100% cotton towels bad?

B

bobby5

New member
I have been reading and it seems that everyone is using microfiber towels. I always used 100% cotton towels to wipe off wax, quick detail, dry off etc. I was wondering if this has or will harm my finish?
 
Think of it more as evolution, before the populatity of the MF that is what you had to use.
MF are softer and less corse than than the cotton, so they will introduce less marring to the paint.

I wonder what the next generation of towel will bring :D

HTH
"J"
 
I agree with Jay ...for many years of detailing all i used was various cotton towels, and for some jobs, still do, but when there's something available and better people move will use it:)
 
Poorboy said:
I agree with Jay ...for many years of detailing all i used was various cotton towels, and for some jobs, still do, but when there's something available and better people move will use it:)
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:yeah

I still get people swearing by diapers and do not want to believe that there is something better.
 
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Cotton towels are not bad, just "old school".

IMHO, cotton content is inconsistent & the binding material (either along the edges or in the usefull area) can be polyester thread.

Also, using cotton means you have to deal with lint which is not a problem you'll find with MF if they are properly washed.
 
woah there guys, lots of bad mis-information here! First of all, MF refers to the size of the yarn, NOT what it is made of.

Keep in mind that there are many polyester MF towels that will indeed scratch and there are many that won't. Conversely, there are many cottons that will scratch and many that won't. You need to know what to look for and choose wisely.

As far as lint (called shedding in the industry) is concerned any good towel will wash that out after a wash or two.

IMO there is nothing better or safer than premium cottons such as Pima and related cottons.
 
Thanks DF Towel.....I have used cotton towels for years. I decided to buy more MF this year and make the switch....Its kind of like giving up your old music cassettes for CD's........I like them both fro various reasons.....removing wax I find MF superior to terry towels, but for deep down in your face cleaning I still grab for a good terry towel.
 
Appreciate the input, DFTowel, I had no intention to misinform.

The "content" comment was aimed at the different grades (types??) of cotton towels that are available just like there are different grades of MF towels. Aside from buying one of the ultra-premium towels that you listed from a detailing source, it's between difficult & impossible to know what you're getting in terms of quality.

All towels, 100% cotton & poly/cotton blend, feel soft when they're new but after a few washing the true quality is revealed.

Back in the 80's I bought some towels specifically for detailing purposes and it wasn't until they had been washed many times (and were causing some marring) that I noticed they were 100% COTON ... no misspelling.

I have no idea what COTON is, but it wasn't 100% COTTON.
 
DFTowel, thank you for the clarification and a short lesson.

If someone wants to use cotton that won't scratch what should they look for?
also what should people stay away from with polyester towels to avoid introducing scratching.

Thanks,
"J"
 
NYV6Coupe said:
...All towels, 100% cotton & poly/cotton blend, feel soft when they're new but after a few washing the true quality is revealed.
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This is because cheaper towels are given an artificial oil based chemical finish (usually silicone) to make them "feel" softer. This finish washes off after a number of washings thus revealing the coarser feeling low quality fibers.

NYV6Coupe said:
I have no idea what COTON is, but it wasn't 100% COTTON.
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It's cotton of course. The towel must have been foreign made as "coton" is French (and other languages too) for "cotton." This is a perfect example of why Sal Zaino recommends only cotton towels made in the USA because foreign made can be very inconsistent, you really need to know your stuff to be safe.
 
TrueDetailer said:
Cotton towels are all i have ever used. I'll never switch to MF towels. I'm old school baby.
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Another "Old Schooler" here, but I do have about 40 MF towels, now. I also kept all my old 100% cotton, made in the U.S.A. towels and it wouldn't bother me in the least to use any of them for any procedure in taking care of my paint.
A clean surface and a clean towel (of any type), is more important to me. I never use any towel more than once before washing it.

Charles
 
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