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What do you use for drying?

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What do you use for drying?

Blank2k2

Blank2k2

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Currently my cleaning is going well, but i am struggling with drying & not leaving streaks, im using a micro fibre towel (unbranded, just something i picked up at costco) also wringing out is a bitch but might just be down to the size of it.

Getting abit annoyed doing a quick-clean & having to go over the car with detailer afterwards to get rid of the streaks.

Either another down side of a black car or just a crap towel, just wondering what everyone else uses & suggests?
 
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Eklipze3k said:
I use a large squeegee to get rid of the worst of the water and then use a stack of microfibre towels to dry the rest off. I don't like to reuse them so always use a new dry one rather than trying to wring them out when they get saturated.

Edit: Squeegee - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/SILICON-CAR-D...arts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item5ad9b06184

Towels - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MICROFIBRE-TO...arts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item3a5766a4c5
Click to expand...


Ahhh, never thought of a squeegee, that would make life much easier as usually after the roof the towels so wet even after wringing it just makes the car wetter, shall check there black-safe (seems even a butterfly with a sharp toe nail can scratch it) and purchase! :)

Those microfibres are what i use too, got them on special offer from Asda/Walmart for £1... wish i bought more now, used them so much for cleaning/wiping everything, though ive got a better quality meguiars one for polishing etc
 
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I use the squeegee on the OH's black grande active and it's not scratched it yet, the rubber is very soft. Don't need to apply much pressure, just enough to flick the worst of it off really.

Edit: I used to use it on the 126 too, though that didn't have very many flat panels ;)
 
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I have used one in the past with no real problems HOWEVER if the car is not 100% clean on a calm day i'd be vary wary about using one...

if you do get one wipe it after EVERY pass on a cloth to remove any foreign bodies IE GRIT i let my mate loose with it on his car... he wiped it a couple of times then got bored and did the whole bonnet Zorro style...... and made a real mess (scratched it to hell)


i don't use one now having seen that display and the depth of the inflicted scratches..

depending on what money paper you have to play with look into these

http://www.i4detailing.co.uk/acatalog/Sonus_Der_Wunder_Drying_Towel_1.html

http://www.autoperfection.com/shop/Dodo-Juice-Supernatural-Drying-Towel.html#googlebase

the dodo towel...
DSCF1663.JPG



DO NOT USE A QUICK DETAILER SPRAY with the towels as the None soluble silicone renders them waterproof and next to useless (y) i occasionally use a QD after drying but with a normal cheaper MF cloth
 
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Andy Monty said:
I have used one in the past with no real problems HOWEVER if the car is not 100% clean on a calm day i'd be vary wary about using one...

if you do get one wipe it after EVERY pass on a cloth to remove any foreign bodies IE GRIT i let my mate loose with it on his car... he wiped it a couple of times then got bored and did the whole bonnet Zorro style...... and made a real mess (scratched it to hell)


i don't use one now having seen that display and the depth of the inflicted scratches..

depending on what money paper you have to play with look into these

http://www.i4detailing.co.uk/acatalog/Sonus_Der_Wunder_Drying_Towel_1.html

http://www.autoperfection.com/shop/Dodo-Juice-Supernatural-Drying-Towel.html#googlebase

the dodo towel...
DSCF1663.JPG



DO NOT USE A QUICK DETAILER SPRAY with the towels as the None soluble silicone renders them waterproof and next to useless (y) i occasionally use a QD after drying but with a normal cheaper MF cloth
Click to expand...


That towel looks pretty epic, pricy but i guess its not going to be thrown out any time soon so i'll add it to the shopping list, whats it like for wringing? or is it pretty much able to do a full car

Ahhhh, that detailer thing might explain why a couple of my cloths seem to have a water-proof effect (atleast, until i wash them)... i usually keep the drying towel 100% clean anyway, dry a car.. hang it to dry, unless it gets dirty, then wash / hang.
 
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usually do a couple of cars with it then hang it to dry TBH

it seems to get better as it gets wetter as well, it can be a bit too big if your not careful with your folding and a bit of care to avoid dragging it on the floor its ideal for "patting" dry the roof and bonnet though lay it on and pat it down then lift off and you can nearly dry the whole roof in one manoeuvre (y)


and for the first few uses it leaves a lot of lint behind but its very good once "bedded in"
 
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As Andy said, most good drying towels won't need wringing out at all. I use a Serious Performance Uber Drying Towel and it's really thick and plush, it feels much softer than any towel I've ever used before and mops up water like nothing else!
 
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A few capfuls of vinegar when washing the drying towels will help to bring them back to life.

