A few weeks ago, I went to my local detail supply shop. I asked for a Meg's blue mild clay bar. The guy asked what color I was going to use it on. I told him medium blue, and pointed to my truck. He proceeded to say that he recommends this purple clay for all but very dark colors. He said it is SLIGHTLY more agressive than the Meg's blue.

So I took him up on it and bought the purple. It was not Meg's brand, as it only came wrapped in plastic wrap. I'm not sure what brand it is.

Anyway, I came home and used it with succcess. No micromaring. It cleaned up the paint nicely, although it wasn't bad to begin with, as I clay a few times a year.

Over the past few days, I've been researching this purple clay on this site as well as autopia.org. Turns out that most people say that the purple is the MOST agressive clay that is made, and should only be used by body shops, and that it causes pretty severe marring and scratches.

So I'm wondering why this wasn't my experience. Is there "another" purple clay out there that isn't the most agressive grade?

Oh yeah, and tonight I was claying my wife's dark green Honda Pilot with a new Meg's blue clay bar, and I decided to give the purple a try. Again, it worked well with no marring. All this on Honda paint, which is known to be very soft.

Any explanations???


One more thing... This morning I went back to the same detail supply store to get the Meg's Blue. It was a different guy this time. Just for kicks, I asked him what the purple clay is about. He proceeded to say just what others on this site have said; it's super agressive and should only be used in severe conditions. Same store, different stories from different employees...

 

Hmmm I have never heard of that. F 150sport said in another thread that more aggressive clays just do the job quicker while more mild just take a little more time. (you know what don't believe me on that because I'm not actually sure if that is correct or not sorry haha)


I have 1 other question. How often should you be changing out your clay? It seems like something you wouldn't need to change out unless it dries up. Am I wrong?

 

Purple is pretty aggressive more than blue and i don't buy what the guy told you about using it on different colors. That is hogwash.

If you use lots of lube you can be cautious with it. I keep a purple bar for those just in case areas...but mostly I use either Blue Megs or Pooboys Clay.

I think the purple is a harder clay, grabs more and does require much more lube to work properly.

 

So what is the deal with the white bar that come in the Megs clay kit. (I think it is white).

 

White is VERY mild but effective. Very mild as in relation to Purple.

 

cool beans. Thanks

 

You should change out the clay when you start to see embedded crap in it or if you EVER drop it on the ground.

 

I don't know, guys...

There are a lot of companies out there that have a clay product on the market. Some are yellow. Some are white. Some are blue. Some are red. Some are purple. Some are pink-pokadotted...

The thing is that one company's 'mild' clay may be purple whereas the next guy's aggressive clay may be purple (and vice-versa).

While I've not used every clay bar out there, I've tinkered with several. For me, I'd prefer to know what I'm getting before I get it and not do a lot of experimentation.

Mild versus aggressive -

Aggressive clay doesn't necessarily just do the job faster. That's a misconception. More so, an aggressive clay bar should be used when the contaminant bonding to the paint is more than the mild-style bar can handle. You'll know this is occurring because you'll see your mild bar getting slightly 'ripped' and some of the material is being left behind on the paint.

I will caution those who immediately think that going the aggressive route is the way to go simply because of this; I've only been forced to use the aggressive variety on a couple of cars - ever. Simply put, the mild version (for 95%+) is going to foot the bill and do it quite well, IMO.

Aggressive clay can very easily mar the paint (especially on a darker color where the end results are quickly obvious). I see the aggressive variety being more of a body-shop application type of product versus that of nearly all driveway detailers.

-RP-

 

good point rock...

hey on a side note.... i just put my wife on the plane going back to crestwood for the weekend

 

This is the point that, if I knew you better, I'd say something along the lines of, "Yeah, she said that she'd stop by..." but, since I don't know you all that well, I'll refrain.

JK of course.

If she'll stick around for a week or so, she can attend the National Rifle Association's Annual Meeting here in 'the ville'.

-RP-