by David W. Bynon
<font size="1">Copyright©, 1999-2002, Autopia Car Care -- All Rights Reserved</font>
One of the most important tools a detailer uses is the brush. Automotive detailing brushes come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Both professional and hobbyist detailers, should have a good selection.
Brushes can be purchased through a car care retailer, detailing distributor, or from your local hardware store. There’s no real magic to brushes as long as you use the right brush for each job.
Because everyone works a little differently, we’re all likely to like different brushes. My recommendation is to try a few different types of brushes with different materials and construction. Experiment with a few brushes to see how well they work for you. I buy and test a lot of brushes because I find that the right brush improves both the quality and speed of my detailing work.
A personal word of caution: always cover the metal ferrule (that’s the band at the end of the handle that holds the bristles in place) with electrical tape or duct tape before use. The ferrule will easily scratch wheels, paint and other surfaces if not covered. If you find brushes you like with plastic ferrules, they are a good choice.
Interior Brushes
One of the most important brushes for interior cleaning is the rug brush. The rug brush is used to detail floor mats, carpets and the lower part of many door panels (carpeted). You can also use a good rug brush to clean velour and other sturdy fabric upholstery. To keep these brushes in good shape, make sure you clean them after each use, as they will load up with carpet fibers. I have a heavy-duty, metal dog comb that I use to clean my brushes.
Cleaning leather upholstery is best done with a soft, wooden handle, horsehair brush. I like a small 4-5 inch brush for this job, but many detailers prefer a large 8-10 inch brush. I think the smaller brush makes getting into cracks and crevices easier.
Another indispensable brush for interior work is a vent and console dusting brush. For this, I like a small, round, horsehair brush. Many pro detailers use a 1� to 1.5� natural fiber brush for this task, as it is easier to run down long crevices to get the junk out. A soft bristle brush is best.
Exterior Brushes
Cleaning tires and wheels cannot be done without several different brushes. I use a stiff, short tire brush on tires. For wheels, I have a collection of brushes, including a toothbrush, small bottlebrush, large bottlebrush, a bumper brush with flag cut brushes, and a soft engine brush. I use the engine brush to get around the lug nuts and other tight areas on the front of the wheel. The toothbrush also help get into tight spots. Bottlebrushes are necessary for all spoke (wire rim) wheels and wheels with a spoke pattern. I use the bumper brush to do the large area of the wheel. Using brushes that fit the job can really cut down the time it takes to clean a wheel.
While I’m cleaning the wheels, I also use the tire brush to get up in the wheel wells. If it’s a tight squeeze, you might need to use a smaller brush, but the tire brush seems to do it on most cars.
I use the bumper brush on grills, around taillights, and on the lower half of bumpers and spoilers. Bumper brushes should be a natural bristle brush, such as boar’s hair or a good quality flag-cut brush. Don’t use a stiff brush, as it will scratch or dull painted surfaces.
Prior to waxing, it’s common to clean around all emblems, in the doorjambs, and around body side moldings with an all-purpose cleaning or medium stiffness paintbrush. I also find that old toothbrushes work well, as long as they are soft or medium stiffness. If you don’t clean around these areas with a brush, polish and waxes will build up and your detail job will look sloppy.
Convertible & Vinyl Top Brushes
You’ll need to match the top you’re cleaning with the proper brush. You wouldn’t use the same brush on the fabric top of a Porsche top as you would the vinyl top on a Mazda Miata. The materials are very different. However, the main difference is that the tight fabric weave of most European convertible tops is far more difficult to clean than vinyl. Color matters, too. On fabric tops, I generally use a medium stiff scrub brush. On a vinyl top, I find that a softer brush works better.
Final Detailing
After waxing, use brushes to remove wax from emblems, trim and crevices. I have three different brushes I use for wax clean up: a wooden horsehair paintbrush, a wooden horsehair toothbrush, and a medium stiffness plastic toothbrush. I use the horsehair toothbrush to remove soft wax around moldings and emblems. If I run into hardened wax, I use the plastic toothbrush. The horsehair paintbrush works well on larger areas.