If they are really dead then leave them for wheels/arches/shuts/underbonnet duties.

+1 for the SP Uber Drying Towel too.
 
Lloyd71 said:
As Andy said, most good drying towels won't need wringing out at all. I use a Serious Performance Uber Drying Towel and it's really thick and plush, it feels much softer than any towel I've ever used before and mops up water like nothing else!
Click to expand...

That looks like something i could put in the bathroom, sod the car :p

Looks like a good price too, i watched a video of paul dolton (fifth gear video i think) where he used some nice thick looking towels, not sure what they were but no doubt obscenely expensive :p
 
Lloyd71 said:
As Andy said, most good drying towels won't need wringing out at all. I use a Serious Performance Uber Drying Towel and it's really thick and plush, it feels much softer than any towel I've ever used before and mops up water like nothing else!
Click to expand...

I've got one of those too, only had the pleasure of using it once and can't wait to use it again!! It still felt dryish after drying the cinq.

As I was ordering a snow foam lance from Autobrite Direct I also just bought a dri-u-kwik sandwich microfibre drying towel to try. It's a totally different type of towel to the serious performance one. Hopefully the weather is gona be good this weekend and I can give it a try on the wifes car and keep the serious performance one for mine :D
 
I dont normally dry my car i rinse it with zero ppm water and it drys naturally completely clean,

however i do have 2 drying towels that i have just in case i want to dry it to put wax on or whatever reason, got them from detail studio.co.uk and there really good.
 
I bought a long blue silicone blade from ASDA, just after rinsing the car I go over it, removing the majority of the water.

I then use my microfibre mit to absorb/spread the rest of the water as I find when it's in small enough quantities it'll dry nearly instantly in warm weather. The mit absorbs the rest of the water so I end up with a dry/water mark and streak-free finish. :)
 
Black is a real friggin' pain to keep clean. :bang:

I use microfibre cloths to dry off after wash and rinse. I use plenty of dry ones as once they start getting wet, forget it and take another dry one.

Something to mention, microfibre cloths should not be washed with fabric softener. It will ruin the fabric so it doesn't hook as much dirt. Also they don't last forever, eventually they won't work as well as a new one.
 
Shaunyac said:
I bought a long blue silicone blade from ASDA, just after rinsing the car I go over it, removing the majority of the water.

I then use my microfibre mit to absorb/spread the rest of the water as I find when it's in small enough quantities it'll dry nearly instantly in warm weather. The mit absorbs the rest of the water so I end up with a dry/water mark and streak-free finish. :)
Click to expand...

A blade will give you a streak free finish, but you won't be able to see any streaks due to the scratches all over the paint. Blades hold grit and dirt like nothing else, and all it takes is one tiny microscopic bit of dirt stuck in it to completely ruin the paintwork, as seen in this video;

[nomedia="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZjWkB_q2lE"]YouTube- Fifth Gear 15x01 Car Wash[/nomedia]

Ignore what they sat at the end though, the best is still a hand wash but just avoid the blade!
 
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Lloyd71 said:
A blade will give you a streak free finish, but you won't be able to see any streaks due to the scratches all over the paint. Blades hold grit and dirt like nothing else, and all it takes is one tiny microscopic bit of dirt stuck in it to completely ruin the paintwork, as seen in this video;

YouTube- Fifth Gear 15x01 Car Wash

Ignore what they sat at the end though, the best is still a hand wash but just avoid the blade!
Click to expand...

Damn, looks like i'll have to do a clean again soon, waters not running off quite as well anymore so thinking AG resin / gloss protection, seems abit silly to be polishing & protecting a "new" car though, would a proper waxing be more beneficial instead of polish? .... or would all 3 be better lol
 
Blank2k2 said:
Damn, looks like i'll have to do a clean again soon, waters not running off quite as well anymore so thinking AG resin / gloss protection, seems abit silly to be polishing & protecting a "new" car though, would a proper waxing be more beneficial instead of polish? .... or would all 3 be better lol
Click to expand...

if the paint is in good clean condition just apply another coat of EGP it should be lasting you months! not mixing your shampoo too strong are you?
 
Blank2k2 said:
Damn, looks like i'll have to do a clean again soon, waters not running off quite as well anymore so thinking AG resin / gloss protection, seems abit silly to be polishing & protecting a "new" car though, would a proper waxing be more beneficial instead of polish? .... or would all 3 be better lol
Click to expand...

seen as youve got a black car poorboys black hole and then dodo juice purple haze will set your car's paint off lookin AMAZING also pinnacle souveran wax
 
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