Ton of crap pulled when claying = improper wash?

[rocket3004]

I did a bit of cleaning on my car this weekend. However, when I got to claying it, in some spots it pulled up so much crap... more than I expected.

However, it led me to beleive that either I didn't wash the car properly first (perhaps it wasn't concentrated enough... this was with 4 star wash from here) OR that the dirt was just that embedded into the paint.

What do you guys think?

Oh and how many times is the clay good for? I kinda used it till it looked a little funky and started with a new peice. There is no way to somehow clean and re-use it, is there?

[Bob]

I think it is just embedded contaminants. I did an STi a few weeks back and had tons of stuff come up in the clay after a P21S Total Body Wash and a regular wash.

[BlueZero]

Really the only way I know of to clean clay is by folding it in on it's self. Just keep folding it. But eventually there is nothing you can do and it's time to order a new bar from Bob.

[Jose]

I pulled a lot of contaminants from my Corolla the last time I deply washed it. I was amazed on how much stuff accumulates in such short period of time.

[rocket3004]

Yeah, for a second I thought I wasted my whole time b/c I didn't wash it properly, so that is a little reassuring. I was suprised how much stuff it pulled up... I think the car hadn't been clayed in a long long time (I'm the second owner).

As far as the clay bar itself, I would fold it over and knead it and work it with my fingers but I guess eventually it has to be tossed out... especially after all the gunk I pulled off. I think I'm going to get that medium grade/heavy duty clay bar nex time. If I do that, should I go back over with the fine bar, or will the pass with the medium one suffice?

[wifehatescar]

The medium should work on it's own, but it may marr the finish slightly to where you would need to use a light polish after. Do a small spot and see if you are unsure about using it.

[BlueZero]

One tip I like to do depending on the size of the bar is cut it into smaller bars. Sometimes I'll cut it into 3 or 4 smaller ones. That way if you drop one, your not out the entire bar.

[Grimm]

I'm with BlueZero. I think it's also easier to kneed a smaller piece than one full bar so you can get more use out of it.

[nadroj1485]

Is it possible to use to much lube when you clay? My clay just doesnt seem to pick up nearly as much as some of the clay bars I see in pics that people post which really suprised me since I was claying a 6 year old car that never gets washed/waxed

[Bob]

What clay and lube are you using? I wouldn't say you could use too much lube.

[Pete]

My clay just doesnt seem to pick up nearly as much as some of the clay bars I see in pics that people post which really suprised me since I was claying a 6 year old car that never gets washed/waxed

The contamination on your paint may not be as severe or colorful as that which others are showing.

Does your paint feel smooth when you're done? If so, the clay is doing its job. If not, I would move to the moderately aggressive clay to see if that gets the job done better and faster.

[nadroj1485]

Clay magic. I didnt really check to see how smooth the car felt afterwards I was just testing the product on my moms suv since she doesnt really take care of it (already has a ton of scratches so I couldnt really mess it up anymore) before I used it on mine and was just kind of suprised it didnt seem like much was coming off and I didnt really feel it catching on anything like ive read some people say it does when it pulls stuff off. I guess it makes sense that people wouldnt bother posting a picture of the clay unless it was really dirty. And maybe where I live there is just less contamination or something (small town >15k people)

If you cant use to much lube than Ill just do it the same way on my car to make sure I dont mess up my paint.

[Charlies02GLS]

Good way to check on your claying progress is to stick your hand in a plastic newspaper or grocery bag and lightly run your finger over the surface of the vehicle. Obviously you should have just washed the vehicle and use a clean/smooth bag to minimize the risk of inducing damage.

[Grimm]

It also depends on where you tested the clay. From my experience the common places to pull a lot of junk are the front end, horizontal surfaces, and vertical surfaces just behind the wheels. Really only the front end has ever consistently had a lot of crud. And most of the stuff I've gotten off is stuff I could barely even see once I looked at the clay, probably baked on pollen.