Jack,

Good process. Also didn't know about fake chamois taking wax off.

As for the water blade scratching....if there is *NO* debris left on the paint, there is NO WAY the blade will scratch. If you've ever seen one, you'd understand.

I highly suspect that what happened in these cases is that there was some sort of debris on the paint and it was dragged across the paint by the water blade...this is completely w/in the realm of possibility.

This same thing could happen if using any sort of towel to dry to car. Only way to avoid this particular scenario is to either use the leaf blower OR make absolutely sure there is no debris before using the towel or water blade.

The leaf blower tactic certainly is great for getting water out of all those hard to get spots tho...if you really want to go ALL OUT on your car wash day, the leaf blower is a must IMO.

I hope you understood that it was the REAL chamois that can pull off all your wax. It was a surprise to me because I always thought that the real chamois was the way to go.

When you use the blade to dry your car, do you use it in a particular direction? Front/back, side/side? Luckily I wash my car on my steep driveway and the water tends roll off my car pretty easily so drying isn't so difficult.

Jack,

Actually, I thoght you were saying it was the fake chamois that removed the wax...well, looks like I'll completely avoid chamois for now on. I haven't actually used one in years anyway.

As far as the Ca blade, I only remove the water in one direction...whether it's from front to back or side to side.

I was considering buying one of those but someone on a newsgroup warned that if my car wasn't completely clean, I would end up scratching my paint. I currently use cotton terry cloths but is the water blade that much more dangerous than the the terry cloths? If not, I will buy one.

__________________
1985 500SEL 124k miles
2001 Honda Civic EX

Snowman:

The problem is having any sort of debris being caught under the blade OR a towel. Either one can end up causing scratching if this happens.

IMO, with the way that I wash my cars, I would have an equally possible chance of causing scratching if I use either.

bottom line...the blade does not inherently cause scraching anymore than a towel does.

Only sure fire way to avoid this issue is to use something like a leafblower

Thanks ck42, I think I will go ahead and order a water blade then.

__________________
1985 500SEL 124k miles
2001 Honda Civic EX

The best way to dry a car is high speed, 80-100mph does the best results for me. In bad driving conditions I use my leaf blower.

__________________
Current Stable:
01 ML55 AMG
92 500E (a few mods)
87 300E (lots of mods)
00 Chevy 3500HD Diesel Box Truck
68 18' Donzi Marine
06 GT i-Drive7 1.0 Mountain Bike (with GPS!)

PREVIOUSLY OWNED:83 300SD, 87 420SEL, 88 420SEL, 90 420SEL, 86 560SEL, 86 190E 2.3-16V AMG, 94 E320

The freeway drive is the most fun way to dry the car. But if I want to be really anal, I use the blower. Using the driving method, I can think of my nice and clean wet car and imagine dirt blowing off a dump truck, dust or rocks on the road, etc. A damp car can attract all of that.

I would use a spotless rinse on a dark color. Silver and other lighter colors are less likely to show scratches so you could use what ever you want.

Black, blue, and dark reds should use a spotless rinse. I usually use a car was(high pressure). They must use a soft agent like the softener in your house to eliminate deposits.

Norm

I use a windshield wiper blade (winter blade) to first remove most of the water from the roof hood trunk windows and sides of the vehicle, then towel dry ( cotton terry cloth towel) the remaining water from the finish.The blade and the towel must be 100% COMPLETELY dirt and contaminate free or you will scratch the finish.
I have used this system for over 30 years and have never damaged the finish on any of my cars.

Bill

__________________
J. William Tarbrake
NY State Dealer 7014303DLU
Registered repair shop R7014303
82 300SD modified for waste vegatable oil
92 300SE 270K miles perfect
79 450SEL (2 tone custom paint for special occations) SOLD
80 450SL
79 450SL 69K Miles FOR SALE
86 Carver 28 Voyager twin 270 Crusaders (SOLD)
94 CARVER 32 Voyager(SOLD)
67 Chris Craft 40' Aft Cabin(twin ford 427 side oilers)

I use the Ca. water blade. works great. Have never scratched the finish on the 300TE or the 900S. By the way Sam's Club has them for $12.95.