t cut or clay bar

[ProfDave]

Originally Posted by grivas

Wash car with a good quality shampoo and a wool mitt rinse well clay then rinse well then polish whilst still wet with a quality polish, allow to dry and wipe off with a soft moisten microfiber cloth, wax and buff to a brilliant finish run fingers on paint work, will feel and look like glass, admire and drink tea/beer as required.

I seem to have got the tea and beer part in the wrong place

[Sonic ZS]

If I drink in a 'clay bar', will I end up getting stoned...

[Rev Jules]

There are so many products on the market its hard to say which is best, each to their own as what to use, to me it is preference I have tried numerous products, unless my car is in a 100% pristine condition like to name a few, Teflon, Mango Man, and Flying Banana,.

As long as I can clean my car and stand back, look at it and say that does look nice, as long as people come up to me and say, well kept car you have there I am more than happy.

Julien

[capese21]

what I want to know is what is the best way to resto the paint work cause its a bit dull and looks like its never been washed by hand .
clay bar or t cut ???

The answer to the OP`s question is what is important. T Cut is a very outdated product and if used to much will be down to the primer quite quickly. It was the only choice in 1954 when it first appeared on the market.

Paint on modern cars has changed since then and it now softer with clear coats over metallic finishes ect.

There are so many products on the market its hard to say which is best

This is true there are hundreds of products!! Car detailing is big business. What I and others have used with good results is a good starting point though. Wash-Clay-Polish-Glaze-Wax Once done only the Wax will need applying again after a month or two to maintain the shine.

Ed

[chris75]

Originally Posted by capese21

T Cut is a very outdated product and if used to much will be down to the primer quite quickly. It was the only choice in 1954 when it first appeared on the market.


Ed

There is a second version of T-Cut for metallic finishes . Much milder and designed for metallic / pearlescent finishes . As a one-off starter point I can recommend it

[vindaloo]

I'd be very careful using a clay bar unless you are planning to machine polish afterwards or at the very least polish by hand. Simply using a clay bar will remove contaminants but it will induce quite a few marks on your car which must be polished out. If I'm starting my spring detail from scratch (excuse the pun!), I foam, shampoo, tar remover from waist down, Iron-X or similar fall-out remover, clay, shampoo, machine polish with the least aggressive pad & compound I can get away with and finally glaze, sealant and if you wish a wax topper.

This is required a maximum of once a year, maintenance washes and waxes are all that is required until next year.

[Supervinnie40]

To be really honest, nothing that can be bought via Halfords is serious quality. But it is a good starting without breaking the bank. T-cut isn't very good compared to the newer products. And it's really bad compared with the more advanced SMAT polishes.
But unlike myself, most normal people don't like to spend 30 pounds on a bottle of polish that they will use 3 or 4 times a year (and I don't blame them. Actually my Mrs prefers those people after seeing my bank account....)

Like has been said before by a few people. You can't really compare T-cut with a clay bar. A clay bar removes contaminants from your paint. Making it smoother, cleaner and provides for a better surface for any wax/sealant to bond with. It also removes a little bit of oxidation from the top layer of your clear coat.
T-cut is a polish, which doesn't remove anything expect for a small layer of paint and any old layers of wax that are still on the paint.
Using T-cut without using a clay bar first, will results in all types of dirt and contaminants to be rubbed around, causes swirls and scratches that you are trying hard to remove.
(and using an old t-shirt or blouse definitely doesn't help either).

A downside of clay is that it can cause marring. Which is very easily removed by either a chemical cleaner or a polish. T-cut is capable of remove the marring. (marring is much less if you use a proper Quick Detailer of a proper clay lube)
So in short; you need both... not one or the other.

To repeat Jordan's words: wash - clay - wash - dry - t-cut (to remove marring) - wax/sealant to protect the lovely look you achieved.
(using a glaze provides for a less stable surface for the wax. It will improve the looks, but will shorten the durability of the wax greatly. If you done a good job with the polish, you really don't need any glaze.)

And most important of all, get yourself a nice cold glass of beer and a lawn chair. Sit back and enjoy the view of that nice shiny car (and make photo's so you have something to share with us ).

[auldsmokymg13]

many thanks to everyone how has posted ..got a clay bar kit ,paintwork restorer and polish from the autoglym rep that comes to my work .

so first dry day the polishing will comence first thing

getting moans because am gonna do the project mg before my 11 plate kia

there never happy are they !!!!

[Johnny2R]

Any recommendations for clay bar, preferably online? Just went to do some claying and my clay bar is nowhere to be found. Are they all much the same?

[Jordan Apex]

Originally Posted by Johnny2R

Any recommendations for clay bar, preferably online? Just went to do some claying and my clay bar is nowhere to be found. Are they all much the same?

Bilt and hamber and zaino are both high quality, I use a cloth now but used meguairs before hand and that was good