Automotive Detailing With a Clay Bar

Jason Nemeth
Automotive Detailing With a
Clay Bar
Before
After
Figure 1: An illustration of the surface of a car’s paint before and after using a clay bar and wax.
Introduction:
Your car may be dirtier than you even know. Unless your car is brand new, chances are good that
the surface feels coarse and grainy. These are contaminants in the top layer of the carʼs paint;
the clear coat. The contaminants are tiny slivers of metal and dirt that can slice through multiple
layers, as shown in Figure 1, leaving your carʼs paint full of tiny pits. Over time these small
contaminants and pits can dull or ruin your carʼs delicate finish. Cars that travel in urban areas
are at greater risk due to pollution and their close proximity to railroads, a major contributor of
metal dust.
This manual will guide you through the process of restoring your carʼs paint using a clay bar.
Running the bar along your carʼs surface will pull out the imperfections and contaminants that
washing alone canʼt remove. A layer of wax will be applied to cover any resulting pits, leaving
your carʼs paint smooth and healthy.
Items Required:
Automobile
Terry cloth Towels
Detailing Spray
Plastic Bags
Clay Bar
Figure 2: The supplies needed to detail your car with a clay bar.
• Approximately 2 hours of your time
• Automobile
• Clay Bar
• Detailing Spray
• Plastic Zipper Bags
• Small Terry cloth Towels
The Clay Bar and Detailing Spray can be purchased at any reputable Auto Parts
or Auto Detailing stores, and can usually be found as a set.
Getting Started:
Before you begin using the clay bar, you must first prepare your car for the process. It is
important that your carʼs paint be as clean as possible before you begin using the clay bar. You
will need to wash the car with a mild soap to remove as much dirt and wax from the surface as
possible before using a clay bar. Since all of the wax will be removed from the surface, it is
imperative that you thoroughly wax the car after you have used the clay bar. If the car is not
already sitting in a shady area, move it into one. Proper use of the clay bar requires the carʼs
surface to be cool to the touch. If your car is in the shade, but its surface is still hot, allow
approximately 10 minutes for it to cool off.
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Using the Clay Bar:
Step 1: Carefully remove the clay bar from its package,
as shown in Figure 3. Temporarily put the clay
bar into one of the plastic bags to ensure it is not
damaged.
Warning
Do not let the bar touch the ground. If you drop
the bar or it touches the ground in any way, it
must be discarded. Using a clay bar that has
been on the ground can permanently damage
your carʼs surface.
Figure 3: Carefully remove the clay bar
from its package.
Step 2: Lightly rub your hand across the surface of the car.
Try to remember how rough the surface is. You will
use this as a reference point to determine when you
are finished working with the area. Spray a roughly
2ʼ by 2ʼ area of the carʼs surface with the Detailing
Spray, as shown to the right in Figure 4.
Figure 4: Spray a 2’ by 2’ area with the
Detailing Spray.
Step 3: Rub the clay bar along the surface of the car in long
back-and-forth motions shown in Figure 5. Use a
light touch. Putting a heavy pressure on the bar can
damage the carʼs paint.
Warning
Take special care when using the clay bar
around vinyl stickers such as pinstripes. If
small slivers of clay get stuck around the edges
of the stickers, gently remove the clay with
your fingernail.
Warning
Do not use the clay bar on a dry surface. Make
sure the surface of the car is well-lubricated
with Detailing Spray at all times.
Checkpoint
As you are rubbing the bar along the carʼs
surface you should be able to feel and hear the
contaminants being pulled out of the paint.
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Figure 5: Rub the bar on the car’s
surface in a back-and-forth motion.
Step 4: Repeat Step 2 on the same surface area until you can
no longer feel the contaminants being pulled out by
the clay bar. When the bar glides smoothly over the
surface without any resistance, move on to Step 4.
Step 5: Wipe any clay residue off the surface with a soft
terry cloth towel, then use the towel to wipe off any
excess Detailing Spray. Buff the area in a circular
motion with the terry cloth towel until the surface
shines as in Figure 5.
Checkpoint
Again, rub your hand along the surface of the
car. The surface should now be significantly
smoother than it was in Step 2.
Step 6: Check for any hard particles, like the one shown in
Figure 6, which may have embedded themselves
in your clay bar. If you find any, pick them out of
the clay with your fingernails and dispose of them.
Then, reform the clay bar as shown in Figure 7.
Stretch the clay lengthwise, then fold it over itself
until it resembles the bar-like shape you started
with.
Figure 5: Buff out the Detailing Spray in
a circular motion.
Figure 6: Pick any hard particles
out of the bar.
Figure 7: To reform the bar, first stretch it lengthwise. Then, fold the bar over itself until it is roughly 2” by 3”.
When you are done, you should have a clean portion of clay to rub across your car’s surface.
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Step 7: Repeat Steps 2 - 6 for all of the carʼs paint surfaces.
After a while, your clay bar will begin to get soiled
as in Figure 8. You should reform the bar as shown
previously in Figure 7 each time you finish a body
panel to ensure a clean section of clay is always in
contact with your carʼs surface.
Warning
Do not use a bar as dirty as the one in
Figure 8 on your car.
Figure 8: This clay bar is too dirty to
continue using in its current form.
Reform the bar as shown in Figure 7 on
the previous page.
Step 8: When you have applied the clay bar and detailing
spray to every painted surface of your car, you are
finished working with the clay bar. Place the clay
bar into one of the plastic bags, as shown in Figure
9. This will keep the bar fresh and ready for its next
use. Most bars can completely detail at least three
large cars before they become too dirty to reuse.
Figure 9: Place the clay bar in a plastic
bag to keep it fresh for its next use.
Step 9: The time required to work with a clay bar
sometimes allows dirt to settle on the car before you
are finished. Use one of the terry cloth towels to
lightly dust the carʼs surfaces, as shown in Figure
10. You are now ready to finish up the process.
Figure 10: Use a terry cloth towel to
lightly dust the surface of the car.
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Finishing Up:
Now that you have finished using the clay bar the only task that remains is waxing the car. This
step is very important because it seals any pits that used to contain fine slivers of metal and
dirt. Once you have waxed the entire car, lightly dust off its surface as you did in Step 9 on the
previous page.
Congratulations!
You have completed detailing your car using a clay bar. Your carʼs surface should now be clean
and extremely smooth. Your car now has a nice healthy finish that should last about 6 months,
provided you wax it monthly. Take your car out for a spin to show off its shine, you deserve it!
Technical Production Notes:
“Automotive Detailing With a Clay Bar” was created with:
12” Apple PowerBook G4 utilizing
Adobe InDesign (Page Layout)
Adobe Photoshop (Photograph Enhancement)
Adobe Acrobat (Document Creation)
Canon PowerShot Digital Elph (2.1 Mega-Pixels)
HP DeskJet 845c Color Ink-Jet printer
Fonts Used:
Times Bold/Bold Italic 36pt with black Overprint (Title)
Times 12pt (General Text)
Times Bold 12pt in Blue (Step Numbers)
Arial Black 14pt (Headings)
Arial 8pt (Figures)
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