Volcanic dust?

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Thanks. A reply mentions products I've never heard of - like Collinite. Where would I buy it?

[Jack Manfred]

Try

Collnite make one of the most popular car waxes with auto detailers - Collinite 476. I'm wondering if clay bar may help.

Good luck!

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I've been doing some research on clay bars - I actually bought one to make up a minimum order value from 3M when buying some windscreen sealer, but have never used it.

Of course most are trying to sell you proprietary products, but I found one general guide here:-

does seem they do lift off grit etc without grinding it into the paint elsewhere.

[David]

e:

Here:

is a very durable wax but it is only just a 'wax', it is loaded with solvents, petrol etc to clean up any greasiness on the surface, it has sprinkling if carnauba wax which is why it can be called a wax otherwise it is very much a sealant. I would be tempted to clay the car first with something like this: (use water and a drop of shampoo as your lubricant) and then follow up with Autoglym Super Resin Polish and THEN the Collinite.

Here is a guide on claying:

[Dave Plowman (News)]

very much - that looks like the way forward.

[geoff]

In message , "Dave Plowman (News)" writes

Having just watched news 24, you're not alone

there was a shot of an American Airlines plane in Guatemala with what looked like a "mohichan" of volcanic ash settled on the fuselage and wings

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Success.

When I first saw this dust and it wouldn't wash off, I tried Farecla which removed it but left scratches. These did polish out with more Farecla - but was simply too much work and removed too much paint.

So today I found the clay bar I'd bought from 3Ms ages ago, bought some Microfibre cloths from Tesco (2 quid for 2 - new product), and some car shampoo (no wax) from Halfords.

Hosed the car then washed with the shampoo and hosed again. Cut off a bit of the clay bar - it's rather like tough plasticine. Tried a small inconspicuous area where the powder was present and after very little work it became smooth to the touch. (I used the shampoo in the stated dilution as a lubricant - in a spray bottle) Dried it with the microfibre cloth and it looked excellent - very smooth but slightly dull, but all the powder gone. Waxed it and it came up great. The amount of muck the bar removed was surprising.

Having heard our US cousins rave about this stuff for years I'm now sold on it. It is far kinder to the paint than a wax which includes a cutting compound, as most do.

[Bruce]

Visions of large holes being formed in the planet by excavating clay for use by hundreds of millions of people cleaning their cars ... then other large holes in the planet being filled up with the used clay.

With a few years delay, I suppose the same holes could be re-filled... ;-)

[Harry Bloomfield]

Bruce explained :

We have a garden full of clay - you just dig 3 to 4 inches down and there it is.