Water Blades Plus or Minus?

[apexer]

I have been using the California Water Blade for removing the larger portions of standing water on my Mini then, a pure cotton towel to remove the small amount remaining. I have Zaino'ed prior to using the water blade. The water blade sure saves time and allows me to totally dry the Mini with the towel without having to ring it out. So far, I haven't seen any scratchs in using this method (probably 15 times or better) but, what can I expect long term?
BradB, you seem to be on top of the detailing products/methods. Whats the scoop?

[BradB]

The California Water Blade is a decent product. The trick is to use it on a super clean car and super clean water. And little piece of grit that gets caught in the blade can cause disaster, obviously. Used properly it is safe. That said, I tend to shy away from it because the risks are too great.

Long term I have seen hazing slowly build up, especially on dark cars.

I love time-savers, however and also don't like ringing out towels...and never do.

What I do is this: I use the Absorber. It's the synthetic chamois that you see sold in a plastic tube. ($8 at AutoZone, WalMart, K-Mart, etc) These are great. They soak up water like there is no tomorrow! BUT, there is a trick to using them. Do Not drag them across the surface of the finish. Just lay them on the car and lift back up. Lay and lift. Lay and lift. I slap it at the sides of the car. I can run around and do the entire car in less than two minutes, easily. I never ring the chamois out until I put it away. It's much faster and safer than the Blade. It leaves hardy and water on the surface.

I finish up whats left with a microfiber waffleweave towel. I don't use cotton towels any more. One WW does the car with no wringing.

[BostonMarkC]

I concur!

Originally Posted by BradB

The California Water Blade is a decent product. The trick is to use it on a super clean car and super clean water. And little piece of grit that gets caught in the blade can cause disaster, obviously. Used properly it is safe. That said, I tend to shy away from it because the risks are too great.

Long term I have seen hazing slowly build up, especially on dark cars.

I love time-savers, however and also don't like ringing out towels...and never do.

What I do is this: I use the Absorber. It's the synthetic chamois that you see sold in a plastic tube. ($8 at AutoZone, WalMart, K-Mart, etc) These are great. They soak up water like there is no tomorrow! BUT, there is a trick to using them. Do Not drag them across the surface of the finish. Just lay them on the car and lift back up. Lay and lift. Lay and lift. I slap it at the sides of the car. I can run around and do the entire car in less than two minutes, easily. I never ring the chamois out until I put it away. It's much faster and safer than the Blade. It leaves hardy and water on the surface.

I finish up whats left with a microfiber waffleweave towel. I don't use cotton towels any more. One WW does the car with no wringing.

[jwardell]

I was very happy with the water blade and used it for a few years.

But I read about the Absorber and decided to try it, and it's true, it removes even more water! So now I use that. The water blade is still great for quickly removing most of the water from large flat areas.

Of course now I use Mr. Clean Auto Dry so I don't use any of these unless I am drying it so I can wax it right after cleaning.

[flyingsluzer]

I agree with Bradb, it is a decent product; but there are some risks involved that I'm just not willing to take.

I still use the water blade on my windows; but not on painted surfaces. I had used a wb for years without a problem, but it made strange mark on my hood one of the first times I used it on the MINI.

Microfiber towels are now the only thing that I dry with. They work great!

[apexer]

Thanks guys. Looks like its off to Autozone

[Teampajn]

I've also been using "The Absorber" for several years now and can say that with a wash the chamois works even better. I like to wash it after each use. It will wear out and need to be replaced, but I'd rather spend $8/year than several hundred for a screwup while cleaning my cars. I concur that the blade works well at removing water, but when you find that small piece of grit (and you will) and pull it across your hood you will not be pleased with saving a few minutes a week.

[apexer]

I tried the Absorber for the first time today... Not really crazy about it. Tried the method as used by BradB and it worked OK but, still left more water on roof and bonnet than I would have thought. Had to resist the urge to wipe it down with the absorber to get more water off. I would think that would have more risk of scratching than the water blade. I'll try it again a few more times just to give it a fair shot.

BTW: Bought a true Lambs Wool mit for washing and it seems to work very well. Less than $9.00 at Advanced Auto. Very soft when wet and seems to resist holding any residue when dunked in bucket. Anyone have experience with Lambs Wool Mits?

[BradB]

Remember, the way you want to use the Absorber is to just quickly lay it on and pick it up. I do this and it takes maybe 20 seconds (due to it's size) to completely cover the roof, for instance. I do the whole car this way, and I slap at the sides of the car just to get the big bubbles off.

This is the way to get the majority of the water off, not to totally dry the car. Now I simply follow up with a Microfiber Waffleweave towel. And this takes one-swipe in one direction on each panel because there is so little water left on the car now. And I never have to use more than one waffleweave or have to wring it out.
This is easily the most efficient process I have come up with. And when you do as many cars as I do, speed and quality is key!

If the Lambs Wool is authentic then it's a great find for $9. They hold shampoo well and will last a long time. It's a good idea to machine wash them once a month to really clean them well. It will make them last longer and keep them softer.

[apexer]

Yeh. BradB, the lambs wood mit is authentic.. Advanced Auto.. but just a mit without thumb.

I'll try the absorber a couple more times but, did it the first time just as you suggested.

When I use the Water Blade, I hose the whole car down real good to make sure there is nothing but water on the paint surface. I also wipe the blade between swipes with my fingers just to make sure the blade is clean.

