Acenines3

I use [U]The Absorber[U] Available at AutoZone and other part stores.

C82LT

Amazingly, chemical guys is always cheaper than amazon. I saved $30 on my polisher kit by buying direct. It took a couple extra days to arrive but I wasn’t in a rush. There was a sale and I also got some other towels. No tax and free shipping.

ExRedRacer

All you need....nothing touches the surface except air. Only use it on the car.

segen77

I have a buddy that is a professional detailer. He swears by these towels and the Opti-Coat products for wash/wax etc.

mschuyler

Well, they haven't scratched mine, but I always inspect it beforehand to ensure it hasn't picked up a piece of gritty sand. Besides which, it would have to grit through the ceramic coating before it even got to the clearcoat. Unless you can document your claim here, I'm thinking it is in the realm of the mythological.

segen77

Here's a write up on his method if you're interested.

https://acurazine.com/forums/wash-wa.../#post15009275

madrob2020

Water blade-waffle weave (awesome at soaking up water). But, I really need to get a leaf blower. I believe it would be the best of both worlds! The less touching the finish the better.

tarepas

Microfiber needs a SPECIAL soap. Try Griot;s Using mine for over 5 yrs and they are STILL great.

owc6

Griot's is great, and I have some really old MF cloths that are among my favorites.

C82LT

Watch the video here:
https://www.ammonyc.com/shop/ammo-hydrate/
He specifically calls out blades.

Grzldvt1

Whoa!!! Lots of misinformation in here....
I have been an advisor to several MF weavers out of Korea to set a base. Why, I know my towels. When you are dealing with $1/4 to $1/2 million dollar cars on a weekly basis, you better know your stuff.
I have been using the some of same towels for over 10 years in a detailing shop and they are as good as when I bought them. So let's dispel the myth that good quality towels will wear out if well taken care of.

Cliiff notes: Several reason MF towels are not absorbing water
a) They have been dried so hot the microfiber has melted and no longer absorbs.
b) A soap was used that has a softener in it, or a softener was added to the wash/rinse cycle. This puts an oil in the towel and does not allow the fibers to absorb water
c) The water is so hard mineral content has built up in the towel, blocking its ability to absorb.
d) Have not see a big box MF towel that are good beyond 2-3 washes. (See #4)
e) Not a fan of Waffle Weaves for dark cars. I have seen the tiny edge of the "waffle" micro mar the paint. I only use a large "flat" towel, and compressed air to dry cars in my shop.

So onto the detailed information:

1). Microfibers DO NOT need special soap. Ordinary Tide works great, not the perfumed one, just plain old Tide. Never wash your Microfibers with your clothes or cotton towels, they need to be a separate wash on their own. If your water is softened or not, put 1/4 cup of vinegar for every level of water... ie small load gets 1/4 cup, half a load gets 1/2 cup, a large load gets 3/4's a cup, in the rinse cycle when it fills for a rinse agitation(I wash my shop towels a second time in vinegar) Vinegar is a natural water softener and dissolves the mineral content that builds up and removes any excess soap.
2) Drying microfiber towels - Always use a delicate drying cycle, and NEVER let them dry completely or get hot. The material is very sensitive to heat . Will you see a melted mess, NOPE, but it is there if they got extremely hot.
3) What Kind of Microfiber Towels Should I Buy?
When purchasing for auto detail use always make sure there is a label specifying the Polyester/Polyamide mix. Almost all “synthetic Microfiber towels are made up of a Polyester/Polyamide content mix. It is the Polyamide content that determines the towels softness and when mixed with the Polyester helps prevent scratching/swirl marks.

For detailing purposes you should get towels with a maximum of 80% Polyester and a minimum of 20% Polyamide. A 75/25 or a 70/30 indicates a softer towel, but not necessarily a better quality towel. Some of the lower cost manufacturers will use the label number prior to weaving versus after weaving. The weaving process has a tendency to raise the Polyester number and lower the Polyamide number. There is really no clear cut way to tell other than the CD test.
Do not use anything above 80% Polyester, they will scratch. I have had customers buy the 3M House cleaning cloths, or Makeup removal towels that are a 90/10 mix and then wonder why they have swirl marks.

4) How do I Know if I Have a Good Towel or Bad?
There is the infamous CD Test to test the quality of your towels. Take a CD, generally one you don’t really care about, and rub the towel in a straight line with fairly heavy pressure on the recording(ed) side. If you see scratches in the direction you were rubbing, that is happening to your paint.
I have actually taken a CD into the store and done the test before buying a towel I want to test.
If you see scratches, relegate that towel to windows, or wheels.
Hope this helps a bit

LIE2ME

I use an Air Force "Master Blaster". It's like a leaf blower on steroids. This hand held jet engine will blow the peel off a banana. Pricey (about $300.00), but WOW!

~Stingray

MF towels can be bought anywhere, don't waste the money at a specialty store.

MF towels work best when already wet, otherwise they will push the water around. And as time goes on, they wear out, just like any rag or items in the world. Even tshirts start tear in the place where you grab them to take them off.

The waffle towels are great for drying as they are big and require less ringing out. I have never done a comparison, but they both absorb water quickly. I used to use a MF towel for drying the whole car before I was given a waffle towel as part of a free gift. Still use MF towels to dry my wheels.

pickleseimer

^ This. If you're going to use a MF towel to pick up a liquid that has more quantity than a mist, then the towel needs to be slightly damp. Soak a towel under the faucet, wring it out as much as possible, and then use it to pick up the liquid.

I use a blower to dry the car, and either the method above or a MF towel specifically made for drying to clean up any drips afterward.

AttyVette

AgreeMaster Blaster (twin 4 hp-total 8 hp)--blows water off my vehicles and is awesome! Well worth the price imo. This is the one I own-Metro Air Force Master Blaster Dryer

ea327

Wow! I thought it was just me. I hate the way they feel on my hands!

Italianfox

You can get the same thing at Wally World for $10.00. Different brand but thick and wooley. Works well for me. One dries the entire car easily

yeller z06

Typical for this forum. Lots of chaff to work through.
Now see, this is useful information! We have moderately hard water, so that would explain some of my towels' performance issues.

Thanks Grzldvt1


I'll also throw in my .02 that the California water blade is great, won't scratch if used properly and kept clean. Rubbing anything on your paint is going to cause scratches or a light haze eventually. Towels, wash mitts, brushes, whatever. That's why we have polish.

RMS73

There is a video at autoblog on MF towels and which ones to use for what.

Red15lt1

Is it really that much better then a leaf blower? I have a $550 Stihl backpack blower that I use then follow it up with 5 min of microfiber work. Im sure it would be easier to use, but that does seem pricey for a 1 trick pony. Looked it up on amazon and it did get amazing reviews though.