[Turbo_435i]

I used a claybar on someones car that was pretty dirty, then ended up using it on another car ,honda black, and now its got scratch marks all over the place, after i sealed & waxed its hard to see them, but will they show back thru after wax wears off ?

and how can i fix the scratches, they're not real bad, just in the clear more or less.

is the only was to remove them with a PC 7424, and some white pads ?
i cannot use a rotary yet, not enough experience.

[SpecC]

PC 7424 is going to have a hard time. try smaller orange pads to remove those

yes you can use a rotary... just practice a bit first. i jumped from zero knowledge (no PC, no any polisher knowledge) to using a rotary right away

[328i]

Start by throwing the clay in the trash, NEVER clay a dirty car. I recommend getting a Flex polisher to start out with, even if you're careful with a Rotary and don't cause any damage, it has a much steeper learning curve especially when it comes to finishing on soft paints without holograms. The flex has plenty of power to remove defects and is a much more beginner friendly machine.

[Chris J]

Originally Posted by 328i

Start by throwing the clay in the trash, NEVER clay a dirty car. I recommend getting a Flex polisher to start out with, even if you're careful with a Rotary and don't cause any damage, it has a much steeper learning curve especially when it comes to finishing on soft paints without holograms. The flex has plenty of power to remove defects and is a much more beginner friendly machine.

Exactly! The flex is way more powerful then the porter cable and even the new meguiars g110. Orange pads are the way to go to remove the scratches. Then follow with a white finishing pad. Then wax of your choice.

[Turbo_435i]

Originally Posted by 328i

Start by throwing the clay in the trash, NEVER clay a dirty car. I recommend getting a Flex polisher to start out with, even if you're careful with a Rotary and don't cause any damage, it has a much steeper learning curve especially when it comes to finishing on soft paints without holograms. The flex has plenty of power to remove defects and is a much more beginner friendly machine.

you say , never clay a dirty car ???
i washed the car first, then clayed it, isnt that the procedure ? do you mean , never use dirty clay ?
the clay bar says it can be used for 3 cars +/-.

do you think the clay scratched the paint ?

[blakjack23]

3 cars maybe if you cut the clay bar into three pieces and use one on each car. Use clay, then throw away clay.

Yes, washing and then claying(with clean clay) is the correct procedure. But your original post made it sound like you clayed a car without it being washed first..."dirty".

If you clayed a car, then used the same clay on another car, yes the clay probably created some scratches on the clearcoat.

Here is a part from the detailing 101 sticky...

"Once half the section is done, flip the clay over and do the other half of the section. Once the section has been completed throw the piece of clay away. It is too contaminated to use on another section. If you do use it, you will most likely put micro scratches in your clear.
"

[Turbo_435i]

fuuuuuu...
now i find out what they mean, when they say, "you can use it for 3 cars", they mean if i had a big bar, and cut it into 3 pieces.
my question is :
after the wax wears off, will the micro scratches show thru again, right now they're not soo noticeable, because of the sealant & wax.

[e90driver]

yes the scratches will come back. all you did was fill them in with wax and sealant and those will wash off over the next few months revealing the original scratches. I had never used a machine and then I purchased a flex and I love it. Never re-use clay- and always clay top to bottom, use different peices as you work with the car and discard the used ones- a bar the size which you would buy otc will only really do one car regardless of what the box says.

[Turbo_435i]

where the best place to buy the flex and pads.
Im gonna need everything.


Flex
pads
compounds (rough polish,finish polish)

whats a good polish to use that doesnt get dusty ? i cannot use dusty ones because i have dry eyes, and cant get dust,etcc. in my eyes, sucks, i know.

[SpecC]

detailedimage.com

menzerna polishes are dusty but they are A+ and you could wear goggles if they get too dusty

[Turbo_435i]

Originally Posted by SpecC

detailedimage.com

menzerna polishes are dusty but they are A+ and you could wear goggles if they get too dusty

how dusty is it ?
does the dust fly everywhere into your face or is it kind of tame ?

also, no go on the goggles. can you imagine wearing goggles for hours ?
they always FOG up too, and thats not happenin', ya feel me ?
what polishes would be just as good with no dust ?

[SpecC]

Originally Posted by schybrid

how dusty is it ?
does the dust fly everywhere into your face or is it kind of tame ?

also, no go on the goggles. can you imagine wearing goggles for hours ?
they always FOG up too, and thats not happenin', ya feel me ?
what polishes would be just as good with no dust ?

it's not bad... here's a picture of an mr2 after i just about finished the car



mind you, i did a lot of passed and polished some sections twice because i was trying really hard with the wrong tools, so your car shouldn't get anywhere near as dusty

dust doesn't fly on your face. it flings off the pads but it's not to the point where it bothers you. you just have to spray the car down with some quick detailer after and then put on your sealant/wax

[elite3]

schybrid,
depending on your level of perfection it isnt wise to do it yourself, each time you cut polish you trim away microns of clearcoat then you are jeapodizing the intergrity of the actual protection of the paint. paint thickness guages, correct material are very important!! good luck

[328i]

Originally Posted by schybrid

you say , never clay a dirty car ???
i washed the car first, then clayed it, isnt that the procedure ? do you mean , never use dirty clay ?
the clay bar says it can be used for 3 cars +/-.

do you think the clay scratched the paint ?

I thought you meant that you clayed the car when it was dirty, my mistake. Seems like your procedure was correct. However, I always like to break the clay into smaller pieces and discard it when I have no more clean surface to work with. Honda paint is fairly soft so that also added to the cause of why you had marring from clay. Menzerna polishes do dust, but the dust mostly ends up on the surface of the car. I don't like to wipe the dust off because you risk scratching your perfected paint, instead I follow my last polishing step with an ONR wash to remove the dust and polishing oils.