Any opinions on Griots Clay?

Yeah, Griot's does charge a lot for shipping.



As best I can tell their clay is the same as the yellow Mother's stuff. At least I can't discern any difference at all. It's OK, just a little on the mild/gentle side which isn't a bad thing IMO. Used with their SpeedShine as lube it's even milder.



I used it for a *long* time, since back when they had the green version, but now I hardly ever reach for it, preferring Sonus green UltraFine.
 
Boston Man said:
shipping is $8.50........ what a deal killer
Click to expand...



unfortunately, that is probably the base shipping charge from Fed-Ex or UPS for a package under 1 lb. Not that that makes it a better deal, just saying that they probably aren't pocketing the shipping charge.
 
I've used the Griot's for years. It's a great clay, IMO. I first tried the Mother's clay in the late 90's, and i was horrible! It was way too harsh, and left a lot of scuff marks on the black lacquer paint. I had to spend a lot of time polishing to get all those marks out. It was bad. I would never use it again, but it seems some people have been liking it recently. Was it reformulated? Honestly, I've only used those two clays, but the Griot's does a nice job, and is safe to use. I have trust issues with clay now. :)
 
Blackthornone- That's interesting about your experiences with the Mother's, how it was so completely different from mine. I too wonder if they changed it :think:



When I compared Mother's to Griot's it was a straight back-to-back comparison, both clays in hand, and I simply couldn't tell any difference. I can't remember when this was, but it was post-2000 as I was in my current house/shop at the time.



When Griot's changed theirs from green to yellow (maybe around '95 or so :confused: ), all that changed was the color..the clay behaved the same as best I could tell. But other clays *have* changed significantly over the years. Maybe the Mother's changed as well...too bad Forrest isn't posting here these days as we could just ask him for the straight scoop.



Are you using SpeedShine for lube with the Griot's clay? What did you use for lube with the Mother's?
 
Accumulator said:
Blackthornone- That's interesting about your experiences with the Mother's, how it was so completely different from mine. I too wonder if they changed it :think:



When I compared Mother's to Griot's it was a straight back-to-back comparison, both clays in hand, and I simply couldn't tell any difference. I can't remember when this was, but it was post-2000 as I was in my current house/shop at the time.



When Griot's changed theirs from green to yellow (maybe around '95 or so :confused: ), all that changed was the color..the clay behaved the same as best I could tell. But other clays *have* changed significantly over the years. Maybe the Mother's changed as well...too bad Forrest isn't posting here these days as we could just ask him for the straight scoop.



Are you using SpeedShine for lube with the Griot's clay? What did you use for lube with the Mother's?
Click to expand...



Yes, I do use speed shine. It works great. Nice 5 minute detailer, too. I used the Mothers Showtime detail spray, I think.
 
Blackthornone said:
Yes, I do use speed shine. It works great. Nice 5 minute detailer, too. I used the Mothers Showtime detail spray, I think.
Click to expand...



Yeah, I too really like SpeedShine, I use it as a post-wash QD on vehicles that have a wax for their LSP (as opposed to a sealant, on which I use something else). Other people use a spray-wax for that, but I like the SpeedShine.



I was just curious...our differing experiences with the Mother's clay having piqued my curiosity.



I didn't really care for the ShowTime as clay lube, IIRC I ended up using ?ClayMagic? lube instead but I don't really remember.



If you ever need your clay to act more aggressively (but still be nice and safe), try using some different lube with the Griot's; the wax/etc. stuff in SpeedShine makes that clay a little bit too gentle for some jobs IMO.
 
I only use the griot's clay now. I tried the Mother's clay a few years back and it just kept falling apart. Maybe I had a bad one, but it would stick to the paint. And yes i was using a lubricant. I am very generous with it. The griots, imho, is a work horse. I've used part of the bar on the paint and part of it for the exhaust tips. Works great on both.

I only use it on my own vehicles maybe once a year for the annual bring it back to life after winter detail.
 
Accumulator said:
Yeah, I too really like SpeedShine, I use it as a post-wash QD on vehicles that have a wax for their LSP (as opposed to a sealant, on which I use something else). Other people use a spray-wax for that, but I like the SpeedShine.



I was just curious...our differing experiences with the Mother's clay having piqued my curiosity.



I didn't really care for the ShowTime as clay lube, IIRC I ended up using ?ClayMagic? lube instead but I don't really remember.



If you ever need your clay to act more aggressively (but still be nice and safe), try using some different lube with the Griot's; the wax/etc. stuff in SpeedShine makes that clay a little bit too gentle for some jobs IMO.
Click to expand...



What lube do you recommend for the Griot's?
 
GDA4- Interesting that *your* Griot's/Mother's clay experiences showed a big diff between the two also. Starting to wonder if my experiences might've been the exceptions rather than the rule :think:



Blackthornone said:
What lube do you recommend for the Griot's?
Click to expand...



Last time I used ClayMagic lube (I got a bunch of it from David/Lynn a while back) and I've also used Meguiar's #34.



IME Griot's isn't all *that* happy with shampoo as lube but it works OK for a quickie spot-claying.



Generally, what I was getting at is that the SpeedShine seems like its waxes/etc. create not just lubricity to help the clay glide (good) but also a kind of barrier/buffer between the clay and the paint (not so good). Whatever somebody *likes* using is probably the way to go as Griot's clay never seems all *that* sensitive to what the lube is.



Oh, and if you store it *dry*, as opposed to bathing it in SpeedShine, it'll last a little longer. Clay doesn't "dry out" the way many people expect it will ;) and IMO it doesn't need to be soaking up all the waxes/etc. that're in SpeedShine.



Nice to see so many people saying they like the Griot's clay, these threads often turn into a "why not just use ClayMagic?" flame-fest.
 
I like the size of the Griot's clay, and the little tub is nice for storage, but it stuck to everything the last time I used it. If I didn't soak the paint in Speed Shine, it would grab, and leave chunks all over everything, including my hands. Ended up taking me a loooong time to clay my Corvette.



I still like Zaino or Clay Magic clay the best.
 
I love Griots clay. I can use Zaino for tougher jobs and Griots for easier jobs. Honestly, their clay and speed shine is about all I would use. I have a bottle of their bbest of show wax it was so tough to get off that I will never touch it again. Oh wait I'll take that back. I really like their leather cleaner. Only had one bottle of it but it seemed to work great.



So clay, speed shine, and leather cleaner = good

Best of show wax = Bad
 
Yeah, the Best of Show wax is definitely not worth the effort. I like the final product of it, but having to spray each panel down with speed shine and rub is not my idea of fun. It stains trim, too. In the handbook, Richard suggests not being so sloppy with the wax application. I always thought that was rather arrogant especially when there are many other superior waxes that are trim friendly.
 
I just picked up a 100g Clay Magic clay bar at Autozone (with lube) for 9.99. So for 20 bucks, you could get 200g plus two bottles of lube. Plus, it's really good stuff.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top