hondaboy_tsx

I've always used a Leather Chamois to dry my cars...is the California Water Blade better? If so, what makes it better? Just wanna be sure I'm not missing something here.

TWong1200

It's not that it's better, per se. What it basically is is a soft squeegy for your car. Like a squeegy for windows, it allows you to wipe off a large amount of water from your paint quickly without leaving any streaks. And the remaining water, you can use your chamois or use what most recommend, a microfiber towel. It's a great tool. Get one. You'll love it!

id888

Yup. I use the CWB first, then I go over the whole car with some thirsty towel. With darker colors that are prone to swirls, it's good to sweep the CWB in vertical directions on vertical body panels and horizontally on the horizontal panels. Also, just blot the remaining water with the towel or chamois. The harder you rub, the more chance of micro-marring.

Russman of NJ

Over the years I've gone from synthetic chamois to the CWB but recently I've been using MF (microfiber) towels and they really do work quite well. I wish I could say the CWB doesn't cause scratches but I've put some on my car even though I'm really careful in using it.

The benefit in using microfiber towels is their ability to absorb a lot of water while being gentle on the paint. They come in large sizes for such a purpose and I feel they're woth the investment.

There is a little trick that I use. After the final hose down I remove the nozle and let the water run over the car. This removes a lot of the water drops and just sheets off the water. What remains I remove with the MF towel.

Homer2

like many oldtimers , I too have gone from chamois, to other things . .

CWB - still have and use sometimes . . .
Microfibre drying towels (love them)
Big soft fluffly Royal Velvet towels . . (still have lots)
Absorber (artificial chamois, only better)

havent gopne the leafblower route yet . . .

and yes, I also do the nozzle off, stream the water "across" the paint to let it run off . .

superscalar

Well I picked up a CWB (and some other goodies) at the local Canadian Tire. It did a good job getting the water off the flat pieces and maybe with some practice I could get better at drying the other ridged pieces, but it won't help with all the nooks and crannies. You also have to watch it doesn't 'stick' and slip out of your hand and end up bashing your new car with the handle. I think I will stick with my chamois for the bulk of the water and then use my new favourite, a microfibre towel...

CopperTop

Hey superscalar,
I'm hitting the local Crappy Tire tonight for some other stuff, but was thinking about getting the blade. Do you recommend it, or is it better to stick with just microfiber towels, in your opinion?
BTW, what part of town are you in?

acuracxs

CWB will leave minor scratches, I would not use it unless you have an old car and do not care about the minor scracthes.

ProZach

LEAF BLOWER!

superscalar

Hi CopperTop,

The sunroof and spoiler, and then the ridges in the hood really hamper its effectiveness. Some users have reported that it can cause minor scratches so I don't think it is really worth it.... I would invest my money in some microfibre cloths or a good chamois if you don't already have one.
I got the Simoniz one for like 6 bucks and was quite pleased with it.

HTH

Oh BTW I am representin the NW. Westside and all that.

CopperTop

Thanks for the input. No CWB for me!

I'm in the deep SE, so if you're ever down that way, superscalar, keep an eye out for my SSM...

copland007

I used the CWB a few times but couldn't get over the damned screeching noise it made, noise pollution to my ears, lol

The 'Big Blue Towel' is what I use, works great.

Homer2

The CWB does NOT cause scratches . . .
What causes scratches is any particulate that may have fallen onto the car and then was dragged across the paint . . .

This can happen with "almost" any method of csr drying - leaf blower being one large exception to that rule -

There is a chance of even high end m/f drying towels causing a problem if something gets under it . .

I have used everything from chamois, to CWB, to $40 cotton towels, to the absorber, to microfibre . . .

I still use the CWB when I do a customers car - even black ones without concern, cause Im careful. Then I finish up with a microfibre drying towel to catch the rest . . .

I have a buddy/customer who uses them on all cars he does - which includes everything up to Ferrari - M-Benz and the like . . .

No issues there . . .

LeMasseHammer

I've worked hard to keep the swirl marks away from my CG. I'm using the whole Zaino lineup, sheepskin mitt for washing, and drying with the Cali Water Blade and white 100% Egyptian cotton towels ($18 each). Yet I'm slowly accumulating swirl marks. A couple months back, my local streets were repaved, and I noticed it left a bunch of little bumps stuck to the paint all over my car. I went ahead and clayed 'em off the entire car per Zainobros.com instructions, but I suspect I did a few washes before noticing the bumps, so I may have been dragging the little asphalt bumps around with the CWB for a while In some areas, the marks are in a straight line, but others are swirly (which means it wasn't the CWB).

Anyway, I'm going to use Zaino Z-5 to reduce the appearance of the swirl marks. But I gotta find out what the hell I'm doing wrong, so I'm not generating swirl marks all the time. Do you think it was the asphalt bits, or my wash/dry techniques or both? Advice from the experts?? Thanks in advance.

RogerPodacter

I have kept my CG FLAWLESS of swirlmarks and just about everything else related to the paint. I use the CWB everytime i wash, it DOES NOT cause scratches! Just use your best judgment while using it. After each stroke i run my fingers along the blade to remove any debris. Make sure you only use 100% MADE IN USA towels to dry, or you will get swirl marks.

NHBP007

The CWB is fine if its kept free of dirt. But if you happen to slip with the water blade it'll do a bit of damage , if you slip with the chamoi or absorber your in the clear!

pcaulfie

This thread is old but what the hell. I will never use a chamois or a blade again. It's microfiber or plain old cotton towels from now on. Too much risk in scratching the paint when using a chamois (get's dirty after a while) or a blade (could catch dirt). But, if I was looking for the fastest way to dry, a blade then a chamois would be the best bet.

jlukja

I use the CWB and it works great for me. I wash the car first making sure I rinse it thoroughly. If its a thorough rinse then there will be no dirt on the car to scratch with. I then use the CWB to get the water off the car quickly (especially off of larger, flatter, surfaces that tend to show water spots easlily). I then go over the car with a chamois to pick up the remaining water in the nooks and crannies. This process has worked great for me and my car remains swirl and scratch free.

tony4311

mf towel over both