questions on wash mitt / drying towels / claybars..

594 Views 10 Replies 8 Participants Last post by alohatoad, Aug 24, 2005

dc58282

Discussion Starter · Aug 24, 2005

hey i was wondering what are the differences on a few things....

1. to wash the car, whats better to use that will not create much swirls after... SHEEPSKIN washmitt or MF washmitt and whats bad about a SPONGE haha

2. when drying your car, whats the difference from using a MF towel and a plain old shirt to dry it down

3. claybar now... MOTHERS or ZAINO ?? and is the ZAINO worth the price difference..

thanks CRSX'ers

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monsterBEN

· #2 · Aug 24, 2005

1. Cant help ya srry
2. MF is just as it says microfiber, it wont have a noticable difference with just one use, but over time it will help prevent swirl marks and very small imperfections in the clearcoat.
3. No need to spend extra money on a Zaino claybar, Mothers will be just fine (it also comes with a detailing spray to use as a lubricant and a small bottle of Carnauba Wax.)

Hope this helps !

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sodaks2k

· #3 · Aug 24, 2005

monsterBEN said:
1. Cant help ya srry
2. MF is just as it says microfiber, it wont have a noticable difference with just one use, but over time it will help prevent swirl marks and very small imperfections in the clearcoat.
3. No need to spend extra money on a Zaino claybar, Mothers will be just fine (it also comes with a detailing spray to use as a lubricant and a small bottle of Carnauba Wax.)

:iamwiths:

I would personally use the MF wash mitt before anything else. I think I remember hearing that the sheep skin wash mitt causes more scratches than a MF mitt.

A regular old sponge soaks up all of the dirt and dust that comes off of your car and pretty much stays there. The next time you go to wash the car using the sponge, it will still have the dirt in it and cause many unwanted scratches.

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byrddogg77

· #4 · Aug 24, 2005 (Edited)

Just use a clean cotten towel. Then wax you car and the wax will prevent any furture micro scratches. Rewax every 4 - 6 weeks or if the shine seems to be fading.

Turtle wax has a nice system, Platinum Wax and after each wash use Turtle Wax Platinum Detailer, which will oil the clear coat and adds to your recent wax job.

Wax On Wax Off... K.K.

One note about Zano, Wax is Wax, all wax will fade eventually. Basically if you use Zano, it will last an extra week or so before the fading and water beading stops. I personally don't think it is worth the money.

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monsterBEN

· #5 · Aug 24, 2005

byrddogg77 said:
One note about Zano, Wax is Wax, all wax will fade eventually. Basically if you use Zano, it will last an extra week or so before the fading and water beading stops. I personally don't think it is worth the money.

I've never used Zaino but i do know that many people have claimed to have adequate protection for 4+ months. Much longer than the 1 month of protection from NXT, Meg's GC, or a pure carnaua wax.

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JaCkaL829

· #6 · Aug 24, 2005

slacker86 said:
hey i was wondering what are the differences on a few things....

1. to wash the car, whats better to use that will not create much swirls after... SHEEPSKIN washmitt or MF washmitt and whats bad about a SPONGE haha

2. when drying your car, whats the difference from using a MF towel and a plain old shirt to dry it down

3. claybar now... MOTHERS or ZAINO ?? and is the ZAINO worth the price difference..

thanks CRSX'ers

I'll take a stab at your questions

1. Its better to use a *geniune* sheepskin wash mitt. MFs absorb way too much which include the dirt and grime on your car that can potentially create swirl marks. A sponge isn't good because of the same possibilities of inducing swirl marks. I would recommend getting a couple *genuine* sheepskin wash mitts and wash using the two bucket technique (one soap, one rinse) to minimize the risk of creating swirls.

2. MFs are made to absorb A LOT more than a regular t-shirt. When more water is absorbed less time is spent to dry the car, and it also reduces the amount of passes you need to make. What you should use for drying your car are called "waffle weave" MFs which absorb even more then your regular MF.

