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      08-27-2013, 07:53 PM   #1
tnt2671
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claying car ??

my 13 carbon black 128i now has about 1000 miles on it. i wash her about 2 times a week and have so far put down 3 coats of meguirs ultimate liquid on it , the paint looks great but several people have told me i should clay the car even though it's basically still brand new. if i clay the car does it have to be machined buffed/polished or can i hand seal/wax after the process. i've done some searching and have heard either way would work , again i have no swirls or issues w/ my paint so no cosmetic corrections are needed but would like to get the thing glass smooth.
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      08-27-2013, 08:47 PM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ian///M
If you clay, then up have to machine polish. Clay will create scratches which need to be polished out.
+1

you will micro-marr the paint if you clay.

people who tell you to clay without feeling the paint do not know what they are talking about.

best way to determine is to get a sandwich bag, or zip-lock bag and put your hand in it. run your hand over the paint and if it feels like grit, you'll need to clay
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      08-27-2013, 09:15 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ian///M View Post
Agree, claying is an extreme process. Don't do it unless you really have to.
thanks for the input guys. honestly my car is still like it rolled out of the showroom and i'm a freak about washing as to not induce swirls /haze so i'm not going to do it. i have seen the zip lock bag test does it actually work?
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      08-27-2013, 11:54 PM   #4
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Just because your car is brand new, doesn't mean the paint is in great shape. Keep in mind your car may have been outside on the dealer's lot for weeks or longer in the elements (wet every day from dew then contaminants baked into the paint by the sun) unless you ordered it and picked it up right when it arrived. I'll admit I'm new to BMW and maybe they take better care of their cars before they deliver it to their customers than other car brands? I bought a three year old CPO (Deep Sea Blue) and I spent about eight hours detailing (wash, clay, polish, seal), getting the paint up to snuff. I even had to clay the windows because they had contaminants embedded in the surface!

My parents just bought a brand new car (Hyundai Azera) and the paint finish was gritty and had a lot of water spots so I had to clay, polish, then seal. I wouldn't be surprised if your paint could at least use some light claying. Your paint finish should be as smooth as glass.

The correct washing/drying method is critical to reducing spider-webbing, holograms, and swirls, especially on a black car. Look up "two-bucket" car washing method. There are some good how to videos on YouTube. Like Ian///M said earlier, it's pretty much impossible to totally eliminate swirls on a black car but you can reduce the chances of getting them by washing/drying with the correct method.

Over the past 15 years, I've owned three different black cars and they can take a lot of tender love and care if you want it to look its best. However, there's no color that looks better and is more rewarding than swirl free black car!
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      08-28-2013, 08:46 AM   #5
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Your car is too new for clay.
Because i live in NJ and we have that ice and snow and salt problem. I clay bar the hood and front quarter and window once a year.
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      08-28-2013, 07:32 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by yakuza70 View Post
Just because your car is brand new, doesn't mean the paint is in great shape. Keep in mind your car may have been outside on the dealer's lot for weeks or longer in the elements (wet every day from dew then contaminants baked into the paint by the sun) unless you ordered it and picked it up right when it arrived. I'll admit I'm new to BMW and maybe they take better care of their cars before they deliver it to their customers than other car brands? I bought a three year old CPO (Deep Sea Blue) and I spent about eight hours detailing (wash, clay, polish, seal), getting the paint up to snuff. I even had to clay the windows because they had contaminants embedded in the surface!

My parents just bought a brand new car (Hyundai Azera) and the paint finish was gritty and had a lot of water spots so I had to clay, polish, then seal. I wouldn't be surprised if your paint could at least use some light claying. Your paint finish should be as smooth as glass.

The correct washing/drying method is critical to reducing spider-webbing, holograms, and swirls, especially on a black car. Look up "two-bucket" car washing method. There are some good how to videos on YouTube. Like Ian///M said earlier, it's pretty much impossible to totally eliminate swirls on a black car but you can reduce the chances of getting them by washing/drying with the correct method.

Over the past 15 years, I've owned three different black cars and they can take a lot of tender love and care if you want it to look its best. However, there's no color that looks better and is more rewarding than swirl free black car!
yes , i always use 2 bucket method w/ correct procedure (lowest last) , for drying i use a blower which def helps reduce swirls , and luckily i picked it up the day it came off the boat , i'm not new to detailing cars , but honestly havnt had a car i was overly concerned about in quite a few years actually before claying was mainstream , so have never personally used it , i was a rotary compound , glaze guy. but i would like to try the clay that seems to be an easier way. again i thank all you guys for the input.
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      08-28-2013, 08:40 PM   #7
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If you decide to clay, I recently discovered a claying product called the Nanoskin Autoscub Speedy Prep Sponge. I really like that you clean it off with water instead of folding over the claybar. This also means if you accidentally drop it on the ground, you just clean it off unlike a clay bar which has to be tossed out. Anyone use one yet? If so, what do you think of it?
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      08-28-2013, 09:24 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by yakuza70 View Post
If you decide to clay, I recently discovered a claying product called the Nanoskin Autoscub Speedy Prep Sponge. I really like that you clean it off with water instead of folding over the claybar. This also means if you accidentally drop it on the ground, you just clean it off unlike a clay bar which has to be tossed out. Anyone use one yet? If so, what do you think of it?
I have this in the garage - have yet to have the time to use it. I hear that you can do the entire car in 10-15 minutes - as opposed to hours with the clay bar.

