Oct 12, 2005 3:25:46 PM
- Orient Express
- Co-Pilot
-
- Loc: San Francisco Bay Area
- Posts: 222, Gallery
- Registered on: Jul 31, 2002
- Reply to: STRADALE
Using a towel (Rag) to remove dust
I guess I have to clarify my comments for many of you out there.
Using a towel (I call them rags) such as a microfiber or cotton towel to remove dust accumulations is perfectly safe contrary to the opinion of Stradale. It is all in how it is done, and how much dirt and grime the paint surface has accumulated. To Stradale point, a dirty dry towel can leave micro-scratches in the paint, so the trick is to turn the towel often and use a clean wet towel per panel. I might use 10-12 towels in a cleaning, or even more when I prep the car at a Concours. I have yet to see the damage that Stradale points out on the finish of any of my cars. That is probably because the paint finish of my vehicles have a good coating of Rejex which tends to make the surface a high-release one, so dirt does not tend to stick as with a conventional organic wax. I highly recommend Rejex, especially for daily drivers. As long as it is applied correctly, and allowed to cure, it will provide unmatched surface protection and gloss.
I also highly recommend use of wet towels to remove light dust from a vehicle surface. The key is to make sure the towel is wet, and to use many towels as they become soiled.
However if the car is driven in the rain, or as a daily driver where the dirt accumulation is severe, then there is no substitute for washing the car using traditional means.
The cars that I use towels on are in my Concours collection, and are all national winners. For these high-end cars washing them using traditional water and soap techniques is not an option because of the extensive preparation that is required to prevent water spotting. But for the daily drivers in the fleet, washing them using a pressure washer with the medium nozzle works just fine.
At issue is always the micro-scratches that a car finish will acquire with use. It has been shown that driving a car in even a moderately dusty environment will cause much more damage than wiping the car down with a wet towel. Unfortunately, this is a fact of life, but swirl removers and glazes which have fillers in them will effectively deal with this issue. What glazes and swirl removers do is fill the scratches which gives the finish a low-refraction surface. Refraction is the scattering of light reflections of a surface and is what you see on a paint surface in low sun angles (especially on dark paint) that makes the micro-scratches stand out. Filling those scratches makes the light reflect uniformly which equates to a "deep gloss".
Now on to this recent fad of using a leaf blower to dry a car. Consider that a leaf blower will hit a car with 120 mph unfiltered air that is full of micro dust particles. Using a leaf blower on a car's paint is the same principal that sand blasters use to scour a surface. This method does not seem very wise to me.
A shop vacuum for sucking wash water and dust from a convertible top is the only use of a forced air device that I would recommend.
Lastly, a plug for my PCA book, The 2005 Zone 7 Guide to Concours D'Elegance that will tell you more about preparing your car to have it in "Concours" condition, click here for more information.
Using a towel (I call them rags) such as a microfiber or cotton towel to remove dust accumulations is perfectly safe contrary to the opinion of Stradale. It is all in how it is done, and how much dirt and grime the paint surface has accumulated. To Stradale point, a dirty dry towel can leave micro-scratches in the paint, so the trick is to turn the towel often and use a clean wet towel per panel. I might use 10-12 towels in a cleaning, or even more when I prep the car at a Concours. I have yet to see the damage that Stradale points out on the finish of any of my cars. That is probably because the paint finish of my vehicles have a good coating of Rejex which tends to make the surface a high-release one, so dirt does not tend to stick as with a conventional organic wax. I highly recommend Rejex, especially for daily drivers. As long as it is applied correctly, and allowed to cure, it will provide unmatched surface protection and gloss.
I also highly recommend use of wet towels to remove light dust from a vehicle surface. The key is to make sure the towel is wet, and to use many towels as they become soiled.
However if the car is driven in the rain, or as a daily driver where the dirt accumulation is severe, then there is no substitute for washing the car using traditional means.
The cars that I use towels on are in my Concours collection, and are all national winners. For these high-end cars washing them using traditional water and soap techniques is not an option because of the extensive preparation that is required to prevent water spotting. But for the daily drivers in the fleet, washing them using a pressure washer with the medium nozzle works just fine.
At issue is always the micro-scratches that a car finish will acquire with use. It has been shown that driving a car in even a moderately dusty environment will cause much more damage than wiping the car down with a wet towel. Unfortunately, this is a fact of life, but swirl removers and glazes which have fillers in them will effectively deal with this issue. What glazes and swirl removers do is fill the scratches which gives the finish a low-refraction surface. Refraction is the scattering of light reflections of a surface and is what you see on a paint surface in low sun angles (especially on dark paint) that makes the micro-scratches stand out. Filling those scratches makes the light reflect uniformly which equates to a "deep gloss".
Now on to this recent fad of using a leaf blower to dry a car. Consider that a leaf blower will hit a car with 120 mph unfiltered air that is full of micro dust particles. Using a leaf blower on a car's paint is the same principal that sand blasters use to scour a surface. This method does not seem very wise to me.
A shop vacuum for sucking wash water and dust from a convertible top is the only use of a forced air device that I would recommend.
Lastly, a plug for my PCA book, The 2005 Zone 7 Guide to Concours D'Elegance that will tell you more about preparing your car to have it in "Concours" condition, click here for more information.
and wipe down the surface. This is an easy task, thanks to a semi-annual coating of Rejex, brake dust simply does not build up. On other rims, I use a pressure washer, and a sponge stuck on the end of a "reaching stick".
MMD and I talked about this same thing on the "wash 997" thread a while back.
. I have my Boxster hand washed every week or two (with manual aftercare by me) and polish it twice a year. The paint is also protected by Diamond brite paint sealant which I hope to keep fresh by monthly applications of a conserver. The leather gets cleaned and conserved about every month or two and I plan on applying the rag top conserver once a year as well (haven't done it yet). The wheel insides are cleaned with towels, under a lot of curses on my side and amused comments on my neighbours' side. I'm contemplating to try the long handled brush though.. maybe that spares me the bruises on the back of my hands.