<font size="1">Copyright©, 1999-2002, Autopia Car Care -- All Rights Reserved</font>
One of the most important tools a detailer uses is the brush. Automotive detailing brushes come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Both professional and hobbyist detailers, should have a good selection.
Brushes can be purchased through a car care retailer, detailing distributor, or from your local hardware store. There’s no real magic to brushes as long as you use the right brush for each job.
Because everyone works a little differently, we’re all likely to like different brushes. My recommendation is to try a few different types of brushes with different materials and construction. Experiment with a few brushes to see how well they work for you. I buy and test a lot of brushes because I find that the right brush improves both the quality and speed of my detailing work.
A personal word of caution: always cover the metal ferrule (that’s the band at the end of the handle that holds the bristles in place) with electrical tape or duct tape before use. The ferrule will easily scratch wheels, paint and other surfaces if not covered. If you find brushes you like with plastic ferrules, they are a good choice.
Interior Brushes
One of the most important brushes for interior cleaning is the rug brush. The rug brush is used to detail floor mats, carpets and the lower part of many door panels (carpeted). You can also use a good rug brush to clean velour and other sturdy fabric upholstery. To keep these brushes in good shape, make sure you clean them after each use, as they will load up with carpet fibers. I have a heavy-duty, metal dog comb that I use to clean my brushes.
Cleaning leather upholstery is best done with a soft, wooden handle, horsehair brush. I like a small 4-5 inch brush for this job, but many detailers prefer a large 8-10 inch brush. I think the smaller brush makes getting into cracks and crevices easier.
Another indispensable brush for interior work is a vent and console dusting brush. For this, I like a small, round, horsehair brush. Many pro detailers use a 1� to 1.5� natural fiber brush for this task, as it is easier to run down long crevices to get the junk out. A soft bristle brush is best.
Exterior Brushes
Cleaning tires and wheels cannot be done without several different brushes. I use a stiff, short tire brush on tires. For wheels, I have a collection of brushes, including a toothbrush, small bottlebrush, large bottlebrush, a bumper brush with flag cut brushes, and a soft engine brush. I use the engine brush to get around the lug nuts and other tight areas on the front of the wheel. The toothbrush also help get into tight spots. Bottlebrushes are necessary for all spoke (wire rim) wheels and wheels with a spoke pattern. I use the bumper brush to do the large area of the wheel. Using brushes that fit the job can really cut down the time it takes to clean a wheel.
While I’m cleaning the wheels, I also use the tire brush to get up in the wheel wells. If it’s a tight squeeze, you might need to use a smaller brush, but the tire brush seems to do it on most cars.
I use the bumper brush on grills, around taillights, and on the lower half of bumpers and spoilers. Bumper brushes should be a natural bristle brush, such as boar’s hair or a good quality flag-cut brush. Don’t use a stiff brush, as it will scratch or dull painted surfaces.
Prior to waxing, it’s common to clean around all emblems, in the doorjambs, and around body side moldings with an all-purpose cleaning or medium stiffness paintbrush. I also find that old toothbrushes work well, as long as they are soft or medium stiffness. If you don’t clean around these areas with a brush, polish and waxes will build up and your detail job will look sloppy.
Convertible & Vinyl Top Brushes
You’ll need to match the top you’re cleaning with the proper brush. You wouldn’t use the same brush on the fabric top of a Porsche top as you would the vinyl top on a Mazda Miata. The materials are very different. However, the main difference is that the tight fabric weave of most European convertible tops is far more difficult to clean than vinyl. Color matters, too. On fabric tops, I generally use a medium stiff scrub brush. On a vinyl top, I find that a softer brush works better.
Final Detailing
After waxing, use brushes to remove wax from emblems, trim and crevices. I have three different brushes I use for wax clean up: a wooden horsehair paintbrush, a wooden horsehair toothbrush, and a medium stiffness plastic toothbrush. I use the horsehair toothbrush to remove soft wax around moldings and emblems. If I run into hardened wax, I use the plastic toothbrush. The horsehair paintbrush works well on larger areas.