Edit: there are also varying grades of the Nanoskin sponge. I think I got the "Fine" for my Jet Black.
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      08-28-2013, 11:00 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by yakuza70 View Post
If you decide to clay, I recently discovered a claying product called the Nanoskin Autoscub Speedy Prep Sponge. I really like that you clean it off with water instead of folding over the claybar. This also means if you accidentally drop it on the ground, you just clean it off unlike a clay bar which has to be tossed out. Anyone use one yet? If so, what do you think of it?
So instead of folding to get a fresh area as you would with clay, you just rinse the sponge every so often to clean it?

And do you rinse it with the spray from a hose or in a bucket of clean water?
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      08-28-2013, 11:32 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bmw1racer View Post
So instead of folding to get a fresh area as you would with clay, you just rinse the sponge every so often to clean it?

And do you rinse it with the spray from a hose or in a bucket of clean water?
Yeah that's my understanding. I haven't used one yet so I can't say for sure. I just ordered one so I'm looking forward to trying it out!

Here's a video review:
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      08-28-2013, 11:34 PM   #11
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I'm not sure if carbon black is the same as black sapphire metallic or jet black. Jet black is known to have super soft clear coat. If you clay, you will definitely see marring. Marring is close to minimal on all other colors since the clearcoat is much harder on all the other colors (i dont know why they chose to use a soft cc on jet black). If you are extremely anal about the way your car stays defect free, you may either want to not clay it at all, or clay it and do a 1 step polish. Sandwhich bag or not, just swipe your (clean) hand over your paint, while it is wet of course, and you will feel the little grits embedded in your paint.
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      08-29-2013, 12:13 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by yakuza70 View Post
Yeah that's my understanding. I haven't used one yet so I can't say for sure. I just ordered one so I'm looking forward to trying it out!
Yeah, I'm planning on ordering as well.. One fine and one medium sponge.
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      08-30-2013, 07:08 PM   #13
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Clay is great! Not an extreme process in my opinion. My 135 is jet black...soft paint...and I always clay prior to polish/waxing. I get out my lights and it doesn't cause problems in the paint AS LONG AS ITS DONE RIGHT!!! Lots of good lube. I know you can dilute some soaps and use them but I find a true clay lube works best. The clay should glide across the paint and it will glide even easier after a pass or two. I use it on my brand new cars with good results. It really gets that paint smooth and clean. Removes contaminants (think rail dust) and the shit was the dealer put on. Follow it up with a good sealant and you are good to go.
I always give my car a 3 step polish/sealant twice a year and always start off with clay. Paint looks great and I am always happy with the results.
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      08-30-2013, 08:16 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by vanbmw View Post
Clay is great! Not an extreme process in my opinion. My 135 is jet black...soft paint...and I always clay prior to polish/waxing. I get out my lights and it doesn't cause problems in the paint AS LONG AS ITS DONE RIGHT!!! Lots of good lube. I know you can dilute some soaps and use them but I find a true clay lube works best. The clay should glide across the paint and it will glide even easier after a pass or two. I use it on my brand new cars with good results. It really gets that paint smooth and clean. Removes contaminants (think rail dust) and the shit was the dealer put on. Follow it up with a good sealant and you are good to go.
I always give my car a 3 step polish/sealant twice a year and always start off with clay. Paint looks great and I am always happy with the results.
+1....But I polish every other year....KUDOS to you though!
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      09-01-2013, 06:06 AM   #15
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I had my car clayed with 600 miles on the odometer the morning after I got it home from Performance Center delivery. It wasn't super clean at the PC to begin with, then I picked up 600 miles of bugs and stuff while driving home to Ohio along the back roads. Key for me was to get the clear coat as clean as possible before applying a really good sealant base. The clay definitely removed a good amount of stuff. I say thumbs up to an initial claying. It didn't take much, but washing and waxing over the top of the dirt and debris that was on my clear coat didn't seem like the right thing to do.
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      09-02-2013, 01:27 PM   #16
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I have always been happy with results from clay. My next purchase will be a nanoscrub pad. Interested to see how the results from that compare to good old clay.
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      09-03-2013, 06:36 AM   #17
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I have used the nanoskin towel to get into hard to reach areas and it's great! Just a tip: work in the towel on windows first. It seems to be a thing that everyone does. I also read on auto geek the same thing.
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      09-03-2013, 08:03 AM   #18
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To use this Nano sponge, do you have to use a lubricant, or can it be used with standard car-washing soaps?
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      09-03-2013, 09:04 AM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jester17 View Post
To use this Nano sponge, do you have to use a lubricant, or can it be used with standard car-washing soaps?
Like any clay/clay-type product, a lubricant is recommended.
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      09-03-2013, 09:57 AM   #20
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Malms Chemical sells a hand polishing tool called the Kolonsky. Since I was not sure of my skills with a power polisher, I purchased this several years ago and buy new pads every couple of years. This with Meguiars Ultimate compound has produced better results than I ever achieved with clay, plus the finish is ready to be sealed/waxed. I use Meguiars Ultimate paste wax. My cars (Deep Sea Blue 135i, mine and Carbon Black Buick Regal CXL, my wife's) never looked better.
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      09-04-2013, 10:28 AM   #21
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I have yet to polish my car, and have clayed it 3 times...Haven't noticed any ill effect, but I am fairly new to detailing so what do I know. I am very careful (two-bucket, dry with a leaf-blower) with the wash/dry that I do ~weekly, so there is minimal swirling/scratches.

To be honest, I am a little intimidated by the process of polishing as I have never done it before.

Should I polish the car next time after my clay? Like I said I haven't noticed any ill-effects but I don't want to be damaging the paint.
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      09-04-2013, 10:53 PM   #22
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Claying wears me out more than anything else. I parked my X5 under a tree that was dripping sap and I think I lost a year of my life just dealing with claying it all off. Miserable. After you're done claying, you have to polish it all out, then apply the wax again.
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