab the tar stains. This ensures you don't get any on the brake discs as meguiars tar remover is also a wax which has to be buffed when dry once the excess and tar have been wiped away.

Seperate

vintagevrs wrote: »

Instead of searching or starting a new thread the people posting in this thread seem knowledgeable and I dont mean to hijack the thread.

i have a black car and have clayed it in the past and it comes up great. Now I just read people talking about polishing and then waxing. I dont know the difference.
I plan to do the car properly this weekend.
My idea is wash, dry, clay, wax/polish. (not sure which it is, some autoglym stuff)
What should I be doing?
Also, my wheels are stained and wonderwheels wheel cleaner does not really help, does this mean they are too far gone and what else could i try on them? What should I use to reseal them also?

Thanks and sorry for all the questions

Polishing, by loose definition is cleaning the paint using an abrasive-based compound. This will remove any oxidation, and if done by machine, any scratches, swirl marks, lacquer stains and so on.

Waxing is then protecting the paint, usually using some polymer sealant or carnuba based wax.

If you're looking for some recommendations ...

Wash (Washmitt, Shampoo) -> Dry (Drying Towel) -> Clay (Clay Kit) -> Polish (Light Polish, Applicator) -> Wax (Wax, Applicator).

Your wheels are probably stained because of the wonderwheels. You can try polish them the same you would paintwork to see if that helps. Wax them afterwards and avoid using wonderwheels.

Feel free to get in touch if you need any advice. We do this kind of thing everyday, so can advise about pretty much any car/finish/technique etc.

Seperate

vectra wrote: »

just felt I needed to add it as some might think a claying then waxing would suffice :cool:

It would suffice if the paint is in good condition. I clay my car a couple of times a year and wax it straight after.

The reason you clay a car is remove the bonded contaminants on the paint - as it will hinder your polishing if you plan to do it, or it will effect the durability of the wax you use as the wax won't bond directly to the paint.

It is ideal to polish once the surface is free of contaminants - but if the paint is not oxidised or scratched or swirled - there is no need to polish.

MetzgerMeister

Seperate - what's the difference between paint cleaner and polish with regard to cleaning the paint as you mentioned above?

Also, is it possible to get something like the snowfoam on your site that can be applied to a car which eliminates the need for contact washing altogether??

vintagevrs

Seperate wrote: »

Polishing, by loose definition is cleaning the paint using an abrasive-based compound. This will remove any oxidation, and if done by machine, any scratches, swirl marks, lacquer stains and so on.

Waxing is then protecting the paint, usually using some polymer sealant or carnuba based wax.

If you're looking for some recommendations ...

Wash (Washmitt, Shampoo) -> Dry (Drying Towel) -> Clay (Clay Kit) -> Polish (Light Polish, Applicator) -> Wax (Wax, Applicator).

Your wheels are probably stained because of the wonderwheels. You can try polish them the same you would paintwork to see if that helps. Wax them afterwards and avoid using wonderwheels.

Feel free to get in touch if you need any advice. We do this kind of thing everyday, so can advise about pretty much any car/finish/technique etc.

Thanks for this, exactly what I was looking for. Think you are right about the wonder wheels. Was worried it might have ruined the wheels for good. A new set of replicas is €300 anyway so nearly considering this. Ill give it a bash if the weekend stays dry. Nice website btw

Seperate

einheisserschre wrote: »

Seperate - what's the difference between paint cleaner and polish with regard to cleaning the paint as you mentioned above?

There are literally dozens of different 'grades' of polish. From heavy compounds which will remove bad scratches or swirls on tough paint, to light glazes which will restore gloss once the scratches are removed.

A 'paint cleaner' will generally be at the very bottom of the 'polish' scale - not very abrasive if at all. Will probably remove very light oxidation with a bit of elbow grease, but it's hard to say for sure without knowing the brand/product itself.

For example, Autoglym's Super Resin 'Polish' isn't a polish at all, as it is not abrasive - it containes 'fillers' to hide scratches/swirls as opposed to removing them. It works well for it's purpose, although doesn't last very long.

MetzgerMeister

I see. I was referring to meguiar's paint cleaner.

Seperate

I've never used that before, but from what I can tell from a quick look online, it is as I described...

vectra

Seperate wrote: »

It would suffice if the paint is in good condition. I clay my car a couple of times a year and wax it straight after.

Agreed,
BUT
Claying YOUR car and then waxing it is not a "run of the mill" car I bet :rolleyes:

vintagevrs

I was going to attempt to wash dry clay polish wax tonight but not enough time after work. Did wash and dry and tried some stuff for cleaning the wheels I found in the garage, applied with the brush that came with wonder wheels and agitated with a tooth brush. One section of one wheel is now perfect. Roll on the weekend to do the rest.

Back to the original point of the thread though talking about claying. I am new to claying a car, did it for the first time before Christmas and could not recommend it enough. Kit is about 20 quid, you get 2 bars of clay and some lubricant. The panels behind the wheels, if you feel them after washing the car they are usually rough. Esp with the crap that's on our roads. If you clay the car you will see the huge amount of dirt the bar lifts and it should leave the body work smooth to touch.

Worked for me and I am new to it so give it a go.

http://www.detailer.ie/catalog/index.php/clean/all-surface-clay-kit.html

zilog_jones

I'd also highly recommend clay bars - the amount of brown crap they pick up from an apparently clean surface is amazing. It also removed oily handprints and other marks from my car, e.g. some blue paint from someone else's car door (now only the dent is there :mad:).