3. This question is like asking which intake is better. Your going to get different opinions and viewpoints. My take on the subject of clay is from what I understand only 1 or 2 big companies produce clay in Japan. Theres also two different types of clay: poly and elastic. So essentially all the clay is pretty much made from the same place, its just altered a tad bit and packaged differently. In my opinion I would just go with Clay Magic or the Mother's kit. For about $10-15 for a little kit locally at AutoZone, Wal-Mart, etc. you really can't go wrong. I'm not bashing Zaino or other high-priced clays, I just feel for this step pretty much any detailing clay will work. I also try to budget my money and feel getting Clay Magic locally is the easiest and most cost efficient way to go for enthusiasts as well as professionals. Essentially there all doing the same thing; pulling off embedded debris and containments from your surface.

Any other questions, shoot away, I hope I answered this questions clear enough. :thumbsup:

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JaCkaL829

· #7 · Aug 24, 2005

byrddogg77 said:
One note about Zano, Wax is Wax, all wax will fade eventually. Basically if you use Zano, it will last an extra week or so before the fading and water beading stops. I personally don't think it is worth the money.

One extra week? :dontknow:

I don't know what your talking about but Zaino as well as other sealants lasts a lot longer than that. Do you really think people spend so much on a system that allows them not to wax their car for one extra week

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BarracksSi

· #8 · Aug 24, 2005

JaCkaL829 said:
1. Its better to use a *geniune* sheepskin wash mitt. MFs absorb way too much which include the dirt and grime on your car that can potentially create swirl marks.

Microfiber sponges & mitts grab a lot of dirt, yes. But, they do seem to rinse out pretty easily, too -- I give mine a squirt with the Mr. Clean "space pistol" and the dust comes back off.

2. MFs are made to absorb A LOT more than a regular t-shirt.

Additionally, t-shirts have seams & elastic that can scratch things up if you're not careful. Genuine leather chamois ("shammys") were my standby for years, but I've begun using microfiber towels for drying. If you can find edgeless MF towels, that's a bonus -- most others have stitching on the edges that's just plain polyester, and that's not good for the paint. Griot's Garage and, believe it or not, AutoZone carry edgeless MF towels (although I'm pretty sure that Griot's is better stuff).

3. Eh, does it really matter? I've been using plain carnauba wax about every couple months. Buff it on with a Black & Decker orbital (maybe I'll get a Porter Cable model one of these days), buff it off with the orbital and a couple sheepskin pads, and finish with a MF towel.

Towel fabrics are important, waxes & finishes sometimes are, and soaps/detergents can make a difference (use dish soap to strip wax, and car-specific stuff to wash without stripping). Above all, though, make sure the stuff you're using is clean. It's the dirt that will scratch up the car even if you've made good choices in materials.

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Tyrannosau-RSX

· #9 · Aug 24, 2005

no matter what, washing your car will give u swirls over time. as far as MF goes, think of it as using really fine grit sand paper compared to plain cotton towels which would be a more course sand paper. yeah that was a really harsh anology. lol

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BarracksSi

· #10 · Aug 24, 2005

mavrick said:
no matter what, washing your car will give u swirls over time.

One bad once-over with dirty towels can swirl the hell out of the finish. That happened to me once at a local car wash (it was winter, and I wanted the underside done), so when I returned for future washes, I took the car before the dryer guys had a chance to touch it and fuck it up again.

After that episode, I took it home, fine-detailed it, gave it a good waxing, and have been swirl-free ever since.

Definitely keep a good coat of wax on there. Its purpose is to protect the paint; if you get some swirls on the wax, it's no big deal.

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alohatoad

· #11 · Aug 24, 2005

wasting water...

if you have water to waste, have your wash mitt in one hand and your hose in the other, leading the wash mitt. use enough water to create a water layer ahead of the mitt while you wash. this will minimize scratches.

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