# Clay Bar with Water as Lucricant?



## najel (Apr 10, 2008)

Hey!
I just bought some claybars off Amazon, and now I noticed they say you don't need a lubricant, just use water. I have never used a clay bar before, but everything I have read says to always use a lubricant and always use the one that comes with the clay.
I am just wondering if you guys think it would be OK to use water here since that is what it says, or is that just a gimmick of the manufacturer? I was think I could get a clean spray bottle and use distilled water? 
If not, what lubricant would you recommend getting? Or is it even sold separately from clay bars?

Any input appreciated!


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## Jesstzn (Apr 21, 2003)

Water is iffy .. just get a cheap Quick Detail spray and use it


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## najel (Apr 10, 2008)

Thanks. Will give that a shot.


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## addictedtogum (Sep 20, 2005)

what product is it?


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## najel (Apr 10, 2008)

It's this product: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003UE2OWA
It sounded good because I did not need to use another chemical (lubricant) in the process. I then started to read up a little more on how to use clay bars, and found out that water really doesn't seem to be a good alternative. I also read that it is recommended to stick with the lubricant the clay comes with because some lubricants are not compatible with some clays... guess I should have done my homework before I bought.
Is there anything you could tell me about those clay bars I bought?


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## Jesstzn (Apr 21, 2003)

Nothing wrong with them .. use a QD as I suggested .. 

Some clays will break down when used with certain soap/water mixes.


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## najel (Apr 10, 2008)

Alright, thanks again. I will get claying. Can't wait for the damn rain to stop to finally have a clean car again.


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## sick01jetta (Nov 8, 2005)

you do not need quick detailer, I clay 5 cars minumum a week and just use the car soap as my lubricant. just make sure its not super hot out or in the sun.

scott @ Boosteddetails.com (toronto and gta mobile detailer)


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## manlystanly06 (Oct 11, 2007)

:thumbup: same here! comes out great!


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## jason strapec (Jan 23, 2006)

yea i've always wondered if claying in the rain would work. maybe ill try it on a car in not-so-great condition the next time it rains


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## addictedtogum (Sep 20, 2005)

i've used water coming out of the hose before, and also a quick detailer. the only difference i noticed was that the hose was quicker. then again i don't use floresent lights, and take 100s of close up pictures of my paint condition.


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## 67Customs (Mar 3, 2005)

Use car shampoo or even baby shampoo and put a few drops in the water before claying. Don't use just water. It doesn't provide enough lubrication and that could lead to micromaring or fine scratches.


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## drummer4lyf (Sep 16, 2005)

At the dealership I used to work for we would wash the car and use the water that's on it after the rinse for a lube. Water is cheaper than detail spray and if you have plans to buff the car afterwards it works fine. I've noticced almost anything I used detail spray, water, etc still left some sort of micro scratches even with a new clay bar and different compounds of bars. Just do yourself a favor and keep the bar CLEAN. Meaning don't drop it on the ground or lay it on a random table blah blah blah. Once you get dirt or particles in the clay it scratches the hell out of the paint so just be aware of what your doing with the bar. Another thing I like to do is when rubbing an area for a while I then turn the bar inside out, kind of like rolling dough. That keeps it from getting a build up on the surface of the bar and potentially giving you the micro scratches.

Hope I helped.... im sure the experts will chime in:thumbup:


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## Jesstzn (Apr 21, 2003)

Biggest problems thatlead to micro marring are;
1) Not enough of the proper lube
2) Rubbing too hard ... let the clay do the work.


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## 67Customs (Mar 3, 2005)

drummer4lyf said:


> At the dealership I used to work for we would wash the car and use the water that's on it after the rinse for a lube. Water is cheaper than detail spray...


No disrespect to you at all, but this is why I never let dealers or cheap detail shops touch my vehicles.

Second, I very rarely get micro marring when claying. It has to be a REAlly bad off car to get enough in the bar to cause micro marring and most likely, it is the type of car that already has lots of swirls.


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## drummer4lyf (Sep 16, 2005)

67Customs said:


> No disrespect to you at all, but this is why I never let dealers or cheap detail shops touch my vehicles.
> 
> Second, I very rarely get micro marring when claying. It has to be a REAlly bad off car to get enough in the bar to cause micro marring and most likely, it is the type of car that already has lots of swirls.


None taken. I totally agree because its all about quantity not quality and do it as cheap and fast as possible. The majority of the time we used them to get tree sap off. I don't mean globs of sticky sap, Im talking about little black spots about the size of a pin head that get hard if they are let on the paint and not taken off in time. Basically rubbing the he'll out of the paint with clay to get them off then buffing away the haze from rubbing so hard.


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## TXR32 (Jun 4, 2006)

Jesstzn said:


> Some clays will break down when used with certain soap/water mixes.


Meguiar's Clay bar tends to do this especially when the temps outside are in the 90's and using soapy water.


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## Righteous Bucks (May 9, 2011)

is the amount of clay in the kit enough to do a whole car?


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## TOGWT (Nov 7, 2008)

Water is a ver efficient natural solvent, but it contains no surface lubrication properties

Without surface lubrication any abrasive (inc detailer's clay) will cause surface scratches


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## Jesstzn (Apr 21, 2003)

Righteous Bucks said:


> is the amount of clay in the kit enough to do a whole car?


 Way more than enough .. Cut the bar in 1/3 and kneed it often.


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## Righteous Bucks (May 9, 2011)

i bought the clay magic kit, the mothers and meguiars were $18 with 2 bars; clay magic was $15 with 1 bar.

bought clay magic b/c it seemed the consensus was that it was the best. will def post pics before and after.


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## 67Customs (Mar 3, 2005)

Righteous Bucks said:


> i bought the clay magic kit, the mothers and meguiars were $18 with 2 bars; clay magic was $15 with 1 bar.
> 
> bought clay magic b/c it seemed the consensus was that it was the best. will def post pics before and after.


Crap. The last time I bought the Clay Magic kit, it was $10. I guess nothing has avoided a price increase.


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## MikeBlaze (Aug 9, 2001)

If you like claying with a wet car use 6-10 pumps of regular hand soap in a 32oz spray bottle. Hand soap works well because it lacks degreasers that are found in car wash soaps. That's what will break down clay.

Personally I prefer using ONR diluted to QD strength as clay lube.


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## Righteous Bucks (May 9, 2011)

67Customs said:


> Crap. The last time I bought the Clay Magic kit, it was $10. I guess nothing has avoided a price increase.


gas has doubled, so if it's trucked, which is what, everything? it's gone up in price, **** my daily cup of coffee at the gas station just went up $.10, not much, but that's the economy we're stuck in for now. drill baby drill.


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## Righteous Bucks (May 9, 2011)

used the clay magic tonight, really enjoyed using it, was much easier than i thought it would be.

my clay was yellow right away, i think i must have had some left over pollen in there from Virginia Beach and coming home from the Navy.

i was impressed how easy it was to use, how quickly you can do it. i pretty much worked one panel at a time. or half a panel at a time. plenty of lubricant and i was worried i wouldn't have enough.

2 pieces of clay would have been nice like the meguiars kit comes with. but one was enough in the clay magic kit. hard to kneed it but was impressed.

the paint looks brand new. truly amazing. i may start doing this more often. it's so easy!

thanks for the suggestion of this kit.


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