I was planning on buffing my car over the weekend to get some marks out. Whats the best way of doing it?

Clean then buff then clay?

 

clean -> clay -> buff

 

Make sure that you keep the surface very wet while you clay so you dont scratch the finish!

 

Hmmm I plan on using dawn....

I heard that I should wax straight after using a clay bar since the paint will be totally exposed?

 

dawn will actually damage your clear coat...not noticably, but it will....just wash the car as normal, you don't have to dry it, and use some windex while you clay. You can even water down the windex in a seperate bottle so you don't waste so much. Then re-wash, dry, and wax.

 

dude, windex has ammonia.

Dawn isn't bad for the clear coat. if you want confirmation go ask the guys at autopia. Dawn just strips the wax off. If you get a clay kit, if will come with some type of lube (usually some quick detailer). You can also use a soap and water mixture in a spray bottle. Make sure the area you clay has plenty of lube

Once you clay, the car will not have wax. If you want to get the shine back, you should use a polish, swirl remover if you want to take out swirls, glaze if you just want to cover the swirls, and then wax.

 

Yes, this is correct. You dont have to buy any kind of kit though.
Go buy a clay bar and meguairs quick detailer and you are set. Water in a spray bottle will do just fine as well. Make sure you continuously keep it wet. This is why you want a spray bottle of some sort.

the key to using swirl remover is not to rub it like wax or polish. Just enough to where it will start to go away.

 

you do realize that a clay bar won't remove swirls

 

i hope he does

 

Aaron I realize the sequence you put the clay bar in but I would wash - clay - wash - buff. But that's just me.

 

To get the marks and swirls out, use the Meguiar's or Mother's cleaner, Step 1. These are very mild abrasives that prep the paint for polish and wax.

 

what are you using the clay bar for???

 

I actually placed a massive order for Zaino products and that came yesterday so I'm going to spend most of the weekend detailing my car

 

If you rub your hand over your paint, you will feel a lot crap stuck into the surface of your clearcoat. The clay is used to remove the crap leaving your clearcoat feeling smooth.

 

I found it to be easier to work with, more pliable, less prone to flaking or chunking, and a more appealing colour

If you buy the Mothers, it should come in a box along with some Showtime (the lubricating spray you use to wet the car for the clay bar), and some Carnauba wax.

I agree: wash, clay, wash, wax.

Oh, and then keep a few clean towels and the Showtime in your trunk so you can buff your car anytime you need to.

At all times I have Showtime, glass cleaner, Meguire's vinyl and rubber cleaner and leather cleaner in my trunk, along with shop towels, shop paper towels, and some buffing cloths. My little cleaning stash that can be busted out should I suddenly run into a mini-meet.

Mike

 

WINDEX?!?!?!!

My routine is wash, clay, wash, wax (cleaner wax), wax (show car), wax (yellow).

 

LOL... yes i know it wont remove swirls. You use swirl remover last after all of your waxing and buffing. I was just mentioning how to use it. alot of people will try to rub the crap out of it and it wont go away, they will just smear it around. For people that have used it before know what i am talking about.

 

Wash, then clay, then wax.

Personally, I would use the Clay Magic bar as opposed to the Mothers and Meguiar's. Another trick is to start claying the car after you have rinsed it. I did that on the '02 and it worked nicely and it saved me a huge amount of time.

 

I agree with PrinzII. I would also recommend using "clay magic" by AUTOMAGIC over the others too. I have been using their products to detail cars for almost 10 years now. I was the head detailer at a Nissan dealership during college and that is where I started using their products.

check out this site

http://208.245.156.147/specialt.htm

It is AutoMagic's website and shows clay magic. it also tells you what the clay bar is used for. they use a liquid called "Body Shine" to spray on the car before using the clay bar. The Body Shine is really slippery so it works great.

make sure you buff or wax your car after using the clay bar.

 

Looks like its going to rain so nothings going to happen today

But lemme get this straight.

Wash
Clay
Buff
Wax
?

I'm using a bunch of Zaino stuff Z1, 2 ,5 ,6 etc

 

Firstly, Zaino RULES. My neighbor uses it on his Vette and Tahoe and they absolutely SPARKLE.

Now, you will want to wash the car with car wash (dawn if you prefer since you are waxing afterwards, but I suggest a car wash). After washing, no need to dry, just rinse real well. Get a spray bottle with water and a few drops of Johnson's baby shampoo, shake it up and use that solution while claying. We used to use that solution at the detail shop I worked at and it works like a charm. After claying the whole car (by the way, make sure you keep working with the clay turning the dirty side of the clay in on itself) rinse well and wash again if you wish.

Now, dry dry dry, likeyou never dried before! Compressed air helps for cracks and crevices, but you don't want any water on your car while polishing or waxing.

Then polish or compound (depending on color of car), after you're done and the paint looks PERFECT, go ahead and wax it. If you need to use any harsh chemicals (bug and tar solution or simple green seems to work well on white cars), after claying is the time to do it. All you have to do from there is wax the car and you're golden. Obviously do NOT apply wax to a hot car or a car in direct sunlight.

Have fun. You'll spend at least 5 hours. :-)

 

Thanks for the tips

Still doesn't help me though as to which part I need to buff the car at

I was hoping I could get to my car today since it was forecasted to be clear....

 

Polish/compound = buff

Buff is actually a verb, more than a term as you are using it. After all you use a "buffer" to put on all waxes/polishes and compounds and it can also be used to take it off if you have a clean bonnet on your buffer.

;-)

 

Hrmmm I actually bought a 10" buffer specifically to take out some marks from the side panels nothing major just some visual blemishes.

I was told to buy a buffer to get em out and then wax?

 

This is true, but you need to use something other than the buffer to get swirl marks out ... polish. When you refer to swirl marks, I am going to assume you have a dark colored paint .. therefore using Meguiars swirl mark remover, for example, on your buffer will yield the results you are looking for. Basically it's just a polish that goes on before the wax. Wax also helps with swirl marks, but will not do what polish can do.

 

So far I had use clay bar once (Mothers), and the result was unbelievable! The paint was so smooth!!!

I read clay bar is also used to clean up over spray of paint. Is that means clay bar will strip off a layer of paint when I use it? Will it strip off the wax also (if I don't use Dawn)?

 

Clay will not strip off the paint. It's safe for clear coat.

 

How about wax? Will it strip off the "old" wax?

 

will this clay bar get out my nasty baked on water spots?

 

Between that and the polishing, you should be left with nothing but shiny paint when done :-)