Curious. What would happen if...

[RootsRadical]

I was wondering if anyone knows what would happen if someone polished a vehicle without first stripping off any wax/sealant that was on the paint.

Would the polishing process successfully strip the wax? Would the wax interfere with the polish's ability to correct defects?

(I'm guessing 'yes' and 'yes' but I've never actually tried...)

 

[TroyScherer]

Polishing will remove your wax or sealant.

But it will also interfere with gum up the polish and pad I would guess.



I personally would never begin to polish without claying and doing my normal Decon steps. This should remove you wax or sealant and create a clean surface to start with.

 

[Crodad1]

Layer of Polish or wax is so microscopic that new polish will remove it and have no side affects.

 

[BobbyG]

Nothing at all...

With most products we apply to make out cars and trucks look great they begin to degrade right after we apply them. These protectants are nothing more then a microscopically thin film which adheres to the paint and is temporary at best.

Compounds and polishes contain abrasives that are visible to the naked eye. These products abrade the finish, removing swirls and other like defects and will remove any sealants or waxes that may remain the instant the machines switched on...

Personally, I'm more concerned with the particles that become embedded in the finish that the clay removes. If you ever clayed a finish then taken a good look at what you've just removed? Imagine for a moment grinding that dirt and debris into the finish if you hadn't clayed!

By the way, claying the finish after a thorough washing will remove most of the sealant and wax anyway...:bigups

 

[RootsRadical]

Interesting. I had figured that the wax would interfere somehow.

I typically will wash with a citrus cleaner (or dish soap) to remove as much of the wax/sealant as possible, then clay and wash again before beginning any correction work.

 

[Rocket]

In my experience nothing happens. You remove the old LSP when you polish like Bobby said

 

[mwtaco]

my understanding is that polishing is a way to strip your paint of old product.

 

[CT3]

I agree, I couldn't imagine it doing anything other than removing it/going right through it.

 

[Dr Oldz]

I wash with a car shampoo, clay then get to polishing. Never have seen side effects.

 

[classofshine]

But it will also interfere with gum up the polish and pad I would guess.

Really? Ive never seen or hear of that happening. There is such a small amount of it left on the paint that you would never notice the difference between the compound and any left over stuff that you are removing. If you do the baggy test and the paint doesnt need clayed then save yourself a step and go right to polishing.

 

[SS 07C70]

Good question, with some good replies. This is the kind of question I bet most people have somewhere in their head, but never ask!

Thanks

 

[Stokdgs]

Again, with the Claybar, pick the dirty finish of your choice, then claybar just a small area, look at the Claybar, and almost always, unless the vehicle is a total Garage Queen, there will be embedded stuff in the paint, along with whatever is left of the sealant, wax, etc..

I would personally, want to remove as much of this stuff as possible before I began the correcting stage of any vehicle I am working on.

The less amount of embedded junk in the paint, the better the correction stage will be, and the cleaner my pads will be.

Sometimes, just using the Claybar will improve the light reflection through the paint so much (because it removed a lot of embedded stuff) that this is all you will need to do! If your paint is the colors that dont show scratches, swirls, etc., than maybe this is all you need to do, and it will look amazing, because the Claybar cleaned a lot of crap out of the paint, and allowed the light to go into it and reflect back out of it straighter.

Will the Claybar and washing get everything off so that your correcting pads will be perfectly clean when you use them? No, they will still get some junk out of the paint that is mixed with the compound product, a little of the paint topcoat, etc..

But the best part is that there is to me, less junk swirling around the paint when its being corrected, to give it the opportunity to scratch the paint further, etc..

I am sure that if the Claybar wasn't needed, it would have never been invented back in the middle 1980's then.

To me, the only paint that would probably not need to be Clay'd would be brand new, just out of the paintbooth, assembly line, etc., paint that has not had an opportunity to be hit with all the crap that falls out of the sky - especially in big urban areas.

I try to keep our 4 vehicles as clean as possible all year long with washing, etc., and the ones that stay outside always need to be clayed, even if they didnt go but a few thousand miles that year. The ones that get the garage still need it to, but not nearly as much as the outside vehicles.

Dan F

 

[PPLd]

I wash with a car shampoo, clay then get to polishing. Never have seen side effects.

That's exactly what I have been doing, Dr.
All cars I have done turn out better than what I expected thanks to the products, not me

 

[holland_patrick]

I'd polished with out claying.. it's not the best as the pad get's dirty but you can do it

 

[mwtaco]

I love the clay step. Its the clay that makes running your finger along a perfect finish so satisfying. It's a simple step that reaps multifold reward.

 

[sc_S13]

I just take some play-doh and get too it.


But actually, I just picked up some Sonus clay and did a little test spot and it picks up all kinds of stuff on what I thought was a relatively clean surface. It's adds more work time, but definitely worth the it.

 

[rzatch]

Stokdgs even some brand new cars need clayed. They sit in holding yards, are transported by train with all kinds of rail dust (metal) sitting on them.

 

[rzatch]

I just take some play-doh and get too it.


But actually, I just picked up some Sonus clay and did a little test spot and it picks up all kinds of stuff on what I thought was a relatively clean surface. It's adds more work time, but definitely worth the it.

I know you were just joking but there were some people not long ago doing a test with regular modeling clay. And it did do some cleaning.

 

[Todd@RUPES]

I was wondering if anyone knows what would happen if someone polished a vehicle without first stripping off any wax/sealant that was on the paint.

Would the polishing process successfully strip the wax? Would the wax interfere with the polish's ability to correct defects?

(I'm guessing 'yes' and 'yes' but I've never actually tried...)

There are chemicals in some waxes and sealants that can have a negative effect on polishing (with some polishing on some paints), there are even some chemicals left behind by certain car washes that can change the way a polish behaves.

Waxes, sealants (or anything left behind by a quick detailer, soap, spray wax, etc) form very very thin layers on the paint. We are talking less then a micron thin. So while the abrasives will not have too much of a problem removing the product (likely it is gone in split seconds) the removed chemical can interfere (in fact it does interfere at some level, usually just not enough that we ever notice it) with the polishing process.

I know Michael Stoops (from Meguiars) had posted a thread where they had a problem with (I believe it was M105, could have been D300 or M86) removing swirl marks on a paint that had been wiped down with a particular quick detailer (I'm thinking it was Last Touch Detail Spray IIRC). Was it because M105 didn't have the power to cut through the nano-thin layer of Last Touch? Of course not. It was likely because the nano-thin layer altered the chemicals in M105 to the point where the abrasives were not generating the level of cut needed to remove the paint defects.

The chemical mixes with the pad and polish and changes the effect. Again, going on memory, they switched to a fresh pad, wiped the paint with something (I believe it was diluted glass cleaner) and were instantly rewarded with the level of correction they expected.

I have had a similar situation (using Menzerna SIP) where the pad was grabby and the polish was running hot. It was actually spitting out balls of polish. I wiped the surface with alcohol, switched to a fresh pad, and was rewarded with the smooth rotary action we expect from SIP.

Granted this is a rarity but I have had it happen on more than one ocassion and have spoken with many detailers who have experienced similar circumstance. Most of the time (overwhelmingly) it is nothing to worry about, but generally I will wipe a car down with IPA prior to polishing just to eliminate one more variable. It only takes a couple of minutes and, at least for me, makes sense.

 

[Stokdgs]

Stokdgs even some brand new cars need clayed. They sit in holding yards, are transported by train with all kinds of rail dust (metal) sitting on them.

Yes, I totally agree with you that new cars that are stored outside will need this, but I was referring to one just painted, dried, and still inside as the only vehicle that would not need a claybar.

Dan F