A Couple Questions

[RoGuE]

Hi

I'm kind of an amateur at this still, but I try my best.

I am a fan of Meguiar's. Great stuff.

I have a black 2007 Malibu.

I used up all my Gold Class paste last July, the last time I waxed... (If I said how many times I washed my car and the conditions in which I did it, most of you would cry, lol)

I live in Georgia, which has been under an outside water ban until recently. I just bought a new can of NXT 2.0 paste to celebrate. My current supplies are NXT 2.0 paste, a 3 year old bottle of step 2 polish, scratch X, and a used clay bar (actually half a bar, I cut it and dropped the first half after I used it once)...impressive, right?....

Anyway, my first question is how many time a clay can be used. It has been used about 4 times, once on a suburban and about 3 times on my Malibu. Time for a new one? It looks clean if that means anything.

Also, I used Scratch X last July on my whole car to get rid of swirl marks which it did well with. Is using this again with the step 2 polish overkill? Since they are kind of both a polish, is using just one enough?

Finally, any tips on using this NXT 2.0?

Sorry if any of these questions are dumb.

[CieraSL]

Re: A Couple Questions

If your clay looks fairly clean, meaning you can still knead it to a clean side, then it's probably fine. As far as using Scratch X with DC2, that is perfectly acceptable. Scratch X is actually a paint cleaner, formulated to remove light scratches and swirls. DC2 is a pure polish. It has no cleaning properties - it is just there to give your paint that extra pop. Use of a pure polish is strictly optional. It is up to you whether or not you want to use it.

Seeing this is your first post, to MOL!

[Eddie6th]

Re: A Couple Questions

Lots of people have different ways for the amount of clay they use.

I take it longer than most people probably would.

With the bar that comes with the QClay kit,I break off a third..and have successfully done three cars,..'without any scratching'.Then I throw it away,as I can start to feel it getting loaded.This would also depend on the amount of contamination,to start with.In my case,the last one was awfull.But it managed..just.

Most people would use a half or a third,clay a car and throw it away.Let's say that is normal usage.

If you drop it on the ground,just throw it away and get a fresh piece.

The best thing to do when using clay,is to use plenty quik detailer.

[RoGuE]

Re: A Couple Questions

I thought that polish meant it was a VERY mild abrasive but just took away fine imperfections. Learned something new.

Is car soap mixed in a spray bottle a sufficient lubricant for the clay bar, or would a bottle of quik detailer be preferred?

[CieraSL]

Re: A Couple Questions

I thought that polish meant it was a VERY mild abrasive but just took away fine imperfections. Learned something new.

Is car soap mixed in a spray bottle a sufficient lubricant for the clay bar, or would a bottle of quik detailer be preferred?

There are some people who do use a car wash mix as their clay lube, however it can cause the clay bar to break apart and become very sticky. You're better off to use Quik Detailer and spray the clay bar with a mist of QD before you store it in its container.

[RoGuE]

Re: A Couple Questions

Hopefully I can still use it (or find it). I just realized I haven't seen it since July and I believe it's in my hot garage somewhere in it's ziploc bag. Is there a place to buy just the clay bar. It is is a clay magic brand, hopefully they sell them somewhere by itself without the bottle with it.

[akimel]

Re: A Couple Questions

RoGuE, using your supplies, you might want to consider the following process:

1) Wash
2) Clay
3) ScratchX
4) DC2 (optional)
5) NXT (two coats)

Polishing out a car by hand with ScratchX is hard and long work, as you know. You might consider instead using a cleaner wax, such as ColorX. ColorX will clean and polish your paint and leave behind a layer of protection. You could then top it with NXT. See this article:

Your Daily Driver: A Simple Wash & Wax Regimen

Cheers,
Al

[RoGuE]

Re: A Couple Questions

This is the piece of clay I have. I think it looks alright. It looks a little slimy because I just moistened it up a bit with Quik Detailer.

[RoGuE]

Re: A Couple Questions

Done. Took a few hours (with lunch and a few breaks) but I finished. I would have taken pictures, but my dad pulled in behind me (I'm in the garage doing this) before I could finish so I'll try to take some tomorrow.

I washed, clayed, Scratch X'ed polished and waxed. The only thing about the wax...I put on a really thin and even coat. It sat for over 20 minutes and was all dry, but it was really hard to take off and I had to go through 2 whole towels filled with wax. When I did manage to get it all off, it left a greasiness on the horizontal surfaces [hood, trunk, roof]. I never experienced this with the gold class. This wax didn't make as nearly as much dust as the gold class did though. After I sprayed Quik Detailer on the horizontal surfaces, it looked a lot better. This wax does look terrific.

[SVT Lightning]

Re: A Couple Questions

Chances are that since you live in Atlanta (where it can be fairly humid) you might not have waited long enough for it to dry. And with the NXT2.0...THIN, THIN, THIN coats is the key......so thin you can barely see it!

[Murr1525]

Re: A Couple Questions

Try to apply your wax more thinly.

[Markus Kleis]

Re: A Couple Questions

Yikes! Those pictures are huge!

Is there any chance you could upload smaller pictures, preferably 700 pixels wide or less.

Here is a HOW-TO for shrinking your pictures.

Thanks!

[CieraSL]

Re: A Couple Questions

I agree, those pics are a mite large. I can't see your whole car at once.

Looks great though! Good job!

[RoGuE]

Re: A Couple Questions

Woops. I apologize. Usually they downsize automatically on other forums, and then you click them to make them larger. For some reason don't see an edit button so I'll post them in this post, and if a moderator can delete the other photos that would be great.

[Markus Kleis]

Re: A Couple Questions

Thanks Rogue! Much better!