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Clay bar is essentially used to remove the grunge from your car’s paint surface, so that you can see a clear, bright finish. After claying your car’s surface, the most noticeable benefit your car encounters is that of slickness and smoothness. Using a clay bar definitely makes waxing easier and more effective.
Which surfaces can benefit from clay bar use?
Automotive Clay Bar is an engineered resin mixture that auto detailers use to remove contaminants and pollutants from the surface of your car’s paint, glass, fiberglass, and metal.
What is the primary purpose of a clay bar?
Auto Detailing Clay Bar is an engineered resin compound used to remove contaminants from the surface of your car’s paint, glass, fiberglass and metal. Detailing clay can be natural or synthetic, though most manufacturers utilize synthetic clays.
What do you use after clay bar?
When you’re finished claying your car, you may need to wash it to remove any lubricant film. If you plan to use a pre-wax cleaner polish, it will remove clay residue so there’s no need to wash. Last but not least, after using clay, seal your freshly cleaned paint with your choice of wax or sealant.
Can you use a clay bar on glass?
Glass does not need a special clay bar, and most clay bars are safe for glass. They may leave marring on the glass and need to be polished afterwards. With any clay bar, make sure to use the proper clay lubricant. Soaps and water-less washes can often breakdown the clay bars, causing them to crumble and fall apart.
Does clay bar remove clear coat?
Clay bar detailing is an effective means of removing the embedded particles from the clear coat. The clay encases and adheres to the tiny bits of debris and literally yanks them from the clear coat. If performed correctly, you can remove particles without leaving any traces on the clear coat.
Can you make your own clay bar lubricant?
Yes, soapy water makes a very decent clay lubricant! After you wash the car, mix the same proportions of car shampoo and water in a clean bucket or spray bottle and apply generously to the surface. Then, go at it with the clay, regularly adding more soapy water to keep the surface wet at all times.
How often should you clay bar your car?
Once you’ve clay barred and protected your paintwork, you should only need to do it twice a year – once before winter and once after. Obviously, you’re welcome to do it more often. This is simply the minimum required.
Can you use water with clay bar?
All clay bars require a lubricant. Some can be used with water, some work better with a quick detailer spray (liquid suspension of carnauba). The single most important factor when claying is to ensure the surface being clayed is well lubricated.
How many times can you use a clay bar?
You can, therefore, clay bar it at least 2 to 3 times a year. But say you drive your car daily, maybe to work, or do groceries, then you can clay bar it as often as possible. Even if you do it at least thrice every six months, there’s no problem.
Should I polish my car after clay bar?
The detailer’s rule of thumb is to always decontaminate the surface with a clay bar before putting on a new coat of wax, or polishing any exterior paintwork.
Does Claying remove wax?
When you clay your vehicle, you remove the contaminants, making the coat easier to wax. The detail clay also removes tar, sap, bug remains, wax, and sealants from the coat of the car. With these substances removed, waxes and sealants will adhere to the surface better.
What is the difference between clay bar and rubbing compound?
A clay bar will remove the contaminants that are on top of your paint, chrome or windows etc. However, a compound will work to remove a micro layer of paint to remove any scratches, swirl marks, etc.
Is Clay Bar bad for paint?
Clay bars used by professionals will be more “aggressive” in their ability to cut contaminants from auto finishes, but they can also cause damage to paint in the wrong hands.
Can you use regular clay to clay bar a car?
Stop using a clay bar on your paint on a regular basis. If it’s been done recently, your paint is likely still smooth. The fact is, you should never clay bar your car and stop there. Clay bars are abrasive and will mar your paint while they remove the contaminants.
Will clay bar remove window streaks?
What Makes Streaks And Smudges On Your Car Windscreen? These can be easily removed with the help of a good quality cleaner, microfiber cloth, warm water, clay bar, and car wax.
Is a clay bar worth it?
Over time, these particles could permanently damage your paint. These particles also prevent wax and polish from working properly, which means you don’t get as clear a shine. If you want to protect your paint job in the future and have your car looks its best, clay bar detailing is absolutely worth it.
Does clay bar scratch paint?
A clay bar does NOT remove any scratches from the surface of the paint because it contains no abrasives. A clay bar is useful for when a car’s paint feels rough and is no longer smooth to the touch as it can help restore that nice smooth feeling you once knew and loved.
Can I use car shampoo as clay lube?
Using shampoo is ok, just use a small amount though as using too much shampoo will damage the clay bar. The way I used to do it is first rinse off the car and remove all the dirt.
Can you use Quick Detailer as clay lube?
Quick detail sprays lubricate the surface whenever wiping up light dirt and smudges, a crucial step to scratch and swirl-free buffing and wiping. Synthetic Quick Detailer doubles as a slick and effective clay bar lube for unmatched versatility when detailing any car.
Can you use a clay bar on new paint?
After properly washing and drying your car, simply place your hand into a plastic sandwich baggie and gently glide it over all the painted surfaces. For a typical new car I suggest using mild or gentle clay like the DI Fine Grade Clay or Clay Magic Fine Grade Clay.
