The MINI is brand new, but my F-150 is seven years old and the paint is filthy - it feels like sandpaper when I rub my hand over the hood. I just bought the clay bar kit and used it on a section and it cleaned almost all of the contamination, but what a chore! :impatient

I just purchased a Makita circular polisher to keep up with the MINI and restore the paint on the truck and my wife's minivan. The paint is so dull and dirty on the truck, I intend to use Meguiar's 3 step system - paint cleaner, polish, wax.

Since I'm using an aggressive cleaner, I should be able to skip the clay bar process In my thinking they both accomplish the same end, but the clay seems more for maintenance whereas the paint cleaner polish would be for neglected paint, like my truck.

Any thoughts? Suggestions? Recommendations?

 

Claybar is the best at removing crap. Cleanerwax does a decent job to prep the surface.

I have never seen anything do what claybar does as a chemical. I claybar before I do anything different, whether that be polishing or a new layer of wax.

 

You absolutely want to clay before you polish. Otherwise you are just grinding the crap that's embedded on the surface of the paint farther into the paint. Not good.

Clay, then polish.

 

Even compared to using a circular polisher and a cleaner/polishing compound? It just seems the Makita would be more effective, since the clay bar uses muscle power, whereas the circular polisher multiplies that tenfold with machine power.
Am I missing something?

 

They do two completely different things. Clay removes surface-bonded contaminants from the very top surface of your paint/clear coat. Polishes grind any non-uniform edges of your paint/clear coat down to appear more smooth and uniform (thus why polishes make your paint look so shiny). If you polish your car with those contaminants still on your paint, you will just grind them in further, and thus will still have the rough surface, and possibly do more harm than good as you drive them down into the paint.

 

Not to seem argumentative, but wouldn't it grind it off of the paint?

 

Nope.

But whatever, you seem pretty set on doing it that way. You'll see for yourself when you do it and end up with more swirls than you started with, or hazed paint.

 

Gimme a break, I'm just asking questions and asking you to support your answers. I'm sorry if that offends you. I do appreciate your input and I take all comments into consideration.

 

I'm not offended at all, and I supported my answer when I gave it, and again when you questioned it. You're going to do whatever you want to do, and will see the results of whatever that is, that is my point.

You can search this forum and find the same answer that I gave over and over again, from professionals and home OCDers, and men and women alike. See: Claybar: What does it do? and How to Use Detailing Clay. This second article has some good diagrams to show you what clay is doing.

 

Without a picture to see what's wrong with the paint, I can't be sure, but if the clay was a "chore", you may be trying to do too much with the clay. You should just be lightly gliding the clay across the surface to shear off the raised contaminants, like specks of tree sap, rail dust, stuck-on pollen, etcetera. Any oxidation, hazing, or generally-rough paint will have to be addressed with the polish.
I would just go over the entire truck lightly with the clay - there shouldn't be any "elbow grease" involved, but you should turn/knead the clay frequently, since you'll be picking up a bunch of contaminants. Just realize that the truck *will* likely still look like crap afterward. Then, use your varying polishes and wax to smooth out the paint and bring out the shine.
Also, you mentioned that your Makita is a circular polisher. It can be *very* difficult to get good results with a circular polisher, especially if you have a lot of defects to remove and you don't have a lot of experience with them. It's also a lot easier to damage paint with a circular polisher. I would suggest getting a random-orbital polisher, especially if most of the work you're going to be doing is maintainence/upkeep.
I have a circular Dewalt DW849 ("the old battleaxe") that I use for severely-neglected paint, but I always follow it up with an orbital. But for most paint, I just stick with the orbital all the way through.

 

Here's an example to support ML's statements. Ever have sap or tiny bug parts on your paint? You can try to polish these off all day long and they will not budge. Why? The pad is soft and will not apply lateral pressure to the raised dirt. While pads & polish are great at transferring perpendicular forces, which will round over scratches and swirls and bring the level of the surrounding area flush, they just can get enough sideways force exerted to remove tiny spots of stuck on dirt. Clay on the other hand will shear the debris flush with the paint since it imparts most of its action parallel to the surface. Clay however will not do anything to subsurface swirls and scratches.
So clay to get your paint smooth, then polish to remove swirls and slight scratches. Also like ScottRiqui said, you should be very careful with the Makita. If you can't torque it out using a little pressure it can have a negative effect on your paint if not very careful.