The Panda Nut
Nutty about Pandas Infected by Panda virus and OPD
Now. Back again and I am going to say that you are a nuisance! I finally started car washing. I floundered half way through thr forst one and had to be rescued from the drive way by the women who finished him off by which time I cluld barely stand. And all this because of this thread! Having got Noop clean I stood back and thought it looked really clean.. So today I thought a quick polish up with Autobrite spray. Oh dear me a close look at a white car after a year and with a long hot summer, it had a fair bit of tar and grot so out with the clay bar. Just centres of both bumpers left to do now and it really looks good. I have an old exercise mat that enabled me to do 80% lying down including the sills and door jambs and bottoms of the doors. I was going to post soem pics but Noop put his coat on and hid in the garage because of a massive rain storm. ( 6 drops of drizzle) Enough to stop me today though.
Anyway apart from telling you you're a nuisance for starting me off I wanted to give a bit of practical advice on clay blocking which I learned the hard way. I hope this will help.
Consider if you REALLY want to start this. Its addictive as once you see the result, its a bit like a drug.
1. Remove the bigger tar spots before starting as it will make the bar last longer. Dont worry about perfection as the clay bar will remove the rest and fly spots too. You can feel when then paint is properly clean
2. Dont be too mean with the clay bar. Use a bit the size of half a cotton wool ball thats been wet and squashed. Knead it a bit to make a pad about 1.25 inches across and 0.25 thick. Start gentle and you will soon establish how much to rub. I find two fingers pressure is enough.
3. Do the white car first. You can see so much better on white when the paint is clean. You can thus learn how much and how hard you are likely to need to work the bar before moving to a darker colour thats more difficult to tell. It will save elbow grease.
4. Start on the top and work down. THe paints cleaner and the block will last longer this way. You can clay block all the glass to good effect. As the clay picks off the dirt you can turn it so you use a reasonably clean pad on the best / most obvious sections like bonnet and doors. When the clay looks fairly grim put it on one side for use on the door bottoms and then lastly the sills /wheels /wheel trims.
5. You can do all the black plastic but be gentle and dont rub too hard as you can melt it enough to make shiny spots with over-use.
6. Be generous with the lubricant. Particulalry on plastic,
7. I was worried about the grot in the used clay bar scratching the paintwork as I progressed. (before I started.) I have had no issues with this at all using the above tactics. I finish the clay off on the wheels and the areas where muck is thrown up and then bin it.
8. Buff off and be preapred to be amazed. I was the first time.
9. You will need a new coat for Beckie to wear once clean so flies cant sit on her and birds cant poop on her......
Then there's the after treatement etc etc
At least my neighbour says even Daffo, now 11 years old , looks brand new. Last timwe was just after a striaght water wash.
Tip of the centuary. In hard water areas a big squeeze of vinegar into the rinsing water is worth its weight in gold as it prevents limescale spots. I dont expect you have this issue in sunny Scotland. I find acid rain does the same job and often wash teh car in the rain then no leathering off is required,
Anyway apart from telling you you're a nuisance for starting me off I wanted to give a bit of practical advice on clay blocking which I learned the hard way. I hope this will help.
Consider if you REALLY want to start this. Its addictive as once you see the result, its a bit like a drug.
1. Remove the bigger tar spots before starting as it will make the bar last longer. Dont worry about perfection as the clay bar will remove the rest and fly spots too. You can feel when then paint is properly clean
2. Dont be too mean with the clay bar. Use a bit the size of half a cotton wool ball thats been wet and squashed. Knead it a bit to make a pad about 1.25 inches across and 0.25 thick. Start gentle and you will soon establish how much to rub. I find two fingers pressure is enough.
3. Do the white car first. You can see so much better on white when the paint is clean. You can thus learn how much and how hard you are likely to need to work the bar before moving to a darker colour thats more difficult to tell. It will save elbow grease.
4. Start on the top and work down. THe paints cleaner and the block will last longer this way. You can clay block all the glass to good effect. As the clay picks off the dirt you can turn it so you use a reasonably clean pad on the best / most obvious sections like bonnet and doors. When the clay looks fairly grim put it on one side for use on the door bottoms and then lastly the sills /wheels /wheel trims.
5. You can do all the black plastic but be gentle and dont rub too hard as you can melt it enough to make shiny spots with over-use.
6. Be generous with the lubricant. Particulalry on plastic,
7. I was worried about the grot in the used clay bar scratching the paintwork as I progressed. (before I started.) I have had no issues with this at all using the above tactics. I finish the clay off on the wheels and the areas where muck is thrown up and then bin it.
8. Buff off and be preapred to be amazed. I was the first time.
9. You will need a new coat for Beckie to wear once clean so flies cant sit on her and birds cant poop on her......
Then there's the after treatement etc etc
At least my neighbour says even Daffo, now 11 years old , looks brand new. Last timwe was just after a striaght water wash.
Tip of the centuary. In hard water areas a big squeeze of vinegar into the rinsing water is worth its weight in gold as it prevents limescale spots. I dont expect you have this issue in sunny Scotland. I find acid rain does the same job and often wash teh car in the rain then no leathering off is required,
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