So I'm planning on doing my first clay job...ever. I'm basically like a blind squirrel looking for a nut, but my options are limited to these three:

Smooth Surface™ Clay Kit

Meguiar's Detailing Clay

Quik Clay Detailing System

Which one will be most applicable for my situation as I live in NW Iowa with no industrial issues but farming?

Thanks!

 

I got the Clay Magic kit because it was a little cheaper than the others at the store. The results were AMAZING.
I'm not sure, but I think most clay products are essentailly the same.

 

Quite honestly, any of them are fine. The Clay Magic kit is fine. The Mother's Clay kit is fine...

Long story short, don't feel like you have to go with the Meguiar's product on this one. It's quality, don't get me wrong... but, it really yields no specific advantages over any other brand on the market. This is one product line that, from my experience, is just about the same all the way across the boards.

The one exception would be if you were needing to utilize an 'agressive' clay type -- in this instance, I'd recommend the Meguiar's agressive clay from the Mirror Glaze line but, 99% of clay jobs done in your home garage won't need this -- the agressive clay can mar the heck out of a finish... trust me, I've done it. It's a bear to fix. LOL!

As to directly answer your question... I'd go with the Smooth Surface or Quik Clay system... but, again, any brand will work just fine.

RP

 

I just used the Meguiar's Smooth Surface kit last month. The clay was much softer than the Clay Magic kit I had years ago, but it worked very well. It may have been a bit higher on effort than I remember the Clay Magic to be, but I used that kit on two different dark blue Chevys. Apples to Oranges. I only have one embedded metal/rust spot that I'd like to try a harder/more aggressive clay on. It's on the forward edge of the passenger rear flare. That area seems to take alot of abuse from stuff kicked up by the front tires.

 

Will the clay bars do anything for acid rain spots in the clearcoat?

 

Probably not... clay will deal with surficial problems. Most acid spots are subsurface.