Advise from the pro's on drying black cars

Secret Chimp said:
Guys, if you use a leaf blower, you are just asking for trouble. 99% of them are not filtered and will blow dust and dirt at your cars finish at about 150mph. This will damage your cc just as quickly as drying the paint with a dirty towel would.

Spend that $100 of a 2 gallon air compressor, air filter and a blow gun tip. You'll get a much higher pressure blast of air...and since it is properly filtered, you won't be blasting contaminants into the finish.

SC~
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Can you recommend a brand,model, where to buy? For $100 that really sounds decent, beats the Air Wand

raymond_ho2002 said:
What I like to do is to blot the car first. I use a cotton bath towel and just lay the towel down on the surfaces without wiping, give it a second or two to absorb, and then lift off. The panel is almost completely dry after doing this, and there really isn't any marring at all since you're not moving the towel against the paint. I finish off drying using a small waffle weave. I've never had to worry about saturating a waffle weave when I do this.
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I do just about the same,instead of a cotton bath towel, I have an over sized DF Towel. So the over sized DF Towel, a few ww mfs, a bottle of QD, maybe a regular size DF Towel is my line up for drying. I also have one of those inexpensive "car dryer" sorta mini electric leaf blowers, has a rubber tip: I use that to get water out of seams, door jams, windows, etc. So far, no marring from that :dunno. I do like the compressed air setup idea. I abandoned thinking about one because I never saw one in action with the right attachment
 
I spent about $240 for both my compressor and blow gun, but I run Impact wrenches and what not off of it, so that's probably overkill for most detailing applications. Try the craftsman compressors, they're really good and they might have one that someone used once and returned, that's how I saved $100 on mine. Basically any compressor will work if your just going to be using a blow gun or a tire chuck, so if they're having a sale over at Wally World, go for it. I got mine so that I could use a Pneumatic Rotary which is about 1/4 the weight of an electric.
 
I use a Campbell Hausfeld (sp?) 2 gallon compressor that I got from Harbor Freight. With a blower attached, you can drain the tank in about 2 minutes. I rarely need more than a minute...just a quick once over the body seams.

If you are planning on running tools, like impact wrenches or cutters, you will need a bigger tank because you need 3-4 cfm of air. A 2 gallon little tank can't provide that quantity of air for very long.

SC~
 
Just about any compressor will hold enough air to do a whole car. You'll find that it's really good at getting water out of seams, but if you try to do an entire car with it you'll end up being there for hours. I blast the seams out with the air, then go over it with a cobra WW drying towel, works like a charm.
 
It's very likely I would be there for hours already just washing ;).I suppose I'll stick with my electric car dryer for now, if no other reason, for the sake of space. Thanks any way though!
 
I always wash the outsid eof my car first and then i let it sit while i clean the whole inside of the car. Once i am done on the inside there is minimal water still left so i use my WW MF to blot dry. Then i remove any small water marks or imperfections with QD. I love the PB QD, two thumbs up :headbang
 
I do the reverse i.e. clean /vacuum the interior first due to potential safety hazard of standing water from washing first being present around electrical cords.
 
If using an air compressor, you should have some sort of filter in the air line. When air is compressed and then cooled in a tank it causes moisture. The moisture can then cause rust to form inside of the tank and over time it can come loose and travel through the air hose. Some older compressors also use oil as the rings become worn. This can cause a small amount of oil to travel through the air line. There are many different types of filters available for different purposes. Back on topic ... Be careful when blowing off the water, because hidden dirt can also be blown out of the cracks and creases in the process.
 
Here is a compressor that i will be picking up and is on sale for $99
made by porter cable.


New Husky Easy Air to Go Compressor has a new telescoping handle and wheels for convenient, portable use. The new cord wrap feature reduces storage size when not in use. Inflate tires and sporting equipment, blow up balloons and beach toys, or air blow dry and clean with the 5 piece Inflation Kit and Blow Gun. Maximize your storage space by using the 7 Piece Deflation Kit to eliminate unwanted air in sealable storage bags or inflatable items, like rafts and air mattresses. The 1.75 gallon air reservoir increases run time of air tools for maximum use and efficiency. The 25' hose recoils for quick clean up.

• 135 Max PSA and 2 SCFM at 90 PSI provides enough air for brad nailing, paint spraying, inflation and more.
• Comes with a 7 piece air deflation kit, hose, blow gun and 5 piece air inflation kit
• Oil-free, maintenance-free pump
• Quite operation
• Weighs only 26 Lbs.
http://www.homedepot.com/prel80/HDUS/EN_US/diy_main/pg_diy.jsp?prod_id=167336
 
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