So I did the baggie test after I clay barred the whole car.
 

It is still ruff as **** all over. Is this normal? I clayed the car twice.

wrong section. your car repainted or something? sounds like overspray...

Can you provide more details? Pics?

yeah the clay WILL give you a smooth surface.

pics are needed indeed

Just claying the car is not gonna give you a smooth finish. If your gonna clay your car you need to then polish and wax the car. That will get you the smooth clean feeling.

hummm... given the condition of the paint claying will result in a super smooth clean surface. if you're feeling the swirls with your fingers (or baggie test) those aren't swirls...those are scratches! :D

no, it wil be glass smooth. clay removes pollen, bug sh1t, sap, tar...... thats its job. you remove that and the finish is smooth. is it scratch free no, but it will be smooth.

Washing the car will remove all that stuff you just mentioned. Claying a car is not something you do all the time. If you want to properly clay a car you need to get down to a clean finish on the paint by using some kind of paint prep. You caly the car polish it then wax it. You guys are just washing your car then claying it??? Normally the dirt and crap a clay bar removes you cant even see with the naked eye.

I think you might be thinking "smooth" is referring to the appearance of the paint, but here "smooth" is used to describe the texture of the paint. Polishing and waxing isn't going to remove the bonded contaminants. I do agree that polishing with a cutting pad will to some degree smooth the paint surface as it removes a thin layer of paint.

OP, as you are claying, use a good amount of lube and continue until you feel the clay is siding very easily. Also most of the time, the sound will change as you clay the surface, it will start out sounding very scratchy (depending how bad it is) and progressively get quieter until it goes it away. Follow up a polish and always wax or seal the paint after you clay since claying will remove the existing protectant. And always, make sure the car is washed thoroughly before you start claying.

:wtf2:

That is exactly what I did and experienced, yet the pair doesn't feel smooth at all to the touch. It is really weird. I washed throughly before flaying the whole car. I don't know. Was I supposed to press really hard when claying? Everything I read said no.

no dont press hard when you clay. there is some force but do not bear down on the paint.

i feel the same way about his comment.

red6spd. you have part of your cleaning method right, the rest sounds like your talking outa your ***. "prep the paint for clay" wtf wash the car with a Ph balanced citrus wash to remove old wax and oils first, then clay.....

i know my customers love the detail work i do and have been doing for years. now with my new PC 7424xp my work has stepped up to a new level.

anyways, clay = smooth finish..... period

if your having a hard time with the claying part maybe you should stop right there.