Technically, what is the best type of towel or material out there?

[WS6Fury]

Rather than have a discussion as to who thinks a towel is better type contest, looking into the technical aspects who thinks what type of material is better over another, and/or what kind of towel is better over one or the other.



The age old best has always been 100% hight quality cotton from Fieldcrest and some other name brand lines.



Now the microfiber craze is on where they don`t use 100% cotton but a fiber blend. The microfibers are twisted, but not looped like cotton towels usually are.



Then there are diaper towels



And now we have the new towels Autopia is selling, but only good for final buffing. In the selling description it mentions that MF towels that are blended aren`t looped, but hooked, and can mar or microscratch a cars finish.Not sure if this is true or just hype.



All of these towels most likely have different abrasive levels,and may scratch and mar.



What towel is best for what task, and what towel will not microscratch or mar car paint and why?

[jmsc]

I agree with your basic theory that some towels work better with certain compounds/polishes/glazes/wax/qd.



I just completed detailing my car with a PC, 3 different CMA pads, Meguiar`s #9, #7, P21S Wax and McCall`s QD. I used 12 different MF towels and 1 Charisma towel from Sal Zaino`s distributor. All towels were pre-tested for marring this past winter using a CD as the test device.



My favorites:



Compund/polish removal - The thicker the towel the better (YoSteve, CMA`s Viper, Elite)



#7 removal - Charisma towel initially then thick MFs



Wax and QD removal - Autopia CBT and DFT towels are just outstanding, borders will not micro-mar



Diapers, 100% cotton tee shirts, non Canon Charisma terry towels you can forget.

[chris0626]

DFTowel, where are you???? He`s quite knowledgeable about fiber content, I really am not. But it seems you`re conflating different kinds of towels. Lots of us are playing with MFs. The Autopia Concours Buffing Towel is not MF -- I think it`s 100% cotton; but wow! it`s wonderfully soft, and an easy-to-use size. (Go to the Reviews section for discussions of these.) Consumer-market cotton (Fieldcrest, Charisma, etc.) are maybe a 3rd category. I`ll count on the textile experts on Autopia to weight in here.

[Mr. Clean]

Originally posted by Lynn

...knowledgeable about fiber content, I really am not.... The Autopia Concours Buffing Towel is not MF -- I think it`s 100% cotton...

CBT NOT MF??? I thought there had been sufficient discussions and explanations here to explain that fiber content has nothing to do with whether a toweling product was microfiber or not. I guess not. DFTowel may once again have to explain it. His microfiber towel product is an all natural fiber and not the more familiar polyester blend.



As to your assertion, this direct from the CBT description in the Autopia store...

"The natural fiber yarn used in our CBT is woven using the most modern microfiber equipment and techniques. Each fiber strand is more than 100 time finer than a human hair."



As far as the initial question posed, I think jmsc has hit upon the answer in his post...there are towels which do some jobs better than others and there is no one best towel for every job.

[medic159]

Originally posted by Lynn

DFTowel, where are you????

Sorry Lynn, I was watching the Star Trek movie on TV!



Just to clear it up a bit... you`re right, the term "microfiber" refers only to yarn that are below a certain denier (diameter.) Despite what some websites will tell you it has absolutely nothing to do with content (poly, nylon, cellulose, whatever.)



It also has nothing to do with the weave (terry, waffle, french terry, or potato sack burlap!)

[Bobby G]

WS6Fury,



Your question cannot be answered with any clairity. Maybe a better question is what are the best towels for each specific detailing job.



All towels, regardless how good they are, have the potential to leave toweling marks (micro marring) on polished surfaces. That`s a fact. The question becomes, what toweling is best for each car surface and creates the least damage.



There are many microfiber poly blends/weaves I have stopped using because the detractors out weight the benefits. For years I touted 100% cotton terry cloth as the safest toweling. Well, technology has changed the game. It`s no longer just about the textile content, the weave also has a huge factor. We knew this with cotton toweling, too, as it didn`t take long to figure out that flat fabrics, like baby diapers, cause severe damage if a particle of dirt becomes embedded.



My personal issue is that what was once simple... cotton terry cloth detailing towels... has now become a freaking nightmare. I had six different color towels with 20 different weaves. Each had a specific purpose. Give me a break, please! All I want to do is clean, dry, polish and buff. This is a clear case where an industry has created a problems for a solution.



I went back to basics and I`m a better detailer for it.

[WS6Fury]

Now if IE5.0 would stop crashing on me:angry



What I was trying to post a few times now is:



I guess my biggest goal, like most of everyone here on the board is finding the right towel, for the right job, that will create the least amount to no micromarring of the paint. I have a few microfibertech towels which are really plush and soft, but only on one side. I noticed that it did not wipe up the Zaino off my Trans Am very well, had to apply some pressure to get it off, where my 100% fieldcrest towel removed the wax with ease. Again, my main goal is to induce as little to no micromarring as possible when removing waxes and such from GM silver paint.



Maybe this should become a new post of what towel is best for what job... all contained in one thread instead of multiples?? This way everyone can reference to the post and find out???? Unless its already been done before.?



What would be the best for



Compound, say FI-II, then..

SMR`s

Glazes

Polishes

Sealants

Waxes (carnuba and sythetic)

QD`ing