I'll keep you informed and do apprecaite your in-put.

[mataku]

sorry to bring back this old thread, but had a few questions mentioned in this post.

First, I got my Lamb's wool mitt for like 6$ at walmart, is it authentic?

Second, I have something similar to the absorber, but I dont like the idea of these things because you have to wet it first before you use it. I tried it once, but never really worked to dry a car with a wet towel. Is everybody wetting it first here? also, with a natural chamois, would you have to wet it also?

[chip]

WORKS GREAT!!! (model not included)

http://www.promini.com/product-exec/...category_id/39

[BradB]

Originally Posted by mataku

sorry to bring back this old thread, but had a few questions mentioned in this post.

First, I got my Lamb's wool mitt for like 6$ at walmart, is it authentic?

Second, I have something similar to the absorber, but I dont like the idea of these things because you have to wet it first before you use it. I tried it once, but never really worked to dry a car with a wet towel. Is everybody wetting it first here? also, with a natural chamois, would you have to wet it also?

That's pretty cheap for a "real" Lambs Wool. Hopefully there is truth in advertising. I have paid as much as $20 for a nice one in the past.

I strongly dislike the types of chamois that you have to wet to get to absorb. These are similar to the classic natural chamois. Pretty "old school stuff". They don't absorb as well as the newer synthetic chamois such as the "Absorber" (which are pre-moistened ) and are less convenient to use.

But see my post above on how to use ANY synthetic chamois. They are good but still just a "pre-dry" tool to use before a proper microfiber waffleweave towel.

[gokartride]

I hadn't noticed any problems with the Water Blade but I could sure see the potential for a BIG booboo, so I switched to the technique Brab has described. Works great and seems much safer. If anybody is in the process developing a regimen and buying supplies, I'd recommend going that route if possible.

[mataku]

so I tried the cd scratch thing with my materials and

DAMN walmart!! the mitt scratched up the cd pretty good. Very fine scratches, but scratches nevertheless. I was wondering though, does it matter if it's wet or not, I used it simply dry on the cd.


I then tried my microfiber towels and it seems that the base is okay, but the edges do scratch up a little bit. So, I guess i'll be cutting the edges off of those.

A note about the Absorber though, don't you have to wet that too? I rememeber looking at it in walmart and it said it had to be wet to use, at least that's what I remember. I still have the reciept for the natural chamois so i can return it for the absorber if it's supposedly better.

Overall, the cd thing (if it's a credible test) was difficult to do. The scratches were VERY fine. Had to use three cd's to test the two materials.

O, and lastly, are you SURE the autopia lambs wool mitt is for real? At a price of 9.00 it's looking a lot like the Wal-mart one.

[mataku]

bumpity doo dah...

sorry, really wondering about the absorber. Need to know if I should return my chamois.

[MarkS]

Brad's Absorber technique works well for me.

Mark

[gokartride]

The absorber stays wet....well, very damp. When you open the tube brand new, the absorber is damp and really you never dry the thing out ever from what I can tell. Even after washing, just wring it out some, roll it back up, and put it back in it's tube.

[mataku]

ah... ic. I guess I'll return the chamois for the absorber thing. It better work.

Now has anybody gotten the lamb's wool from autopia that's willing to try that cd scratch test. I want to get a nice one that doesn't scratch.

Also, did it matter that i did the scratch test using a dry lambs wool mitt since it's quite a bit softer when wet?

[BradB]

Originally Posted by mataku

Also, did it matter that i did the scratch test using a dry lambs wool mitt since it's quite a bit softer when wet?

Good point. When washing you will have water and should be using a quality shampoo to increase lubrication which lessens the chance of scratching.

I think you will be ok with your mitt if indeed it is real lambs wool. Personally, I use cotton chenille and go through them at a fairly good rate. I wash them after two or three uses in the washing machine to keep them clean and grit free. I use two when washing a car. One for the top surface and one for below the beltline. The best ones are used for the top surfaces. When they get raggedy I rotate them to beltline duty then I toss them. One mitt will last a two or three months around my garage with four cars to wash.

[early_apex]

How does using an air compressor to blast off the water compare to the methods mentioned in this thread?

[BradB]

The force is less than a leaf blower and the blow pattern is much more narrow so it's inefficent to really dry a whole car that way.

But It works great for getting water out of cracks and crevices, door jams, etc. I do this after I have dried the main part of the car. It's better on my ears than my leaf blower, too!

[Rick-Anderson]

The problem with cheap lamb's wool mitts is that they are stitched on the edges with a heavy nylon thread - an enemy of paint. Some - like the ones at Target - have a webbing on the back side that is supposed to be for scrubbing. I don't know what you are going to scrub with it because it will absolutely DESTROY your paint! I am going to experiment with the Absorber and Water Blade when it stops raining out. I would never use the Water Blade on my paint because it only take one tiny bit of grit to make a huge mess, but I believe it may work nicely on my sunroof and windows. The Absorber sounds interesting when used with the Waffle Weave microfiber towels.

[bolar]

You guys that are using the Absorber, are you putting it back in the tube or do you leave it out to dry? Seems like it may mildew if left inside the tube for awhile. Thanks

[minimort]

The Absorber doesn't mildew. They actually recommend that you put it away, in the tube, wet.