California products (Duster and Water Blade)

MikeWinLDS · 11-03-04, 06:12

I'm using a California Water Blade to get off a lot of the water on my car after washing (mainly the bigger portions) and then I use a chamois rag to dry areas that were missed by the blade. Is there any problem with this? Mostly I've read about people drying their cars with microfiber towels or other 100% cotton towels.

Also how do I clean my California Duster? The tips of it are all black and whatnot, but it still dusts my car really well. What kind of product is on that duster? I remember feeling a greasy type feeling from the bristles and from when I left it on top of the carrying case for a while.

Do these two products ever drag around impurities to marr and scratch your car, or are they good to use? The water blade really cuts my drying time significantly, and the duster works really well after driving around this dusty old city.

Bill D · 11-03-04, 06:19

Hi Mike,

Welcome to Autopia

These topics have been very popular here. To sum up very briefly, there's a lot of uneasiness about the CWB and more comfortable feelings about the CCD. If you do a search you'll find a whole lot of viewpoints.

He he, many here will concur that the "chamois rag" should be replaced by a nice, fine microfiber drying cloth. ( "Rag" is sort of a dirty word here especially given the price of some of these cloths

)

MikeWinLDS · 11-03-04, 06:36

Bill,

What type of MF towel would you use to dry a car? I hope they're not insanely expensive like the 100% cotton towels those Zaino brothers use to dry theirs.

BookemDano · 11-03-04, 06:43

Quote:

Originally posted by MikeWinLDS
I'm using a California Water Blade to get off a lot of the water on my car after washing (mainly the bigger portions) and then I use a chamois rag to dry areas that were missed by the blade. Is there any problem with this? Mostly I've read about people drying their cars with microfiber towels or other 100% cotton towels.

Also how do I clean my California Duster? The tips of it are all black and whatnot, but it still dusts my car really well. What kind of product is on that duster? I remember feeling a greasy type feeling from the bristles and from when I left it on top of the carrying case for a while.

Do these two products ever drag around impurities to marr and scratch your car, or are they good to use? The water blade really cuts my drying time significantly, and the duster works really well after driving around this dusty old city.

CWB:

CCD:

Towels for drying:

Get a Toro leaf blower. Lower risk.

Regards,

Dan.

MikeWinLDS · 11-03-04, 06:47

Any way to clean the CCD though? Or do I risk losing the static clinging dusting abilitiy of the duster if I clean it with like soap and water?

mgm121499 · 11-03-04, 06:53

MikeWinLDS: I'd recommend reading the directions on your CCD. If I remember right..... I think you need to cure the duster on newspaper for a day or two to leach out excess oil. NEVER wash the duster. Always shake the duster off between panels. Don't use a lot of pressure to wipe off dust. Work from the top panels down. Don't use it to remove mud, grease, tar, bugs, road salt.

Bill D · 11-03-04, 06:53

Mike,

I'm happy with a high quality waffle weave drying mf such as the kind from Pakshak. I've also used a leaf blower to do the door jamsand seams and this past Summer I picked alittle corded dryer for cars, not quite as strong as the Toro though but only $18

TOGWT · 11-03-04, 06:57

Car Duster:
The best known brand (California Car Duster) it can be used to remove pollen or light dust without causing scratches by applying very little surface pressure with the duster, dusting with long strokes in one direction only. Shake the duster occasionally to ensure any particles picked up will drop out rather than come to the surface while your using it.

It important to use the duster only for the removal of dry surface dust, if the vehicle has oily road film, road tar, damp pollen or dust, etc it should be washed.

When the duster is first purchased it should be wrapped in newspaper to remove any excess paraffin wax, the duster should not be washed, the dirtier it gets the better it works (I've been using mine now for almost five years without it being washed)

Water Blade:
The best-known brand (The Original California Water Blade) is made of medical-grade silicone so it should not scratch. It can be used to remove water without causing scratches by applying very little surface pressure with the blade, wiping with long strokes in one direction only. If there is any grit left on the car after washing, the blade may pick it up and drag it across the paint, much the same as a towel would, this can be avoided by wiping the blade with a clean damp towel after every pass. The water blade should be protected when not in use. If it is crushed in storage, the edge may take a set and leave a stripe of water on the car, the water blade comes with a protective plastic case, use it for blade storage.

Like any tool, the water blade does require a little bit of technique and practice. The first few times I used mine, it tended to chatter on the surface, resulting in incomplete drying. It turns out this is eliminated by using just the right angle and pressure on the blade. Smoothness can also be affected by the surface condition of the paint (wax, sealant oxidation, etc.) and any coating that might be on the water blade itself.

~Hope this helps~

Knowledge unshared is experience wasted [each one / teach one]
justadumbarchitect / so I question everything/ JonM

MikeWinLDS · 11-03-04, 07:40

Instructions... heheh. I had bought the CCD pack (came with a big long one and a little ovalish one) and the CWB from Sam's Club. After I got it home, I opened it up, looked at the instructions for a little bit, and then proceeded to throw out all the packaging and instructions. The only thing I've kept from it all was the carrying case for the CCD.

aiiee · 11-03-04, 07:48

water blade can scratch. To me, it's not worth the anxiety. I use waffle weave towel, blotting rather than dragging the towel ( it dries better that way anyway ) Basically I lay the towel down on the surface and run my hands across the towel, applying pressure but not moving the towel, and it sucks *all* the water right up. Not as fast as the CWB, but I've scratched my car with the CWB and that's not fun.

TOGWT · 11-03-04, 08:15

I later added this to my write-up-Do not use a water blade to remove rainwater as there could be road grit on the paint surface or the rain may contain impurities that could scratch the paint.

FWIW- I only use a water blade on glass surfaces

~Hope this helps~

Knowledge unshared is experience wasted [each one / teach one]
justadumbarchitect / so I question everything/ JonM

Bill D · 11-03-04, 08:21

TOGWT: Same here--only for glass, does great there